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Chocky and processing it

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  • taco
    replied
    Zombie revival...

    I got thinking about home chocolate making after tasting a local Canberra made 100% chocolate bar last week.

    john marshall makes 100 per cent chocolate|Frujii ice cream

    Chatting to "Mr Frugii" aka John Marshall at his "Wonka Party", he revealed that he uses a Behmor for roasting his trinitario cocoa beans

    The only part of this process that seems to undo-able with available domestic appliances is the refining/conching process. A quick google, shows that the Spectra 11 wet grinder is US$700 for a 220v volt model including worldwide postage - around the same price as an entry level espresso machine like a Silvia.

    Are any other snobs still giving chocolate a go?
    Any plans to carry green cocoa beans again in beanbay?

    Leave a comment:


  • TC
    replied
    Re: Chocky and processing it

    [split] [link=http://coffeesnobs.com.au/YaBB.pl?num=1249900769/4#4][splithere][/link][splithere_end]

    Leave a comment:


  • Pavoniboy
    replied
    Re: Chocky and processing it

    Thankyou for the compliment Dennis.

    This was my third batch and I am already having great results. I passed some along to my sister and she phoned me tonight saying she wants a regular supply.

    If you can get something to grind down those particles, it certainly can be done and is not that hard at all given my success on only the third batch.

    Theres an entire world to explore now, with different spices, oils and then dipping as well. Then there is getting onto the Balinese cocoa as well. Possibly blending the mexican with balinese? I have years of fun ahead

    Leave a comment:


  • Dennis
    replied
    Re: Chocky and processing it


    I had a visitor at the shop today who handed me a bar of chocolate. When I opened the alfoil wrap it wasnt quite as shiny as commercially made chocolate. Smelled good and couldnt resist giving it a try...

    Snap! That beautiful sound that a good quality chocolate makes as it breaks.

    It tasted.....divine. I was really blown away by how smooth it was; not too intense and such a clean flavour. It reminded me of that unique experience you get with a great Easter Egg chocolate - to me, nothing tastes as good (especially the ears on a bunny-shaped one...sorry Bongo).

    The maker wasnt Max Brenner, Haighs or Lindt, but a CSer. The results were spectacular and if ever one needed evidence NOT to take the advice of people who say, "you cant do it" then here it was, melting in my mouth.

    Congratulations and thankyou Pavoniboy - Im hoping its not too long before you stop by again!!!





    Leave a comment:


  • darmstrong
    replied
    Re: Chocky and processing it

    Just read what I wrote and realised Im an idiot. No surprises there but anyway heres the new thought.

    Old Washing machine. Modify the drum to hold a steel pot. Threaded rod through the lid with two grinding wheels on the end. Put chocolate in, lower lid. Turn on machine. Trick would be i reckon to leave a handle on the pot so once its finished you can lift the pot out again and wander off with your freshly ground chocolate.

    Dang... thats so simple I might start keeping an eye open for an old washing machine and pay a visit to the local marble bench factory.

    Leave a comment:


  • darmstrong
    replied
    Re: Chocky and processing it

    Lookit what I found!
    http://chocolatetalk.proboards.com/i...02&page=1#2793

    That there is the Franky, a modified Santha Grinder, but basically its a homebuilt, the only original part is the grinding wheels. Ive been looking hard at PBs Santha (many thanks for the pics!) but my budget just isnt gonna let me import one. My project bench (half the back verandha now...) is currently occupied with modifying a bbq into a CNC roaster, so building a Melangeur is going to have to wait, but I figure Ill post in here and see whos thinking what Im thinking.

    Drum is easy, an old stainless soup pot from an op-shop, plus using the Franky design of lowering the grinding wheels in from the top means no issues having to try and seal the bottom of the container. Weld or bolt a spindle onto the bottom, then the grinders can be pulled out the top, and the pot lifted off from the pulley underneath to be washed or carry chocolate around in. Pulley wheels and belts can be got from a wreckers. I think the problem areas are going to be the grinding surface and the motor.

    Now grinding surface. In a prior life I was a micro-biologist. So I know good mortar n pestles can be made from ceramic & steel as well as the usual wood and stone setups. I like the Frankys design of using the steel base of the pot as one surface, simple, hardwearing and hygenic, so that just leaves the grinding wheels. Franky uses solid marble grinding stones from a santha, not easy to get. Options Ive pondered are:

    Making ceramic stones, easy enough to make and can get them fired at a local pottery workshop, but worried they may chip.

