Ask the Alchemist #326

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Ask the Alchemist #326

First time maker. We had some issues for sure but the one thing you for sure take for granted is how to work somewhat cleanly, and how to handle liquid chocolate well. We made a serious mess and it was quite a process to get the melanger clean again. So turn that big brain on and dump all your knowledge about working with chocolate and cleaning.  Please be gentle with me.

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Ask the Alchemist #325

5 Comments

Ask the Alchemist #325

At this point, just make the chocolate as you would any other" isn't recipe directions. Would you call it a recipe for oatmeal cookies if I just listed the ingredients and then wrote, "Just make them like you would any other cookie"? Your "recipe" has only left me with dried nibs. Then what???

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Ask the Alchemist #324

6 Comments

Ask the Alchemist #324

First question: Am I safe to roast all (or the majority) of my cocoa at this Behmor setting/time?
Second question: When I winnow with the Champion (so far I have only hand-winnowed) and then use the Sylph,

6 Comments

Ask the Alchemist #320

16 Comments

Ask the Alchemist #320

“A year ago I took a chocolate tasting class from the IICCT.  During a tasting in the class, the instructor said that he tasted a little rancid cocoa butter in one of the samples.  He said that it is something that many of the tasters are starting to notice during some tastings.  So, if rancid cocoa butter is an issue, what temperature are we supposed to be storing it at?”

16 Comments

Ask the Alchemist #319

7 Comments

Ask the Alchemist #319

This sugar article has technically been in the making for over a decade and I realized it was time to finally put it all together and fill in some gaps in my knowledge.  To that end we made a bunch of chocolate, both dark and milk, with a wide array of sugars.  Here is our cast of characters.

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Ask the Alchemist #317

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Ask the Alchemist #317

Imagine you have a big, thick, gooey slime. Now, if you try to push your hand through the slime, it resists and feels sticky. That’s because the slime doesn’t like to move quickly when you apply force to it. We call this “viscosity.”

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