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Post by Alan on Mar 19, 2006 23:03:06 GMT -5
Knowing that tempering milk chocolate can be a little different than tempering dark chocolate has led me to name this thread "Milk Chocolate Tempering," as opposed to the already opened threads on tempering dark chocolate.
So, here is a question:
What does it mean if a milk-chocolate bar contracts and separates cleanly from the mold, has a good snap, is not soft, etc., but...has a small amount of surface bloom right in the middle of every bar right out of the mold?
It seems obvious that it is a tempering issue, but is it possible to narrow down the reason why this has occured? What seems odd to me is that the bars are perfect except for the little amount of bloom right in the center.
Is it simply a lightly undertempered product? And does it seem reasonable that this has happend because a perfectly tempered product started to get a little too warm, therefore melting too many Beta V's?
These are just my hypotheses. Any thoughts?
Of course I can simply do it over again, and will do so tomorrow, but I would like to understand the "whys" too.
Thanks,
Alan
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Post by krzysiastevens on Mar 20, 2006 5:25:05 GMT -5
Sometimes I get a slight crystally looking bloom on milk chocolate if it has cooled too quickly. I have to leave the chocolates out until they are fully set before putting them in the fridge. But I don't know why, I would be interested to know the cheminstry behind it.
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Post by Sebastian on Mar 20, 2006 6:37:53 GMT -5
Are you sure it's bloom you're seeing? Usually see this when your moulds aren't clean (if you're cleaning with water, buff them post drying to remove mineral deposits). Could also be a phenemenon called heat streaking, caused by significant temperature differences between the mould and the chocolate. Run your finger across the area - does your finger feel like you've just run it through butter and is greasy? If not, it's probably not bloom.
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Post by Alan on Mar 20, 2006 7:31:05 GMT -5
Are you sure it's bloom you're seeing? Usually see this when your moulds aren't clean (if you're cleaning with water, buff them post drying to remove mineral deposits). Could also be a phenemenon called heat streaking, caused by significant temperature differences between the mould and the chocolate. Run your finger across the area - does your finger feel like you've just run it through butter and is greasy? If not, it's probably not bloom. Hmm. They were all clean and buffed. There were actually a couple of molds that I hadn't used before, and they were all buffed, so I don't think that is it. However, I realize that the temperature in my downstairs is pretty cold relatively speaking. It was probably about 64 F when I molded. I don't know if this is too cold or not. It certainly is an odd phenomenon though. Edited to add: I tried to see whether the area feels greasy and I guess I have to say no. It looks greasy, but kind of feels dry on my finger. Alan
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Post by Alan on Mar 20, 2006 10:08:48 GMT -5
Dear all, Since John doesn't sell thermometers, I'll give a link to the one I just purchased online: www.mycosupply.com/cgi-bin/shopper.cgi?preadd=action&key=HUTE11It is the "long stem ultra" and is NIST traceable and accurate to +/- 0.2 C. It is the cheapest version of this type of thermometer that I could find. Despite hearing that I could find something more accurate (i.e., +/- 0.1 F) for about the same price, I simply wasn't able to. All of the ones that I saw were over $200. I opted for the $39. Alan
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