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Decorating Tips & Tricks

Colouring Chocolate with Fat Dispersible Dust

Posted on by Natasha Schick

With new trends evolving in 2020 and 2021 more and more for hot chocolate bombs, smash hearts and anything chocolate, we have definitely seen a trend and an increase in sales on chocolate and how to customize the colours.

Some of our customers are looking for a couverture chocolate (cocoa butter based and cocoa solid based) while others would prefer the melting confectionary candy melting chocolate as it needs no tempering. We thought we would discuss colouring confectionary chocolate today, however the application will work the same in a couverture for colouring when using the Roxy and Rich Fat dispersible Dust. The big difference for those that do not know how to temper chocolate or want a quick set for the smashable heart cakes the confectionary/candy melting chocolate is quick and easy to use.

How to colour Chocolate 101 :

When colouring your chocolate keep in mind that adding a liqua gel/gel colour will not work as it is a water based colour and will cause your chocolate to thicken/cease.

A better option to colour chocolate is either a coloured cocoa butter, fat dispersible dust or a candy colouring that is oil based rather than water based. All 3 options will wonderful results. Today I will show you the effects of using the Roxy and Rich Fat dispersible dust and how easy it is to use on a confectionary chocolate vs the Roxy and Rich Fondust that did not have the same effects. The Chefmaster Candy colouring is in liquid form and all you need to do is open and squeeze. Pro’s: Quick and effective to provide a bright colour. Con’s; Cost comparison, it will cost more to shade your chocolate than a fat dispersible dust. Since this is a oil based colour I typically would not recommend putting in couverture chocolate as couverture chocolate does not contain oil and only cocoa butter.

As for the confectionary chocolate we used in the pictures it is the White Van Leer Ezmelt Ultimate Snaps. This is a sister company to Callebaut Chocolate and produced in the North American market. The Van Leer is a coating/compound chocolate that does not contain cocoa butter. For those that would like further information and recipes on the Van Leer Chocolate I have included the following link.

https://www.barry-callebaut.com/en-CA/artisans/van-leer/about-van-leer

Lets get started. The Van Leer is easy to melt in your microwave or over a double boiler. Be sure not to over heat your chocolate as you can burn it and thus making it thick or discoloured. Slow and steady wins the race.

Van Leer White Chocolate Melted and ready to colour. Comes as wafer pellets for easy and quick melting.
Roxy and Rich Red Fat Dispersible Dust.
I added only a small amount on the tip of a spoon to start to colour. To deepen the colour just add more powder slowly. When making large batches of coloured chocolate, I prefer to colour a smaller amount to ensure all colour has been incorporated and then add to the rest of the chocolate to incorporate. When adding a fat dispersible dust it does not change the fluidity or thicken the chocolate.
From the pictures you can see how you can change the intensity of your coloured chocolate to a pale red to a vibrant red. Both options did not use too much product and all colour was completely dissolved for a fantastic finish.

Lets discuss the Roxy and Rich Fondust. This is an amazing product and I have personally used on buttercream, macaron shells, royal icing, marzipan and Fondant. However to activate full colour from this product your ingredient will need a water base to do so as I have been told by the R&D Team from Roxy and Rich head quarters. I did know this product cannot be used in real chocolate, however I was curious on coating chocolate and was not happy with the end results.. I was left with a dull pail pink/red when I used the Super Red Fondust and no matter how much colour I added it did not change the overall result..

Fondust used in candy melts. As you can see, that a rich red was not obtained and only left me with a pretty pink.
Comparison. The bright red and pail red is buttercream icing that shows how the full activation of the colour takes effect, compared to the chocolate at the top that was unable to achieve full colour activation.

When colouring chocolate the Fat Dispersible Dust is a easy to use option that provides great results with out breaking the bank. The product has a very long shelf life of 2-3 years and can be used not only in chocolate but any product that contains fat (oil/butter/cocoa butter/milk fat). Use in buttercream, cake batter, cookies, ganache, whipped cream and more.

Happy baking on this Valentines Day weekend.

Natasha Schick