Forum Activity for @Paul Ireson

DIY enrobing machine?

Posted in: Geek Gear - Cool Tools

I've been toying with the idea of making a small tempering/enrobing machine - I'm thinking that in principle they're not *too* complicated, and at present I'm producing quite small quantities of truffles so a big machine would be overkill (and more than I can afford).

I'm thinking of something along the lines of... taking a small chocolate fountain machine (as it has a pump and heating element), adding thermostatic control to the heating element to allow tempering, then adding some tubing to re-route the chocolate flow to a simple 'waterfall' positioned over a simple conveyer belt (that might take a small dip downwards through a trough to cover the truffle bases)

Now there's plenty of detail to get right there, but I'm just wondering if anyone has tried anything like this before and has any pointers...

updated by @Paul Ireson: 04/10/15 03:41:51

Trouble with white chocolate consistency for dipping

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

Ah, I'm with you - thanks, that's making sense, and rather fascinating. A tricky issue to manage if that's what's going on. I'll have a shot at working at the highest possible temperature, as you suggest, and maybe a larger volume of chocolate to dip in.

If that doesn't give satisfactory results then perhaps go back to the moulding route, as Daniel suggests

Trouble with white chocolate consistency for dipping

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

Hi Clay, Daniel,

THanks for the thoughts...

I hear what you say about the cold centres cooling the couverture too quickly, and maybe that is the issue - but as the centres spend relatively little time in there, and more importantly take with them out of the bath of chocolate that portion which has been cooled, I suspect the amount of heat 'drain' isn't actually that significant. Also, I'm not seeing a dramatic drop in chocolate temperature on the thermometer. But on the other hand I don't have a better theory

Taking the moulded route rather than dipped could make sense, and maybe I should give that another shot. I tried it before, but probably wasn't using suitable moulds - the main problem for me was getting a decent (not too thick, not too thin, reasonably even) shell thickness.

Trouble with white chocolate consistency for dipping

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

Greetings chocoholics!

I'm having trouble dipping truffle centres in white chocolate, and I'm hoping someone can help out...

I'm dipping by hand, small batches, and using Valrhona Ivoire. Heating with a double boiler, following Valrhona's suggested temperature curve, and seeding with chips of the Ivoire.

Also - and this may be significant I'm adding a very small amount of lemon zest to the chocolate.

The problem I have is that the melted Ivoire isn't quite fluid enough, and seems to become less fluid after I start dipping. On its way down to 79/80F it seems to have a good consistency, but less so once it has reached the lower temperature and is then heated to working temperature.

I expecially want a fairly fluid chocolate here as the centres that I'm dipping have to come more or less straight out of the freezer (they're quite creamy, and too soft at room temperature to dip), and I want them to spend as little time as possible in the chocolate... and the thicker consistency (compared to the dark chocolate I'm working with) is making this difficult.

Can I thin the chocolate slightly with cocoa butter perhaps? Or am I maybe not being quite careful enough with temperature?

updated by @Paul Ireson: 05/09/15 23:24:40