Hello everybody,

I recently inherited some very old, slightly rusty, cast iron
chocolatemolds. The kind in which you can make about 50 thin chocolates at a
time. I would like to try them, but don't know the first thing about
chocolatemaking.
I have read your faq, which was helpful, but am still in need of some
directions. Like for example, should I grease the molds and how do I get the
chocolates out of the mold once they are ready. Also some suggestions about
how to remove the rust would be welcome.
In other words, can somebody please advise me, or direct me to some sites
where I might learn. I have been searching at google, but didnot find the
kind of sites I was looking for.
Many thanks in advance
Steffie

"steffie" wrote in message
...
Hello everybody,

I recently inherited some very old, slightly rusty, cast iron
chocolatemolds. The kind in which you can make about 50 thin chocolates at
a
time. I would like to try them, but don't know the first thing about
chocolatemaking.
I have read your faq, which was helpful, but am still in need of some
directions. Like for example, should I grease the molds and how do I get
the
chocolates out of the mold once they are ready. Also some suggestions
about
how to remove the rust would be welcome.
In other words, can somebody please advise me, or direct me to some sites
where I might learn. I have been searching at google, but didnot find the
kind of sites I was looking for.
Many thanks in advance
Steffie

I can't advise you about the care of metal molds, but I can tell you that
chocolate contracts as it cools in any mold, and thus releases simply by
turning the mold upside down. Sometimes a brisk tap is required. If the
chocolate doesn't release, it usually means that it hasn't cooled
sufficiently yet. (There can be other reasons, but you probably don't need
to get into them at this point.)

Alex apparently uses metal molds--I use heavy-duty polycarbonate--so he can
fill you in on their care and use. (I believe that they are oiled only to
keep them from rusting, though.)

I don't know of any sites on making chocolates in metal molds....and the
books I have assume that one is using modern professional molds like mine. I
do recall a newspaper article, I think in the New York Times, within the
last year or so in which the writer explored the subject and consulted a
chocolatier. IIRC, the chocolatier heated his molds to 118F with a kitchen
torch before filling them. (!) Maybe if you search the Times archives you'll
find it.

In article 4_bFd.7052$7b.5129@trndny02,
"Janet Puistonen" wrote:

I don't know of any sites on making chocolates in metal molds....and the
books I have assume that one is using modern professional molds like mine. I
do recall a newspaper article, I think in the New York Times, within the
last year or so in which the writer explored the subject and consulted a
chocolatier. IIRC, the chocolatier heated his molds to 118F with a kitchen
torch before filling them. (!) Maybe if you search the Times archives you'll
find it.


This doesn't address the question in much detail, but I came across this:

http://www.e-cookbooks.net/articles/chocmold.htm

"The mold should be 88" degrees F.


I also found this one cleaning rusty molds. I am not taking a position
on whether the advice is good:

http://www.chocolatemold.net/Mold%20Cleaning.htm

--
to respond (OT only), change "spamless.invalid" to "optonline.net"

http://www.thecoffeefaq.com/

In article 4_bFd.7052$7b.5129@trndny02,
"Janet Puistonen" wrote:

I don't know of any sites on making chocolates in metal molds....and the
books I have assume that one is using modern professional molds like mine. I
do recall a newspaper article, I think in the New York Times, within the
last year or so in which the writer explored the subject and consulted a
chocolatier. IIRC, the chocolatier heated his molds to 118F with a kitchen
torch before filling them. (!) Maybe if you search the Times archives you'll
find it.


This doesn't address the question in much detail, but I came across this:

http://www.e-cookbooks.net/articles/chocmold.htm

"The mold should be 88" degrees F.


I also found this one cleaning rusty molds. I am not taking a position
on whether the advice is good:

http://www.chocolatemold.net/Mold%20Cleaning.htm

--
to respond (OT only), change "spamless.invalid" to "optonline.net"

http://www.thecoffeefaq.com/

at Wed, 12 Jan 2005 13:44:22 GMT in ,
(steffie) wrote :

Hello everybody,

I recently inherited some very old, slightly rusty, cast iron
chocolatemolds. The kind in which you can make about 50 thin chocolates
at a time. I would like to try them, but don't know the first thing
about chocolatemaking.
I have read your faq, which was helpful, but am still in need of some
directions. Like for example, should I grease the molds

Don't grease the moulds before each use, but you should keep them oiled
between uses, and this will minimise rust. Use a mild, high-stability oil.
Goose fat is one of the very best choices, and another excellent choice is
high-oleic sunflower. (But don't use regular sunflower which will
rancidify). Hazelnut oil is also good, with the special advantage of having
especially high flavour compatibility, if flavour transfer is a concern.

