Anyone got a chocolate fountain?

[Scorch]

... and can recommend it or otherwise?

Y'see, I just had one of those thoughts that is either really good, or really bad, depending on how you look at it... as we're planning this surprise party for my Dad, have we EVER had a better excuse to buy a chocolate fountain? :)

I've seen them about £10 or £15, about a foot or so tall, and there's even some big steel ones on EBay, though all the cheap ones are for for pickup only and nowhere near me. I bet I could find one before November, though...

Apparently you can choose to use couverture chocolate without oil, or thin the chocolate with cocoa butter or cream rather than oil, especially if you use a mixture of milk and dark chocolate... 'cos I don't really fancy a fountain made half with Crisp'n'Dry!

[greannancrafts]

This party sounds "yummier" every day.

Can we all come?:)

Jane

[Scorch]

Well, are you an old friend of my Dad? If you are, you'd be more than welcome! Otherwise, I guess I could try to convince him that he knows you really... :)

Though I'm hoping that we can indeed set out an appealing menu that you'd want to come along for - my Mum's a cookery teacher, and it's kinda rubbed off a bit! We're planning on mostly things that can be just laid out for peope to help themselves to, rather than stuff that needs a lot of preparation, though - ie french sticks & loaves of bread with breadboard and knife (at the back of the table!) , butter & spread and a Swedish butterspreader, and plates of cheese and meat, rather than sandwiches. A crockpot of Norfolk chicken stew with a ladle and some more bread (safely at the back of the table again), rather than a formal hot dish. Bowls of salad, crisps & dips, Tesco's quiche & desserts, etc. But we do feel obliged to make our own pastries - sausage rolls, mini meat pies/crescents, cheese & onion squares, fish triangles and maybe cheese & bacon twists - Mum-style party food!

[beckyboo]

my daughter has a choc fountain
they are a pain in the bum, we set it up last christmas when we had friends over ...took a small mountain of chocolate to keep it going all night , it got knocked over countless times , the little kids got totally covered in it so it ended up smeared on my sofa , doors and even the dog !! and to cap it all it's a swine to clean after

still want one ?,lol

I might be able to wangle an invite my dad knows everyone,lol, he even knew a bloke in the middle of the Nevada desert one time ;)

[beadsbydesign]

I have a fountain and I used asdas cheep bars of choc 27p for 100g and they were great and didn't actually need any oil, just heated up the chocolate in the microwave to melt it and turned the fountain on before hand to warm up.
the fountain it'self cost £10 from a local chemist christmas gift line.
The biggest down side is the cleaning afterwards!

[sparkysdad]

First of all, "dont do it" would be my 10p worth..! think of the hips not the lips!! lol:D And if you get one, you will only be tempted to keep it and use it..

But if you do....

A chocolate fountain shouldnt need thinning with oil (how disgusting!) - watch chocolate being made and you will see a lake of unctuous choccy in a tempering machine... smooth glossy and very liquid.. of course that is "proper" chocolate not cadburys and galaxy...;)

You can hire a smallish fountain relatively cheaply, and possibly get something a bit more impressive than the domestic units you see for sale - proper catering ones are expensive to buy.. Though to be honest, when you think about the cost of the machine (to buy) all the chocolate - and you need choccy in reserve as the fountain will need a "minimum" reserve quantity to operate, plus what is consumed and then the cost of all the dippy things, sticks, wet wipes and so on - you might just get as good value hiring the whole setup in for 2 hours... at least you dont have to set up, dismantle, clean etc...

[Madly Creating]

I recall we just stuck ours in the dishwasher. Haven't used it in a while, but it was a lot of fun!

[silverjewelleryworkshop]

We've got an apartment in the alps in France and one of the shops there has a chocolate fountain 4 feet high. I thought I had died and gone to heaven the first time I saw it. Can you swim in chocolate? I thought I'd give it a go, lol.

Caroline

[sparkysdad]

http://www.weddingservices4u.co.uk/asp_norfolk2/norfolkWeddingChocFountains.asp might be worth a look..

also here (http://www.ukchocolatefountainhire.co.uk/) - they mention a "small" white or dark chocolate fountain from £60 and the full monty from £150:confused:

[indri]

http://www.hotchocolates.co.uk/ you can try to win the hire of it here! which you'd need to for the price they charge!

[Scorch]

Mmm, dithering over whether to get a fountain or use a dipping pot, or not, or what - I'll ask my sister! :)

[Scorch]

We decided to get a fondue dipping pot, instead - less hassle...

[krafty1]

they are a pain in the bum, ...took a small mountain of chocolate to keep it going all night , it got knocked over countless times , it's a swine to clean after



That's exactly what I've heard from everyone I know who has one, so I've given them a miss. I just go and visit when they've got theirs out :D

[Scorch]

Well, I managed to get a 1ltr Russell Hobbs electric fondue set on EBay for £6.99, insead of £25, so we should be set! Not that I know how many people that'll serve - sounds like a lot...

[Nattelie]

honestly I have one ( a gift) and it's been sat in the cupboard for 2 years. I also bought my parents one and theirs is unused too.

If you're buying it and you know it's going to be used, it can be a good buy, but alot of people seem to use them once then they're in the gadget cupboard after that

[Scorch]

To be honest, I bought it specifically for Dad's surprise party. It probably won't get used again till the next big family event - that's why I was happy to find it at under £10!