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Post by sdguy on Jun 11, 2009 18:16:47 GMT -5
I've been reading through a bunch of sites and the chocolate alchemy overviews of chocolate-making and I have a basic question. I have a date ideas site and thought it might be fun to research a chocolate-making date, but from what I've read it looks impossible without the winnower(is that what it's called) to finish grinding and liquefying the chocolate. Is it possible, and by that I guess I mean would it be fun for a couple to order beans, roast them, crack with a hammer and remove the husks with a blow dryer, grind them and then try to finish it up with a mortar and pestle? I know the result would be a bit gritty, but would it be a fun experience anyway?
All opinions are appreciated.
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Post by Brad on Jun 12, 2009 2:09:17 GMT -5
This is not something that can be done in the space of a couple of hours.
Making chocolate takes time.
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Post by sdguy on Jun 12, 2009 12:33:05 GMT -5
Kinda what I figured after doing some reading. Thanks for the reply!
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Post by Alan on Jun 16, 2009 8:19:17 GMT -5
It depends. The first time I made chocolate, I toasted the cacao in a cast iron skillet, winnowed each bean by hand, and ground the toasted nibs in a hot molcajete (think Mexican mortar and pestle). It probably took me about 2-3 hours, but of course I didn't make much, and I didn't end up with refined European-style chocolate. It was what you might call chocolate in the style of stone-ground Mexican chocolate. I added some ground almonds, vanilla and cinnamon and some sugar. It was grainy and rough, but it was still a lot of fun since I'd never done anything like that before. I ended up using the chocolate in a home-made mole poblano, which is why I wanted to make the chocolate in the first place.
If the two people on the date are really into food, then I think that this is definitely something that they both may enjoy. They just have to go into it with the proper expectations, which means not expecting well-refined chocolate in terms of flavor or texture.
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Post by tracey on Jun 16, 2009 9:16:41 GMT -5
I agree with Alan - this could be a lot of fun if expectations are appropriate.
You could start the process further down the line as well. E.g., with roasted nibs to save time and the potential disaster of a first time roast; or with roasted whole beans that would still require hand-winnowing; or with raw nibs that would require roasting...You get the idea!
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zen
Neophyte
Posts: 15
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Post by zen on Jul 13, 2009 21:10:28 GMT -5
how many bars we can make from 1 kg of melted choclate
Comment
Thanks Zen
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