Forum Activity for @Tien Chiu

Two-color chocolate transfer sheet problems

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, & Techniques

I'm having trouble with some two-color transfer sheets I had custom printed. In the past, I've used single-color custom transfer sheets from the same manufacturer without problems, but for some reason the second color in the two-color sheets is not adhering properly (see photo at bottom).

The transfer sheets are printed with vegetable fats (not cocoa butter). The gold "outline" is actually a solid gold shape with the red printed on top. I'm dipping my room-temperature centers in tempered chocolate (Valrhona Extra Bitter) and immediately putting the transfer sheets on top, as I've done in the past. Then I allow it to harden for several hours to overnight at room temperature (65-70 degrees). But the transfer sheets are not transferring properly.

I've noticed in the past that the vegetable-fat transfer sheets seem to require more time to bond with the chocolate. I tried leaving the chocolates overnight to see if that improved adherence, but no luck. I also tried chilling the chocolates in the refrigerator to firm up the chocolate coating. Chilling for 20-30 minutes had no effect. Chilling for several hours did work, but of course would cause problems with moisture as soon as the chocolates were removed.

I'm wondering whether anyone can provide suggestions, either for how to make these sheets work, or how to fabricate a custom transfer sheet that will adhere better. I'm particularly wondering if the vegetable fat base is part of the problem - I've noticed that transfer sheets with actual cocoa butter transfer faster. If so, I'd also love to know where I can get small runs of custom transfer sheets that are printed with cocoa butter, not vegetable fat.

Thanks!

Tien

updated by @tienchiu: 04/13/15 18:52:20

Problems with chocolate molds

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, & Techniques

Thanks Ruth and Nat! I got the humidity in my working area down to 52% and tried again. Between Ruth's hint to increase the working temperature and Nat's to lower the humidity, the molds came out perfect and the chocolate stayed fluid while dipping.Muchas gracias!!

Problems with chocolate molds

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, & Techniques

Thanks! I'll look into getting a hygrometer and maybe pick up a cheap dehumidifier today. I make my annual batch of chocolates (about 60 lb) over Thanksgiving weekend, so waiting for a better time doesn't really work for me. I live in the San Francisco area (actually on the SF Peninsula about 40 miles south of SF), so our climate/humidity is pretty dry most of the time - except for a few rainstorms in the winter. This weekend's weather has been most unusual - heavy rain and thunderstorms, which are practically unheard of here - so it sounds like I've just been hit with bad timing!Thanks so much for your help!

Problems with chocolate molds

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, & Techniques

Hi Nat,Thanks for the references! They were really helpful.I'm using Tomric polycarbonate molds (which I gather might be part of my problem) to cast shells for some bonbons. The molds are at room temperature and being cooled at room temperature. (I'm not a professional chocolatier, so I don't have climate control, though I could perhaps try to contrive something with a space heater and fan). What is the optimal temperature for casting bonbon shells?But I think part of the culprit might be the humidity! It is pouring rain outside and is expected to pour all weekend, so we have very high humidity. I will try again later this week when it's a bit sunnier and drier out.Could the humidity be causing my other problem, which is the chocolate thickening too fast? I am tempering by heating the chocolate to 120F or so, then dumping it into the tempering machine, putting tempered chocolate on the other side of the tempering machine, and allowing the machine to cool to the proper temperature. Then I leave the machine on and the bowl rotating while I dip the chocolates.In the past this has worked OK, but this year I'm lucky if I get 20-30 minutes of working time before the stuff thickens and I have to temper again. Any suggestions?

Problems with chocolate molds

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, & Techniques

Hi all,

In years past I have been able to use chocolate molds successfully. This year I am having problems, possibly because I switched tempering methods? (I was tabling the chocolate on a granite slab, now I'm using a tempering machine.) The chocolate does not set up correctly. I have tried it using freshly tempered chocolate, and while the knife-dip test sets correctly, and the chocolates I dipped immediately before AND after casting the molds set up correctly, the mold cavities are full of streaky chocolate that doesn't look tempered at all.

My room temperature is 70F, and the chocolate is at ~89F (as far as I can tell; my thermometer appears to be "off" despite calibration and despite being approved for industry, so I have been using the lip test more than the thermometer to determine tempering). I'm working with Valrhona, a mix of Alpaco and Extra Bitter. And, as I said, dipped chocolates seem to be coming out fine with the same bowl of chocolate, it's only the molds that are going wrong.

Any thoughts on what I could be doing wrong?

Tien

updated by @tienchiu: 04/18/15 23:10:30

using ganache cutters

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, & Techniques

Wonderful!! Thanks so much to both of you.

using ganache cutters

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, & Techniques

Hi all,I just got a set of ganache cutters, but am wondering - do you bottom them before or after cutting the shape? And if you do it after cutting, how do you apply the chocolate? I was thinking of a small pastry brush, but can it be done with an icing spatula?Any other tips for working with ganache cutters?
updated by @tienchiu: 05/05/15 06:06:42