Easy as fudge, in fact:
I made four kinds of fudge and three kinds of caramels over the weekend, but one batch failed, so I wound up with six kinds. Let’s start with the fudges:
And then there were the salted lavender caramels:
And the cranberry-orange caramels:
Those still have the transfer sheets on them, which is why they look suspiciously square on top. Later I peeled off the sheets, inspected the finished chocolates, and banished the substandard ones. They wound up making my coworkers very happy:
I’m not sure what the total was yet, but each box weighed 1700-2000 grams, so multiplying by 6 gives at least 10 kg of caramels and fudge – probably more like 25 pounds! But that was the easy part. The complicated, difficult chocolates are yet to come.
What’s on tap for the rest of the week? Social engagements mostly: my critique partner Tuesday, a guild meeting Thursday, and Friday is a very special day: it marks the 1-year anniversary of the SkySat-1 launch! Yep, my company launched its first satellite a year ago Friday. How the time’s flown! The Skybox division is having a party to celebrate. I’m looking forward to it!
But I also have dreams of making yuzu marmalade. I know it’s crazy with chocolate season in full swing, but yuzu (a citrus fruit with a floral, fruity fragrance) are hard to find, and I managed to find some at the local farmer’s market. I don’t know how long the season will last, either…so I’m going to try making yuzu marmalade either this week or this weekend. Heaven only knows where I’ll find the time, but I’ve said that before…
The cats, by the way, are fascinated by the chocolate. Or, more accurately, by the many chocolate bags and boxes. Here is Tigress, exploring the marvelous possibilities in an empty box of cocoa…I’m amazed she fit into it, but she (clever kitty that she is) managed it!
Hi there – introduced to this blog by a fellow foodie who thinks you and I have a mutual love of chocolate! I can’t help but notice you are screen printing your chocolate transfer sheets. Did you know that with an edible food printer you can do even more fantastic things? You spray your acetate with a very thin layer of cocoa butter, and then you print on your designs in edible inks. Because the printer has a thick card access point for the rollers you don’t end up with crumbled chocolate everywhere. 🙂 I’ve been doing this for a while now and having just bought a patisserie/boulangerie in Nice, France, we’re going to be doing our own range of chocolates out here with the printed transfer sheets on them that I shall be designing. 🙂 Lovely cats, and gorgeous chocs! I can see why my friend suggested your blog. xx Natalie and 3 mad cats in France, Le Four á Bois, 06300 Nice. Soon to be online at lefourabois.bio
Hi Natalie,
I did not know that! Can you give me more details on what printer, inks, etc. you use? This sounds like it has really interesting possibilities for next year. Are the inks visible on a dark chocolate background, or do you need to use them on white chocolate?