Tough Hard Candy Experience

This might be almost the 10th time(over 2 years span haha) that I tried my hands at pulling hard candy. None of them have been perfect till now.. I just don't know what goes wrong. Its so damn frustrating. But Thomas Edison made thousands of trials before succeeding.. and probably I shud follow his positive influence in here and not despair. I believe my problem was because I did not succeed but I did not document the findings.. So, the improvement made were just based on whatever mind capacity I had over the mistakes I've made earlier. Which I shud the admit, that I am just terrible with my long term memory. So here I am, writing this, just to let myself know what I did and how I did it and perhaps plan some improvements over my next trials.

Some backgrounds over my encounter with hard candy experience. As usual, I love to sift thru youtube to watch how people made chocolates truffles and confections and what not. (At that time, my passion was for chocolates..and I do still have that passion now). And then I came across this video that I'm posting here, which is so damn cool, showing how lollies are made. I've never seen it being made or sold in Malaysia. It just brings back my memory over the kiwi candies we bought on our trip to New Zealand few years back. Strong kiwi flavored candy, a bit sour, with texture which are not so chewy but not so hard either. I can't remember what they call it either but those were just awesome. BTW, i also loved their Whittakers chocolate with kiwi bits in them.. Arghhh what a bliss..

Ok, back to my experiment on Sat morning. I have 2 recipes in hand. One was from about.com and the other from my Peter Grewling book. If I compare both, there's not much difference. The ingredients are the same, but the quantities varies a bit. But I wanted to experiment a little. I wanted to add some corn starch and see if this could minimize the stickiness of the resulting candy. Being in Malaysia, with 80% humidity almost all day, sticky sticky sticky is always a problem. So, here goes the 2 different recipes I got

1. From About.com

1. From Peter Grewling

Regardless of what the book or the website says, I decided to add the flavorings, the citric acid and the coloring based on my own jurisdiction.

Past problems that i think i need to address this time

1) The table or pan or whatever that holds the cooked sugar are not well oiled. The sugar sticked to the pan, to the scaper, to the table and I had such a great great time cleaning up the tough mess before. Even worse, it sticked to my thumb on my last attempt. That was so... excruciating...

2) The cooked sugar hardened and cooled pretty fast. Probably it took even less than 5 mins before it already hardens which makes pulling a pain. Problem maybe because I'm doing a small batch.

3) I did it using thin gloves. I definitely need a thicker glove.

So this time around, I made a few changes.

1) My marble table are well oiled.I am not going to pour the sugar in to the baking pan like before and shove it in the oven to prevent it from hardening fast.

2) My spatula, my scraper, my scissors, my steel bowl are all well oiled

3) I have a new pair of leather gloves. I bought it last week after sugar burning both thumbs on my last attempt. I lathered the glove with heck a lot of shortening to ensure, again the sugar won't stick to it.

4) I lined out the flavoring to add and the coloring as well. I intend to divide the cooked mixture into 2 portions to make 2 flavors, grape and apple. With green for the apple and violet for the grape. I mixed the 2 ingredients into a small panadol syrup measuring cup which I have been collecting from my frequent visits to the clinics. I pour around 2.5 ml of the flavoring and this turns out not to be too enough to flavor the 1/4 kg of sugar I had for each sugar portion. So, bear in mind....next time I need to add a little bit more flavor. And my approach of mixing the coloring with the flavor doesn't work huhu. The color sinks to the bottom of the small cup and stucked when I tried to pour it out of the small cup. Actually the violet color got stucked, but not the green one. Given the nick of time I had to work the sugar, I don't bother to scrape out the flavor, color mixture out of the small cup...heheh. I think that's why my candy lacks the flavor.So, next time... just use the measuring spoon. No need to be so creative....

5) I did this alone...no one to help... Hubby is not around. If he's around, he'll help me (although what he did was standing nearby with his blur2 face not knowing what and how to help haha.. pity him). Sorry dear that I'm complaining... But your moral support and a shoulder to cry on is nothing to beat... sob sob..and that is the reason why I need u by my side most of the time...when I get into trouble ... haha..

6) I am adding a little bit of salt(probably 1/4 tsp), a few tsp of corn flour(2tsp I think) and a bit of citric acid. The salt tone down the sweetness of the candy and that is good. The corn flour... urmmm I don't know really whether it works or not to curb the candy stickiness. Since this time, I've oiled everything pretty perfectly, I didn't get the sticky problem. I think I'll add them again in my next attempt. And the citric acid.... arghh.. I really don't know how much I need. Long time ago, I added too much and the candy irritates my throat although the sourness was acceptable. This time, the sourness didn't show up at all. How to balance this? Next time I think I'll try for 3/4 tsp of citric acid for this amount of sugar.

