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Post by benvt on Aug 18, 2006 8:45:55 GMT -5
We have a patch of spearmint and a patch of peppermint in our yard that are both ready. Has anyone tried adding fresh or dried mint to their chocolate? I'm thinking about drying it, chopping it up in a coffee bean grinder, and then adding it to the Santha. Anyone have an idea of how much I should use?
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Post by Alchemist on Aug 18, 2006 12:15:27 GMT -5
We have a patch of spearmint and a patch of peppermint in our yard that are both ready. Has anyone tried adding fresh or dried mint to their chocolate? I'm thinking about drying it, chopping it up in a coffee bean grinder, and then adding it to the Santha. Anyone have an idea of how much I should use? Nice idea. I would start at around 1 teaspoon per pound and go from there. I really have no clue though. BTW, you are on target with drying it. I would not try fresh herbs due to the water content.
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Post by Brad on Nov 2, 2006 19:18:31 GMT -5
The other day I made some truffles, and the recipe called for the steeping of fresh mint leaves in the cream before the chocolate was added, then straining out the leaves. It called for a cup of leaves. WOW, DID IT SUCK! the flavour was SOO strong the entire batch had to be thrown out - even after trying various methods of salvaging it.
One of the other problems is that I used Spearmint, which in my opinion does not go well with chocolate. If I were doing it again, I would only use peppermint, and dry the leaves before adding them to the chocolate. Also, be VERY judicious with the amount of leaves when starting, as the oils are very concentrated. You can always add more over time.
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Post by chocodisiac on Feb 17, 2007 12:32:18 GMT -5
Since you're making truffles and using ganache, so that moisture isn't a concern, you can go ahead and use fresh leaves. I think the only mistake you made is using spearmint instead of peppermint, plus using too much (a CUP is a LOT!).
I make Mojito truffles using a bit of fresh, chiffonaded peppermint from my balcony garden (I also use a drop or two of VERY concentrated p. oil) and it adds a nice touch!
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Post by Brad on Feb 18, 2007 23:27:32 GMT -5
Chocodisiac;
I agree with you. That particular recipe has had a great big NFG written across it for future reference!
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Post by chocodisiac on Feb 19, 2007 21:16:05 GMT -5
Hey, glad you're still following this, since it's an old thread.
Occurred to me that I should mention that when I say a drop or two of the oil, I'm talking about for the entire batch of truffles (i.e. a tray of around 30).
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Post by delsalto on Nov 26, 2007 9:06:22 GMT -5
How about flavoring the sugar with mint. Just put the mint in a jar with your sugar, and let it be for a week....I think that may give your the flavor, but I canĀ“t guess how much!!
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Post by ethnobotanist on Jan 25, 2008 17:30:24 GMT -5
I recently harvested some peppermint which grows wild in a creek near my house and dried it for future use. Mint dries beautifully and the resulting leaves are easily powdered to a fine powder. The flavour is excellent, I would say a few dried leaves in the santha at the beginning of a batch would be enough to infuse the finished chocolate with a pure mint flavour. I agree with Brad that spearmint is nowhere near as good a match for chocolate as peppermint. Good luck.
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