Megha

@frank - we'll just have to disagree. I don't see he has "done the big things right', but then my perception is colored by that action - an act I see as unethical, immoral, illegal, and dishonorable - and then his actual plan included child-sacrifice and just, no. Dumbles has moral and legal responsibility to go with his hoarded authority, he had a duty and he deliberately abandoned it to allow criminal-level harm, he's complicit. I'm not thrilled w/ the trio's actions there but they fought Draco as equals in immature squabbles, they should be in lots of trouble but it's not the same level.

@frank - I agree with Valorum, he really does seem to regard kids as disposable. As you asked for examples, the one that got me (breaking immersion at the time, not just after the fact) was when he was protecting Draco, who was at the time trying to kill him. Draco did hurt and nearly kill others - including use of imperious curse, poison, malevolent artifacts - and it was not Dumble's place to "forgive" him for harm caused to other people...especially children owed his protection. Dumbles often sacrifices the innocent to protect the guilty, and that is not how honorable people act.

... not enough (working/reachable/undamaged) life pods? And the captain gets the short straw b/c highest responsibility?

@Epanoui - I think it might indeed be different if a woman encourages a man to smile (though still presumptive to assume or demand). There's a lot of gender-heavy history in being expected to maintain a happy appearance, or being expected to justify or rationalize their emotions. I also think there's a difference between demanding someone smile or trying to cheer someone up (by joking, etc). in the end, I might prefer a more neutral approach to something like this myself, but I would understand someone taking a stronger stance.

@DanBryant - the drowning test in the answer does not require standing up to end the test, it ends the test when one falls down - a bowl of water dragged off the table to the floor would not keep enough liquid and even if it did the bowl and the body are not likely to land in the precise positions where that remaining water would endanger the person.

Appearances can matter. In some places, a water bottle would be accepted (or perhaps overlooked) if it's open and/or reusable one, suggesting that you usually carry one as you're walking about and it's part of your stuff like jacket, etc - even if you drink from it. Different context from a fresh water bottle obviously to avoid buying from them. I don't know about Germany, specifically, but it works some places regular bottles wouldn't. Or you might order, say, hot water with lemon or other modified-tap-water - sometimes it's free, or cheaper, (sometimes not) but it sounds like a drink.

@Nav - Looking at black garlic oil, burnt sugar syrup, charcoal bread, and even smoke-flavor seasonings, people really do like the scorch as long as it's properly balanced with other flavors - it adds a depth, bitterness, complexity. You don't have to like it, but that doesn't mean those who do "can't cook properly". You did not skeptically question, you offended.

That was explained poorly in my original answer, to be fair

I planned a wet-melt the second time around from the beginning, which doesn't seize, and then was confounded by rumtscho's response... it took a while to figure out whether the problem was my assumptions, my understanding, or my explanation.

as for not being sure it will work, I have wet-melted chocolate, so its only how much salt will actually get pulled for the effort (and how much sugar lost) I'm not really sure of.

Thanks, I'll make sure its visible from the beginning. The whole first paragraph is becoming a tl;dr of the answer...

Finished fixing my answer, if anyone wants to see it.

Sure, that's fair but my answer wasn't "no, but" it was more like "this will be hard, but that will be easier"

one of the reasons I added the dilution by way of other recipes to the end of my answer, instead of as its own answer, was that the original question was how to separate the salt out - suggesting an alternative didn't seem like a direct answer.

Probably wise - though some intermediate ranges might be nice, salted caramel style

Its about the chocolate letting the salt through, in my opinion. The salt on the surface will probably get nabbed, even if the chocolate is solid - and maybe a layer or two deeper can be managed depending on how the chocolate behaves.

the molecules are shifting around more, more chances for the salt to get drawn out if there's more motion - just like more will get pulled out if the chocolate already has some moisture in it (like fudge texture)

If it is cooler, then less salt gets pulled, since it then relies on surface area interaction - but I was thinking it would be safer than the other answer, which involved mixing the chocolate with water and separating out by cooling.

I don't mind if other people think it isn't worth it, I know I'm taking a risk :)

No, I get your point - it is an extra risk. I am just more likely to take that risk, because of my attitudes to wasting, and greater tolerance for differences - and willing to offer the suggestion for those like me, willing to gamble.

If some care is taken during the second heating, it shouldn't seize at all... the second melting has to be done into extra water, though, to make a sauce from the get-go. It shouldn't be seizing when adding the water, because chocolate is already cooled to semi-solid

@rumtscho - Oh, neat.

Yeah, I need to add some warnings if it's not being used in batter after all. And a few more specifics for the second melting to avoid the seizing, which I was assuming without explaining.

yes, that would be nice

Well, reusable until your bowl changes (Wait, mayo in double boiler?)

And yet, sticking with what works can give success until you figure out why it works

chocolate sauce!

I am also wondering, now, how liquid the chocolate needs to be to seize. I mentioned using thin layers and letting the chocolate cool to semisolid because I assumed the chocolate would be less likely to interact with the water, just pull salt form the surface. On the other hand, chopped chocolate shouldn't seize if rinsed or let sit in water - though the salt wouldn't be able to get out past the outermost edges.

Not great clumps of seized chocolate, I wouldn't think - but between moisture and heat, same process as smoothing the chocolate manually, I thought it might get some lingering tiny clumps from already smoothed chocolate. But then, I am usually quite forgiving towards small problems.

That makes sense. It didn't occur to me to warn for possible seizing because I assumed it was for a batter, and the chocolate would be re-heated and smoothed in the process of incorporating it into the rest of the wet ingredients - and any lingering grains smoothed in the heat from baking.

@rumtscho Is seizing really such a problem in wet batter baked goods? I thought it was mostly a problem if the chocolate was supposed to stay dry, not if it was mixed with other things. It didn't occur to me it would be a problem in cake batter - but then, I might just not have noticed the difference.

@rumtscho - Yeah, it probably won't balance in a single recipe unless salt needed is very high or chocolate used was very less - but the bowlful of salted chocolate won't be wasted if it can be used up over the next several recipes asking for both, with plenty of fresh chocolate for the rest of the recipe. Some people will discard it, some will try to find a way to use it.

@rumtscho - Replacing salt elsewhere in a recipe is a much easier option, that's why I also suggested that - but some people think it's worth trying to salvage ingredients - especially if its a fair amount, or a good quality of chocolate. It isn't personal, it's just about different viewpoints :)

@Jefromi - yes, the seizing won't matter much because it gets distributed in the wet batter ingredients. Seizing is usually more of a problem in recipes without the extra water, like candies.

@rumtscho - Seized chocolate is saved by adding more water to it, though. It does become softer and looser, in the process, like a sauce - which might not matter as much when it's going to be mixed into batter for a cake after this procedure.