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Crushed Shell

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Making Chocolates Yourself by Lloyd Gordon

Ever wondered how chocolate is made and whether you could ever learn to make it yourself? It is probably the secretly harboured fantasy of many a chocolate idolizer to be able to churn out trays of personalized chocolate delights whenever they felt like it. Well, if you are the adventurous type and are patient with a little time on your hands and you have a few choice pieces of equipment, then you too could learn the much coveted art of chocolate making.rnrnBefore we get into the domesticated version of chocolate making, it would be beneficial to understand the tried and tested processes that the industry uses to make large volumes of our favorite treat.rnrnIt all begins with the raw material 'cacoa'. The cacoa tree produces a pod containing a number of seeds or beans (as they are commonly known) in its center surrounded by a pulp all enclosed in a thick fleshy skin. The pods are a picked, opened and the beans and husk put into large wooden bins which are covered with large leaves and left untouched to ferment for a few days. Once they are adequately fermented, they are laid out to dry in the sun for a week or so. When the beans are sufficiently dried they are sorted, separated by category and roasted in large ovens for up to half an hour where they darken and the flavor of the bean is enhanced.rnrnThe beans are then broken and separated from their shell by a process known as cracking and winnowing, which uses compressed air to blow the shells away from the seeds. The resulting fragmented pieces are known as cocoa nibs.rnrnNow the nibs are finely ground. The grinding process releases the fat content which combines with the grounded solids to form a thick paste called liquor. The liquor gives rise to two other substances, cocoa butter obtained by pressing the fat from the liquor and the remaining dried cocoa which is most commonly use to make drinking chocolate.rnrnSolid chocolate is made by further refining the liquor using a process known as conching, which smooths and aerates it and then combining it with cocoa butter sugar, milk or milk powder (for milk chocolate), an emulsifier such as soy lecithin and (or) vanilla. The combined solution is then tempered by a process of carefully heating, cooling and allowing it to set several times, becoming more refined with each cycle. And basically, that is how chocolate is made.rnrnNow, it would be unrealistic to expect you to find your own cacoa pods to pick and ferment (let alone sun dry in the middle of winter), so you can skip the earlier phases as raw cacoa is now commonly available to buy.rnrnRoast the cacoa in your oven for up to half an hour at a temperature not more than 325F, you may want to experiment with this as roasting times may vary considerably depending on the type of bean you are using and the intensity of your oven however, ensure that you don't burn them as it will seriously affect the taste.rnrnAfter roasting, allow the cacoa to cool, crack the beans in a mill, this will allow the husk to come away from the bean. The light husk can then be removed from the crushed beans using a small fan, hair dryer or any other practical air blowing device.rnrnWhen the separation process is complete, the beans must be finely ground using a good quality juicer which will produce the cocoa liquor. Add cocoa butter, sugar, lecithin and milk (if you're making milk chocolate) plus any other flavoring you require. At this stage the solution although chocolaty is still in need of refinement and conching which is accomplished using a conching machine. Conching can take anything between 12 hours and 2 days depending on the quality of chocolate being made but if you don't have a conching machine you can use a wet grinder to remove any remaining solid particles.rnrnFinally the chocolate must be tempered. Tempering is the method used that results in the finished product having a rich sheen and crispy snap. This is done by gently heating it to about 115F, pour some of the liquid onto a marble slab and gently work it around for around 10 minutes, as it cools to about 85F and begins to set, add more of the simmering liquid now being maintained at about 95F, and continue to work it back and fourth on the slab. Now return it to the rest of heated liquid and repeat the process. The amount of refinement obtained will simply depend on the number of times the process is repeated. Pour the liquid into a mold, allow it to set and finally...Enjoy.rnrnHopefully from this basic overview, you will appreciate the skill, time and care that goes into making good quality chocolate. There is no substitute for the skill derived from time and experience in this art, as the slightest variations can significantly affect the outcome of the finished product. So you may just wish to continue enjoying your favorite treat already professionally prepared for you by the hands of the masters.rn

If you wish to see more information on chocolate as well as the interesting selection of fine luxury chocolate products and gift baskets on Lloyd Gordon's chocolate website visit => http://www.chocolatetray.comn

Article Source: http://www.earticlesonline.com/Article/Making-Chocolates-Yourself/455300

What is the correct way to cycle a new tank set up?

I have lost a lot of fish in the last two weeks (about 25), and I think it is because I didn't cycle my tank properly. I would really like to have another go and was wondering what I should do to give myself the best possible chance of having a healthy tank. After Attempt #1, I am left with:

Ph downers are only used during emergencies, not as a daily use. If you want, to keep soft water fish, then you must recreate an environment for those fish. There are many fish that live in hard water environments, but they are mainly african cichlids, and they grow to large. Get rid of the crushed shells, and get play sand or river sand. They will have trace amounts of shells to stabilize the ph without making it alkalic. You can use black water extract or indian almond leaves to soften the water and release benefitial tannins into the water. But the water will become a golden yellow though.

This is how I cycled my 7 gallon breeding tanks. I used 1.5 inches of thoroughly washed play sand. I then added lots of plants such as java moss and pennywort for a carpet at the bottom, and water wistera, temple plants and mini amazon sword plants. I then filled the tank with water that had been treated with indian almond leaves and anti-chlorines for a week. I also added a few malaysian trumpet snails to provide CO2, ammonia and to aerate the sand. I set the heater to 25 degrees and only turned on the filter at night so that there would be CO2 for the plants during the day. I also got strong lighting for the plants. The tank cycled in 3 weeks.