Generation Interim » Arts + Artists

A Look into Chocolate Tempering and Crystallization

admin — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 07:46:04 +0000

When you decide that you’ll use only a good grade of chocolate like pure chocolate for making chocolate candy, unlike for chip cookies or chocolate fudge, you should especially temper to a achieve a smooth, shiny, velvety finish for your chocolate candies. Not tempering will make the chocolate candies unattractively dappled, gritty and powdery, a condition called blooming, and a chalky sheen and white speckles may stay on the chocolates.

Due to a process called polymorphous crystallization, the fatty acids in cocoa butter, the basic ingredient for making chocolates, crystallize into six varieties of crystals under dissimilar temperatures. Tempering is done to prevent this; all types of chocolates, because of the cocoa butter content, must undergo tempering to become attractive.

The molecules of the cocoa butter form into crystals by bonding together. The type and quantity of crystals that form depend upon the temperature that is maintained. These crystals also melt and freeze at their own temperatures. When the temperature comes down and nears the freezing point, the chocolate crystals formed by the molecules occupy the space of the liquid crystals forcing the liquid to become solid. The stability of this solid depends upon the density and uniformity in size of these crystals.

When you temper chocolates, these crystals become solid and stable and this is why a properly tempered chocolate remain in shape at room temperature. Only if you heat at a high temperature of 96 degrees Fahrenheit, which is the melting point of chocolate, do the tempered chocolate crystals disintegrate. That’s why it’s imperative that you maintain chocolate temperatures with the help of a Mercury-Gauge Chocolate Thermometer that has a capacity to read even low temperatures like 80F.

Tempering is done using the three steps of heating, cooling and re-heating. If you lapse in maintaining accurate temperatures, different crystals dominate during tempering and you’ll fail creating the ideal temper. But only type V crystals can make the chocolates shiny, smooth, firm and crisp and stable. These tempered chocolates do not melt till they reach near-body temperature. Tempering should be repeated if the chocolates reach such high temperatures.

The melted chocolate or mush is cooled by working upon it on a heat-absorbing surface such as a marble slab so that type IV and type V crystals proliferate and act as “seeds” to guide the other crystals in their multiplication. When you observe that the chocolate has thickened, it means you have the required quantity of these crystals. By re-heating the mush, you remove the type IV crystals and only type V crystals remain. These specific temperatures differ from one variety of chocolate to another.

Chocolates temperatures should not oscillate. If you set the tempered chocolates in a bain-marie or hot pad, ideal tempers are extended longer so you can have more time to dip and mold the mush.

On Utilizing Website Banners to Help Advertize Your Website

admin — Sun, 31 Jan 2010 05:43:04 +0000

You might have read the phrase “web banner” written a lot on the internet. This word describes 2 varieties of graphical imagery. The first variety is the conventional advertisement banner, commonly used as a method to promote another site, as clicking the banner takes one to the advertised website. The second sort is located at the very top of an average site – the website header. This location normally acquaints a user to the site with a title, maybe a secondary strapline, and of course imagery to help theme the site. Both varieties of banner serve essential purposes in both driving traffic to a site, and helping make a website keep each visitor for a longer period of time on the site – by teaching them plainly with what the website is about, and enticing the individual to browse further, utilizing compelling imagery / strapline text.

How do you go about producing web banners? There are plenty of banner makers that are able to aid you with this undertaking. Also many give you web banner hosting in addition. Simply key in some words like myspace banner maker into Google and you’ll find plenty of banner maker services.

What info to place in your banner? If you have a shopping site, it’s a good tip to place the payment gateways your site uses for taking payment, because it hands to people a visible cue that your site is an e-commerce store and also lets the individual see how items can be paid for on your site. Place some graphics of the products you are selling as well, as this is yet another visual prompt as to what types of products you vend. The strap line text is important too. Ensure the strap line distinctly and concisely states what the site is about in just four or five words.

And as apparent as all this may be, a fault numerous websites make is to assume each website visitor knows automatically what the website is about before visiting it. We should not assume that every visitant what your site is about in advance, so you must squeeze each visitant’s hand in those crucial first 3 or 4 seconds they visit your website.