7) I cooked the sugar to about 293F as compared to 280F I did before. Cooking it to ~290F makes the candy harder. Cooking it to 280F makes it a bit chewier and the texture became more like the kiwi candy. (Actually I don't know whether the final cooked temp or rather the amount of agitation involved as the defining factor on the resulting candy texture. I believe its the temp). In fact the recipe in Peter Grewling stated to cook it to 313F, but I did not, coz I don't want it to be too hard.

Output

=======

Chocolate Syrup Recipe

Found this homemade recipe for Chocolate Syrup. Di zaman kemelesetan ekonomi ni ok jugak dapat buat sendiri all these things. The ingrediensts are simple and its definitely a lot less cheaper.... Enjoy it with your ice creams, with your morning bowl of cereals and whatever u can think of. I believe u can also make it in the microwave for convenience purposes if u like.. So enjoy..

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup cocoa
  
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup water
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 dash salt

Directions

1. Combine cocoa, sugar, and salt in a saucepan.
2. Add water, and mix until smooth.
3. Bring this mixture to a boil
4. Allow it to boil for one minute, be careful this does not over boil.
5. Remove from heat, when this cools add the vanilla.

Science of candy - The cold water sugar test VS Candy Thermometer.

Candy Basic
The most basic apparatus u need to make candy is a Candy Thermometer... and so they say. Dangg.... where the hell would I get to buy that? (Actually in KL , there are a few shops selling it.. I'll tell you where later on). But since its probably not an item which is commonly sought for I guess, the price are a little too pricey. Not unless u're planning to be a serious candymaker or just have a hefty sum of money boiling out of the ATM machine, then buying a candy thermometer would be your last thought. But don't despair yet..... There's a no-fail method that have been used during the old times probably even before any candy scientist exist... which is the cold water test.

The basic idea about candy making is boiling sugar and water until the water evaporates from the solution, making the concentration higher, and the temperature rises as this happens. (Remember my chemistry lab upon the mention of this.. who wouldn't hahahah..) Therefore, the temperature or rather the different stages the sugar is cooked, is the one determining the final product of your candy. The ideas are simple, the longer u cook it, the harder your candy will be. So, fondants are cooked at less time than lollipops will.

Anyway, lets start it by having the chart:

Candy Temperature Chart

Name	Temp	Description	Usage
Thread	223-235* F	The syrup drips from a spoon, forms thin threads in water	Glacé and candied fruits
Soft ball	235-245* F	The syrup easily forms a ball while in the cold water, but flattens once removed	Fudge and fondant
Firm ball	245-250* F	The syrup is formed into a stable ball, but loses its round shape once pressed	Caramel candies
Hard ball	250-266* F	The syrup holds its ball shape, but remains sticky	Divinity and marshmallows
Soft crack	270-290* F	The syrup will form firm but pliable threads	Nougat and taffy.
Hard crack	300-310* F	The syrup will crack if you try to mold it	Brittles and lollipops
Caramel	320-350* F	The sugar syrup will turn golden at this stage	Pralines

Caution: Please be careful when working with hot sugar, you can seriously burn yourself.

The Cold Water Test
Below are the various stages of the sugar and a video of the testing in cold water method. When using cold water, it should be cold water, water in your freezer, not "air masak" yg dah sejuk or tap water during the rainy days in Malaysia ok... huhuhu. These are infos I gathered from another page. So, u may end up somewhere else by clicking on the video. Do come back to this site when that happens. I'll be waiting....

