I'm planning on making some cherry cordials today, but I only have
unsweetened chocolate. I will sweeten the chocolate with sugar, but this
will thicken it considerably, so it will not be pourable even when fully
melted. What can I use to thin it so that it will still harden for use as
coating chocolate; shortening, butter, something else? I know it would be
easier to buy semisweet chocolate, but I'm trying to use what I already
have.

-Adam

"Adam Schwartz" > wrote in message
news:YoUMb.45410$xy6.115590@attbi_s02...
> I'm planning on making some cherry cordials today, but I only have
> unsweetened chocolate. I will sweeten the chocolate with sugar, but this
> will thicken it considerably, so it will not be pourable even when fully
> melted. What can I use to thin it so that it will still harden for use as
> coating chocolate; shortening, butter, something else? I know it would be
> easier to buy semisweet chocolate, but I'm trying to use what I already
> have.

I would recommend using cocoa butter.

at Tue, 13 Jan 2004 15:46:00 GMT in <YoUMb.45410$xy6.115590@attbi_s02>,
(Adam Schwartz) wrote :

> I'm planning on making some cherry cordials today, but I only have
>unsweetened chocolate. I will sweeten the chocolate with sugar, but this
>will thicken it considerably, so it will not be pourable even when fully
>melted. What can I use to thin it so that it will still harden for use as
>coating chocolate; shortening, butter, something else? I know it would be
>easier to buy semisweet chocolate, but I'm trying to use what I already
>have.
>
You're in for an elaborate procedure, because in order to get the chocolate
and the sugar to integrate smoothly and without ruining the texture, you'll
have to use candymaking technique. If you expect granulated sugar to
dissolve in melted chocolate you're in for a BIG surprise (and panic)
because it won't. Rather, you will need to dissolve the sugar in some
water, bring to a vigorous boil, then cook to hard-crack temperature. Then
you'll need to stir it into the melted chocolate - and this could just as
easily create problems because without very careful stirring the sugar is
likely to solidify as it hits the much cooler chocolate, resulting in
unsweetened chocolate with lumps of sugar in it. At lesser cooking degrees,
it'll mix in slightly more smoothly with the chocolate, but the overall
result will be soft, more like fudge.

Using powdered sugar won't work, either, first, because the grind still
isn't fine enough for the result to be silky smooth, and second, because it
contains cornstarch which will turn the whole thing into a sticky, lumpy
mess.

Bottom line: you don't realize how very much easier it will be for you to
buy semisweet chocolate. What you're proposing to take on takes expertise
and practice to get right, and isn't worth the effort even then. It's
always tempting to use what you already have, but there are times when you
need to recognize that you're trying to make a silk purse out of a sow's
ear. There are things for which it doesn't pay to substitute and chocolate
is one of them. The unsweetened chocolate will keep for a while. Use it in
some other application another time.


--
Alex Rast

(remove d., .7, not, and .NOSPAM to reply)

Not sure what cherry cordials are but if you want to thin chocloate that
will still harden (anything you add wil take longer to harden) would be
thick cream (just a little). I just use the unsweetend chocolate but if you
need it sweeter can you add the sugar to something else?

"Adam Schwartz" > wrote in message
news:YoUMb.45410$xy6.115590@attbi_s02...
> I'm planning on making some cherry cordials today, but I only have
> unsweetened chocolate. I will sweeten the chocolate with sugar, but this
> will thicken it considerably, so it will not be pourable even when fully
> melted. What can I use to thin it so that it will still harden for use as
> coating chocolate; shortening, butter, something else? I know it would be
> easier to buy semisweet chocolate, but I'm trying to use what I already
> have.
>
> -Adam
>
>

On Tue, 13 Jan 2004 15:46:00 GMT, "Adam Schwartz"
> wrote:

> I'm planning on making some cherry cordials today, but I only have
>unsweetened chocolate. I will sweeten the chocolate with sugar, but this
>will thicken it considerably, so it will not be pourable even when fully
>melted. What can I use to thin it so that it will still harden for use as
>coating chocolate; shortening, butter, something else? I know it would be
>easier to buy semisweet chocolate, but I'm trying to use what I already
>have.

Do let us know how this turns out. I never use
bitter/unsweetened/baking chocolate for anything but recipes that call
for it specifically.

"Adam Schwartz" > wrote in message
news:YoUMb.45410$xy6.115590@attbi_s02...
> I'm planning on making some cherry cordials today, but I only have
> unsweetened chocolate. I will sweeten the chocolate with sugar, but this
> will thicken it considerably, so it will not be pourable even when fully
> melted. What can I use to thin it so that it will still harden for use as
> coating chocolate; shortening, butter, something else? I know it would be
> easier to buy semisweet chocolate, but I'm trying to use what I already
> have.
>
> -Adam
>
>
Well, I went ahead and tried to make the chocolates using unsweetened
chocolate, butter and sugar, and it pretty much went exactly as Alex stated
in his reply. The chocolate tasted good, and it cooled solid, but the sugar
did not dissolve, so the final product was grainy and maleable. The
chocolates could not be unmolded, because the sugar interfered with the
chocolates cohesiveness. I'm still glad I tried it, because I learned how
not to make chocolates.

-Adam

"Adam Schwartz" > wrote in message
news:YoUMb.45410$xy6.115590@attbi_s02...
> I'm planning on making some cherry cordials today, but I only have
> unsweetened chocolate. I will sweeten the chocolate with sugar, but this
> will thicken it considerably, so it will not be pourable even when fully
> melted. What can I use to thin it so that it will still harden for use as
> coating chocolate; shortening, butter, something else? I know it would be
> easier to buy semisweet chocolate, but I'm trying to use what I already
> have.
>
> -Adam


Good golly, Adam! Run, do not walk, to your nearest chocolate source and buy
the right chocolate for the job. I'm pretty darn sure you will be
disappointed with the results if you attempt to make cherry cordials with
unsweetened chocolate that you've added sugar to yourself.
First, sugar doesn't dissolve in melted chocolate....in order to get the
sugar to dissolve you'd have to raise the temp of the chocolate past what I
would consider burning, or at the very least, scorching the chocolate.
Second, if you melted the sugar first, the sugar would most likely
crystallize- at least in part- when you add it back to the chocolate because
of the difference in temperature. Third, unless you're going to conch the
chocolate yourself, which is very time consuming, you won't likely be very
happy with the gritty grainy results.
Get a good couverture chocolate, and you don't need to thin it. When
tempered it will be the right consistency for dipping. In my experience, the
darker the chocolate, the thinner the chocolate when melted. If you ever do
want to thin chocolate, use a small amount of cocoa butter. Too much, and
your chocolate will not set up hard.
Get the real thing, and save the unsweetened for a buttercream or a
flourless chocolate cake or some brownies.

kimberly