Hi all,

I am going to try to do molded, filled chocolates for the first time.
I have made truffles for years, but wanted to try something new.

I'm going to use some Callebaut dark & bitter 60.3% chocolate that I
have for the shells. I bought 2 inexpensive molds to play around with.
Any tips for using that particular chocolate for the shells?

I also need some help with the fillings. I want to start with a soft
center that I can flavor as I please. Something about the consistency
of a "butter cream" that you'd buy at a candy store.

Does anyone have a basic recipe they could share? Again, this is my
first try and I'd like to make a batch of basic filling, then divided
it into 3 or 4 parts and do different flavors to test the results.

Thanks,

Debra

at Sat, 11 Feb 2006 18:18:08 GMT in kt9su1t9qeclojjjs3g3o34uvlv9fm7vs2@
4ax.com, (Debra Fritz) wrote :

Hi all,

I am going to try to do molded, filled chocolates for the first time.
I have made truffles for years, but wanted to try something new.

I'm going to use some Callebaut dark & bitter 60.3% chocolate that I
have for the shells. I bought 2 inexpensive molds to play around with.
Any tips for using that particular chocolate for the shells?

Callebaut 6040 - which is I believe what you've got, is excellent for
moulding. But you do need to temper it. I've posted many times the
instructions for chocolate tempering so it should be easy enough to look it
up on DejaNews.

It's best to fill shells with multiple, thin coatings instead of trying to
get all the chocolate for the shells in at once. 6040 is pretty low
viscosity, and as with any low-viscosity couverture, if you put too much in
a shell at any one time, the excess will pool down at the bottom. Result:
very thick top, very thin sidewalls. Also, you will need to temper each
batch for each coating separately. Tempered chocolate solidifies fast, so
work quickly.

Be sure to tap and shake your moulds carefully with each pass, to get rid
of any bubbles and make sure the chocolate fills all the crevices. This is
particularly critical on the first pass.

For the bottom, there are 2 possible approaches:

Either you can make a template of the bottom, pour a thin sheet of
couverture, and cut to the template, then, once the bottom is solid, *very
carefully* warm the edges of the chocolate shell and press lightly
together.

Or you can pour over tempered chocolate directly onto the filled shells.

The first way does leave a noticeable seam but tends to yield a better
temper and doesn't risk slightly melting the filling.

The second way gives you a seamless chocolate - very pretty - but it can
start to melt the filling, not to mention the sidewalls.

Whichever method you use, chilling the centres is a good precaution.
However, beware of condensation when you do this.


I also need some help with the fillings. I want to start with a soft
center that I can flavor as I please. Something about the consistency
of a "butter cream" that you'd buy at a candy store.

The classic filling base is ganache. The standard firm ganache is simply
hot cream mixed with grated chocolate at a ratio of 1 part cream to 2 parts
chocolate. You can go softer by upping the cream amount - 2:3 will be
considerably softer, almost like peanut butter, and 1:1 is very soft -
enough that it will need to be piped in with a pastry bag. I've also
written numerous times on the subject of ganache, look up under both this
word and truffles. Not so long ago there was also a good discussion as to
how to flavour it with various ingredients - different items call for
different tactics.

--
Alex Rast

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

"Alex Rast" wrote in message
...
at Sat, 11 Feb 2006 18:18:08 GMT in kt9su1t9qeclojjjs3g3o34uvlv9fm7vs2@
4ax.com, (Debra Fritz) wrote :

Hi all,

I am going to try to do molded, filled chocolates for the first time.
I have made truffles for years, but wanted to try something new.

I'm going to use some Callebaut dark & bitter 60.3% chocolate that I
have for the shells. I bought 2 inexpensive molds to play around with.
Any tips for using that particular chocolate for the shells?

Callebaut 6040 - which is I believe what you've got, is excellent for
moulding. But you do need to temper it. I've posted many times the
instructions for chocolate tempering so it should be easy enough to look
it
up on DejaNews.

It's best to fill shells with multiple, thin coatings instead of trying to
get all the chocolate for the shells in at once.