Thread Stage 230° F–235° F sugar concentration: 80% At this relatively low temperature, there is still a lot of water left in the syrup. When you drop a little of this syrup into cold water to cool, it forms a liquid thread that will not ball up. Cooking sugar syrup to this stage gives you not candy, but syrup—something you might make to pour over ice cream.
1. Soft-Ball Stage 235° F–240° F sugar concentration: 85% At this temperature, sugar syrup dropped into cold water will form a soft, flexible ball. If you remove the ball from water, it will flatten like a pancake after a few moments in your hand. Fudge, pralines, and fondant are made by cooking ingredients to the soft-ball stage.	Quicktime | RealPlayer
2. Firm-Ball Stage 245° F–250° F sugar concentration: 87% Drop a little of this syrup in cold water and it will form a firm ball, one that won’t flatten when you take it out of the water, but remains malleable and will flatten when squeezed. Caramels are cooked to the firm-ball stage.	Quicktime | RealPlayer
3. Hard-Ball Stage 250° F–265° F sugar concentration: 92% At this stage, the syrup will form thick, "ropy" threads as it drips from the spoon. The sugar concentration is rather high now, which means there’s less and less moisture in the sugar syrup. A little of this syrup dropped into cold water will form a hard ball. If you take the ball out of the water, it won’t flatten. The ball will be hard, but you can still change its shape by squashing it. Nougat, marshmallows, gummies, divinity, and rock candy are cooked to the hard-ball stage.	Quicktime | RealPlayer
4. Soft-Crack Stage 270° F–290° F sugar concentration: 95% As the syrup reached soft-crack stage, the bubbles on top will become smaller, thicker, and closer together. At this stage, the moisture content is low. When you drop a bit of this syrup into cold water, it will solidify into threads that, when removed from the water, are flexible, not brittle. They will bend slightly before breaking. Saltwater taffy and butterscotch are cooked to the soft-crack stage.	Quicktime | RealPlayer
5. Hard-Crack Stage 300° F–310° F Sugar concentration: 99% The hard-crack stage is the highest temperature you are likely to see specified in a candy recipe. At these temperatures, there is almost no water left in the syrup. Drop a little of the molten syrup in cold water and it will form hard, brittle threads that break when bent. CAUTION: To avoid burns, allow the syrup to cool in the cold water for a few moments before touching it! Toffee, nut brittles, and lollipops are all cooked to the hard-crack stage. Note : There are few places that sells candy thermometer in KL, such as Bake With Yen.. ( I think it cost approximately around 100 ringgit. You can also find in shops carrying Wilton products such as the ICCA shop in PJ and the newly opened Wilton Shop in Dataran Sunway Damansara.But surely the would be a bit da bomb la kan...

Lollipops Recipe

Who doesn't like lollipops? Please leave this page immediately. Coz what I'll be showing u here are gonna be very graphic he he he... On how to make lollipops.

Actually, bukan susah pun nak buat lollipop ni. It uses basic ingredients. However, some of the ingredients are not found on the supermarket or kedai Ah Chai kat sebelah rumah tu. Instead, u can definitely find it in the bakery ingredients store. Anyway, without further much ado.. here they are . I'll try to explain a bit on the ingredients and some tricks we can do for us kat mesia ni, kalu nak wat lollipop ni. Anyway, any basic lollipop recipe u can find on the internet actually works. This one pun I got it from About.com with additional secret ingredient..(cream of tartar..) now its no more a secret.. duhhh...

Ingredients:

• 1 cup sugar
• ½ cup light corn syrup ( gantikan dengan glucose syrup ataupun maltose)
  
• ¼ cup water
• 1/4 tsp cream of tartar
• ¾ tsp extract/flavorings of your choice (vanilla, mint, strawberry, apple, etc)
• Food coloring (optional)
• Lollipop molds and sticks ( kalau tak ada pun xper. Sticks boleh gunakan lidi satay, mold boleh guna jelly mold yang kecik.)

Preparation:

1. Prepare your molds by spraying them with nonstick cooking spray and inserting lollipop sticks into the molds.

** variations : Boleh sapukan sedikit minyak masak ataupun shortening ke dalam loyang ataupun jelly mold.

2. Combine the sugar, corn syrup, and water in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Insert the candy thermometer and stir until sugar dissolves.

** variations : Masukkan gula , glucose syrup & air ke dalam periuk kecik. Put it on medium high heat. Keep on stirring until all the sugar has dissolved. Once all the sugar has dissolved, and the sugar starts boiling, add in the Cream of tartar and STOP stirring. Sekiranya glucose syrup tu susah nak handle, just nuke it in the microwave sekejap jer.. It will melt

a bit and is much more easier to handle. Another thing, periuk tu lebih senang kalau ada non-stick pan. And another tips I can tell is that, lightly oil the pan before u put in everything. This will make less sugar sticking to your pan during the boiling later on.

3. Allow to boil, without stirring, until candy reaches 295 degrees (hard-crack stage).

** note : make sure u do not stir this thing. Otherwise your lollipop wi ll be grainy later. Another thing, gunakan tuala basah and wrap it around a fork or something to wipe the sugar splashes around the pan. Do this with precaution k, coz we don't want to end up with lollipops and skin grafts fillings in it.. Another important note, IF YOU DO NOT HAVE A CANDY THERMOMETER........ do read my instructions on how to measure sugar crack stage menggunakan air sejuk.

