• Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Snapchat
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

MsMarmiteLover

  • Food
    • Recipes
    • Vegetarian
    • Vegan
  • Travel
    • France
    • Italy
    • Spain
    • UK
  • Wine
  • Gardens
  • Supperclubs/Events
  • About
    • Published Articles
    • Books
  • Shop
    • Cart

Paulie and the chocolate factory

April 16, 2010 8 Comments Filed Under: Food, Recipes, Uncategorized

Paul A Young tempering chocolate
Paul A Young tempering chocolate
Couverture
Couverture
tempering chocolate, Getting thicker
Getting thicker

tempering chocolate, Scraping it off the marble

Scraping it off the marble

tempering chocolate, Scraping it off the marble

Scrapings
tempering chocolate, Scraping it off the marble, palette knife
Palette knife
Making shells... paul a young chocolate
Making shells…
Making shells...paul a young chocolate

white chocolate being heated up

White Chocolate ganache

Using a 'trigger' funnel to fill the shells

Using a ‘trigger’ funnel to fill the shells

A few weeks ago I had a go at ‘tempering’ chocolate; trying to get a professional shine and smoothness of texture … when you break off a piece and it has a satisfyingly crisp ‘snap’ sound. I followed the instructions in Paul A Young‘s book ‘Adventures in Chocolate’, currently the world’s number one chocolate book which has won the Gourmand book award in Paris.

There are two methods of tempering; on a marble slab and ‘seeding’. As I don’t possess a large marble slab, I tried ‘seeding’ which is introducing tempered chocolate to already melted chocolate and controlling the temperature so that it crystallises. Here is a great explanation of the science bit.

Although the tempered chocolates that I had made were ok, I realised that there is nothing like watching an expert to get a true idea of what to achieve. Paul kindly allowed me to come to the kitchen atelier of the Islington branch of his chocolaterie, to watch him temper a batch of chocolate. The kitchen is air-conditioned, you can’t temper chocolate in a warm place, and two large slabs of marble are positioned on island worktops.
Shivering slightly, I watched Paul expertly and rapidly pour chocolate over the white marble and with practised movements, shift the chocolate around over the slab, using a palette knife and a metal scraper. After about ten minutes, the chocolate became thicker and shinier. Paul dipped the end of his palette knife into the chocolate and let it dry while he scraped the rest into a metal bowl.
He kept stirring until he sensed the texture was correct:

“this way it sets with a nice sheen, no graininess or grittiness”.

Brendan on the other side of the room was jumping from task to task, making salted caramel, icecream and brownies. Both of them work very fast, today they will produce 2000 chocolates. Coming up to Christmas the number is more like 20,000 chocolates a day.
On the side stood an enormous cellophane wrapped Easter egg, in glorious colours, as if it had been painted roughly with expressionist brush strokes, ordered by a guy for his girlfriend.

“How much was that?”

“£95.”

“Did the client design it?” I asked, looking at the sparkly mini eggs encrusted, fabergé style, into the surface.

“No, he likes and knows my stuff and just said do what you think. The colours are actually in the chocolate, not painted on.”

My childhood ambition was to work in a sweet shop. Just work in one, not even own it! Being in this workshop with it’s marble benches, was like winning the golden ticket for Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory. Shelves were crammed with tantalising bonbons, copper pots bubbled with white chocolate, goats cheese, rosemary and lemon ganache, ice cream machines whirred with thick gooey mixtures, diamond, circular and rectangular moulds, the familiar shapes of chocolate selections everywhere, casually piled up. Christmas, Easter, Valentines, presents and treats, celebration, reminiscent in every corner.
Chocolate roses, paul a young
Chocolate roses

“Being around sweet stuff so much, we love savoury food,” said Brendan.

Paul works so hard. Only this year has he started to give himself one day a week off. This is the reality of starting your own business, no love life, no time off. He has one week’s holiday a year.

“I mostly spend my day off sleeping.”

“Do you ever eat crap chocolate?” I ask Paul.

“No.”

“I mean,” I push on, investigative reporter’s hat on, determined to get to the bottom of this. “If you were stopping at a petrol station, and you fancied a chocolate bar, what would you choose?”

“I always keep a selection of my own chocolates in the glove compartment. I never eat trashy chocolate, there’s no enjoyment,” answered Paul.

Brendan agreed: “Once you’ve had this stuff, you don’t go near the commercial stuff. I will, on occasion, have a Bounty though.”

