Having the kitchen to myself this afternoon, I finally decided to get serious about making raw chocolate. The results were, let's say, revealing.
Batch #1
Made from:
cacao butter, ground cacao nibs, mesquite meal, lucuma powder, raw agave syrup
Lessons Learned:
The result: Edible. Better than the worst store bought raw chocolate I've tasted. But I wouldn't offer this to anyone :-(
Batch #2:
Made from:
ingredients of batch one, coconut butter/oil, ground freeze-dried mangosteen, whole hemp seeds (for crunchy-ness)
This batch went much better, still there were lessons to be learned:
The result: Better, still not satisfactory though.
Ideas for the future:
Batch #1
Made from:
cacao butter, ground cacao nibs, mesquite meal, lucuma powder, raw agave syrup
Lessons Learned:
- It takes ages for cacao butter to melt using a chocolatiere set to 43°C.
- It is not a good idea to do the mixing of the ingredients in a blender as the cacao butter goes solid again almost instantly.
- I do not like the taste of mesquite meal. Now I finally know what ingredient puts me off most store-bought raw chocolate.
- Agave syrup renders the chocolate lumpy. Probably too much water in it. Unfortunately, raw sweeteners tend to be liquids.
- Silicone molds may be more expensive that rigid plastic molds, but they are invaluable when it comes to raw chocolate.
The result: Edible. Better than the worst store bought raw chocolate I've tasted. But I wouldn't offer this to anyone :-(
Batch #2:
Made from:
ingredients of batch one, coconut butter/oil, ground freeze-dried mangosteen, whole hemp seeds (for crunchy-ness)
This batch went much better, still there were lessons to be learned:
- Freeze-dried mangosteen tastes great, but it's slightly sour which does not work so well in chocolate. Must look into other freeze dried fruit.
- Addition of coconut butter improves texture, but makes chocolate much more vulnerable to heat. Still, I think I'll keep using it in the future.
The result: Better, still not satisfactory though.
Ideas for the future:
- Try xylitol, almond butter and other freeze dried fruit for additional ingredients.
- Do the whole mixing in the chocolatiere pot.
Current Mood: 
contemplative
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