4. Once the candy reaches 295, remove it from heat. Stir in the flavoring/extract of your choice, and, if desired, food coloring.

5. Spoon the candy into the mold cavities, making sure to cover the back o

f the stick.

** variations : DO NOT SCRAPE THE PAN for the leftovers.. it will make your lollipop grainy!!

6. Allow to cool completely and remove once hardened. So, there u go, your own handmade and homemade lollipop.

Additional Tip for cleaning up.

The thing I'm not keen of when making lollipop is the cleaning up. So, just a simple tip here, don't scrape off the sugar with spoons or your fingernails or etc etc.. What u can do is put in like a cup of water into the pan laden with sugar leftovers and boil it. The sugar will melt. It is easier this way than having to scrape the bottom of your pan with the "berus gosok periuk". And actually, u can use the sugar water solution to make ur "air gula" for making your sunquik drinks.. or sirap bandung or whatever .... jimat jimat.... Ok uols... happy lollicking...

Lollipop land art by deWhin.

Gambar hanyalah sekadar hiasan...

2009 Blog resolution

First off, well.. ni dah masuk bulan Feb, and only now would I want to make my 2009 resolution kikiki... Well, to be frank, I make my resolutions every now and then, whenever I feel like it.. So, whether new year ke tidak, it doesn't matter to me. What matters is, I think my blog needs and update huhuhu.. So that its more action packed... more know hows, more recipes, more products and more more more...

So, to start with, I've made a new header for the blog ... wuhuuuuuu... That's a tough one. I spent my whole weekend trying to work on Photoshop for this. Cantik ke tidak... whatever la.. as long as there's one. And I've changed the page again to fit it into 3 columns like the original template... duh.... I hope it's much more presentable this way.

Anyway,for u guys out there, do check us out often. Insyallah, I'll try my best to keep this tiny place updated ok.. So, take care everyone.

Anyway, for those who are keen on trying your hands in candymaking, I hope I'll be able to answer all your questions and help u guys... do leave some notes on the comments or the shoutbox and I'm more than happy to help u guys whatever I can.

So, take care uolss and happy candymaking...

Lime Creams

Lime Creams are a zesty, refreshing cream fondant candy dipped in smooth white chocolate. If you prefer, you can omit the chocolate step and serve the creams plain, topped with candied lime zest, or rolled in sugar or green sprinkles.

Ingredients:

4 cups powdered sugar, sifted

1/4 cup butter, softened

3 tbsp lime juice

1/8 tsp salt

3/4 cup marshmallow cream

3 tsp chopped lime zest

5 drops green food coloring

1 lb white chocolate

1 tbsp shortening

Green candy food coloring (optional)

Preparation:

1. Cover a cookie sheet with aluminum foil.

2. Combine 2 cups of powdered sugar, butter, marshmallow cream, lime juice, salt, lime zest, and food coloring in a large mixing bowl. Mix on medium speed until smooth and evenly incorporated.

3. Slowly add the rest of the powdered sugar in batches, stopping often to scrape down the sides of the bowl. Mix until well blended. If mixture is too stiff, add a bit more lime juice. If it is too sticky, add a bit more powdered sugar.

4. Roll into balls ¾ inch in diameter, and place on a cookie sheet lined with aluminum foil.

5. Chill for 30 minutes in refrigerator before dipping.

6. Melt the white chocolate with the shortening in the microwave or over a double boiler. If you are coloring the chocolate, stir in the candy food coloring at this point.

7. Dip the cream centers in the melted chocolate one by one and return to the baking sheet. After all centers are dipped, return the sheet to the refrigerator to set the candies before serving. Candies can be topped with a sliver of lime zest, if desired.

** note :

This recipe is excerpted from About.com.

Lemon Creams

Ingredients:

• 5 cups powdered sugar
• 1/4 cup butter, room temperature
• 2.5 tbsp lemon juice
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup marshmallow cream
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tsp lemon zest
• 5 drops yellow food coloring
• 1 lb chocolate to dip--your choice

Preparation:

1. Prepare by placing a large mixing bowl and beaters in the freezer to chill. Cover a cookie sheet with aluminum foil.

2. Temper the chocolate and place it in a warm (but not hot) spot to retain its temperature.

3. Combine 2 cups of powdered sugar, butter, marshmallow cream, lemon juice, salt, vanilla, rind, and food coloring in a large mixing bowl. Mix on medium speed until smooth and evenly incorporated.