Slate Fountain and Their Powerful Feng Shui Benefits

admin — Sun, 10 Jan 2010 18:40:21 +0000

Feng Shui is an ancient art and science of placement so as to maximize the energy flow in your home. It evolved to its maturity in Chinese culture. Its direct english translation is “wind and water”. The Chinese originally utilized it to make divine graves for their ancestors and kings. As time passed, the divine was implemented in building government bureaus and memorials. It its final phase of development, full metropolises were being built with the sacred feng shui principles.

Most of the architects in Hong-Kong create their buildings centered around the principles of feng shui. It is evident from this that the art of feng shui is indispensable when it comes to architecting buildings in the Eastern civilizations. A famous myth is that Bank of China was sued by the businesses in its neighborhood because of its knowing anti-feng-shui architecture.

It was not until late 20th century that the rules of feng shui began to become popular in Western civilization. Feng Shui grew into the buzz phrase for the urban superficial socialites by the late ninetees.

One of the most familiar feng shui components is a tabletop fountain. A soothing slate wall fountain has many feng shui attributes. Slate symbolizes the component of earth. Earth represents Yin, so it is feminine by nature. At the same time, earth also exemplifies stability and dependability because of its substantial virtuousness. The consolidation and two components – earth and water – makes slate water fountain immaculate feng shui fountain.

Lamenting Poetic Moods [six Poems]

admin — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 05:18:42 +0000

Advance: in Mr. Siluk’s poetry one finds symbolist values, sensuous impressions; verbal magic and even childish jingles; at times the popular 8-syllable verse (ballad metre). Free verse, with lamenting poetic moods, even satire (poems inside-out). Here are a few more of his recently written poems. Rosa Pealoza.

Lamenting Poetic Moods
(Six Poems)

By Dennis Siluk

Spring Scene: Rain
[Along the Mississippi]

Dusk descends. A mist
shows nothing of kindness.
And now, as the sun falls,
a dead pale gleam, hardly

seen…
covers the city, along the

Mississippi;
With tarnished spring rain!
Everything is cold and gray.
No moon at all, just pale drab

rain…
Bleak rain, all night and day;
Pale-bleak rain, along the

Mississippi.

Note: #670 [5/16/05]; inspired by the rain;
in St. Paul, Minnesota; and Juan Ramon Jimenez.

Wariwilca
[Ancient ruins by the Andes of Peru, 700 AD]

Ancient ruins, hidden away
In the Mantaro Valley
Huancayo…

A scent of silence…resides
In the quiet skies
Of Wariwilca!…

A cheerful breeze clashes my knees
As I kneel down
And Drink from its spring…

In the quiet corners of
The ruins, spirits still linger
Unruffled….

#671/5/16/05

American Society:
Yellow moon-light

We are Christians, but have
Not faith!

We are ecclesiastical but
Not spiritual!

We have no roots, but we
Have big feet!

It is a land of everyone
Ruled by everyone

Even mystics!

We have the mountain and sky
And we all try to fly!

We love God, with or
Without Him!

It should be made clear
We are preoccupied with:

Death, money and beer!

(And most folks hate poetry
At best.)

Our youth and Congress
With long grass and low skies

Are on a road that leads to lies!

As for me
Books, New York City, just before
Dawn: yellow moon-light shines through
My empty room….
Farewell, farewell; next stop
My poems becomes alive
With cosmic crap!

#669

White Peril

Weakness rides the humans of life!
Humans against the anguish of Satan!

He feels wronged and thus, suffers
Madly with his blemished soul!

They are many; but they exist, they
…paint white fences for weak humans.

The poor…the poor! He slaps their face;
Puts them in place; gives gilt filled destinies.

Weakness rides the humans of life!
Madly with the blemished soul of Satan…:

Crazed eyes, shoulders high, high:
He summons us…to his den nearby!…

#668

Cesar Vallejo’s:
Feasible of Black Roses

Bow down your head ol’ poet
To face God’s grace ahead
There are no more trenches

To dig today…
In the forest of your head,

So:
Bow down, bow down,

Ol’ barbaric poet!
Death rides the horse ahead
I hear the crackling of a whip
See the crazed eyes of death.