“Why chocolate? and what’s so good about your stuff as opposed to say, Thorntons?” I ask Paul.

“There was no defining moment. It just happened! What I make is 100% handmade, natural, no machinery chocolate. It’s the hardest, purest way to make chocolates. Nothing is made industrially. Thorntons is mass production. You can’t make a decision with a machine. I can make new things everyday. With a machine, you’d have to change the set up, it would take too long, be too difficult.”

Paul uses the word ‘pure’ a great deal. There’s almost a monastic dedication to his craft:

“I’m not in this for the money. I only use the best suppliers such as Valrhona or Michel Cluizel which have a high cocoa content, are the most expensive. Most of the chocolate I use is French, not Belgian.”

“Why? Does it taste different?” I ask

“It’s just our style. I also check their ethics, don’t trade unfairly, use child labour… If Valrhona weren’t ethical, I’d stop using them.”

“The important thing is to dream. People say ‘you are a dreamer’ like it’s a bad thing. But we are all grownup children. You have to have dreams.” He pauses while stirring the ganache. “One day I’m going to retire, somewhere pale and calm. But this is a long term project, ten, fifteen years.”

Finally, I ask: “Any advice for people wanting to temper at home?”

“Buy my book. Work as cleanly as possible. Have a cool room. Some of it will always end up on the floor…If you make a mistake, melt it down, do another batch. Practise. Get comfortable with it. It won’t happen overnight.”

Simnel truffles, paul a young

Simnel truffles
Like marbles of lava... paul a young chocolates
Like marbles of lava…


paul a young


Recent posts

Discovering fairytale Saxony in Germany

January 25, 2023

Fake meat taste test for Veganuary

January 8, 2023

A round-up of my favourite travel destinations of 2022

January 1, 2023

Previous Post: « Petrus
Next Post: My arse, my dad, heat and ash at The Underground Lunch »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Jenny

    April 16, 2010 at 11:03 pm

    Did they have a conching machine?

    I'd love to own a chocolate factory, although I think I'd still have to buy the occasional creme egg…

    Reply
  2. theundergroundrestaurant

    April 17, 2010 at 4:21 pm

    Nothing is done by machine!
    Agreed!

    Reply
  3. marv woodhouse

    April 19, 2010 at 11:39 am

    OMG … now its offical Ms M. that you have the best job in the world!

    Will have to check them out the next time I am on London…

    Reply
  4. vincent

    April 25, 2010 at 7:35 pm

    Hello,

    We bumped into your blog and we really liked it – great recipes YUM YUM.
    We would like to add it to the Petitchef.com.

    We would be delighted if you could add your blog to Petitchef so that our users can, as us,
    enjoy your recipes.

    Petitchef is a french based Cooking recipes Portal. Several hundred Blogs are already members
    and benefit from their exposure on Petitchef.com.

    To add your site to the Petitchef family you can use http://en.petitchef.com/?obj=front&action=site_ajout_form or just go to Petitchef.com and click on "Add your site"

    Best regards,

    Vincent
    petitchef.com

    Reply
  5. ButterYum

    April 26, 2010 at 12:30 pm

    Greetings from the US. Thanks for visiting my blog and leaving such a nice comment. To answer your question, the berries in the photo are actually "black raspberries". They're very small, and much different than blackberries. You can do a google search to see examples.

    Btw, I LOVE you blog!!!

    🙂
    ButterYum

    Reply
  6. theundergroundrestaurant

    April 26, 2010 at 4:39 pm

    thankyou butter yum just discovered your blog and I love the step by step explanations….
    Check out my other blog…the english can cook…about my supperclub…if you have a moment.x

    Reply
  7. Laura Nickoll

    May 13, 2010 at 5:42 pm

    Lovely post, and fascinating behind-the-scenes pics. I visited Paul's Islington shop for the first time last week, picking up some chocolate salt caramels, and a bag of other goodies from the counter to sample. They were truly decadent and special, worth the cost when you realise how much effort has gone into making each one. Thorntons should be wiped off the face of the earth, though I'm a sucker for a kitkat…

    Reply
  8. theundergroundrestaurant

    May 13, 2010 at 7:04 pm

    I have to admit I'm a heathen when it comes to chocolate. Good ole Cadburys for me!

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Primary Sidebar

MsMarmiteLover aka Kerstin Rodgers.

