Baking - the Gourmet Goldmine- Fine Food Providores

My Gelatine won’t set

Gourmet Goldmine Baking, French Cooking, General, Molecular Gastronomy November 23, 2020June 3, 2022desserts, gelatine, powdered gelatine, titanium gelatine. gold gelatine

Appeared on our original Gourmet Goldmine blog.

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This is such a common question for me. When I started using Gelatine and making up my own recipes I went through so many unset batches that I just wanted to quit using it. Then I looked online and began to understand the acidity and alkalinity of various foods such as fruits and alcohols. Let me just say making Cherry Champagne jellies needs 2 extra Titanium Gelatine leaves.

So basically, this means that the higher the acidity of foods, such as oranges, yuzu, and strawberries, the more Gelatine you need. When developing your own recipe and having these ingredients in the mix, you are going to have to experiment with the amount of Gelatine you need.

One way I have found that works for me are that for every 1 leaf I use I add a half leaf (1:1/2 ratio). But depending on the amount of fruit or other inclusions you may need to add the Gelatine in a 1:1 ratio.

Having told you about how to set the Gelatine you also need to be aware that there are some foods that stop the setting process altogether. Kiwifruit, pineapple, paw-paw, mango, and peaches have an enzyme in them (as well as being highly acidic) that breaks down the gelling properties.

There is a way to use these fruits, you need to stop the enzyme (Bromelain in pineapples) from working. To stop this enzyme, you need to heat the fruit, basically, cook it. You can also use a canned version of the fruit. Don’t let this put you off from making a magical fresh pineapple and Kiwi fruit jelly, you can substitute Agar (Agar-Agar) for the Gelatine and make a wonderful creation that rivals Gelatine-based desserts.

The Gelatine that I use right now is from the Modernist Pantry and their leaves work exceptionally well. Usually, when you switch brands you may find you need to experiment a little, but when I changed I had no problems at all.

Working with Gelatine – Dissolving

Gourmet Goldmine Baking, Featured, General March 5, 2019May 9, 2022chocolate, cooking, gelatine, ruby chocolate

Are you having difficulty dissolving Gelatine leaves?

I had this same problem and it took me a few trials to really work out what I was doing wrong. However, with a very simple method, you will keep your sanity and begin to love using this gelatinous product.

Titanium Gelatine Leaves

The initial dissolving process is the same for both Gold and Titanium Gelatine strength. Basically, take the number of leaves you need, making sure they are not sticking together, and soak them in a big bowl of cold water for 5 minutes. I always put all the Gelatine into the same bowl to soak, but if you are worried about them not absorbing enough water and leaving your dish lumpy you can soak each leaf separately.

When is Gelatine ready to use?

You will notice that the leaves go from a golden colour to an almost colourless straw look. If they feel gooey and like a firm gel they are ready to use.

After the 5 minutes scoop out the Gelatine and squeeze gently in your hands. This is to remove a good deal of the water, but don’t over squeeze, or the Gelatine will break and ooze its way through your fingers (from personal experience). When enough water has been removed from the jelly-like leaves add them with a spoon to your hot or tepid liquid.

With hot liquid, it takes about 20 seconds of stirring to dissolve completely, but to give your dish a finer finish, strain through a strainer to remove any Gelatine that has not dissolved.

With cool liquids, the dissolving may take a little longer, in this case, if possible, put the liquid on a gentle heat for about 30 seconds. This will give the liquid just enough heat to start the dissolving process. Again, especially with cool dissolving, strain the mix, as there is the possibility that there will be lumps of undissolved Gelatine.

You know for yourself that with any recipe trial and experimentation is the key. Each brand of Gelatine will give you a different result which is why I tend to stick to the one brand I know works. Right now, I am using a brand that we at Gourmet Goldmine are selling. This Gelatine, both Gold and Titanium strength gives me the same result each time.

Panna Cotta

I hope you found this helpful, as I know using Gelatine can sometimes be a hit-and-miss affair depending on the ingredient that you are using, but good luck and happy cooking.

What is Ruby Chocolate?

Gourmet Goldmine Baking, Chocolate, Featured, General March 5, 2019May 13, 2022chocolate, cooking, covid, gelatine, ruby chocolate, ruby chocolate recipes

Ruby Chocolate was launched globally in 2017 by the famous Swiss Chocolatiers Barry Callebaut. Having heard about this new fourth chocolate, as it is being called, very few of us have had a chance to taste this new creation in the beginning. Is this a real product or some concocted confection?

Having tasted this chocolate and sold it over the last few years I want to tell you that yes, this is a real product, it is actually chocolate and it does have a fruity and vibrant taste. It is also made in the same way as the luscious chocolate we are used to is made.

Is there such a thing as Ruby Cocoa Bean?

The Ruby cocoa bean is picked and processed just like regular cocoa beans have been for centuries, and despite its appearance, the cocoa bean is not coloured in any way. It has a slight ruby pink blush. It does not, however, taste like the traditional cocoa you are used to. Smooth, velvety chocolate, dark or milk. It does have a mild white chocolate taste with slightly sour, vanilla and fruity overtones.

Ruby Chocolate can be used exactly like white, milk and dark chocolate, in fact as a hot chocolate it is gorgeous. Creamy and flavourful with a slight sweetly sour taste. It normally comes with sugar added (just like milk chocolate) so if you are going to use Ruby to make your favourite chocolate products, it will pay you to play around with it first. Adjusting the sugar to suit your taste will take some time.

So far, I have used Ruby to make hot chocolate, flavour marshmallows, quadruple chocolate chip cookies and a luscious ruby velvet cake. As this product comes into its own more recipes will be tried and created. Patissiers are now beginning to experiment and soon you will see Ruby Chocolate desserts at all your favourite restaurants. As soon as I first posted the pictures of my creations to our Instagram account, my sale went off the chart.

slow down

Although, it seems that the production and sales of Ruby Chocolate have slowed over the last few years. This might be based on the covid issues and not on its popularity.

For now, why not try a bag for yourself, melt it, eat it, drink it or just make a beautiful elegant creation. As soon as I find a new supplier I will it is here in the shop.