Tempered Chocolate For Caramallows Food

HOW TO TEMPER CHOCOLATE

Steps:

• Place your chocolate in a plastic or silicone bowl in the microwave and heat on high for 30 seconds. Then stir
• Heat again for another 30 seconds, stir, then 15 seconds, stir, then 10 seconds, stir. Make sure your temperature never goes above 90ºF for dark chocolate. 86F for milk chocolate and 84F for white chocolate. DO NOT RUSH THIS
• If your chocolate is not fully melted then only do another 5 seconds until it is melted
• Now your chocolate is in temper and ready to use!

HOW TO TEMPER CHOCOLATE

Steps:

• 1. Finely chop 1 1/2 to 2 pounds chocolate. Smaller amounts make it difficult to control the temperature changes.
• 2. Place two-thirds of the chocolate in a double boiler or metal bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water. Make sure the bottom of the bowl does not touch the water. Place a candy thermometer or digital thermometer in the chocolate and stir frequently with a rubber spatula.
• 3. Do not let the temperature of the chocolate exceed 120°F for dark chocolate or 105°F for milk or white chocolate. When the chocolate has fully melted, remove the bowl from heat. Wipe the bottom of the bowl to get rid of any condensation.
• 4. Stir in the remaining third of the chocolate a little at a time. Let it melt before adding more.
• 5. Let the chocolate cool to about 82°F. It it is warmer, keep stirring and let it cool some more. If it is cooler, begin reheating in the next step.
• 6. Once the chocolate is 82°F, place it back over simmering water. For dark chocolate, reheat to 88°F to 91°F. For milk and white chocolate, reheat to 85°F to 87°F. Remove the bowl from heat once you have reached the right temperature.
• 7. Spread a small spoonful of chocolate on a piece of wax paper. If it looks dull or streaky, re-temper the chocolate, starting with step 2. If it dries quickly with a glossy finish and no streaks, the chocolate is in temper.
• Keeping chocolate in temper
• Once melted chocolate has been tempered, it must be used before it cools and sets. If it cools to about 84°F to 86°F and is still fairly liquid, it can be reheated to a liquid consistency. If it has completely cooled and solidified, it should be re-tempered. Heat it for 5 to 10 seconds at a time, stirring and checking the temperature before reheating. For dark chocolate, reheat to 88°F to 91°F. For milk and white chocolate, reheat to 87°F to 88°F. If you keep your chocolate within these temperature ranges, it will stay in temper and be liquid enough to use.
• Easy alternatives to tempering chocolate
• Several products exist for those who do not want to temper chocolate. They are called confectionery coatings, coating chocolate, summer coating, or chocolate bark coatings. They are usually made of vegetable fats that melt smoothly and set up quickly to a finish that is very similar to tempered chocolate. They may not contain actual chocolate. Nothing can perfectly duplicate the taste and mouth-feel of tempered chocolate, but quality coatings can be good substitutes. They can be cooled and reheated quickly, and as often as necessary.

CHOCOLATE-DIPPED CARAMALLOWS

Steps:

• Make first caramel layer: Coat a rimmed 12 1/2-by-17 1/2-inch baking sheet with cooking spray. Line with parchment, leaving a 2-inch overhang on 2 sides, then coat parchment with spray.
• Place 2 cups cream, 2 cups sugar, 1 cup corn syrup, and 6 tablespoons butter in a large pot. Bring to a boil, stirring until sugar dissolves and butter melts, about 5 minutes. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, until mixture registers 245 degrees on a candy thermometer, about 20 minutes. Remove pot from heat, and stir in 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. Pour into prepared pan without scraping bottom of pot. Let stand.
• Make the marshmallow layer: Sprinkle gelatin over 1/3 cup water in a mixer bowl, and let soften, about 5 minutes.
• Mix sugar and remaining cup water in a small saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Wash down sides of pan with a wet pastry brush to prevent sugar crystals from forming. Cook, undisturbed, until mixture registers 238 degrees on a candy thermometer, about 10 minutes. (You may have to tilt pan to get an accurate read.) Remove pan from heat, and whisk sugar syrup and a pinch of salt into gelatin. Pour into a mixer bowl, and whisk on medium-high until cool and thick, about 10 minutes. Spread marshmallow evenly over caramel to cover, and let stand for 30 minutes.
• Prepare second caramel layer with remaining ingredients as in step 2. Pour over marshmallow layer, covering entire surface, and let stand, uncovered, until set, about 8 hours.
• Using a 1 1/4-inch round cutter, cut out 70 rounds. Using a fork, dunk each round in chocolate. Scrape bottom of fork against edge of bowl to remove excess, and place dipped candies on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Sprinkle nonpareils on top, and let stand until set.

