Hello there,
I'll be making a chessboard cake for a friend and in fact has bought the chess pieces mold. They're half molds. I just don't know how to take out the pieces. The mold is a plastic one. So I just melted some chocolate and poured to the molds but no idea how to take them out without damaging the shape. Any ideas?
And one more question, is there a way or something I can apply to make it shiny?

Thanks so much in advance.
s

is your chocolate tempered?

Mike

is your chocolate tempered?

Mike

You can just turn the mold over and they should pop right out.

As for getting it shiny, if you've tempered the chocolate properly, they will have that shine automatically.

HTH

Tempered? oops.. don't know what that means. I just started baking a couple of months ago.

I assume i can use any kind of chocolate? (like chocolate chips) or is there anything particular I have to use?


tnx

http://mrchocolate.com./aboutChocolate.aspx

There are a few videos at that link that will explain tempering. Tempering will allow all the fat crystals to combine.

Mike

Thanks Mike. Will try doing it

having done two chess cakes now, I can give a few newbie tips (I'm by no means an expert, and have pretty much just fumbled my way through, so take that for what it's worth!)

1) Don't overfill. The less you have to handle the pieces after molding, to get rid of 'tags' of chocolate, the better. Handling them seems to take the shine away.
2) the king's 'crown' and the bishop tend to like to break when unmolding. I've been placing a cookie sheet or pan over the mold, and very gently unmolding them into that, to lessen the chance for breakage.
3) fill all the molds first, before putting the already-made halves on to make them 3-D. If you don't, the first ones will start to melt before you can get the last ones done. (This was probably a 'duh' moment, but hey... if I can keep you from that frustration, all the better)

For the chess board, I've found that it works better if you fill all of one color first, then WITHOUT CHILLING that color, go back and flood with the other color. If you chill the first color first, the little blocks like to try to move and float away. (ask me how I know!)

I use a small insulated lunch bag to transport the pieces, since I use chocolate melts, and they have a very low melting temp. One little ice pack, and it works well for me.

And one last tip... make extras!!!

This might all be basic stuff that everybody but me knows
, but hey, if it helps one person, I'm happy!

Have fun and post pics!!!!

PS It will take longer than you think to do all this. I highly recommend making the pieces well ahead of time, so that you're not rushed at the last minute. (Again... ask me how I know... )

Hi Doni,
Thanks for your tips! I will surely apply them. Regarding the molds, any type will do? And they will just fall off when they harden? Did you temper them? I will try to do what Mike suggested and see how it goes.

Like I said, I'm new to the molding thing, too...

I didn't temper the chocolate, but the lady who sold it to me (little cake and candy supplies shop) said that those particular melts don't usually need tempering. So it will depend entirely on what kind of chocolate you're using, I think. I could be totally wrong on this, though, so definitely look into tempering if you haven't already!

Not sure what you mean by 'will any type do?', but that's probably lack of caffeine clouding my brain. I have two molds that I bought from Country Kitchen, but they're just regular chocolate molds.

I tried unmolding the first batch I did by turning it over above a plate and just gently bending the mold so that the pieces would fall out. While they came out very easily, with no prepping of the mold, when they hit the plate, a number of them broke. That's why I started putting something flat over the mold, turn the whole thing over, and very gently tap or bend the mold to release the pieces. That works much better! Once you've made them 3-d, though, they're a lot stronger.

For the board, to pipe in the white chocolate, I poured the melted stuff into a piping bag with the very tip cut off, so that I could control the 'lines' much better. It does take practice to get the lines perfectly straight, unless I'm missing a tip or trick for that part, but with a bit of patience and a somewhat steady hand, you'll get it. Believe it or not, for me the hardest part WAS the board... the pieces kind of make themselves, really, if you just be careful and don't over or under-fill them. The board, though, takes some precision piping work to get the lines straight without blending the colors.

Hi guys, thanks for all your helpful tips.

DoniB, as promised, here's the link of the chess board/pieces I made a couple of weeks ago.

http://www.cakecentral.com/modules.php?name=gallery&file=displayimage&pid=1257601

To minimize the breakage I suggest putting wax paper on top of your mold before you turn it over and turn the whole thing over on top of a piece of sponge if you have it or at least a few tea towels. That way, they wont fall on a plate and break They will have a nice little cushion.

For the chocolate there is not enough fat in the choc. chips hence the reason they usually do not flatten out in cookies.
It's better to either find chocolate melts or a good chocolate that you like the taste of in a cake/candy shop or on line.

I hope that helps. Good Luck.