ISO: Food Grade Cocoa/Cacao Butter
I've been calling around but haven't had any luck with finding (hopefully good, of course!) food grade cocoa butter. I'd be interested in ordering online for a later date IF someone can recommend a decent seller - but right now I don't have the time. Trying to make a dessert for Thanksgiving.
Restaurant Depot is a possibility (a friend has a membership), so I'll call them tomorrow to see if they have this unusual ingredient. I don't know of any wholesale seller for such items in the area (for candy making, mostly) who would sell to the public - if anyone knows, PLEASE help me solve this.
My backup plan is to use coconut oil... might work, but I'd rather use cocoa butter if I can find it.
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opinionatedchef
Nov 23, 2012 12:41 AM
well, that king arthur price is ALOT better than the one here, but at least this same site/source explained that food cocoa butter= skin care cocoa butter. Now we know.
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MichaelB
Nov 19, 2012 06:20 PM
I don't know if this will satisfy the "food-grade" part of your query, but last year I bought some cocoa butter in the Whole Body section of the Whole Foods on Cambridge Street in Beacon Hill. I was planning to use it for a recipe - it didn't specify "food-grade," but it was 100% cocoa butter, and it smelled delightful, so I wasn't particularly worried about baking with it. (I'd had the same problem finding it via more conventional routes.) In the end I didn't use it but only because the recipe (pandoro) had about a million steps and I didn't have the time to tackle it properly.
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re: MichaelB
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re: StriperGuy
opinionatedchef
Nov 21, 2012 02:07 PM
stripes, i didn't know about pandoro so i wiki'd it. Plse ask your SO why she prefers it and which brand/store she recs; i'm curious now and would like to try some. (I've not had a panettone in Boston that i liked alot, but that may just be the ones i've tasted.)
If she likes this sort of thing, the Ciamballone at WF is my fav of all. not dry (unless they've mishandled it) and full of citron and soaked raisins. Though it's only about 3-4" H, you still don't have to buy a whole one; it's sold wrapped in wedges.Strangely, the WF Fr Pond bakery staff has not known about it/stocked it yet; but (weirdly) woburn had it today. I love it lightly toasted and buttered (yep!) And it freezes well.
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re: opinionatedchef
StriperGuy
Nov 22, 2012 07:05 AM
Neither of us like the "junk" in pannetone, and pretty much any brand of Pandoro is good as long as it is fresh (this time of year they all are). She picked some up at TJMax that was great. Eggy, springy, light, totally different dough then pannetone. Just yummy, try one.
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re: StriperGuy
threedogs
Nov 22, 2012 06:18 PM
Oooo - I'll check out the food section when I'm in T.J. Maxx again! Yum! Smarter than trying to bake it, I think. My body is pretending it's getting old(ER) and screams at me when I try to do too much kitchen stuff... hehe - so this is a perfect way to try some out to make sure I like it, before I go to that amt of effort. Purely scientific endeavor, of course... :D
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re: MichaelB
threedogs
Nov 21, 2012 05:59 PM
Thanks for the info, MichaelB. My plans changed - my granddaughter decided to make an early appearance into this world... since I've been a bit preoccupied with her birth, I've put my white chocolate creation (that's what I needed the cocoa butter for) on hold for now. :D Will still want to try this sometime in the future...
Btw - I've never had pandoro, but after googling it, I want some. The recipes I saw didn't include cocoa butter, though... any chance of sharing the one you have?
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re: cocoabrioche
threedogs
Nov 22, 2012 06:16 PM
Aw, thanks so much!!! Haven't traveled up that way for years (since I became car-less) - miss the VT landscape. Right now, with my granddaughter a train or bus ride away, I'm wishing I had a car again, but I'd head south to see her again rather than north to VT if I did! (btw, love your chow name!)
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re: threedogs
MichaelB
Nov 24, 2012 09:05 PM
Sure - the recipe is from Maggie Glezer's book Artisan Baking. Very detailed description of the steps required to make the pandoro sold at Bruno Bakery in Brooklyn. (Which was the bakery's name at publication - the baker's empire seems to have expanded since then - I just googled quickly and Pasticceria Bruno in Staten Island and Manhattan and Settepani in Brooklyn all seem to have the same owner.)
Sourdough starter, dough built over multiple long mixings and enrichments, a 12 hour rise, special pans. It sounds fantastic - like the best brioche ever - but it is a project. Looking at the recipe, I now see that *this* is where I got the information that cocoa butter from the cosmetic department is fine to use "as long as it contains no perfumes or preservatives." Post if you make it!!
That book is excellent by the way - and to add a little local relevance, it has a recipe for Hi-Rise's corn bread - one of my favorite local breads. I've made it and the results were very good.
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re: wonderwoman
threedogs
Nov 25, 2012 12:17 PM
Thanks, wonderwoman! Love that site, btw...
I really, really love baking, especially bread. I've been telling myself that this recipe is too much work, but I love a challenge - how I wish I was younger, because if I was, I'd tackle the insane world of the food business. There's such a limited amt of time I can use to stuff my adult kids, lol... and they are using that four letter word lately (diet)... but it was suggested that I see if there's a senior center near me to bring food - so I think that's what I'm going to do. I used to bring my dogs for visits to one near me when I lived in AZ - I honestly got back more than they did, I think. Good memories...
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