attacking the cocoa butter block

JBot · May 12, 2015

My 10-pound brick of cocoa butter arrived a few days ago. I bought it to superfat my HP at the end of the cook. After reading what some people do to break it into more manageable pieces, I turned on the fireplace and set the block in front of it to let it soften. Then I used a kitchen knife to cut/break it into chunks. Now I think maybe I should have stopped there, but I thought it sounded like a good idea to put those chunks through the food processor using the grater/shredder blade, so I washed and dried the Cuisinart.

Before starting to feed in the cocoa butter, I pulsed the blade a few times, and when I did, I saw some water droplets spray the inside of the feeder column; the droplets were coming from areas of the components that I couldn’t reach while towel-drying. I wiped away those droplets and proceeded, but as I was working I got increasingly worried that other/more drops of water that I couldn’t see might have gotten into the shredded cocoa butter.

How concerned should I be about spoilage? I was assuming that any water content at all, even the tiniest drops, put ingredients or products at risk. Does anybody know? I packaged the shredded cocoa butter in heavy-duty ziplock bags, squeezing out as much of the air as I could. I’m storing it in a cool, dark room with my other soaping oils. Obviously I will watch carefully for signs of mold, etc. I did not actually see any water come in contact with the cocoa butter, but that doesn’t mean it didn’t happen, and I’m wondering how likely it is that I’ll have to throw it all out.

IrishLass · May 12, 2015

This is just me, but I wouldn't throw it out. Instead, what I would do is open up any of the bags that look like they have condensation forming in them, and if any are found, I would open the suspected bag(s), pour/spread the cocoa butter out on a tray of some sort, and stick it in a barely warm oven (turn it on for a few minutes, then turn it off) to evaporate off any suspected water. When done, I would let the cocoa butter come to room temp and repackage it in a new ZipLoc bag.

IrishLass

newbie · May 12, 2015

I completely agree with IL. Don't throw 10 pounds of it out! I too would air it out and let it dry if it looks at all wet, then repackage.

I had 5 pound left that was driving me crazy, trying to chunk it up. I ended up putting it in a double boiler and melting it over low temps, then pouring it out into every small mold I had (the little squares and all) and pouring it in thin layers, maybe a third of an inch, in slab molds. Once it cooled, I broke up the slabs and popped all the small pieces out and bagged them up. An hour of two of mess but I will never have to swear at it again!

kchaystack · May 12, 2015

newbie said:
I completely agree with IL. Don't throw 10 pounds of it out! I too would air it out and let it dry if it looks at all wet, then repackage.

I had 5 pound left that was driving me crazy, trying to chunk it up. I ended up putting it in a double boiler and melting it over low temps, then pouring it out into every small mold I had (the little squares and all) and pouring it in thin layers, maybe a third of an inch, in slab molds. Once it cooled, I broke up the slabs and popped all the small pieces out and bagged them up. An hour of two of mess but I will never have to swear at it again!

At least until you buy a new batch of CB.... ;-)

I agree with the others, it will be fine.