TEMPERED CHOCOLATE FOR CARAMALLOWS

Steps:

• Place 1/2 pound chocolate in a metal bowl. Bring a saucepan with 2 inches of water to a simmer, then turn off heat. Set bowl with chocolate over saucepan, and let melt, stirring gently with a rubber spatula until chocolate registers 118 degrees on a candy thermometer. (Watch the chocolate carefully, as heating and cooling times can vary.) Remove bowl from saucepan. Add 1/4 pound unmelted chocolate to bowl, and stir, until chocolate cools to 84 degrees. (Remove any unmelted pieces with spatula.) Return bowl to saucepan, and let stand, and stir until chocolate registers 88 degrees to 90 degrees. Use immediately. Repeat with remaining chocolate.

SOFT CHOCOLATE CARAMELS

Steps:

• In a heavy-bottomed sauce pan, stir the sugar and corn syrup together until the sugar is completely moistened. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat and cook, without stirring, until it turns a very light caramel color, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and very slowly pour the cream into the hot sugar (be careful-it will bubble up) and stir to combine. Return the mixture to medium-low heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until a candy thermometer inserted in the pot reads 238 degrees F, about 12 to 15 minutes.
• Remove from the heat and whisk in the chocolate and butter until smooth. Pour the mixture into a greased 8-by-8 inch square baking dish. Allow to cool completely (at least 2 hours) before cutting into 1-inch squares.
• Chocolate is tempered so that after it has been melted, it retains its gloss and hardens again without becoming chalky and white (that happens when the molecules of fat separate and form on top of the chocolate). There are a variety of ways to temper.
• One of the easiest ways to temper chocolate is to chop it into small pieces and then place it in the microwave for 30 seconds at a time on high power until most of the chocolate is melted. Be very careful not to overheat it. (The temperature of dark chocolate should be between 88 and 90 degrees F, slightly warmer than your bottom lip. It will retain its shape even when mostly melted. White and milk chocolates melt at a temperature approximately 2 degrees F less because of the amount of lactose they contain.) Any remaining lumps will melt in the chocolate's residual heat. Use an immersion blender or whisk to break up the lumps. Usually, chocolate begins to set, or crystallize, along the side of the bowl. As it sets, mix those crystals into the melted chocolate to temper it. A glass bowl retains heat well and keeps the chocolate tempered longer.
• Another way to temper chocolate is called seeding. In this method, add small pieces of unmelted chocolate to melted chocolate. The amount of unmelted chocolate to be added depends on the temperature of the melted chocolate, but is usually 1/4 of the total amount. It is easiest to use an immersion blender for this, or a whisk.
• The classic way to temper chocolate is called tabliering. Two thirds of the melted chocolate is poured onto a marble or another cold work surface. The chocolate is spread out and worked with a spatula until its temperature is approximately 81 degrees F. At this stage, it is thick and begins to set. This tempered chocolate is then added to the remaining non-tempered chocolate and mixed thoroughly until the mass has a completely uniform temperature. If the temperature is still too high, part of the chocolate is worked further on the cold surface until the correct temperature is reached. This is a lot of work, requires a lot of room, and makes a big mess.
• A simple method of checking tempering, is to apply a small quantity of chocolate to a piece of paper or to the point of a knife. If the chocolate has been correctly tempered, it will harden evenly and show a good gloss within a few minutes.
• From Dessert Circus, Extraordinary Desserts You Can Make at Home, by Jacques Torres.