Chef, photographer, author, journalist, blogger. Pioneer of the supperclub movement.

This is my food and travel blog, with recipes, reviews and travel stories. I also stray into politics, feminism, gardening.

Subscribe to my mailing list

msmarmitelover

Kerstin Rodgers/MsMarmiteLover
Naples at Christmas- discovering piennolo di vesuv Naples at Christmas- discovering piennolo di vesuvio,the Christmas 🍅, which lasts up to a year fresh. It’s given boxed as gifts around Christmas being the only local fresh tomato available. It dresses all the Christmas pizzas and pastas. It’s grown on volcanic Vesuvius soil and sparsely watered. As a result it has thick skins, and a sweet intense flavour. #tomatoes #italy #naples
Not cooking much at the moment due to a thick laye Not cooking much at the moment due to a thick layer of dust over my kitchen. This will be my dining room/photography studio. Done on a whim.#unplanneddemolition
Another picture of my granddaughter Ophelia in a n Another picture of my granddaughter Ophelia in a nest of apricot tulle (found at portobello market). Isn’t she lovely? #granfluencer
Broccoli Stilton soup. This freezing week is defin Broccoli Stilton soup. This freezing week is definitely a week for soups. My friend @jimfrommanc is staying & needs his hot lunch.
Cheese on toast with crushed chilli 🌶️ in Ven Cheese on toast with crushed chilli 🌶️ in Venice the fresh food market sells bouquets of colourful chillies. I’ve still got mine, drying in an enamel jug. #travelandfood
The Christmas tomato or piennolo di vesuvio. Read The Christmas tomato or piennolo di vesuvio. Read all about it: https://msmarmitelover.com/2022/12/christmas-in-naples.html  Got a couple of bunches hanging in my kitchen. #naples #campania #tomatoes🍅 #travelphotography
Opheliagram. This morning I photographed her in an Opheliagram. This morning I photographed her in an Italian outfit I bought in Naples on a William Morris playmat which looks great and is practical for tummy time. So many things are different about parenting now. Parents use apps to track feeding, pooing, weeing etc. You don’t bathe them anymore for the first few weeks because you want to leave the vernix ( the white waxy stuff they are covered in at birth) on their skin as long as possible. Nappies now have a line on them that turns blue if they’ve done a pee. White noise apps to help them sleep. New technology guides new parents. As well as ancient probably prehistoric customs being rediscovered. #granfluencer #grandaughter I’ve tagged in @siennamarla and @jamescalmus as the authors of this baby.
I made two dishes from one pack of white beans las I made two dishes from one pack of white beans last night. Soak, then cook with 2 stock cubes, water & a fan of bay leaves. When soft & cooked, scoop some into a soup bowl with plenty of stock, add white wine, fresh basil and or a scoop of pesto and a squeeze of lemon for soupe au pistou. Garnish with Parmesan. Today I cooked the pot until the liquid had almost disappeared and added a block of feta. I baked this in the oven for 20 to 30 minutes, added @pomoragoodfood new olive oil, salt and pepper for a gigantes plaki (but with smaller beans). Eat more beans!
What to make when you have lots of leftover egg yo What to make when you have lots of leftover egg yolks after making a pavlova? Zabaglione, that classic Italian trattoria dessert made from egg yolks, sugar & tons of masala sweet wine. Whisk it up over a bain-marie or be a bit cheaty & add a teaspoon of cornflour. Strong wrists needed. #italianfood #christmasdesserts #leftovers #cooksmart
The unpackaged vegan meats. My panel of 4 ( from c The unpackaged vegan meats. My panel of 4 ( from carnivore, to recent vegetarian, to long-time vegetarian to never eaten meat (my daughter)) tasted 18. It was quite a bushtucker trial. Carnivores & vegetarians liked very different things. Full report in next weeks @hamandhigh #veganuary #vegan #vegetarian #tastetest #fakemeat #plantbasedmeat
Fake meatathon tasting taking place as my veganuar Fake meatathon tasting taking place as my veganuary column for @hamandhigh So many companies doing this now. As a longtime vegetarian I don’t want anything that tastes too much like meat. But new vegetarians and vegans may want something that tastes close as damnit to meat in order to stave off cravings? Which category are you in? Have you any favourites or dislikes? Is this just another example of ultra-processed food? Let me know in the comments #vegan #vegetarian #meatfree #veganuary