I don't think this is necessary, or even desirable, unless the chocolate you
are working with is over-thinned. If you set the mold upside down on some
kind of support such as chopsticks after filling it, tapping/shaking it,
dumping it, and scraping the excess, nothing will pool at the bottom. When
the chocolate is setting but still soft--this usually takes only a minute or
two--turn the mold over and scrape off the excess neatly with a bench
scraper. You should achieve a proper coat that is even.


Either you can make a template of the bottom, pour a thin sheet of
couverture, and cut to the template, then, once the bottom is solid, *very
carefully* warm the edges of the chocolate shell and press lightly
together.

Or you can pour over tempered chocolate directly onto the filled shells.

The first way does leave a noticeable seam but tends to yield a better
temper and doesn't risk slightly melting the filling.

The second way gives you a seamless chocolate - very pretty - but it can
start to melt the filling, not to mention the sidewalls.

The second method is what I use--I'd never heard of the first--and I've
never melted the sidewalls or the filling. The chocolate for the bottoms
need only be at about 86F. A more likely source of melting is filling the
shells when the ganache is too warm. Make sure it is under 85F.

Whichever method you use, chilling the centres is a good precaution.
However, beware of condensation when you do this.

I prefer to let them set up in a cool, but not chilled, environment for that
reason. Making chocolates by hand is a multi-step process that takes some
time, and trying to rush it usually causes problems, in my experience.

I also need some help with the fillings. I want to start with a soft
center that I can flavor as I please. Something about the consistency
of a "butter cream" that you'd buy at a candy store.

The classic filling base is ganache. The standard firm ganache is simply
hot cream mixed with grated chocolate at a ratio of 1 part cream to 2
parts
chocolate. You can go softer by upping the cream amount - 2:3 will be
considerably softer, almost like peanut butter, and 1:1 is very soft -
enough that it will need to be piped in with a pastry bag. I've also
written numerous times on the subject of ganache, look up under both this
word and truffles. Not so long ago there was also a good discussion as to
how to flavour it with various ingredients - different items call for
different tactics.

--
Alex Rast

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

On Sun, 12 Feb 2006 01:05:14 -0000,
(Alex Rast) wrote:


The classic filling base is ganache. The standard firm ganache is simply
hot cream mixed with grated chocolate at a ratio of 1 part cream to 2 parts
chocolate. You can go softer by upping the cream amount - 2:3 will be
considerably softer, almost like peanut butter, and 1:1 is very soft -
enough that it will need to be piped in with a pastry bag. I've also
written numerous times on the subject of ganache, look up under both this
word and truffles. Not so long ago there was also a good discussion as to
how to flavour it with various ingredients - different items call for
different tactics.

This is where I'm getting a little confused. I use ganache for my
truffles and understand how to control the consistency and how to use
various things to flavor it...but is that what I should use for these?

My goal is to get the basic filling that is akin to the "butter cream"
filling used in the better commercial candies. That soft, creamy
center....that is then colored/flavored. And, I want it white so I
can color it using some flavoring agents.... Like the raspberry creams
that are pink and the orange creams that are orange...

Yes, I will do some fillings using a chocolate center with flavorings,
but I want that basic white filling and I'm wondering if that is a
ganache....or some variation of ganache.

A friend and I were just talking about using ganache, but putting that
into my mixer and beating it for a while (after it's cooled and
flavored) to "lighten" the texture. Will that work?

Thank you so much for your help....

Debra

On Sun, 12 Feb 2006 15:38:13 GMT, "Janet Puistonen"
wrote:


I don't think this is necessary, or even desirable, unless the chocolate you
are working with is over-thinned. If you set the mold upside down on some
kind of support such as chopsticks after filling it, tapping/shaking it,
dumping it, and scraping the excess, nothing will pool at the bottom. When
the chocolate is setting but still soft--this usually takes only a minute or
two--turn the mold over and scrape off the excess neatly with a bench
scraper. You should achieve a proper coat that is even.

That's what I am going to do. I think trying to use multiple thin
coats is going to lead me to disaster! This is my first time trying to
use a mold, and your method sounds like it will work best for me.

