1. Chocolate Unit 313

2. The Chocolate Bar It was the British company J. S. Fry & Sons of Bristol in 1847 that developed the first chocolate bar as we know it today. Although as long ago as 1500BC humans consumed wild cacoa in the form of a drink flavoured with spices such as chillies.

3. Quality of Chocolate The quality of chocolate for use in patisserie is important and we should always use the best available to us. The best quality chocolate is known as Couverture. Couverture has a higher percentage of cocoa butter which makes it easier to work with and is responsible for the giving the characteristic qualities to chocolate.

4. Purchasing Chocolate Plain Chocolate – look to use 60% + Milk Chocolate – look to use 30% + White Chocolate – not really couverture Cocoa Powder Cocoa Butter Cocoa Nibs – texture and flavour Always buy and use the best quality chocolate that you can. Avoid chocolates with lots of ingredients added. A high percentage of cocoa solids is not an indicator of quality. Avoid cheap chocolate products such as bakers chocolate.

5. How good Couverture should look! Appearance: The colour should be flawless and even. Dark chocolate should be a deep shade of mahogany red. It should have no cracks or air pockets It should have no streaks or bloom

6. How good Couverture should smell! Aroma: As it is unwrap, it should smell good with a complex fragrance. You may be able to detect vanilla, berry, caramel or roasted nuts. It should be sweetly fragrant but not too over powering. It is not a good sign to have no smell at all – if you can’t smell you can’t taste. Burnt, musty, chemically or medicinal is not good.

7. How good Couverture should feel! Touch: It should feel silky and not sticky and should just begin to yield to the warmth of your finger. Snap: Take a piece and break it ; it should snap cleanly – if it crumbles or appears powdery, it is not good. Inside it should be solid all the way through with no blemishes. Image source:commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Chocolate.jpgcommons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Chocolate.jpg

8. Plain (Dark) chocolate Is considered to be the healthiest option. Yes, it's true, Chocolate which is high in cocoa solids (70% or more) is now recognised as having many qualities that are beneficial to health. Of course it must be eaten in moderation.

9. Avoid humid conditions If chocolate has been affected by humidity it will not be suitable for tempering. This does not mean it should be discarded it could still be used for the production of: –Ice creams and sorbets –Chocolate sauce and drinks –Mousses and ganache fillings

10. Storage of chocolate Store in a cool, dry, well ventilated place out of direct sunlight. Do not store tempered chocolate in the refrigerator. Tempered chocolate does not react favourably to water and/or heat both of these can cause bloom

11. Tempering Chocolate (pre-crystallising) This involves chopping and heating the chocolate in a double boiler to melt it, cooling it while agitating it and then raising the temperature slightly. The temperatures for couvertures may vary slightly from brand to brand so look for manufacturers guidelines.

12. Tempering guidelines TypeHigh Temp Low Temp Use at Plain49°C26-27°C30-32°C Milk45°C26-27°C30-32° White43°C26-27°C30-32°C

13. Characteristics of tempered chocolate Effects of tempered chocolate: Good gloss Hard surface Brittle snap No bloom Easily removed from mould Smooth texture (not grainy) Good shelf life Image source: www.flickr.com/.../44532818/in/set-973753/www.flickr.com/.../44532818/in/set-973753/

14. Poor tempering. If chocolate has been poorly tempered the whole process will need to be restarted. In some cases in may be necessary to restart with new chocolate, but not always. Fat Bloom Image source: www.cbc.ca/.../2004/09/20/chocolate040920.htmlwww.cbc.ca/.../2004/09/20/chocolate040920.html

15. Thinning chocolate Chocolate can be thinned by stirring in cocoa butter. This is sometimes necessary when blending in flavour. Image source: www.insightempire.com/cocoa-butter/www.insightempire.com/cocoa-butter/

16. Equipment A smooth dry spatula For accuracy a chocolate thermometer would be used. Image source:www.chocoley.com/thermometers.htmwww.chocoley.com/thermometers.htm A Double boiler prevent any of the steam from the water coming into contact with the chocolate.

17. Melting Chocolate Using a clean, dry plastic spatula the chocolate is agitated while it is melting.

18. To pre-crystallise (temper) chocolate using the table top method Melt chocolate to 45ºC, stir well. Pour 2/3 rds. on to a marble slab. Work the chocolate on the slab using a palette knife and scraper. This is to cool it down. At 27ºC return it to the remaining third and mix evenly together. Check temperature before serving.

19. Student activity Produce an A4 poster that: States the characteristics or effects of correctly tempered chocolate. Or Describes how to temper milk chocolate