4. Slowly add the rest of the powdered sugar in batches, stopping often to scrape down the sides of the bowl. Mix until well blended.

5. Roll into balls ¾ inch in diameter, and place on a cookie sheet lined with aluminum foil.

6. Chill for 20 minutes in refrigerator before dipping.

7.Re-warm chocolate if necessary. Using dipping tools or two forks, dip creams one by one in chocolate and place on baking sheet. Allow to set before serving.

**Note : This recipe is excerpted from About.com

Raspberry Creams

Raspberry creams can be rolled in chopped nuts, or dipped in chocolate or melted fondant. You can use store-bought or Basic Fondant for this recipe.

* 3/4 lb fondant
* 1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam
* 1/4 cup sifted powdered sugar, plus extra for dusting
* 1/4 tsp lemon juice
* Red food coloring

Preparation:

1. Place the jam in a small saucepan over very low heat, and cook it, stirring often, until it reduces to about 1/4 cup. The goal is to cook out the excess moisture, so that the creams will not be too moist and sticky. Once the jam is reduced, remove it from the heat and allow it to cool to room temperature.

2. Dust your workstation and your hands with powdered sugar. Knead the fondant until it is soft and pliable. Roll it until it is about an inch thick, and cut several slits in the fondant.

3. Pour the jam, lemon juice and a few drops of red food coloring into the fondant, and sprinkle the powdered sugar over the top. Knead until the ingredients and color are evenly distributed throughout.

4. Pinch off small sections of fondant, and roll them into a ball between your palms. Place the creams on a baking sheet to set. Allow them to set in a cool room overnight before dipping them in chocolate or melted fondant.

** Note : This recipe is excerpted from About.com

My not so new toy

This time, I'm gonna introduce you to my new chocolate toy, my mol d'art choc melting machine. After few months waiting for it and going thru a lot of trouble with the wrong order from the distributor and waiting again and again and again, I finally got my dream machine. He is no Asimo but he's very handy for me when making large batch of chocolates. Its actually a mol d' art choc melting machine but I don't know why the distributor sells it as Callebaut Choc melting machine. Basically the "Callebaut" logo were just sticked onto tha machine for I don't know whatever reason. If you look underneath the machine, you'll see a big embossed logo for mol d' art hence I knew the original brand of this machine. Probably this is one kind of the mak angkat , kakak angkat kind of thingy kot. Whatever it is, I' so happy coz this is also the machine used by the World's most famous chocolatier, John Pierre Wybauw.... Huhuhu... I hope the chocs I made would one day be as good as his... coz the cost of this machine itself would also make me cry huarghhh.....


The capacity for this machine is around 6 kg I think. Using this machine is not as easy as it looks. Unless I get one of those ChocoVision tempering machine, then tempering chocolates can never be easy. If the quantity that I'm making is small, I'd rather use the tabling method than this. To just melt a few kg of chocolates in this machine would need a few hours!!! Plus the time it takes for the seeding and bla bla bla would be another thing. However, if the quantity is big, then its worthit la coz this machine would be able to hold the temperature of the chocolate in its tempered state for some time. All in all, I'm really excited about this machine and am longing to use it soon.

November Updates in December

It's been quite sometime that I haven't been pouring anything to this blog. I think since raya aidilfitri lagi kot. A lot of things have happened lately and I just don't have much time to spend on blogging. The most significant being the loss of my beloved Abah ke pangkuan Allah on the 19th of Oct 2008. Semoga Allah merahmati rohnya dan menempatkan dia di kalangan hamba2nya yang beriman. Amiinnn.

Anyway, just 2 days before that incident, I had also resigned from my job as a Research Analyst at one of the IT co that I had been working at for almost 4 years tu. And now I am recuperating myself from all these shocks of my life and at the same time trying to adjust to my new life schedules as a freelance IT consultant( which I hope is for temporary only...), as a cupcakeist ( always because of bidan terjun), and a chocolatier (something I've been dreaming of becoming ). hahahah... QUE SERA SERA.. whatever will be will be.... lalalalala. Hrm.. , did I mention that my reason to resign from my previous work was merely to concentrate on my family??? Sighh!!! Yeah.. whatever happens and whichever path that I chose... my life still goes on.. After all, what really matters is gaining Allah's blessings on whatever I do, insyallah...

