Forum Activity for @Sarah Hart

Guitar

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

Wow, Thanks. Yes, the chefrubber thing nearly gave me a heart attack. I like a lot of their products but agree that they are costly. I will check out D & R. That is more in the price range I was thinking, that is for sure!THanks for the info. Are you having fun with your new cutter? Did you survive the holidays intact? I loved the snow but it did put a bit of a crimp on business at the shop...Happy new year,s

Guitar

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

A coupla years ago I got a guitar (the plastic base one) and it is okay. I sure wish I would have read this before and held out for the Dedy! But the one I have works okay, except that several of the strings are broken from early on and the replacement wire bought through places like chefrubber is very expensive. From what I can figure out, it is some kind of stainless steel wire. Can anyone tell me if it is something special, or where I might be able to find such wire? I read the word "Inox wire" related to it, does that mean anything to anyone?

Call For Entries: The Next Generation Chocolate Competition

Posted in: News & New Product Press

Hey, so I am a big dork and I can't figure out how to fill out an application that is in Pdf. Can someone clue me in on how to fill out the application part of this thing? D'oh!

Call For Entries: The Next Generation Chocolate Competition

Posted in: News & New Product Press

I understood it to mean that there are two categories and the "rising star" part is for those 5 years and less, and the rest is open to anyone making artisan chocolates.

The BEST candy thermometer? Help!

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

We are thermometer impaired at Alma chocolate. And I need recomendations for the very best candy thermometer money can buy. I don't care what it costs-- well I do care-- but figure I've already invested a small fortune in crappy ones. I need it primarily for caramel making which we do a lot of-- so it needs to go higher than 305 degrees. Hilliards has a couple but I don't want to spend the money unless I've had a good report. THANKS!!!
updated by @Sarah Hart: 05/08/15 02:54:53

Top 10 most expensive chocolates

Posted in: Opinion

Re: # 2) Cocoa Gourmet--That is just craziness--- I know because we custom gold leaf some of our chocolates, so I am very aware of the time and cost involved in gilding chocolates. They are marking those up by about 250 dollars each, I imagine! Wow.

Theo Chocolate Tasting Notes

Posted in: Tasting Notes

I agree about the fig and fennel bar, but I have not tasted the hazelnut one. In Theo's fig and fennel bon bon the flavors are really nice, though. More balanced, chocolatey and figgie.I really like Theo's bread and chocolate bar. The saltiness of the buttered bread is subtle (you can still taste the chocolate) but reminds you of a lovely chocolate croissant- just more chocolatey, much more. I think it is a nicely balanced bar.I like the curry bar, alot. Though, I would say it is more of a candy bar* than a chocolate bar. By that I mean that the flavors are more pronounced than the chocolate, and sweetness-- but really pleasantly so. I think the flavors in the curry bar are pretty balanced, too. You taste the coconut and the curry and the sweetness.*(I think this is true of a lot of the Vosges bars, too-where the overall expereince is often yummy but not always chocolatey).

Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate

Posted in: Tasting Notes

I agree that Xocolatl's Pig's blood ganache is weird - but I have tried it and it works. It took me a while to screw up the courage to taste it but I trust David, he is good. And the blood/chocolate connection is not so far fetched, really, if you think about it.I love the sound of all of those Jamaican chocolates. YUM.

Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate

Posted in: Tasting Notes

So, what is "weird" to those of us who live and breathe chocolate is probably pretty different from what is weird to the general public. I have noted that there are still many people who come into my shop or by our farmer's market booth who react to some flavors as "weird" that all of us would consider old hat. That is fun, getting to see skepticism turn to enthusiasm, even if it is something very basic to me.When I see what I think is a weird flavor, it is like a mental puzzle-- how did that chocolatier get there--what were they thinking, how does it work? I learn a lot that way. I am still stumped by one flavor I heard of from a London chocolate shop-- tobacco. I can see how that might work flavor wise- the smokey, bitey intensity of tobacco makes sense with chocolate, yes. But what I remember about consuming tobacco (as a teenager exploring "chew") is that it made me barf. So, how does a tobacco chocolate not make you physically sick?

Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate

Posted in: Tasting Notes

We do a blue cheese stuffed black mission fig on a candied pecan. I guess it is weird, but it rocks! It is all about balance, baby!

Cool Tool: Chocoflex Spherical Truffle Mold

Posted in: Geek Gear - Cool Tools

I don't have a problem with time- it is a pretty soft, but not runny cream and butter caramel- so I just pour it directly in the molds and scrape off the excess.Back to the freezing of the caramels- how about protein based ones? I am worried that the cream ones might get "funny". Have you tried those? What kind of caramels are you using in these molds Robert?