What you do is, after cleaning the moulds, dab a little oil on, then rub
with a fine cloth until there's the thinnest possible film coating the
entire mould. Be sure to get all corners thoroughly and also wipe off any
excess or overcoat. I find that Job Squad paper towels do a particularly
good job for filming and for removing excess.

If they *really are* cast-iron, though (unlikely - most are made of steel)
then you can season them just like a skillet - grease them with lard, bake
them at 350F for an hour or so, then remove. You'll have to be religious
about cleaning up the pans once they've cooled, or baked-on overcoat will
change the shape and possibly be absorbed by the chocolate.

If you want to be a perfectionist, you should warm them to tempering
temperature - about 88F/31C just before use, (best way is to hold them
under your armpit) but this is an obsessive detail.

and how do I get
the chocolates out of the mold once they are ready.

A sharp tap with a mallet is usually the best method. If some are
persistent, you can *slightly* warm the mould, then tap, and they should
release. But don't warm too much or the chocolate will lose surface temper.
With a thin knife, you can usually carefully pry out ones that stick
without warming the mould.

Also some
suggestions about how to remove the rust would be welcome.

Lots of elbow grease and good scrubbing sponges. If the rust is extreme,
you may have to resort to copper scouring pads, but this is NOT recommended
unless you really have to. NEVER use soap, however. The best scrubbing
sponges I've found are the SOS "CleanRinse" sponges.


--
Alex Rast

(remove d., .7, not, and .NOSPAM to reply)

Hello Alex, Scot and Janet,

All three of you thanks voor your good advice. Apparently making chocolate
is much more complicated than I thought it would be. Though I can't wait to
try a few experiments I expect it will take quite some time and effort
before I will be really succesfull.
I don't know for sure if my molds are cast iron, but they certainly have
that weight. They originate from an old chocolate factory here in The
Netherlands that went bankrupt. They do have a coating of some kind of tin
which I don't want to damage when trying to remove the rust. The advice on
the site recommended by Scot to use a solution of water, vinegar and salt
sounds rather harmless, so I think I will give that a go and do some
scrubbing. Otherwise I will just rub in the oil, the way Alex suggested,
and avoid using the parts of the molds that are rusted.
Steffie


"Alex Rast" schreef in bericht
...
at Wed, 12 Jan 2005 13:44:22 GMT in ,
(steffie) wrote :

Hello everybody,

I recently inherited some very old, slightly rusty, cast iron
chocolatemolds. The kind in which you can make about 50 thin chocolates
at a time. I would like to try them, but don't know the first thing
about chocolatemaking.
I have read your faq, which was helpful, but am still in need of some
directions. Like for example, should I grease the molds

Don't grease the moulds before each use, but you should keep them oiled
between uses, and this will minimise rust. Use a mild, high-stability oil.
Goose fat is one of the very best choices, and another excellent choice is
high-oleic sunflower. (But don't use regular sunflower which will
rancidify). Hazelnut oil is also good, with the special advantage of
having
especially high flavour compatibility, if flavour transfer is a concern.

What you do is, after cleaning the moulds, dab a little oil on, then rub
with a fine cloth until there's the thinnest possible film coating the
entire mould. Be sure to get all corners thoroughly and also wipe off any
excess or overcoat. I find that Job Squad paper towels do a particularly
good job for filming and for removing excess.

If they *really are* cast-iron, though (unlikely - most are made of steel)
then you can season them just like a skillet - grease them with lard, bake
them at 350F for an hour or so, then remove. You'll have to be religious
about cleaning up the pans once they've cooled, or baked-on overcoat will
change the shape and possibly be absorbed by the chocolate.

If you want to be a perfectionist, you should warm them to tempering
temperature - about 88F/31C just before use, (best way is to hold them
under your armpit) but this is an obsessive detail.

and how do I get
the chocolates out of the mold once they are ready.