He summons you to his den
The devil and his wind,

So:
Bow down, bow down

Your blood stained brows
He will take you to the edge.

Closer, closer, I see you now
Ah! a moving satanic cloud
I see a festival of black-roses:
Hear a clamor in the crowd;

Bow down, bow down, Ol’ poet
…I hear applause!

Forgive me Lord, I tired
In the afternoon of my life
But souls are seized by devils

And black-roses at festivals:
On days that ‘you are sick!…’

#666 [5/15/2005]

Evangeline of Lima

Evangelina of Lima,

Awoken in her breasts

Warmth at the request
For her hand in marriage
By the handsome young captain

Don Fernando!

But obsession to gamble

Woud tare his heart away

As he squandered her fortune
And her diamond solitaire ring.

But fortune would have it so,

She died a solid wife

To save her husbands honor
In the middle of her life.

Note: Inspired by Ricardo Palma, and his “Peruvian Traditions”. Being a licensed counselor for many years, and schooled in psychology, and addictions, this case he writes about, was most interesting to me, and therefore I wrote my poem with it as an example. I do not feel I have taken anything away from his writings, and was careful to observe this.

Poet/Author, Dennis Siluk, http://dennissiluk.tripod.com

Make Your Own Melt-In-The-Mouth Chocolate Truffles

admin — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 02:42:20 +0000

When you consider the entire gamut of confections, the taste of chocolate truffles speaks volumes for itself. These originated in France and the fine texture, varied flavors, hard shell and a velvety core of chocolate truffles make it the opulent confection you crave for repeatedly.

You can have a perennial supply of chocolate truffles because you can make them yourself. The ingredient for making chocolate truffles is ganache, which is a mixture of chocolate and cream. By dusting with cocoa powder or coating with tempered chocolate, your chocolate truffles become very attractive. Unique truffles can be made by mixing flavors, spices, fillings and liqueurs during the process of making of your truffles. What’s best is that you don’t need to keep an eye on chocolate temperatures; you can use a chocolate tempering machine to do the hard work.

With the best quality chocolate (about 50% cocoa liquor and cocoa butter), you can impart an exotic appeal and a velvety bite to your truffles.

Different proportions of chocolate and cream help you in getting different types of ganache but the most ideal ratio of chocolate and cream is at 2:1. If you want to make roughly 35 chocolate truffles, you must prepare:

455 grams dark chocolate

1 cup heavy whipping cream

A bread knife

A saucepan

A mixing bowl

A rubber spatula

A teaspoon

Cookie sheets

Liqueur, spices, flavors (optional)

The chocolate is cut with a saw-toothed knife into small strips of about 5mm in length. Scald the cream on the pan but make sure the temperature’s just shy of the boiling point. The chocolate strips melt when the scalded cream is emptied onto the strips. Once the chocolate strips melt completely, both the cream and the chocolate are mixed thoroughly with a rubber spatula for a velvety mixture.

Next, chill the ganache in the refrigerator to congeal it so rough balls may be shaped from it. These balls are kept on a cookie sheet that is lined with wax paper. Set it once again in the chiller; afterwards, the balls should be ready for dusting or coating. For dusting your truffles with cocoa powder, you can use two teaspoons to roll the balls on the cocoa powder, in a bowl.

(Your favorite flavor can be added to the cream after scalding is done. Once the flavor is fully absorbed into the cream, you should re-scald the cream after which you pour it on the chocolate strips for melting them.)

Truffles can be coated with tempered chocolate and for this, you should temper a small quantity of dark chocolate on the tempering machine. You can coat the balls with this tempered chocolate using your hands. But the balls should be made warm again during this step. Once the tempered chocolate has dried into the truffles, the outer shell will become hard. Now your chocolate truffles are ready for serving or you can choose to store them in air-tight containers. You should take care that they’re stored in a dry place.