Buying All The Things

I think I mentioned in an earlier post that I quickly realized when I started the Professional Chocolatier program that to get the most out of it and meet the standard set by instructors, tutors, and peers (which was higher than I'd initially anticipated), I felt I couldn't just "make do" with what I had. Instead, I decided to invest in a few additional tools and supplies. It's been an expensive few weeks, so I thought you might like to see what I purchased.

First, there's the chocolate. I was required to purchase 5kg (3kg dark, 1kg milk, 1kg white) for the course. I chose Callebaut, which I ordered from Ontario. Pictured is 4kg of the 5kg -- the other kilo has been melted and tempered four times during practice sessions and doesn't look as pretty.

I also was required to purchase a variety of chocolates for a tasting assignment that's coming up in a few weeks. And, now that I'm getting into this, I feel a compulsion to buy just about every different brand of dark chocolate that I stumble upon for research purposes. I don't think I've ever had this much chocolate in my apartment before.

Then there's the stuff to decorate the chocolate. The cocoa butter transfer sheets were required for an assignment. We were told to purchase as small a quantity as possible, but I wanted options so I ordered three instead of one. They are at least double the size I had anticipated. It's hard to see, but one has a gold swirl pattern, one has white snowflakes, and the third has red hearts.

The bottles of pre-coloured cocoa butter for painting chocolates were optional, but once I started developing my products through the first assignment, I felt like I had to have them. I bought white shimmer and ocean blue. Stay tuned.

Then there were a few additional purchases for the actual process of melting chocolate. First, a microwave safe bowl, since I couldn't confirm that the mixing bowls I already owned were indeed microwave safe (the sticker only said dishwasher).

Following my first tempering attempt, though, I realized I needed a new spatula that was silicone from tip to end, as well as a more flexible "bench scraper" for use on the marble. I found myself in the paint department buying a putty knife. It works beautifully.

Finally, I felt the need to buy professional chocolate molds. I already own a variety of chocolate molds for the home chef. These molds work perfectly fine for small batches of chocolate, but they typically aren't as deep as professional molds (making it more challenging to make filled centres). As well, professional molds are usually made of polycarbonate, rather than a more flexible plastic, and they result in a glossier finished surface. Because they don't have the "lip" usually found on the edge of the home versions, it's much easier to fill them and scrape the excess chocolate back into the bowl for reuse. I bought two for now, but I know that I'll be buying more in the future.

I also have to give a shout-out to two friends: Diane and Leanne. Diane gave me a small marble slab for Christmas, which has been critical for my tabliering sessions. Leanne just gave me a heat gun, which I'll use to keep my chocolate in temper while enrobing centres. I truly appreciate the support and will repay them with -- you guessed it -- chocolate!

I've also been very lucky that my mother likes to give me kitchen gadgets as presents. For example, I didn't have to buy a set of dipping forks because my mother gave me a set two years ago (long before I ever thought about taking this course).

I've found one more item that I desperately want to buy, but it's pricey. It's a small appliance for tempering chocolate and then holding it in temper while you work. I can't really justify the expense now, but I've decided that it may be a present to myself when I successfully complete the program.

So how about you? When you start something new, do you make do or do you buy all the things?

Watching My Temper

The second assignment for the Professional Chocolatier program focuses on two methods for tempering chocolate: tabliering and seeding. While I'd had success with seeding before, I'd never tried tabliering.

Tabliering is the traditional process for tempering chocolate, which has been used since chocolate for eating (as opposed to drinking) became a thing. You melt your chocolate, toss 1/3 to 1/2 of it on a marble slab, move it around as it cools to form the right crystal structure, and then toss it back into the bowl with the rest of the melted chocolate to get it back up to a working temperature. Part one of the tempering assignment was a modified version of this process that also required we hold the chocolate in temper for 20 minutes. To check for temper, we did parchment tests at various intervals.

I won't bore you with the details, but let me just say that my first attempt at this -- while it appears to have "worked" -- would have made for a very entertaining video. My workspace isn't really set up for the right flow (no direct line from marble slab to microwave). I felt strangely "unsafe" because I had a heating pad plugged into the outlet on my stove and a hair dryer plugged into the outlet next to my sink (don't worry -- I made sure there was no water around, if not to prevent electrocution, to prevent chocolate from seizing). The one time I tried to test temperature with a thermometer (not required for the assignment), I accidentally dropped it into the bowl of melted chocolate. And I felt very frantic moving between checking temper tests, making notes, setting timers, heating my chocolate, removing it from the heating pad to keep it from overheating, and so on. The image of Lucy working in the chocolate factory came to mind. Deciding that was enough for one night, I cleaned everything up and made a few notes.

Two nights later, I attempted part two of the assignment, which focused on seeding. In seeding, you melt 5 parts chocolate to break down all of the existing crystal structures, you then add in 1 part unmelted chocolate that is already in a tempered state (for example, unmelted callets). The beta 5 crystals from those callets or chocolate buttons encourage the formation of more as they melt and lower the temperature of the chocolate. Again, I was required to hold the chocolate in temper for 20 minutes, checking with parchment tests periodically.

Now, this part of the assignment didn't feel nearly as frantic as the first, perhaps because I was better prepared after completing the first part. As well, this method doesn't require the same level of physical coordination that tabliering does. It does, however, take much longer. I'm still having some issues with my stirring technique. I seem to be introducing some air bubbles in the process, even though this time I kept telling myself to push the chocolate or be more like a paddle. If anyone has ideas for good stirring technique to avoid introducing air into the chocolate, let me know!

All in all, I feel like I've been pretty successful with these first attempts and I'm beginning to formulate responses to various questions that are part of the written submission for the assignment. I do wonder if it was just beginner's luck, because there's no question that I need to practice both techniques to really get comfortable with them. If I ever master tabliering, I'll post a video.

Until then, may I suggest you treat yourself to some chocolate?