Pasta buselli al cedro. Cedro or citron is a fragr Pasta buselli al cedro. Cedro or citron is a fragrant citrus & one of the founding citrus (along with pomelo and mandarin) that created all the other citrus fruits you know about. Usually candied, it is also used in this unusual neopolitan recipe in which you soak the zest in the pasta water overnight before cooking. Post up on the blog later today. Board a Xmas present from @siennamarla #pasta #naples #cedro #citrus
My london garden ce matin My london garden ce matin
My Sacher Torte (1 word or 2?) with a difference- My Sacher Torte (1 word or 2?) with a difference- bergamot marmalade in the middle. In the @hamandhigh this week. It’s bloody delicious. #chocolatecake #feelaustria #untoldstories #vienna #sachertorte
These are Mela Annurca apples, ‘mel’anurca’ These are Mela Annurca apples, ‘mel’anurca’ in Neapolitan dialect. They are a Christmas apple, in season now. I bought this little model basket of apples in San Gregorio di Armenia street in Naples where every year neopolitans buy something to add to their ‘presepe’ or nativity scene. Often scenes from markets to add to the expensive, anything from 500 euros to 5000 euros nativity crèches. Around Christmas this street is packed (watch out for pickpockets) with locals and tourist picking out their addition to the scene. Melanurca apples are picked in September then laid on the ground to ripen, turning them every day by hand, to ensure all sides transform from a yellow green into a Wicked Witch red. They are very healthy, particularly for your hair, according to scientists at the university of Naples. #naples #neopolitanchristmas #melanurca  #food #travel #sangregorioarmeno #presepenapoletano #nativityscenes
The Christmas tomato 🍅 or piennolo di vesuvio, The Christmas tomato 🍅 or piennolo di vesuvio, a local tomato that is sold around Christmas in Naples. It is grown with very little irrigation and lasts fresh up to a year. Hence it is used for tomato based Christmas dishes. This tomato has a thick skin and is really intense in flavour. It hangs outside grocers, on balconies, in kitchens, having been braided by ladies into bunches of 1.5 kilos. Each costs 15 euros. I went to visit the farmers and the ladies skilfully tying the tomatoes into clusters, using the vines to fasten them, like cherries. Boxed, these are given as gifts. Reel on the way! #naples #christmas #tomatoes #travel #food
Travel: how I pack. I choose one colour as well as Travel: how I pack. I choose one colour as well as black and white and stick to that palette. For Sicily & Naples I’m doing red, white & black. I’ve bought @coti_vision red glasses chain, a red beret & a black one, a pair of red @snagtights & a black pair, a red hair clasp, a red & white pair of shoes (25 euros, leather from Naples), a red & white dress, a black & white striped dress, and so on. Do you roll? Do you flatten & spread? Do you fold? How do you pack? A few days before I leave I leave my suitcase open in my bedroom and every time I think of something I need to take I sling it in there. ( like adaptors) Last thing is wash bag ( I have a hanging one which is useful) and coat (red for this trip). Basically I colour code my life. When I did the Camino everything was blue & yellow, the colours of the Camino. When I went to Ireland I took all my green clothes ( I don’t have many). If I go on a boat trip I pack blue and white. #packing #colourcoding #travel #mysuitcase
Ruota di pesce spada. A glorious oven baked Sicili Ruota di pesce spada. A glorious oven baked Sicilian fish dish, baked on onions, studded with garlic cloves wrapped in mint leaves, then more onions, capers, olives, oregano & rosemary. Use a thick central slice of swordfish (where can I get that in london?). I’m tasting grillo & Nero d’avola wines @tenutorapitala about an hour inland from Palermo. The owner is the last count Bernard de La gatinais. He has 3 daughters. He’s French (Brittany) and Sicilian. He spoke about how difficult it has been for wine growers since lockdown- so many restaurants closed. Now they are grappling with high energy & fuel costs. ##winesofsicilia #siciliaDOC #wine #travel #sicily
I love Venice. I love Maneskin. I love Italy. I lo I love Venice. I love Maneskin. I love Italy. I love boats and water. #biennalearte2022
London cure smoked salmon from @formanandfield wit London cure smoked salmon from @formanandfield with mikawa citrus (cross between mandarin & pomelo) and home pickled green peppercorns on a plate I bought in minori Italy. #londonfood #citrus #sundaylunch
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Archives

Copyright © 2023 msmarmitelover