The second method is what I use--I'd never heard of the first--and I've
never melted the sidewalls or the filling. The chocolate for the bottoms
need only be at about 86F. A more likely source of melting is filling the
shells when the ganache is too warm. Make sure it is under 85F.

I'm going to chill the ganache/filling before filling the shells at
room temp overnight...which will also take care of potential
condensation problems...and I will be careful about the temp of the
chocolate... Should it also be at 86F for the initial filling of the
molds?

I'm still looking for a basic "white butter cream" filling that I can
play with for color/flavor, if you happen to know of one, other than
ganache.

Thank you for all your help.

Debra

Debra Fritz wrote:
I'm going to chill the ganache/filling before filling the shells at
room temp overnight...which will also take care of potential
condensation problems...and I will be careful about the temp of the
chocolate... Should it also be at 86F for the initial filling of the
molds?

I think you are going to have a problem here. It is this: in order to fill
the shells smoothly, the filling must be sufficiently runny to smooth out to
some degree, either on its own, or with the help of some moderate sideways
shaking or table tapping by you. It should then firm up sufficiently to
allow you to cover the back. If you let the filling sit overnight or chill
it before putting it in the shells, you will have to melt it all over again
in order to achieve a state that is liquid enough to fill the shells. So
what you want to do is make the filling, keep an eye on it until it cools
sufficiently (ie, under the melting point of chocolate) and then immediately
fill the shells. The easiest way is generally to us a disposable plastic
icing cone.

The chocolate should be within the working temperature specified for it.
With my equipment, though, I generally find that keeping it at the lowest
end of that range works best. When I was hand tempering, that was not
generally the case. You'll find what works best by trial and error.

By the way, I though I had posted something earlier, but it never appeared.
In it, I said that the cheap, bendable molds were much harder to work with
than the more expensive rigid professional molds. If you really get into
this, you might want to spring for a couple of good molds. you can get them
on the web at Chocolat-Chocolat and JB Prince, amongst other places.
(Zillions of sites carry the cheap molds, which are usually used by people
who use candy melts to make their "chocolates.")

I'm still looking for a basic "white butter cream" filling that I can
play with for color/flavor, if you happen to know of one, other than
ganache.

Thank you for all your help.

Debra

I don't use that kind of filling, but you can find the ingredients for it,
and probably recipes, at www.sugarcraft.com.

Debra Fritz wrote:

My goal is to get the basic filling that is akin to the "butter cream"
filling used in the better commercial candies. That soft, creamy
center....that is then colored/flavored. And, I want it white so I
can color it using some flavoring agents.... Like the raspberry creams
that are pink and the orange creams that are orange...

Yes, I will do some fillings using a chocolate center with flavorings,
but I want that basic white filling and I'm wondering if that is a
ganache....or some variation of ganache.

No, it is based on fondant. Try Sugarcraft.

A friend and I were just talking about using ganache, but putting that
into my mixer and beating it for a while (after it's cooled and
flavored) to "lighten" the texture. Will that work?

No--it will be too thick to fill the shells evenly. To fill shells, you want
it to be more liquid, not light and stiff. The style of filling you are
talking about is made of fondant, often with added condensed milk and
flavorings of various sorts. (There are some recipes out there that use
fondant and white chocolate or egg. I've never used them, either.)

Thank you so much for your help....

Debra

Have fun!

at Sun, 12 Feb 2006 15:38:13 GMT in FDIHf.960$g9.29@trndny07,
(Janet Puistonen) wrote :


"Alex Rast" wrote in message
.. .
at Sat, 11 Feb 2006 18:18:08 GMT in
kt9su1t9qeclojjjs3g3o34uvlv9fm7vs2@ 4ax.com,
(Debra Fritz) wrote :

Hi all,

I am going to try to do molded, filled chocolates for the first time.
I have made truffles for years, but wanted to try something new.
....
It's best to fill shells with multiple, thin coatings instead of
trying to get all the chocolate for the shells in at once.