A sharp tap with a mallet is usually the best method. If some are
persistent, you can *slightly* warm the mould, then tap, and they should
release. But don't warm too much or the chocolate will lose surface
temper.
With a thin knife, you can usually carefully pry out ones that stick
without warming the mould.

Also some
suggestions about how to remove the rust would be welcome.

Lots of elbow grease and good scrubbing sponges. If the rust is extreme,
you may have to resort to copper scouring pads, but this is NOT
recommended
unless you really have to. NEVER use soap, however. The best scrubbing
sponges I've found are the SOS "CleanRinse" sponges.


--
Alex Rast

(remove d., .7, not, and .NOSPAM to reply)

Hello Alex, Scot and Janet,

All three of you thanks voor your good advice. Apparently making chocolate
is much more complicated than I thought it would be. Though I can't wait to
try a few experiments I expect it will take quite some time and effort
before I will be really succesfull.
I don't know for sure if my molds are cast iron, but they certainly have
that weight. They originate from an old chocolate factory here in The
Netherlands that went bankrupt. They do have a coating of some kind of tin
which I don't want to damage when trying to remove the rust. The advice on
the site recommended by Scot to use a solution of water, vinegar and salt
sounds rather harmless, so I think I will give that a go and do some
scrubbing. Otherwise I will just rub in the oil, the way Alex suggested,
and avoid using the parts of the molds that are rusted.
Steffie


"Alex Rast" schreef in bericht
...
at Wed, 12 Jan 2005 13:44:22 GMT in ,
(steffie) wrote :

Hello everybody,

I recently inherited some very old, slightly rusty, cast iron
chocolatemolds. The kind in which you can make about 50 thin chocolates
at a time. I would like to try them, but don't know the first thing
about chocolatemaking.
I have read your faq, which was helpful, but am still in need of some
directions. Like for example, should I grease the molds

Don't grease the moulds before each use, but you should keep them oiled
between uses, and this will minimise rust. Use a mild, high-stability oil.
Goose fat is one of the very best choices, and another excellent choice is
high-oleic sunflower. (But don't use regular sunflower which will
rancidify). Hazelnut oil is also good, with the special advantage of
having
especially high flavour compatibility, if flavour transfer is a concern.

What you do is, after cleaning the moulds, dab a little oil on, then rub
with a fine cloth until there's the thinnest possible film coating the
entire mould. Be sure to get all corners thoroughly and also wipe off any
excess or overcoat. I find that Job Squad paper towels do a particularly
good job for filming and for removing excess.

If they *really are* cast-iron, though (unlikely - most are made of steel)
then you can season them just like a skillet - grease them with lard, bake
them at 350F for an hour or so, then remove. You'll have to be religious
about cleaning up the pans once they've cooled, or baked-on overcoat will
change the shape and possibly be absorbed by the chocolate.

If you want to be a perfectionist, you should warm them to tempering
temperature - about 88F/31C just before use, (best way is to hold them
under your armpit) but this is an obsessive detail.

and how do I get
the chocolates out of the mold once they are ready.

A sharp tap with a mallet is usually the best method. If some are
persistent, you can *slightly* warm the mould, then tap, and they should
release. But don't warm too much or the chocolate will lose surface
temper.
With a thin knife, you can usually carefully pry out ones that stick
without warming the mould.

Also some
suggestions about how to remove the rust would be welcome.

Lots of elbow grease and good scrubbing sponges. If the rust is extreme,
you may have to resort to copper scouring pads, but this is NOT
recommended
unless you really have to. NEVER use soap, however. The best scrubbing
sponges I've found are the SOS "CleanRinse" sponges.


--
Alex Rast

(remove d., .7, not, and .NOSPAM to reply)

http://members.aol.com/chocshop/welcome.html
"steffie" wrote in message
...
Hello everybody,

I recently inherited some very old, slightly rusty, cast iron
chocolatemolds. The kind in which you can make about 50 thin chocolates at
a
time. I would like to try them, but don't know the first thing about
chocolatemaking.
I have read your faq, which was helpful, but am still in need of some
directions. Like for example, should I grease the molds and how do I get
the
chocolates out of the mold once they are ready. Also some suggestions
about
how to remove the rust would be welcome.
In other words, can somebody please advise me, or direct me to some sites
where I might learn. I have been searching at google, but didnot find the
kind of sites I was looking for.
Many thanks in advance
Steffie