    Using steel wheels, Solid steel would be too expensive, hollow centre leaves a lot of hygene question marks, I can safely say cleaning the wire spokes on the MG is painful enough and thats only once a year.

    Wood: unhygenic and gross after a few grinds, plus wearing issues.

    Using bench grinder wheels. Getting a batch of wheels from a bench grinder and threading them on a rod. Ideal... as long as they dont have some kind of freaky epoxy binder agent... something tells me getting someone to tell me if their bench grinder wheels are food-safe could be a drawn out process.

    Using marble. The original stones are made out of marble. But getting a 12x10 cylinder of marble cut could be expensive...but... Marble benches are popular. My thinking is that Marble benches need holes cut in them. So there should be offcuts of marble left behind at the benchtop manufacturers. Get three or four discs of marble, thread them on a rod and you have a grinding wheel. Added bonus is you can choose wether to lock the wheels together, increasing the shear, or you can have them spin independantly to reduce it.

    Which leaves the motor.

    A low speed high torque motor than can maintain a steady 100 odd RPM for 12 hours + at a time. Preferably a 240 volt AC model to save on power supplies and speed regulators... With the use of pulleys the speed can be dropped, so up to maybe 400RPM is usable without needing further reduction gearing, but Im still drawing a blank to a suitable source for cheap hi torque, low speed, contiuous use motors.

    Starter motors arent continuous, windscreen wiper motors would be pushed hard to provide that much torque for that long, plus theyre both 12 volt. Maybe an old washing machine motor? Airconditioner motor?

    Other thoughts are later adding heating to the mix to allow tempering/conching. A small radiant heater on the arm over the top of the bowl maybe, and having variable height grinding wheels by using a threaded bar to lower them into the bowl. Keep them high then run a batch of roasted beans through it to crack them. Blast air into the top to winnow it then lower the grinders into the proper grinding position. Spray undercar sound deadener on the outside of the pot to keep the noise down.

    Anyways, just the ramblings of a madman. Sorry if this is a thread hijack, figured this is the chocolate thread, and everyone seems to be facing the same problem of finding a wet grinder, so throw in my 2 cents.

    Leave a comment:


  • Pavoniboy
    replied
    Re: Chocky and processing it

    Made my second batch. Major tweaks to the recipe bringing the cocoa content back down to a more reasonable level for milk chocolate whilst still being a very strong cocoa flavour - 45%.

    Much better this time. It has given me heart that I will be able to work out a great chocolate with enough practice.

    Temper again not the best but practice, practice, practice.

    Would be highly appreciative of roasting tips as people work them out. Only two roasts of cocoa so far and each a slightly different roast profile and time with quite a large variation in flavour. The second turned out much more nutty with a drier nib (this was roasted slightly longer than the first batch and pulled a few degrees higher as well) which confuses me given the above. All help highly appreciated.

    Leave a comment:


  • Javaphile
    replied
    Re: Chocky and processing it

    mmmmmm.......That looks yummy!

    Yall might wanna keep it small so this doesnt happen to you! ;D http://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/Man-Dies-In-Tank-of-Chocolate.html


    Java "Hhhmmm.....Another new hobby? phile

    Leave a comment:


  • Andy
    replied
    Re: Chocky and processing it


    Nice setup Pavoniboy!
    The wet grinder looks a little like a mini version of the Cologne one but I guess about 3 tonne lighter.


    Originally posted by 454C574E4548402D0 link=1174018247/113#113 date=1247088390
    This time, the cocoa is much more pronounced in the roasted nib
    Interesting but maybe not surprising. I want to have a play now to see how differently the nibs react to different roast profiles. Im sure there is a roasters clue there.

    Originally posted by 69484343445E2D0 link=1174018247/103#103 date=1245642147
    As per the description, the raw nibs smell and taste musty and a bit eew.
    I heard from a guy with cacao farming experience that you can wash the raw beans and dry them in the sun. Apparently that is common practice at origin when they get musty but is mostly done for when you want to eat the raw nibs. He went on to say that if you are roasting is doesnt matter as its only the husk that holds the smell.

    I might try some washed and not washed to see if I can pick a difference.

    Oh, the other interesting thing he said is that something like 95% of the worlds cocao is Forastero variety because its easy to grow, produces lots of fruit and is less susceptible to disease.

    Apparently the Mexican Criollo is the "the original wild" variety and is the most sought after by the very pointy-end fine chocolate craftsmen.

    The Bali Trinitario is a hybrid between the two to produce a variety that is easy to harvest, crops well but still retains some of the original Criollo flavour profile.

