To Temper, Or Not To Temper? C'mon is that really a question......

"You wouldn't like me when I'm angry" - The Hulk 

Exactly that, let's face it, who likes anyone when they lose their temper?

Chocolate is exactly the same, nasty, vile, and just really not a good look when it loses it temper!

When I lose my temper, no one wants to be around "Ok Alan" or "Calm down Gordon" is all I can hear (2 of my biggest idols so I see it as a complement)

Like anything in life, when it loses its cool it can be frustrating for everyone and anyone else, nothing worse than a bad vibe in the room right.

This is exactly why we like chocolate to keep its temper!

Imagine a 2 year old child going through the dreaded 'terrible twos' stage, can't keep them in the right frame of mind for long before they go running wild or throw another tantrum again, right? Yup sounds like my sweet, silky old pal Choco-lateee!!

Again, going back to my so aptly used euphemism above, and yes, it can be a long, tiring workout just the same. 

This baby needs a time out! And boyo don't I know it, let's calm and sooth the hot headed beast!

So, I dive in, and take a portion of this beaut away from it's hot headed counter part to give it some light, therapy, slowly and gently massage it around a nice cool area to get it down, down, down to where it needs to be.

A palette knife/scraper in each hand, I begin to gently massage this beautiful, warm liquid around, tossing it gently in the air, bouncing from from surface to surface, but with care and delicacy, this is no time to be reacting a scene from the karate kid with nunchucks, it's 100% more of a wax on, wax off, wax onnnnnn, wax offffff moment, however lets have a little body jig cue the music "everybody was kung fu fighting, your mind becomes as fast as lightning" 

After a little while, probably not a long as your standard timeout, but close enough, I begin to feel my arms start to ache from this complete upper body workout, where's my assistant to wipe my brow, aha oh yeah, I don't have one!

However this once shiny, fluid liquid has started to become this thick, dare I say it, duller version of its former self, aha! I reach out for my probe, take a stance like HP himself, arm cast over my head the whole caboodle and call out "Expelliarmus", 

Well, not really but a fab idea right.... 

Anyway, I take my wand like chocolate probe, and insert it slowly, but only a few inches to see if we have reached that point of no return, yes, yes, time to stop! 

In one hand we have our hot headed chocolate love child, and in the other a cool, calm and collected alter ego, time to bring them back together in perfect harmony like Adam and Eve, stirring, stirring to create that perfect tempered balance of yin & yang, as hot meets cold (metaphorically speaking) the 2 forces join together and become one, this glistening pool of glorious, rich and intense molten chocolate goodness, they've found their happy place, together!

This perfectly, tempered and indulgent liquid is now ready for the moulding and my god it's gonna be good!

Until the next time

The Kakawa Artisan Chocolatier