I don't think this is necessary, or even desirable, unless the chocolate
you are working with is over-thinned. If you set the mold upside down on
some kind of support such as chopsticks after filling it,
tapping/shaking it, dumping it, and scraping the excess, nothing will
pool at the bottom.

Nifty idea. I'd never thought of that one. However, it seems to me that if
you're doing that, your shells are really quite thin. My personal
preference is for shells that are sufficiently thick that you actually have
some bite to them. This is unlike the situation for the classic dipped
truffle where a thin shell, if indeed, anything at all, is IMHO better, but
for a moulded piece, my style has always been that it should lean heavily
towards the shell in terms of amounts.

I'm curious - what chocolate do you usually work with? I tend to be using
fairly fluid high-cocoa-butter formulations - generally in the 40% cocoa
butter range.

When the chocolate is setting but still soft--this
usually takes only a minute or two--turn the mold over and scrape off
the excess neatly with a bench scraper. You should achieve a proper coat
that is even.

Whichever method you use, chilling the centres is a good precaution.
However, beware of condensation when you do this.

I prefer to let them set up in a cool, but not chilled, environment for
that reason. Making chocolates by hand is a multi-step process that
takes some time, and trying to rush it usually causes problems, in my
experience.

One thing I wish is that someone would make a controlled-temperature
chiller for storage and creation of chocolate and chocolates in small
volumes. Something about the size of a half fridge should do it. As it is,
however, at least in a home setting generally the only practicable cool
environment when the weather is warm is the fridge.


--
Alex Rast

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

at Mon, 13 Feb 2006 04:58:07 GMT in zlUHf.3600$Nj7.366@trndny09,
(Janet Puistonen) wrote :

Debra Fritz wrote:
I'm going to chill the ganache/filling before filling the shells at
room temp overnight...which will also take care of potential
condensation problems...and I will be careful about the temp of the
chocolate... Should it also be at 86F for the initial filling of the
molds?

I think you are going to have a problem here. It is this: in order to
fill the shells smoothly, the filling must be sufficiently runny to
smooth out to some degree, either on its own, or with the help of some
moderate sideways shaking or table tapping by you. It should then firm
up sufficiently to allow you to cover the back. If you let the filling
sit overnight or chill it before putting it in the shells, you will have
to melt it all over again in order to achieve a state that is liquid
enough to fill the shells.

Which, furthermore, would risk breaking the ganache - indeed, it probably
would unless you were very careful with temperature control. I did mention
chilling the centres earlier - just to clarify, this means after you've
filled the shells and before you put on the bottom.

I'm still looking for a basic "white butter cream" filling that I can
play with for color/flavor, if you happen to know of one, other than
ganache.

A white chocolate ganache is a good neutral base, if that's what you're
looking for. Note that with white chocolate the cream should be slightly
cooler than with dark chocolate - definitely keep it below bubbling, even
slightly.

--
Alex Rast

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

I'm still looking for a basic "white butter cream" filling that I
can play with for color/flavor, if you happen to know of one, other
than ganache.

A white chocolate ganache is a good neutral base, if that's what
you're looking for. Note that with white chocolate the cream should
be slightly cooler than with dark chocolate - definitely keep it
below bubbling, even slightly.

I'm interested in how you would make a white chocolate ganache. I have tried
several different approaches, but always find the texture not what I would
wish.

Alex Rast wrote:
I don't think this is necessary, or even desirable, unless the
chocolate you are working with is over-thinned. If you set the mold
upside down on some kind of support such as chopsticks after filling
it, tapping/shaking it, dumping it, and scraping the excess, nothing
will pool at the bottom.

Nifty idea. I'd never thought of that one. However, it seems to me
that if you're doing that, your shells are really quite thin. My
personal preference is for shells that are sufficiently thick that
you actually have some bite to them. This is unlike the situation for
the classic dipped truffle where a thin shell, if indeed, anything at
all, is IMHO better, but for a moulded piece, my style has always
been that it should lean heavily towards the shell in terms of
amounts.

Yes, my shells are definitely thinner than yours in that case.

