Forum Activity for @danielle2

F/S - Santha 20 Melangeur

Posted in: Classifieds F/S or Wanted

Hi I sent an email to the email above. 

Colombian cacao and cocoa butter.

Posted in: The Cocoa Exchange

Hello!  

After 2 years of living and working in Colombia, I finally have access to some cacao and an affordable way to ship it.  

I have a small chocolate factory in Medellin.  We are origencacao.com.

I have 4 different beans that I am working with right now, all are available on a regular basis in small and large lots. I purchase directly from the farmer, indigenous tribe, or co-op.  I pay above market prices for quality beans.  

Tumaco:  These beans are from a small Co-Op of 20 families.  The beans are all processed in one fermenting station supervised by someone trained at the university and Fedecacao in the art of fermentation.   The beans arrive clean and presorted.  These beans are a wonderful true chocolate flavor, well balanced with a hint of tree nut.  I use these beans for all my cacao products (nibs, nut clusters, etc) and for a 74% chocolate bar, and a 55% chocolate that I make filled bars and barks with.  

Santander:  These beans come from farms bordering the Rio Carare, in what was very dangerous territory not long ago.  Most are brought to market via mule and river boat.  I find these beans to have notes of red fruits and a hint of floral.  I use these beans for a 67% chocolate bar that is a best seller.   These beans come from a mix of old and new trees.

Antioquia:  These beautiful beans are new to me from a wonderful farmer in Maceo.  He has an old farm where you can find trees as old as 60 years.  He is currently working with Fedecacao to create new hybrids for this particular region.  With a high percentage of porcelana beans, these beans are very delicate.  Max of this bean is 100 kilos a month. 

Sierra Nevada:  I have been working with friends from the Arhuaco Tribe of the Sierra Nevada to develop their beans for export.  While still a bit rough, these beans are grown with beautiful intent, lovingly cared for by indigenous people.  They believe in protecting the earth and sharing their beliefs through their crops and crafts.  

Cocoa Butter:  Raw, unfiltered, un-deodorized. 

Please note that all the cacao I use is Organic.  However, it is not certified as no one in Colombia can afford those certifications.  I have been to all the farms and know their processes.  The cacao is grown naturally, as it always has been.  

You can find more information on the website.  I also host folks for bean to bar private classes in my home and factory, and can facilitate farm visits for all my origens as well as others.  

Cacao available raw, roasted, or as nibs.  I can make some coverture, but my capabilities are not huge at the moment. 

I should have the webstore at origencacao.com up and running this week, you will be able to buy beans, and all my cacao products via the website or amazon.  

Shipping is via FedEx, 2 days to the US.  

Please email me with any questions.  

Danielle

final bean temp when roasting

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

Hi, I've been roasting in a convection oven and doing alright I guess, but I am switching to a drum roaster and was hoping you all could share your final roasting temps?  Thanks!

Review of the EZtemper

Posted in: Geek Gear - Cool Tools

Hi All-

Although I have tons of experience tempering commercial chocolate, I have had a lot of trouble tempering the chocolate I am making from the bean.  And I am getting ready to start commercial production so I was looking for a way that my staff could easily temper using a machine or by hand, and how I could explain it to them if I couldn't do it myself.  My future staff is likely to have no formal education and even if I had thousands of dollars to buy an automatic tempering machine, I thought it might be hard to train them to take care of it properly.   Anyway, I saw an article about the eztemper machine, and thought, can it really be that easy?  

Yes, it is.  It is amazing!  I pulled the cocoa mass out of the melangers and put into a bowl.  I let it sit for a couple hours until it was 32-33 degrees celcius and added the 1% of seed cocoa butter from the eztemper.  I stirred well and poured directly into molds.  My chocolate came out perfect!  Its going to be so easy for me to train staff with this machine!  So worth the money.  

So, yes, its super awesome!  

Shelf stable recipes for filled bars

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

Thanks Mark, I'd love those recipes, I'm thinking york peppermint pattie and a coconut filling heavy on the shredded coconut.  I apparently can't figure out how to send you a private message, so if you like you can contact me at danikiser@gmail.com, that would be awesome.

Shelf stable recipes for filled bars

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

Hi, I'd like to create a couple filled bars and am searching for shelf stable recipes.  I'm thinking along the lines of a coconut cream or mint cream.  Thanks!

india grinder 40l= 1500 USD ??

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

Hi guys, can you give me an update on how your machines are holding up?  Thanks!