    Leave a comment:


  • hazchem
    Guest replied
    Re: Chocky and processing it

    Im quite jealous of your setup PB! Not sure I want to go that far myself yet, maybe you could offer up your Santha for hire? ;D ;D

    I roasted another batch on the weekend, this time following the suggested time and temperature from the chocolate museum in Cologne that Andy visited

    http://coffeesnobs.com.au/YaBB.pl?num=1246187132

    I set the Gene to 150C and total roast time was around 26 minutes IIRC.

    This time, the cocoa is much more pronounced in the roasted nibs so its more like cocoa and peanuts as opposed to the other way around. They were more difficult to crack and winnow though, but having tasted some finished chocolate this morning the extra work was certainly worth it.

    Leave a comment:


  • Dennis
    replied
    Re: Chocky and processing it

    Hey, good for you PB!

    That all looks pretty amazing and appreciate the pics. Ive been trying to get my hands on some coffee bean shaped molds without success so if anyone spots some, please let me know.

    Cheers!

    Leave a comment:


  • Pavoniboy
    replied
    Re: Chocky and processing it

    I now have my chocolate factory up and running! Did my first batch on the weekend and will start my second batch tomorrow.

    Roasted in my corretto, cracked in a Crankandstein cocoa mill and then winnowed in a large bowl with a hairdryer. Sorry didnt take any pics of these parts. I might add some later of the next batch.

    Next I followed Dennis method of making cocoa liquor in a food processor. Again, no pics but see Dennis above...mine looked just like that. It is an amazing process to watch unfold in front of your eyes.

    From there I melted some cocoa butter over the stove and poured into the cocoa liquor still in the food processor and mixed together with a quick spurt on the processor again.

    The next part needed my new purchase, the Spectra 10, aka The Alchemists Stone, aka Santha Wet Grinder:



    Though the casing has a crack as can be seen in this photo (actually a few cracks), it seems to work fine.

    So, in went the cocoa liquor and butter mix, sugar, milk powder and a touch of lecithin. Went for around a 60% cocoa milk chocolate.






    Using my little crappy camera so colours arent very good.

    Ran my wet grinder for 20 hours and then began my journey into the art of tempering. Had a bit of a rough time here. First one worked sort of...but I decided I wasnt happy so went again. 2nd time didnt get it at all, 3rd time worked okay but still not happy with the quality of the temper.

    But anyway, into the molds:







    The final product I hear you ask? Welllllll.......pretty good...for a first effort. Overall it all worked so I would be happy with just that for a first attempt. Beyond that, the taste is okay. I guess very good for a first attempt with a bit of a made up recipe, but only okay if you dont take this into account. Better than some chocolates available in shops, but still a long way to go. The actual cocoa is amazing, I think it is my recipe that needs quite a bit of tweaking. The temper is where it is mostly let down I think. Although it has some snap and a little gloss, it is quite inferior to the snap of most chocolate and could be more glossy. I think this is the part where I have a lot to learn.

    Overall, an amazing process and lots of fun. Not as messy as I expected and the only potentially frustrating part is learning the tempering IMO. A hobby I am looking forward to endulging for many years to come

    Leave a comment:


  • cuppacoffee
    replied
    Re: Chocky and processing it

    Originally posted by 363F243D363B335E0 link=1174018247/109#109 date=1245922649
    The nibs taste like peanuts and cocoa.
    Bingo!

    When you get round to adding the sugar Aaron, suggest you use either castor or pure icing - one less opportunity for grittiness.


    Leave a comment:


  • hazchem
    Guest replied
    Re: Chocky and processing it

    ok so I had a go at roasting some of these today and fear that I may have taken the first batch too far. Total roast time was around 18 min, and I pretty much just listened and smelled and waited until i thought the cracks where over and the musty smell had gone. I think i ran it for a bit too long after i first thought the musty smell was gone ...

    Anyway, Ive cracked and winnowed the batch, and it wasnt actually all that hard at all. Using some of Dennis tips from this thread i managed to keep most of the nibs in one piece, but some disintegrated completely. The nibs taste like peanuts and cocoa.

    Now that Ive done that I realised that I still needed to give the second hand blender i bought a clean. I think Im gonna try and make something out of them later, just with some sugar and nuts.

    Leave a comment:


  • Humphrey
    replied
    Re: Chocky and processing it

    Originally posted by 70515A5A5D47340 link=1174018247/103#103 date=1245642147
    As per the description, the raw nibs smell and taste musty and a bit eew.
    Yes they do!

    Leave a comment:

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