I'm curious - what chocolate do you usually work with? I tend to be
using fairly fluid high-cocoa-butter formulations - generally in the
40% cocoa butter range.

For shells that will be filled, I use El Rey Mijao almost exclusively. It's
a 61%. I occasionally use their milk (Caoba) and white (Icoa) for shells,
mostly around Easter. I do find that one coat of the white tends to be
marginal in terms of thickness. If for no other reason, simply because dark
fillings tend to show through.

The one preparation where I always do at least two coats--often three--is
bonbonnieres. I make a heart for Valentine's Day, and an egg at Easter. I
find that those require a buildup of layers in order to achieve a strong
shell, especially at the edge.

When the chocolate is setting but still soft--this
usually takes only a minute or two--turn the mold over and scrape off
the excess neatly with a bench scraper. You should achieve a proper
coat that is even.

Whichever method you use, chilling the centres is a good precaution.
However, beware of condensation when you do this.

I prefer to let them set up in a cool, but not chilled, environment
for that reason. Making chocolates by hand is a multi-step process
that takes some time, and trying to rush it usually causes problems,
in my experience.

One thing I wish is that someone would make a controlled-temperature
chiller for storage and creation of chocolate and chocolates in small
volumes. Something about the size of a half fridge should do it. As
it is, however, at least in a home setting generally the only
practicable cool environment when the weather is warm is the fridge.

I heartily second that. I have one room that can be air conditioned, and
that is what I use when it is warm. And of course air conditioning helps
with the humidity also. Last summer, I found that a/c plus a fan directed at
the cooling truffles gave good results. I've looked into cooling cabinets,
but they are a pricey proposition.

at Mon, 13 Feb 2006 16:01:51 GMT in P32If.1402$U2.280@trndny08,
(Janet Puistonen) wrote :

Alex Rast wrote:
....

Yes, my shells are definitely thinner than yours in that case.

I'm curious - what chocolate do you usually work with? I tend to be
using fairly fluid high-cocoa-butter formulations - generally in the
40% cocoa butter range.

For shells that will be filled, I use El Rey Mijao almost exclusively.
It's a 61%.

38.92 % cocoa butter. A little less than what I usually use, although Mijao
is definitely designed for fluidity.

The one preparation where I always do at least two coats--often
three--is bonbonnieres. I make a heart for Valentine's Day, and an egg
at Easter. I find that those require a buildup of layers in order to
achieve a strong shell, especially at the edge.

Especially with the bigger pieces, whose weight can in fact collapse a
shell that's too thin.

A white chocolate ganache is a good neutral base, if that's what
you're looking for.

I'm interested in how you would make a white chocolate ganache. I have
tried several different approaches, but always find the texture not what
I would wish.

I use the same approach I use for dark ganache. I grate the chocolate with
a box grater, heat the cream, and pour the hot cream over the grated
chocolate. With white chocolate the cream should be really quite cool, in
relative terms. That's what I've found is critical - if you heat it up to
the high temperatures you might use with a dark chocolate, the ganache
immediately becomes grainy.

Are you melting the chocolate before adding the cream? This is the biggest
mistake. If dark chocolate is already sensitive with this technique, white
chocolate just won't work.

Chopping the chocolate also doesn't work very well, because you can't get a
good fine particle size, and with the cream being only moderately hot, it
can't melt through the chocolate.

I use very heavy cream - 43%+ milkfat. I fold the cream into the chocolate
pretty carefully, using the minimum number of strokes and a very gentle
movement. Like you I use El Rey Icoa (really, is there any other white
chocolate to use?)

There's a certain minimum amount you have to make in order for the white
chocolate ganache to work well. I've found that 1 kg (2/3 kg chocolate, 1/3
kg cream), is about the minimum. Not that this is that big of an amount,
though. One final "trick" - if you want to make a white chocolate truffle
that's like the classic dark chocolate truffle - ganache coated with cocoa,
no shell, you can use non-instant powdered milk for the coating. Works
great.

One of my favourite uses for white chocolate ganache is as a filling for
Oreo-style cookies. With a good cocoa biscuit recipe, it just blows away
the standard Oreo.

