Chocolate Facts & Tips

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White Chocolate isn't really considered chocolate at all due to the absence of chocolate liquor. Quality white chocolate however always contains cocoa butter. Be wary if you find white chocolate made with vegetable shortening and/or labeled "confectioners' coating" which pales in comparison -- taste wise -- to real white chocolate. And be especially careful when melting white chocolate which is particularly fragile.

Cocoa Powder, there are two types of unsweetened baking cocoa available: natural cocoa (like the sort produced by Hershey's and Nestle) and Dutch-process cocoa (such as the Hershey's European Style Cocoa and the Droste brand). Both are made by pulverizing, partially defatted chocolate liquor (unsweetened chocolate) removing nearly all their cocoa butter. Natural cocoa is light in color and somewhat acidic with a strong chocolate flavor. In baking use natural cocoa in recipes which call for baking soda (because it's an alkali). Combining the two creates a leavening action that allows the batter to rise during baking. Dutch-process cocoa has been processed with alkali to neutralize it's natural acidity so it's darker often with a reddish cast. Dutch cocoa is slightly milder in taste and deeper in color than natural cocoa. Use Dutch cocoa in recipes that call for baking powder as it's leavener. I also prefer to use Dutch process in recipes like truffles and tiramisu where the taste of the unsweetened cocoa powder plays an important role.

Chocolate Tips

Do not store chocolate in the refrigerator or freezer because when it's brought to room temperature condensation will form on the surface of the chocolate and effect it's ability to melt smoothly. In fact, in most cases chocolate and water makes a disastrous combination. If you're melting chocolate all by itself and even a drop of water accidentally makes its way into the pot, you can possibly cause the chocolate mixture to "seize", meaning the chocolate will tighten and form an unworkable mass. If this should happen when you are melting chocolate add a few drops of vegetable oil to the chocolate which will allow it to relax enough that other ingredients can be mixed in.

Chocolate chips, also known as morsels, are fine for cookie baking but don't be tempted to melt them down and utilize them in lieu of semisweet or bittersweet chocolate. When forced to melt you'll find the consistency is thick and difficult to use because it contains significantly less cocoa butter (about 29%) than average bar chocolates.

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