SHF#25: And God created chocolate truffles

*** Leading up to Christmas, lots of readers have been asking for a link to the round-up... find it here. Happy tempering and rolling (and send me a few, will you?) ***

I have a sneaking suspicion that every host of Sugar High Friday since the beginning of this fabulous virtual event initiated by the Domestic Goddess actually knew what they were talking about when they chose the theme for their edition... all of them seemed to have picked a sugar-laden topic that was close to their heart and therefore gave them some advantage over the poor foodbloggers out there who were good sports to try making their first puff pastry or come up with a calorie-free dessert. So maybe, just maybe, I am the exception to the rule - as for many of you out there, this is my very first attempt at making chocolate truffles at home, having so far relied on trusted "dealers" like Maison du Chocolat or my local and favourite William Curley.
Hopelessly ambitious when it comes to something that is so mind-blowingly indulgent as the chocolate truffle, I decided to make not one, but three different variations... although admittedly, this strategy was nothing but a safety net: I only had to get one out of three right and could just feast on the "cripples" left behind on the way!
They turned out allright, though, all of them (but I made sure I still pigged out on them as much as the calorie-conscious part of my brain allowed... and believe you me, this part of my brain is very small) - even though there was the odd disaster, like trying to melt white chocolate in the microwave only to be alerted to wads of smoke coming out of it. Burnt white chocolate anyone? It wasn't actually that bad once you had gotten over the taste... but definitely useless for dipping truffles in. All in all, I found making my own truffles much easier than I had expected and also less time consuming - so I will be making more for Christmas presents this year!

First up an adaptation of a recipe I found in the latest issue (Dec. 2006) of Elle A Table. A smooth and creamy white chocolate centre, which even after hours of freezing was quite tricky to handle, flavoured with tahini (sesame paste) and dunked in white chocolate laced with black and white sesame seeds. Having only just discovered cardamom spice, I used this lovely and refreshing spice to give an extra twist to the filling - so here you have some truffles that are out of the ordinary, but certainly a subtle enough  combination of flavours to even please the truffle novice.

I have always been a sucker for caramel and I especially like the salted variety - with masses of fleur de sel left over from our (not so recent anymore) butter & salt tasting, the sea salt caramel chocolate fudge hearts (top picture) were an obvious choice. Remembering Shuna's warnings (she finds making caramel in your home kitchen without a fire extinguisher and a team of paramedics standing by a gamble with Death and speaks of her own experiences working in restaurant kitchens), I made my caramel the safe way - not melting the sugar straight in the pan, but diluted in water, which makes it a slower and therefore safer process. Having been unable to find the phantastic "stencils" we used at the chocolate workshop (they're about 10 cm high and conical, which makes the truffles fall out easily on the other end, keeping their shape intact), I resorted to the smallest cookie cutters I could find - stars would have been my preferred option, but I only found hearts... well, well, here's an idea for Valentine's Day, then!

Last up, a very basic truffle recipe: a simple chocolate ganache dunked in chocolate or plain, then rolled in cocoa powder or ground almonds. As per the lessons we learnt in the workshop, I tried to infuse the ganache - and opted for tea. Now, you see Matcha flavouring next to everything at the moment and Earl Grey sounded a bit too boring for my liking - so I opted for one of my favourite teas, the South African Rooibos. Inititally I was thinking of the Honeybush variety, but there was none left, so I figured the last spoonfuls of the rhubarb infused redbush tea I got from Dagmar   in an EBBM earlier this year would work just as well. Unfortunately, the subtle aromas were almost completely lost in all the Valrhona I used The Rooibos aroma comes out quite beautifully, actually, if you only roll the truffles in cocoa, rather than dunking in more chocolate... but it is very subtle. so now we know why Earl Grey is the most prominent tea flavouring around... its strong perfume, like it or not, can stand up to anything, even a powerful chocolate ganache!

Call it cheating, but I organised a chocolate truffle workshop for UK foodbloggers a few weeks back in anticipation of today's big event - and learnt one important lesson from eating the truffles we produced at the workshop only some three weeks later.. so when it came to SHF, I chose to use UHT (long-life) cream for all my recipes. Despite a certain chocolatier in Paris is experimenting very successfully with cheesy chocolates, I wouldn't want to be giving any truffles away for Christmas where the crunchy coating on the outside gives way to a filling smelling like a pair of old socks... so UHT is the way to go!

Although I had a host of gadgets at my disposal (thanks to Sarah who is an avid reader of this blog and lent me her chocolate dipping tools), one little problem couldn't be avoided: I had bought a thermometer to temper the chocolate, but when I unpacked it, the battery was flat... and I couldn't even change it as the darn thing wouldn't open. According to my notes, the tempering is necessary not only to create a hard and crunchy chocolate crust (at least that's one tick), but also to give it its shiny, glossy appearance... so the absence of a thermometer may have been the cause for the coating for my truffle hearts to go a bit pear-shaped in the drying process - or can you think of something else that could have caused this? It resulted in a very interesting look that you couldn't imitate if you tried...