Raya Specials - Open for orders till 31st Oct 2008!!!

Open For orders ....

Agak terlambat sedikit posting untuk my hari raya specials. Anyway, berikut adalah senarai chocolate untuk promosi raya. Offer adalah sah sehingga 31st Oct 2008. Semua produk coklat adalah menggunakan real milk chocolate. Insyallah semua produk kami adalah dipastikan halal. So people, place your order now for these fabulous offers only on this Hari Raya Celebration.



Code : MC 01
Milk Choc With Gummy Jelly Center
PRICE : 20.00
Qty : 26 pcs





Code : MC02
Milk Choco With Almond
PRICE : RM 20.00
Qty : 25 pcs






Code : MC03
Milk Choc Clusters ( cornflakes,almond and raisin in milk choc)
PRICE : RM 20.00
Qty : 24/25 pcs






Code : MC04
Peanut Butter Cups
Price : RM 20.00
Qty : 24/25 pcs






Code : MC 05
Plain or orange flavored milk choc
PRICE : RM 20.00
Qty : 26 pcs




Code : MC 06
Milk Choc with Rice Krispies
PRICE : RM 20.00
Qty : 36 pcs



Please note :

1) All products can be self collected either in Serdang/Seri Kembangan or Bandar Country Homes Rawang. Free deliveries in other klang valley area can be considered for orders amounting more that RM 100.

2) Please order early to avoid dissappointment.

3) Any enquiries please don't hesitate to call me at 019-3593458 ( Ain)

4) No deliveries within Cuti Hari Raya ( tentatively bet 29/9 - 5/10)

To order

1) give me a call or sms at 019 - 3593458 (Ain) or

2) drop an email to me at myblossoms@ymail.com

with your order code and quantity. Kindly make your payments before deliveries can be made.

Thanks.

Cookie Bouquet

These are some samples of cookie bouquet for Engagement. More to come later.




Six pcs heart shaped cookies in a bouquet. Including the basket from RM20. Also includes a printed gift tag that can have any custom messages. Pls contact me for further detail.







Six Pcs of love themed cookie bouquet. Including the basket from RM20. Also includes a printed gift tag of your own messages.
Pls contact me for further details.





Note :

For delivery purpose, the bouquet will be wrapped in a clear cellophane plastic.

Assorted Chocolates

These are our selection of assorted chocolates. They consists of a mixed types of chocolates eg. with nut filling, coffee creams, milk orange ,dark coffee , fondant fillings etc.



2 types of chocolates are encased in this clear box with single almond in milk chocolate and dark chocolate with coffee cream fillings. Contains 9 pieces.

Price : RM 12.50








2 types of chocolates are encased in this clear box with single almond in milk chocolate and dark chocolate with coffee cream fillings in the center. Contains 12 pieces.

Price : RM 16.00









A combination of coffee cream filled dark chocolate and a refreshing mint fondant filled dark chocolate to a total 18 pcs. Encased in two layer clear plastic box.

Price : RM 23.00









Almond filled milk chocolate wrapped in gold foil with mint fondant filled dark chocolate. Contains a total of 18 pcs of chocolate encased in a luxurious, heart shaped box. (Note: 2 layers)

Price : RM 28.00








Three types of chocolate in this box, Mint Bon Bon, Milk Almond Cups and Almond Stuffed Dates enrobed in milk chocolate.

Price : RM 14.00

Pralines - Dark, Milk or White Chocolate For Wedding or Party Favors

Here are some of our chocolate selections. Our pralines are using real chocolate or so called couvertures . For more info on the difference between real chocolate or couverture as compared to compound chocolate, read up our "intro to chocolate" section. Tapi senang cakap kat sini, beza dia kalau u all nak imagine, antara makan chocolate cadbury dan makan sabun la... huhuhu. Well, I'm just exaggerating here ( wink wink). But these pralines are flavorful chocolate with no complex textures. Only one word, they are "luscious". Available in boxes of 2, 4, 9, 12, and 24. You can choose from the various packaging we have. For big orders above 500 boxes, we can also customize your packaging,eg. with your logo, name or pics on the boxes. Do contact us for more info on that ya.. Oh btw, you can also ask us to wrap your tiny obsession with gold foil for that classy look.

