"Alex Rast" > wrote in message
...
> at Wed, 16 Feb 2005 20:01:20 GMT in >,
> (Janet Bostwick) wrote :
snip
>>>> Can I substitute chipped chocolate from a piece of one of those 15
>>> pound
>>>> blocks of Ghirarardelli for chocolate chips in a recipe?...
snip
> Chocolate chips are generally made with less cocoa butter than block
> chocolate "couverture". This is so that, used in chocolate chip cookies,
> they don't melt as quickly. Very few chocolate chips that I know of add
> anything waxy - most of them simply use less cocoa butter (and it's for
> this reason that chocolate chips are generally the cheapest format for
> dark
> chocolate - cocoa butter is expensive, and the less you have in there, the
> less expensive the chocolate will be).
>
> In a recipe that doesn't call for the chips to be used similarly to a
> chocolate chip cookie - folded or stirred or kneaded into a dough or
> batter
> and then baked, block chocolate couverture almost always gives slightly
> better results. It's especially true if the chocolate is to be melted:
> couverture melts faster and more uniformly. In your quick fudge recipe,
> the block chocolate will work perfectly. I should note that in a recipe
> that *does* call for chips to be used in their classic application, the
> purpose-made chips will perform better. They won't flatten as much and
> they
> resist the streaky, separated effect that block chocolate usually
> develops.
>
>
> --
> Alex Rast
>
> (remove d., .7, not, and .NOSPAM to reply)
Thank you for the information, Alex. You've explained the difference so
that I will be able to keep it in mind.
I used half of each kind of chocolate. The mixture did melt easier in the
pot. I thought that was simply because I'd used my chef's knife and the
chocolate was shaved more than chipped. The candy feels slightly creamier
in the mouth and appears a little smoother to the eye. I definitely like
the flavor better, the Ghirardelli is nice.
I would have reported back yesterday but I never got around to making the
candy. I got snarled up with a phone call to HP tech support. Whatever you
do, never phone tech support anymore. Due to language barrier, I spent over
10 minutes just trying to get my name and phone number across to the tech
person. It was a mutual thing. I absolutely could not understand him and
he for sure couldn't understand me. I only phoned because my first online
chat didn't solve my printer problem. An hour and a half later I simply
hung up the phone. Then I tried online chat again--this time I got someone
that listened and didn't need to run me through all the steps on the techie
cheat sheet. Anyway, after that, I just went to bed with a headache.
Janet