I can't wait to read everybody else's contributions when I do the round-up... despite the holiday season in the US, I already see my mailbox filling up with intriguing entries - and I also see a record number of new blogs participating, which is doubly exciting! So, come back for the round-up which will hopefully be published on Monday, hormones permitting!!!

White chocolate truffles with sesame and cardamom*
(makes 16 - 20)

200 g white chocolate (grated)
100 ml UHT* double cream
10 cardamom pods
1 tsp tahini paste (sesame purée)
1 pinch ground cardamom
25 g white sesame seeds
20 g black sesame seeds (Asian shops)

Slowly heat the cream in a non-stick pot. Gently crack the cardamom pods and add them to the cream. Bring to a simmer, then leave to brew for at least 30 minutes, taking care not to burn it.
Pass through a fine sieve to remove the spice.
Stir 100 g of the white chocolate into the mix until you have a smooth paste and all the chocolate has melted. Stir in the tahini, pour into a bowl, cover with cling film and leave to cool in the fridge for 2 hours.
When the chocolate filling has completely set, remove from the fridge. Using ca. a tsp full at one time, roll into small balls. Place on a tray lined with grease-proof paper and put into the freezer for at least 1 hour.
When ready to decorate, melt the remaining white chocolate in a bain marie, then stir in the sesame seeds. Dunk the balls in the chocolate and leave to set on greaseproof paper in the fridge.
These truffles keep best in an airtight container in the fridge and are best served cold.

Sea salt caramel & chocolate fudge hearts with fleur de sel
(yields ca. 40)

250 g dark chocolate (70%)
200 g granulated sugar
50 ml water
150 g UHT single cream **
3 generous pinches not too coarse sea salt (fleur de sel)

For the coating:
350 g dark chocolate couverture (I used Scharffen Berger Bittersweet, 70% cacao)
fleur de sel

Melt 250 g of dark chocolate in a bain marie (or metal bowl over simmering water - the bowl should't touch the water).
Meanwhile, make the caramel: in a shallow pan, combine the sugar and water. Bring to a boil and wait for all the water to evaporate. The sugar will now begin to caramelise. Stir gently, but continuously, taking care not to burn it. Gradually add the cream - this will foam up quite a bit, so don't panick and keep the quantities of cream low... continue stirring, taking care not to release any sugar lumps that might have formed on the side of the pan. If you have lumps forming, keep stirring over heat until they have dissolved.
Stir caramel into chocolate until smooth, when cooled down to room temperature, thoroughly stir in the salt crystals - if the mixture is too warm, the salt will dissolve.
Spread the fudge evenly onto a non-stick baking mat, then leave to cool in the fridge for at least 1 hour. When it is completely set, cut out shapes with a cookie cutter - any shape is fine, but be aware that the more elaborate it is, the more difficult it will be to release.
Put back into the freezer until ready to decorate.
Chop the remaining chocolate couverture and melt 75% of it in a bain marie (see above). Take off the heat, then gradually stir in the remaining couverture until you reach a temperature of 32 C.
Using a chocolate dipping fork, dunk each piece of fudge in the chocolate, making sure any excess chocolate drips off before setting it to dry on grease-proof paper or on a thin grill/cooling rack. Immediately decorate with a few grains of Fleur de Sel before dipping the next one.
Keep truffles in a cool, dry place until serving.

Chocolate truffles with rooibos-infused ganache***
(yields 30 - 40)

250 g UHT** single cream
1 tbsp Rooibos tea (use Earl Grey or Darjeeling for stronger flavour)
250 g dark chocolate (I used Pralus Carácas Trinitario 75% )

To decorate:
cocoa powder (for rolling)
200 g chocolate couverture (milk, dark or white to your liking)
ground almonds (for rolling)

Gently heat the cream in a pot. Put the tea into a paper filter and close tightly (alteratively, put straight into the cream and push through a fine sieve later). Brew for 5 minutes, then leave to stand for around 1 hour.
Remove the tea, then reheat the cream slowly. Chop the chocolate, then pour over the hot cream, stirring continuously until the chocolate has melted completely. Put into the fridge to set, for about 2 hours or overnight.
When the ganache has solidified, form individual truffle balls (roughly the size of a melon baller) using the palms of your hands. You will need to work as quickly as possible so that the chocolate doesn't get too warm. Place truffles on a lined baking tray and leave to firm up in the freezer until you're ready to decorate.
Melt half of the couverture (chopped) in a bain marie (see above). Stir in the remaining chopped couverture and cool the mixture down to the right temperature (32 C for dark chocolate, 31 C for milk chocolate, 29 C for white chocolate).
Dip the truffle balls using a chocolate dipping spoon or two forks, then roll in either cocoa or ground almonds. Leave in the almonds/cocoa until the chocolate has set enough to be transferred to a bowl or a container. You can also just roll the truffles in cocoa, omitting the chocolate dipping.
Keep truffles in a cool, dry place until serving.

