Pie and Pastry Bible (169 page)

TO GLAZE THE FRUIT
Use a clean artist’s brush or pastry feather to coat the fruit with glaze.

POINTERS FOR SUCCESS

Freeze some of the liquid whenever you poach fruit and you will always have a good source of flavorful syrup on hand for fruit glazes. Defrosted but undiluted frozen concentrated fruit juice such as cran/raspberry also works well.

Always stir cool liquid into the starch to dissolve it before heating. Adding dry starch to hot liquid would cause it to start swelling and lump.

Always dilute lemon juice with water, or it will be too acidic to thicken, even using cassava.

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Heat until small bubbles form around the perimeter.

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Commercial passion fruit purée can be substituted. Use 8½ tablespoons (136 grams) if using Albert Uster’s (see page 677),
cup when preparing the curd and stir in the remaining approximately 3 tablespoons after straining.

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For availability of the Cordon Rose candy thermometer, see page 673.

TECHNIQUES

CHOCOLATE

A
ll chocolate that we buy has been tempered during production to perfect its consistency and glossy appearance. Tempering controls the crystalline structure of the cocoa butter. It also inhibits the formation of large crystals with lower melting points, which result in “bloom” (gray streaks on the surface) and a coarse, crumbly texture.

Chocolate that does not contain cocoa butter, such as compound chocolate or summer coating (see page 627), can be melted and used for decorations without tempering. Real chocolate, however, which contains cocoa butter, must be retempered if it is melted for decorations or if it loses its temper and grays due to improper temperature during storage.

Tempering chocolate consists of controlling the temperature at which the chocolate melts and sets. The classic method of tempering involves using a marble slab and an accurate thermometer. This produces the glossiest sheen for the longest period of time. Quicker methods that don’t require any special equipment will still tame the chocolate into submission for any of the decorative techniques offered in this chapter. If you prefer not to temper chocolate, use compound chocolate, as real chocolate melted without tempering will be an unending source of frustration.

Tempering is unnecessary when the chocolate will not be used in its pure state—for example, when it is mixed with heavy cream for a ganache glaze.

MELTING CHOCOLATE FOR DECORATIONS

There are two important rules for melting chocolate:

1. Chocolate must never exceed 120°F., or there will be a loss of flavor.
   
2. Water—even a drop in the form of steam—must never touch the chocolate.
   

When a droplet of water enters melted chocolate, the chocolate becomes lumpy (a process called seizing). Shirley Corriher’s “sugar bowl theory” explains this process: If you place a wet spoon in a sugar bowl, hard, irregular crystals form. If you pour a cup of water in the bowl, the sugar merely dissolves. Chocolate behaves the same way because it also contains sugar crystals (even unsweetened “bitter” chocolate has natural sugar). When adding liquid to chocolate, there must be a minimum of établespoon water per ounce of chocolate to keep this from happening. If seizing does occur, the addition of fat such as vegetable shortening, clarified butter, or cocoa butter will somewhat restore the chocolate to a workable condition.

For melting chocolate, unlined copper is the traditional “chocolate pot” because it is so responsive to changes in temperature. Aluminum, preferably lined with a nonstick surface, or heatproof glass also works well. Enameled cast iron, however, is unsuitable because the residual heat will overheat the chocolate. Ideally, chocolate should be heated to 120°F., the point at which all the different fat components (fractions) in the cocoa butter are melted. When melting chocolate or cocoa butter, temperatures exceeding 120°F. adversely affect the flavor. There are many acceptable methods for melting dark chocolate (or cocoa butter). If the heat source does not exceed 120°F. (the pilot light of the oven or the lowest setting on an electric griddle, hot tray, or heating pad), it is fine to add the dark chocolate to the container in large pieces and leave it to melt unmonitored. When the heat source has the potential of bringing the chocolate to over 120°F., however, the chocolate should be finely chopped or grated to ensure uniformity of melting. The chocolate must be carefully watched and stirred to avoid overheating. If using a microwave oven on high power, for example, the chocolate must be stirred every 15 seconds without fail. If using a double boiler, the water in the lower container should not exceed i40°F. and the upper container should not touch the water. The chocolate should be stirred constantly.

Milk and white chocolate must always be stirred frequently while melting because they contain milk solids that seed (lump) it left undisturbed.

Remove the chocolate from the heat source when it reaches 115°F., as the temperature may continue to rise, and stir vigorously to prevent overheating and to distribute the cocoa butter evenly.

