Chocolate Problems

[Kelleybean]

I have been trying to make chocolate molds for my family and friends for Christmas gifts but I have been having two different problems. The first is that my candies are getting pretty sticky after they come out of the molds and sit for a few minutes. I think that the problem is that humidity is condensing on the top of the candies but I have no clue as to how to prevent that. The other problem is that my candies become grainy with time. I test my temper so I know that isn’t the problem and from what I have read that is usually the cause. I am clueless as to what I am doing wrong. Can some one PLEASE help me?

Thanks in Advance,
Kelley

[Praties]

I know you said you "tested the temper", but was that the temperature of the chocolate or are you tempering it before molding it? Graininess is usually because of the chocolate not being tempered. You're absolutely correct on the stickiness--moisture's usually the cause. The room may be too humid and, since most kitchens aren't the easiest places to dehumidify , you can try allowing the chocolate to warm up a bit (in case you were letting it set in a cooler environment) closer to room temp before unmolding it.

Hope it helps!
Praties

[Kelleybean]

Hi Praties,

Ok. What I am doing to test the temper is to take a spoon and drop a small amount of the chocolate on a piece of wax paper. I had read that you should let it stand for a minute or two and if it hardens with a glossy finish and no streaks or blotches of gray then it has been tempered correctly. It comes out fine so I am not sure what to do differently.

[panini]

kelly,
Are you using chocolate?.are you seeding the chocolate to temper, meaning add small amounts of chocolate to melted.? What temp are you melting at? What temp are you molding at? Are you refrigerating the chocolates after molding?
There are many variables, not to scare you though. We will certainly be able to fix it. Just give us a little more info. The brand will be helpful also.
pan

[Kelleybean]

Well I will try to do my best to describing the steps that I take when tempering and molding the chocolates.. The first thing I do is to heat the chocolate by microwave to 115F. Next I use the seeding method to cool the chocolate to 84F and then use a chocolate melter to warm it it back up to 86 or 87F. I then pour the chocolate into the mold that I keep at room temperature. The last step that I take is to put it into the freezer to set for up to 10 minutes or so depending on the size of the mold. As far as the brand I use a coverture chocolate by Michele Cluizel. If there is any further information that I can provide you with feel free to ask and I will give you whatever I can. Thanks in advance for all of your help.

Kelley.

[m brown]

i have tried this for enrobing (with great success) not molding but hey, why not?
melt chocolate in microwave to final temp. no seeding or tempering needed.
shhh, don't tell anyone if it works!
okay, tell me.
best!

[Blade55440]

Originally Posted by Kelleybean

Well I will try to do my best to describing the steps that I take when tempering and molding the chocolates.. The first thing I do is to heat the chocolate by microwave to 115F. Next I use the seeding method to cool the chocolate to 84F and then use a chocolate melter to warm it it back up to 86 or 87F. I then pour the chocolate into the mold that I keep at room temperature. The last step that I take is to put it into the freezer to set for up to 10 minutes or so depending on the size of the mold. As far as the brand I use a coverture chocolate by Michele Cluizel. If there is any further information that I can provide you with feel free to ask and I will give you whatever I can. Thanks in advance for all of your help.

Kelley.

I don't know about temps, my instructor stresses "getting the feel for it" more than anything, but your method sounds fine. The stickyness sounds like condensation because you let it setup in the freezer, I would just let it come up to room temp a little slower (maybe even put a paper towel over it or something to keep condensation from forming too badly as it warms up). As for becoming grainy with time... what amount of time are we talking about?

[panini]

Kelly,
I have been thinking about your problem. You are not doing anything that I wouldn't do. Are you using the pastilles from Cluizel? How much chocolate are you melting to start? I'm curious because the microwave will not heat the choco evenly. If it is a large amout it may be siezing in places. That will definately result in grainyness.
Have you tried this with double boiler?
What is the % on the couverature.
When seeding are you constantly stirring or using a blender? You really need to get the crystals all coming together.
When you put this into your melter does the temp drop. This only takes seconds on the dblb to go from84 to 88. If your choco drops under 84-85 you will loos temper and your just start all over.
I'm also assuming that you are not adding butter,cream etc. These formulas cannot be retempered.
I would just pop the molds into the freezer or frig for just a few minutes.
let us know.
pan
Bladster, I would never contradict an educator but 'getting the feel for something' usually comes after you have learned the exacts.incl.temps

ps when you heat the manufactures chocolate you break their temper. If you work untempered choco your product will not have a good mouth-feel. It will also eventually dust or bloom. Tempered choco should last at room temp for a long time..The snap and melting 2-4 degrees below body temp is what gives you the best experience. .

[Kelleybean]

M Brown, Blade55440 and Panini,

Thanks to all of you for your advice.

Well tomorrow I am going to start making my Valentines chocolates. I’ll just have to keep trying until I get it right. Although things weren’t up to my expectations for what I wanted them to be there were no complaints from my Christmas gift recipients, except for my mom, who has always been my worst critic.