Choice of 3 or 4 pcs of dark or milk chocolate in a simple plastic container, with gold base.
Price : RM3.50 - Rm4.00

4 pcs of dark or milk chocolate praline in die cut chocolate box.
Price : RM 5.00

A choice of 2 - 3 pcs of gold or silver wrapped chocolate pralines in tiny gold or silver baskets, suitable for wedding favors. (Gold Baskets designs depends on availability)
Price : RM 4 - RM5

3-4 pcs of gold wrapped pralines in square straw box.
Price : RM4.50- RM5.00

Assorted pralines in heart shaped, clear plastic container. 15 pcs per container.
Price : RM 15.00

A pair of milk and white praline encased in a box. Suitable for wedding favors.
Price : RM 2.80

Kami ada juga menawarkan flavored chocolates untuk packaging seperti di atas. Buat masa ini, perisa yang available :

1) Orange Flavor
2) Coffee Flavor

Ordering FAQ

1) How to contact us :

You can contact either one of us below by phone or email for further info or ordering :

Ain (019-3593458)
Email : myblossoms@ymail.com

Siti ( 012-2789885)

2) How to place an order

Once you have confirmed on what to order, do contact us so that we can give you our payment particulars.

Glossary and terms

• What are pralines?
  

The term Pralines differs according to country. In the US, pralines are some kind of confections made from nuts and sugar syrup. Normally their pralines are some type of hard candy, meaning the texture tu agak keras la gak with some kind of nuts in it. In some other countries, pralines means powder or paste filling for handmade filled chocolates. (These are gorgeous.....urggghhh) . Tapi kat Mesia ni, pralines refer to moulded chocolates as in the picture here. They can come as milk chocolate, dark chocolate, white chocolate as well as nut filled chocolate. And BTW, my chocolates here are pure cocoa butter chocolates , bukan compound chocolates or also known as cooking chocolate. For more info on the types of chocolates nie... go to my articles on Chocolate Types.

Catalog-Bonbon

A selection of fruity and refreshing fondants molded into dark , milk or white chocolate. These are also called Bonbon. Some are with fruit or nut centers.


Mint Fondant filled dark Chocolate (after dinner mints)

Dark chocolate filled with refreshing and melt in your mouth mint fondant.

Memoirs of a Chocolate

Have you ever had a piece of chocolate and the memories and taste of that chocolate still lingers until today? As I can remember, the best ever chocolate experience I had was masa kecik2. My dad came home with a hamper full of chocolates and biscuits given to him during CNY by one of his Chinese friend. Masa dulu-dulu, time raya cina memang seronok. Coz we got lots of hampers. Nowadays, the only thing we always get are lokam and lokam ( at the office of coz... ha ha ha)

Back to the choc story tadi. I picked up a chocolate bar, with strawberry filling in it. Hrmm.. never tasted that before. During my time, the only chocolate yang kitorang slalu makan was Kandos ha ha ha.. Anyone remembered that? yer la coklat murahan...When I chew into that chocolate with the strawberry filling tu... errrmmmm..... the outer bar was a bit snappy.When it gets into my tongue, it melts.. Then came a slimy, creamy strawberry filing rushes into my mouth,it is liquid but not so liquid..( alaaa.. just like susu pekat like that) And its strawberry flavored... huhuhu.... arrrghhhh... sedapnyer... That was the only one time I had that chocolate. The chocolate is not sold anywhere in JB , KL or anywhere in Malaysia. My father's friend must have gotten that from overseas.

Until now, I remembered that experience. I do find some chocolates by Cadbury yang ada cream centers ni.. But too bad, the ingredients always had some bahan2 yang mencurigakan coz they aren't manufactured in Malaysia and of course no halal logo. Terketar gak bila pegang those chocolates... so tempting. Tapi tak apa la... Now I have found my own cream center recipes. Soon when I perfected my recipe, maybe I'll make it as one of my own HALAL cream centered chocolate.... But I'm afraid that even before I managed to sell it off, I might have chomped it all in my mouth. And another pest for my chocolate would be my kids. Geram bila tengok tetiba ada jer coklat yang kita buat tu hilang.. But then again... that's the joy. I hope they remembered and cherish every moment lavishing on my chocolates when they grow up....

How to taste your chocolate ?

Are you a chocoholic? How do you measure the degree at which you enjoyed your chocolate. According to the experts, in order to become an expert chocolate taster, you need to use all five senses.

Touch The point is to observe the speed of melting. The quicker - the better. The quick melt indicates a high cocoa butter content. Chocolate should start to melt if held in the hands for a few seconds. Cocoa butter melts because it is solid up to 91.4F degrees temperature and melts at 93.2F degrees.