--
Alex Rast

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

Alex Rast wrote:
snip

I'm interested in how you would make a white chocolate ganache. I
have tried several different approaches, but always find the texture
not what I would wish.

I use the same approach I use for dark ganache. I grate the chocolate
with a box grater, heat the cream, and pour the hot cream over the
grated chocolate. With white chocolate the cream should be really
quite cool, in relative terms. That's what I've found is critical -
if you heat it up to the high temperatures you might use with a dark
chocolate, the ganache immediately becomes grainy.

Do you bring the cream to a boil and let it cool, or not boil it at all? Do
you have any idea what temperature the cream is when you combine it with the
chocolate? And have you experimented with adding other flavorings? I
originally wanted a key lime ganache that would resemble key lime pie
filling in flavor, with the white chocolate standing in for the condensed
milk. (I started with a truffle ganache, then moved to a filling ganache
because the texture wasn't good enough. I've now stopped making that also
because I just wasn't happy with the flavor and texture, although other
people liked it.) I've thought about infusing the cream with lime peel and
adding lime oil instead of using the juice, in order to avoid cutting the
fat content of the liquid.

Are you melting the chocolate before adding the cream? This is the
biggest mistake. If dark chocolate is already sensitive with this
technique, white chocolate just won't work.

I tried it once, having seen it recommended somewhere. I don't recall
precisely what the results were, but obviously I wasn't impressed, since I
didn't do it again! G

Chopping the chocolate also doesn't work very well, because you can't
get a good fine particle size, and with the cream being only
moderately hot, it can't melt through the chocolate.

In the food processor you can get it to almost a powder, but it certainly
wouldn't compare to grating. Unfortunately, I only have discos on hand.
Maybe I'll buy a block and give it a try.

I use very heavy cream - 43%+ milkfat.

I think I'll try either reducing the cream I usually use or adding butter.
RLB does the latter to achieve a heavier cream in The Cake Bible.

I fold the cream into the
chocolate pretty carefully, using the minimum number of strokes and a
very gentle movement. Like you I use El Rey Icoa (really, is there
any other white chocolate to use?)

There's certainly nothing like Icoa. I actually refer to it as "ivory"
rather than white in my descriptions. Many people have a prejudice against
white chocolate. I like it, but I don't think of it as "chocolate"
precisely. It can add a delightfully creamy note to confections if used
judiciously.

There's a certain minimum amount you have to make in order for the
white chocolate ganache to work well. I've found that 1 kg (2/3 kg
chocolate, 1/3 kg cream), is about the minimum. Not that this is that
big of an amount, though. One final "trick" - if you want to make a
white chocolate truffle that's like the classic dark chocolate
truffle - ganache coated with cocoa, no shell, you can use
non-instant powdered milk for the coating. Works great.

One of my favourite uses for white chocolate ganache is as a filling
for Oreo-style cookies. With a good cocoa biscuit recipe, it just
blows away the standard Oreo.

Whoa--that sounds fabulous! I use a much lighter white chocolate
ganache--more like a whipped cream--as a filling for a black and white
chocolate mousse cake. It has the advantage of being very stable, and won't
"water out." It can also make a delicious charlotte, with layers of dark
chocolate ganache and raspberry sauce on the side

Thanks for the information. I really would like to have a white truffle with
a good texture.

Alex Rast wrote:

One thing I wish is that someone would make a controlled-temperature
chiller for storage and creation of chocolate and chocolates in small
volumes. Something about the size of a half fridge should do it.

That sounds just like a wine refrigerator.

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-wine-refrigerator.htm

Is 55F too cool? Too warm?

Mark Thorson wrote:
Alex Rast wrote:

One thing I wish is that someone would make a controlled-temperature
chiller for storage and creation of chocolate and chocolates in small
volumes. Something about the size of a half fridge should do it.

That sounds just like a wine refrigerator.

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-wine-refrigerator.htm

Is 55F too cool? Too warm?

It sounds about right, but it also ideally has very low humidity and some
airflow.