* Adapted from a recipe in Elle A Table, December 2006
** UHT = long-life
*** recipe for ganache adapted from workshop handouts (MyChocolate)

Comments

[Jeanne]

Oh wow - I *love* those heart-shaped ones Johanna! And I would have guessed that Rooibos is too subtle to stand up to the flavours of chocolate. The reason why matcha or Earl Grey work so well is precisely because of their strident and slightly bitter flavours - whereas it is the absence of these flavours that make Rooibos such a pleasure to drink! Glad you also had the problem with cheesy buttercream truffles from the workshop not even 2 weeks later - N though I had tried to slip him another JP Hevin cheese chocolate!! :o) My post is on its way - thanks for hosting!

[Samantha]

Such beautiful truffles!

The weird looking white film on some of your heart shaped truffles (in the bottom photo) is "fat bloom" - as you guessed, it's caused by a lack of temper in the chocolate. Fat bloom just means that some of the cocoa butter (which is a pale-coloured fat) has separated from the cocoa mass (i.e. the dark brown stuff). This happens when the chocolate isn't tempered, because fat crystals with a lower than ideal melting point have been allowed to form. As you probably realise, the chocolate is still fine to eat, but the texture might be a bit chalky, powdery, or waxy.

[Raspil]

those heart-shaped "truffles" you made are just adorable.

[johanna]

jeanne, I have to actually take this back, the rooibos DOES come out beautifully now that I have tried a few more - especially in the version which is just dusted with cocoa. will amend my post accordingly!

Samantha, thanks for the clarification - I noticed that the ones I made in the beginning turned out funny, but the last ones kept their colour and gloss, suggesting that the chocolate had been too hot when I started out... lots of training needed here!!!

[David]

Looks lovely Johanna! I wish I could've participated, since it's right up my alley, but most of us Americans have been too preoccupied this week with our overindulgent festivities.

I'll just have to live vicariously through you...

[Andrea]

I am such a sucker for caramel, so I will have to try those sea salt caramel truffles. They look and sound devine!

[Bonnie]

I'm loving the food blogosphere being alive with truffles at the moment! Such great timing in the lead up to Christmas. Yours, with no suprise, have turned out beautifully and I love the thought of using rooibus for flavouring! Thanks for hosting Johanna! I'm really looking forward to the round up!

[eliza]

very nice, johanna! i adore eating truffles and can't wait to read the round-up soon.

[Helene]

Your truffles look and sound yummy! Great blog!
Thanks for organizing this month's SHF.

[L]

How gorgeous. The tahini one sounds so interesting!

[Ari (Baking and Books)]

I'm really enjoying this edition of SHF, truffles everywhere! I've never made them but, regardless of what you say, yours look heavenly. I love the heart shape. :)

[Mae]

I personally like the effect on the heart shaped ones... and i personally prefer them as heart shaped than star too although, like you said, star would be more appropriate for the season but i think heart is too.

'Give love on Christmas day... christmas day...'? ring a bell? :)

[Christina]

I think I might have to try making a vegan caramel (with coconut milk as the cream) after seeing these. I even have tiny fondant star cut-outs.

Generally, stars are my favorite shapes, but I think the hearts are beautiful, they seems like they might be a little easier to dip than stars, too (I'm imagining stars with twisted or bent arms,like some cookies I've made in the past.) Chocolate hearts just seem so appropriate somehow.

I've never been a fan of white chocolate, but the flavors in yours sound intriguing.

Thanks for the comments on my blog, as well. Chocolate and chocolate making should be shared...however, sometimes I have to scold JD for eating pieces of measured ingredients. I was slightly surprised to see I wasn't the only one with the idea of using pomegranate, but GMTA.

[Scott at Real Epicurean]

Super, super meme which I'm sad to have missed.

The best entry, incidentally, came from Peabody - white chocolate and pear skin truffles!

[Eva]

Thanks for your encouraging comment on my blog - but you've topped it all with three different chocolatey creations! I especially like your heart-shaped ones - so cute! I'll try them as soon as I have figured out where to get fleur de sel.

[Jason]

I'm not a big fan of chocolate but those I gotta make for my wife. Btw, is it ok for me to put up a link of your blog on mine? I think more people should know about this fabulous site.

[Danielle]

This turned out so well! I'm really impressed by the variety of truffles. Thanks for putting the work in to make this happen.

[Esther]

Thanks for adding me to the mix! Stay tuned for the white chocolate truffles! Better late than never...

[Chef Keem]

My discovery of your wonderful blog post warms this otherwise chilly February morning in Austin, Texas. Tea and cardamom are brilliant flavorings for chocolates, and - I agree, "old socks" don't pair well with exquisite confections. My recent experiments with sea salt caramels led me to a marvelous find: Espresso Fusion Sea Salt. I sprinkle some on a dab of white chocolate on top of my caramel-filled dark chocolate shells. Di. Vine. :-)
I'm looking forward to more of your writing in my subscription inbox. Thanks for sharing your expertise.