Chocolate Models

Welcome back to this fascinating world of chocolate models. In this post, we’re going to take a look at how the chocolate models molds have evolved through time from their earliest beginnings to the modern and easy to use molds we have at our fingertips in today’s modern kitchens.

Back in the Victorian era, chocolate had been firmly set as one of the top favourite things to eat, it having been brought back from the Americas many years before and refined into the solid chocolate we know today by the Belgians. The popularity of drinking chocolate was still high, of course, but the refined solid chocolate made by those Belgian chocolatiers had certainly left its mark on the people of the time.

It wasn’t long before craftsmen were employed in the creating of special molds in which to pour molten chocolate whereupon the would cool and re-solidify into the shapes cast by those molds. This was a new idea and one that was ginning in popularity rapidly, so more ways had to be found to make the molds in bulk to satisfy not only chocolate makers, but also kitchen staff that were employed by the well to do households to make chocolate shaped treats for their guests.

The first chocolate molds were actually crafted from lead, this being an easily malleable metal which lent itself to the purpose quite easily. However, questions on the cleanliness of the metal soon quashed it as a viable material for this use. At the time, the detrimental health properties of lead were unknown, it being the primary material used in teh construction of water pipes in those days.

Steel molds were also used, but were unsatisfactory because of problems with rusting. It wasn’t until 1916 when stainless steel was invented by Henry Brearly, that the revolution in chocolate molds came about. Now craftsmen had a new material to work with that did not rust and was easier to clean than any tried beforehand. The only problem was cost. It wasn’t until a few years later that stainless steel plants in Sheffield, England began manufacturing bulk items that drove the costs down.

With the later invention of Bakelite, another medium for the chocolate molds was born, but it wasn’t perfect as it could not withstand the high temperatures of ovens. It was, however fine for use with pouring molten chocolate. It wasn’t as durable as steel and was too easily broken to become popular as a viable material for molds.

Aluminium was the next material used and this became a cheaper and lighter alternative to stainless steel. Later in the 20th Century, the invention of teflon as a non-stick coating made the process of separating molds a joy of ease and simplicity.

The most recent invention has been that of the permanently non-stick silicon molds which are ideal for multi-use purposes, are easy to clean after use, lightweight and relatively cheap to manufacture. As more shaped molds are made, this material is surely set to become the most popular of them all.

Chocolate Models

Hot chocolate models conjure up an image of steamy, sweet and exotic temptations that get your mouth watering and pulse racing with the anticipation of what is to come. So the last post here How to Use Chocolate Models, looked at making use of these devilishly simple yet highly effective tools for creating the perfect chocolate confectionery in all shapes and sizes.

So now let’s go down the other road and look at the tempting side of these irresistible creations, shall we? It’s a simple case of getting all your ingredients together into one place so you know exactly what you’ve got tot work with and ten choose your perfect chocolate molds for producing the finished article.

Now, there is one particular step in making chocolate confectionery in your own kitchen which makes the whole process so worthwhile. That’s the part when you heat up the chocolate in preparation for filling the molds to create the final product. If you are anything like me and simply cannot resist the temptation of a bowl full of hot chocolate! Models aside, that sweet, sweet, smooth and thoroughly irresistible molten chocolate, then you just have to poke a spoon in there and transfer some of it to your mouth!

Now that’s what I call the steamiest, intoxicating side of working with hot chocolate models!

Well, why else would you go through all that aggravation to make chocolate shapes with all the associated cleaning up afterwards? There has to be more reward than merely sampling the finished confection so this is one of the best perks about making these things. So if you ever wondered why we go through all this hard work, now you know!

See you next time!

Chocolate Models