Cool Tool: Chocoflex Spherical Truffle Mold

Posted in: Geek Gear - Cool Tools

I had similar mixed results with the flat round molds, Melanie, and at $80 plus a pop, I expected better. I have found that if I spray them with a vegetable spray it helps. Opposite to my intuition a creamier ganache works better for me in these than a firmer one. I did try caramels and they came out GREAT, and when I can afford it I will get more just for caramels which we labor many hours over with hand cutting.Robert, I am interested in the freezing step you do. Is that just to remove them? How does it affect the caramels, if it all?thx.

Cool Tool: Chocoflex Spherical Truffle Mold

Posted in: Geek Gear - Cool Tools

we got a few of the round flat ones for bon bons. Mixed results getting the ganache out-- found that refrigerating them some helps as does spraying the mold with oil. But I have had mixed satisfaction considering these are $80 a pop. I would like to know what results people get with caramels in them. If they worked for caramel it would be worth it as a guitar doesn't cut caramel and we sell a lot of freaking hand cut ones. This could be a lifesaver.

Cool Tool: Chocoflex Spherical Truffle Mold

Posted in: Geek Gear - Cool Tools

So, I clicked on the link but even when I clicked on "English" I had some trouble understanding the site. Do they have North American Distribution?

Brands of and Sources for Organic Couverture

Posted in: Classifieds F/S or Wanted

Thanks Hallot,What you say about el-rey is pretty much what they told me via email, but it is good to have it corroborated by someone who has been there. I like their chocolate a lot! Something about Venezuelan chocolate makes my mouth happy!I am happy to hear that it will most likely be shipping soon! Oy, the politics of chocolate indeed.Thanks for the info.-Sarah

Brands of and Sources for Organic Couverture

Posted in: Classifieds F/S or Wanted

Yes! The mold material we use is from Chef Rubber.

Brands of and Sources for Organic Couverture

Posted in: Classifieds F/S or Wanted

Hi.I am pleased you know Alma! Yay. I know Carrie Floyd at Culinate, we met in Eugene in the 80's and remet through Buckman elementary where our kids go to school. I'll look for your blog entries! Thanks for the link to my site. I don't know how to do things like add links! Those aren't antique molds, though they are meant to look old! Those are gilded chocolate "icons" from molds I designed and that my friend Scott Foster sculpted and cast.An interesting coincidence, my husband runs a literary festival here called "Wordstock". He was in NYC visiting publishers earlier this spring and doing some chocolate sleuthing for me. Long story short your book arrived at his desk today! The publisher thought he'd like to see it! Small world, indeed!

Brands of and Sources for Organic Couverture

Posted in: Classifieds F/S or Wanted

Hi, I will look into the Belize trip. My shop is in Portland, Oregon. It is called Alma chocolate.I have never met Shawn Askinosie but I grew up in Springfield, Missouri and so many of my friends and relations there do know him. We are probably going there for a visit this summer and I hope to meet him finally.

Brands of and Sources for Organic Couverture

Posted in: Classifieds F/S or Wanted

I am glad to see this discussion. I started out my business with Dagoba and switched before they were sold because of irregularity in availability. I still use plantations, quite a lot but only for a few things as I find its flavor is really distinct and doesn't always blend well with herbs, etc. in some of the confections we make. I like Venezuelan chocolate, and although El rey is neither Organic nor fair trade certified, I think they address these issues at least in their mission. I wonder if anyone has first hand knowlege of their practices? This seems to be a moot point at least temporarily as the political climate between Venezuela and the US means no El Rey coming in to the country now. Still I'd like to know if people have inside info re: el rey. I do like their Apamate.I've queried Theo about couverture but they are not offering that wholesale.I was signed up to go on that 2005 trip to Ecuador with Pierick, Clay! I was just launching my storefront and had to cancel for cash flow reasons! It still smarts that I couldn't go!

Review of "The Chocolate Guide: Western Edition"

Posted in: Opinion

Thanks for the review, Clay. I saw it at Powell's and glanced through it and even at a glance I found errors. It is a really good idea and it would be cool to see it more fully realized, and including Alma chocolate, of course

Trader Joe's 72% Chocolate Bars...

Posted in: Opinion

I thought I heard somewhere that the TJ pound plus was Callebaut, though I can't say where or when or even why I think that. I could've just "decided" that myself long ago and then it became "Truth" in my head. Anyone able to verify?