Always melt chocolate uncovered, as moisture could condense on the lid, drop back in the chocolate, and cause seizing.

GRATING CHOCOLATE

If chocolate has been stored in a cool area (not refrigerated, where it could absorb moisture), it grates more finely and evenly. The grating disc on a food processor works well for large chunks. Thin bars can be broken up and grated in the container of the food processor fitted with the stainless steel blade.

TEMPERING CHOCOLATE

The ideal situation for working with chocolate is a cool dry draft-free area at 65° to 70°F. At temperatures above 74°F., the chocolate will not behave properly. For all methods of tempering, chocolate should be heated initially to 120°F. and the final temperature of the specific kind should be:

Dark chocolate 88° to 91°F.

Milk chocolate 84° to 87°F.

White chocolate 84° to 87°F.

Compound chocolate does not contain cocoa butter, as mentioned above, so tempering is not required. Compound chocolate should be placed in a bowl and heated over hot tap water (about 115°F.) only to a temperature of 100°F. and used at this temperature. A dab placed just below your lower lip will feel barely warm.

To hold tempered chocolate at its ideal temperature during use, place the container with the chocolate on a foil-covered heating pad turned to its lowest setting. Or return the container to the heat source very briefly, stirring constantly.

Because the formation of cocoa butter crystals continues as long as the chocolate is in a melted state, tempered chocolate will eventually thicken too much to produce a smooth coating. When this happens, melted untempered chocolate can be stirred in until the chocolate reaches the proper consistency without exceeding its ideal temperature. (This is known as drip feeding.)

If chocolate is allowed to exceed its ideal temperature, the fat crystals will start to melt, allowing cocoa particles to drop out and leaving cocoa butter crystals on the surface as unattractive streaks and spots.

If tempered chocolate gets too cold, it will be thick and dull.

Chocolate-covered bonbons or decorations are sometimes refrigerated for a few minutes after dipping in tempered chocolate. This produces a crisper coating, referred to as “snap.” Chocolate can also be allowed to harden at cool room temperature. Any leftover chocolate can be spread thin on foil, allowed to harden, and retempered many times, as long as a small percentage of new chocolate is added.

CLASSIC METHOD
This method, which is dependent upon a highly accurate thermometer or tempering machine, results in the most glossy, crisp chocolate which will set with the most reliability, but it is the most painstaking and usually reserved for the most demanding chocolate techniques of decoration and candy making. It is not necessary for any of the items in this book.

QUICK-TEMPERING METHOD
There are several comparable methods for quick-tempering chocolate. All involve reserving some already tempered unmelted chocolate to serve as the pattern of cocoa butter crystal formation for the melted chocolate. (All chocolate you buy has already been tempered.) The unmelted chocolate is added to the melted chocolate and stirred until the temperature descends to the ideal temperature. This can be tested either with an accurate thermometer (see page 673) or by placing a dab of chocolate just below your lower lip. At the point when it just begins to feel cool, it is about 91°F. (the ideal temperature for dark chocolate). Use one of these methods for simple techniques and small decorative shapes such as pine cone petals, cigarettes, and leaves.

1. The simplest of all methods to remove the melting chocolate from the heat source before it has fully melted and stir until fully melted and cool.

2. It is equally simple to add clarified butter, vegetable shortening, or oil to the chocolate, preferably before melting. This serves two purposes. It results in a thinner coating of chocolate, and the addition of extra fat keeps the existing cocoa butter in suspension. Because the added fat is a different type of fat, it retards formation of large cocoa butter crystals. For dark chocolate, use 1 tablespoon fat for every 3 ounces chocolate. For milk and white chocolate, use only 1 teaspoon fat for 3 ounces of chocolate. (Note: The chocolate will be softer than if using the other methods so do not use for cigarettes or petals.)

3. Melt the chocolate, reserving a large (2- to 3-inch) piece. Heat the chocolate to 115° to 120°F., remove from the heat, and add the reserved chocolate. Stir until the correct temperature has been reached and remove any unmelted chocolate. (Wrap this in plastic wrap. It can be used for future tempering or melting.)

4. Chop or grate the chocolate, and reserve about one third. Heat the larger amount to 115° to 120°F. and remove from the heat. Stir in the reserved chocolate, 1 tablespoon at a time, stirring until it cooled to the proper temperature.