**note : These are the reason why some chocolates just simply melts in your mouth and some don’t. ( especially the cheap ones… duhhh) . One good indication differentiating good chocolates from the lower quality is the price. But not all expensive chocolates are of good quality. But for sure those cheap ones are of course of lower quality. No “tokey” coklat would want to sell a good chocolate cheap.

Sound The crystaline structiure of the cocoa butter is what gives chocolate its distinct crisp snap. You can definitely hear the snap of a fine chocolate.

This is if you’re snapping the chocolate in a moderate room temp like in an air conditioned room. If you’re trying to snap your chocolate under the hot and humid sun in KLCC for example, you’ll surely get a good mush of chocolates in your hands. (Chocolate in its liquid state actually even taste better. Urggg hhh… )

Sight Gloss and condition of chocolate can quickly be assessed just by looking. When a bloom is observed it is generally caused either by heat or moisture.

A good chocolate normally shines. This would applies for molded chocolates and the like excluding those which are already wrapped in some foils or something.

Heat bloom indicates the chocolate was not tempered correctly or that it has been allowed to get too warm, then cold. The cocoa butter crystals rise to the surface and recrystalize. This does not affect the flavor of the chocolate but should be seen as a warning that the chocolate was not stored correctly. It can be rectified by tempering the chocolate again, thereby realigning the crystal structure.

Moisture bloom known as sugar bloom is caused by the moisture settling on the surface of the chocolate which happens if the chocolate is stored in a damp atmosphere. It draws the sugar crystals to the surface, the sugar dissolves in the water, and later recrystalizes on the surface - destroying the texture of the chocolate. The whole appearance of the texture will be grey and gritty. This chocolate must be thrown out.

The redder and the lighter in color the cocoa, the finer the flavor.

Smell It is the nose which is the most highly tuned instrument to detect the greatness of food. Too much sugar interfered with the smelling process, just like in wine tasting. Too much salt can overwhelm the palate. Smoking dulls smelling and strong flavors, such as peppermint and chili, affect smell.

Taste Although we do not spit out chocolate as do wine buffs, neither do we eat it. A small piece of chocolate should be placed on the tongue and allowed to melt of its own accord. Try three or four different chocolates with a water sip between each taste session.

Book Review - Candy making

Hi again. Recently I just bought 2 candymaking books from Kinokuniya in KLCC. After browsing the aisles for hours and hours..(lucky my hubby is pretty understanding in my passion for shopping... duhhh!!!) ,I ended up picking 2 books in which I hadn't even had a plan to even visit the bookstore at all. It was an impulse buying I know... but what the heck. After all, all my candymaking or chocolate making experience up till now were learnt thru the internet and one chocolate making course only.So I have a reason to spend here. Anyway, there aren't many books in candymaking on the aisle itself, only 4 I think. But there are quite a number of books about cupcakes. I once had tried to look for books on cupcakes in that same store 2-3 yrs back but it wasn't as many as it is now. Probably becoz its picking up the trend of "cupakeing" in Malaysia right now. I guess candy making isn't so popular in Malaysia as it is in the US or other European countries.



Anyways, the 1st book I got titled "Marshmallow". I've tried making marshmallow a few times and it turned out right. So, I think I may need to widen my knowledge on making what I did right. First thing, the book caught my attention becoz of its simple yet cute looking cover.. But don't judge the book only by its cover. So, I flipped over the pages and saw all sort of variations for making marshmallows. Eerrrmmmm.... these are yummy indeed, I wish I could just tear the pages away and sample those yummy looking marshmallow pictures. You should see me when I looked at those pages... with my ooohhhs and aahhhss.... I gotta have this book. Confirm!!!



Then, being greedy and curious on knowledge ( ehem ehem.. look who's talking here..) I think I have to have another book on making other confectionary as well. After all, I only had the chance to visit KLCC like 2-3 times a year only.. ( I used to have lunch in KLCC every day when my office was at Jln Yap Kwan Seng before. And Kino is my usual lepak place after lunch actually.. sorry boss!! the he he). So, I have enough reason to get a 2nd book which you guess what... "CandyMaking for Dummies" ha ha ha... I didn't choose it because I'm such a dumbass in Candymaking, but simply because I knew this book would be able to tell me what I had done wrong or right during my experiments in candymaking. Its a pretty basic book and think its pretty suitable for a person with hours and hours of sitting in front of the laptops whom initially do not even know how a candy thermometer looks like. So I picked up this book as well. As soon as I finish reviewing the contents of the book later, I'll share it again in here. Ciao....