Welcome 2016 with Hazelnut and Almond Truffles

If you love hazelnut flavored desserts and Frangelico or Almonds and Amaretto you will absolutely love these truffles! Serve these small decadent bon bons at your New Years Eve party (or any party) this year or make them and give out as party favors! Below you will find my 2 favorite recipes.

TOOLS

 bain marie double boiler for melting chocolate
rubber spatula
measuring spoons and cups
chefs knife
chopping board
food scale
2-3 metal mixing bowls
1 quart saucepan
whisk
strainer
rectangular glass bowl w/ lid (for cooling chocolate ganache)
plastic wrap
 parchment or wax paper
4 baking sheets

specialty truffle tools - I found mine at amazon.com, michaels, joanns, sur la table...
1" scooper/baller
candy/truffle dipping tools

30 small fluted paper cups (optional)
truffle boxes - www.papermart.com 

GIADUJA HAZELNUT TRUFFLES

Gianduja is a blend of chocolate and hazelnuts. By itself it is delicious, as a truffle center it's heavenly.

INGREDIENTS
12oz Giaduja, finely chopped
1-3/4 lbs bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped or as chips
1 cup heavy whipping cream
2 tbsp Frangelico or hazelnut flavored liqueur
3-4 tbsp cocoa powder
red sugar sprinkles

DIRECTIONS
Place 12oz of Gianduja and 4oz of bittersweet chocolate in a 2-quart mixing bowl together. 

In a 1-quart saucepan over medium heat, bring the cream to a boil. 
Pour the hot cream over a strainer and into the bowl with the chocolate.

Let the mixture stand for 1 minute, then stir together with a whisk until thoroughly blended. Stir in the Frangelico and blend well.

 Cover the truffle cream with plastic wrap and let cool to room temperature, then chill in the refrigerator until thick but not stiff. (2 to 3 hours).

Line 2 baking sheets with waxed parchment paper. Using a small 1" scoop form the truffle cream into round mounds about 1 inch in diameter.  Chill in the refrigerator for 6 about hours or overnight.

Dust your hands with some of the cocoa powder and roll the mounds into balls. These will be the truffle centers. Cover and chill for another 2 hours in the freezer. 

Remove the truffle centers from the freezer and bring to cool room temperature so the outer coating won't crack when they are dipped into the chocolate.

Line 2 more baking sheets with waxed paper.

 Using the double boiler on very low flame melt and temper the remaining 1-1/2 pounds of bittersweet chocolate. Turn off the stove. Stir with the spatula to make sure the chocolate coating is evenly smooth.

 

 Using your truffle dipper tools place a truffle center into the tempered chocolate coating it completely. With a dipper or fork, remove the center from the chocolate, carefully shake off the excess chocolate and turn the truffle out onto the wax or parchment paper. 

 

 After dipping 4 truffles, dust the tops of them lightly with some of the remaining cocoa or decorate with colored sugar sprinkles of your choice before the chocolate sets up.

This recipe makes about 60 1" truffles
 

Let the truffles set up at room temperature, or chill them in the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes.

When the truffles are set, place them in paper candy cups and serve or place in candy boxes for gifting!

To save your truffles for another time or if you want to make in advance for another occasion place each truffle carefully in a tightly covered container wrapped in several layers of aluminum foil, the truffles will keep for 1 month in the refrigerator or 2 months in the freezer. Truffles are best served at room temperature.

Recipe adapted from Truffles, candies and confections by Carole Bloom

AMARETTO APRICOT MARZIPAN TRUFFLES
These little dark chocolate lovelies are made up of an amaretto liqueur-enhanced dark chocolate ganache with bits of chopped dried apricots and almond paste.

INGREDIENTS

2/3 cup soft dried apricot halves, finely chopped

1/4 cup Amaretto di Saronno

3/4 cup heavy whipping cream

1 pound plus 2 oz bittersweet chocolate, very finely chopped

5 oz almond paste, cut into 1/3 inch dice

Dutch processed cocoa powder

edible gold shimmer dust

DIRECTIONS

Combine 1/2 chopped apricots and 2 tbsp amaretto in a small saucepan and heat on a low flame for 5-10  minutes until fruit is plump and liquid is almost absorbed.

Place 8 oz chocolate in a medium sized metal or glass mixing bowl.

Place heavy cream in a 2 quart saucepan over medium heat until it comes to a simmer.

 Remove from heat and with the strainer over the chocolate bowl, pour the heavy cream into the chocolate. Let sit for 5 minutes. 

The heat should melt the chocolate. 
With spatula stir chocolate gently until it becomes beautiful, smooth and shiny melted chocolate. Add 2 tbsp of amaretto.

Fold in apricot-amaretto and almond paste into the ganache.

Before you add the diced almond paste crumble it into the ganache mixture so that the diced bits remain separate and don't clump together.

Pour contents into a shallow bowl and cool to room temperature first. Then chill covered with plastic wrap in the refrigerator for about 4 hours or overnight.

Coat your hands with cocoa powder and roll ganache into 1" balls using a small ice cream scoop and place in a single layer and several rows onto a wax paper lined baking tray.

Make sure it will fit in your refrigerator! Chill until very firm. About 2 hours or overnight.

Temper the remaining chocoalte. Line a baking sheet with wax paper. 

 With the dipping tool, dip one truffle at a time into the melted chocolate. Making as thin and even a coating as possible. Place each truffle on the baking sheet. While cooling down sprinkle each truffle with your desired holiday sprinkle. I chose edible gold dust!

Refrigerate until firm. Place truffles in fluted cups, if desired and serve at room temperature. 
Makes about 30. Truffles will last up to a month in the refrigerator or 2 months in the freezer.

Recipe adapted from Truffles by Dede Wilson

HAPPY 2016 EVERYONE!!

Be Merry Gingerbread Cookies

Every year I decorate our Christmas tree with a few of my gingerbread cookie ornaments, last year I made mini gingerbread houses and gave them out to friends. This year I thought I would have fun with words. Even though the words are not a gingerbread ornament, they definitely make a fun centerpiece on a platter. Everytime friends come over it makes a fun starter conversation. What a hit!

  I had a tough time deciding what to go with, too many options! Everywhere you look there are sayings and very popular phrases. I went with BE MERRY, because it simply expresses a choice, a feeling of happiness and the wonderful time of year it is!

So let's get merry in the kitchen! This recipe is a 'construction' gingerbread dough. After chilled when it's baked it becomes very hard and sturdy. Although it is edible it's better used for building 'houses' than eating. Don't chip your tooth !

GINGERBREAD COOKIE INGREDIENTS

1 stick unsalted butter

1/2 cup loosely packed dark brown sugar

1/2 cup unsulfured molasses

3-1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ground cloves

TOOLS

Standing mixer with paddle attachment

rolling pin

parchment paper

2 baking sheets

2 cooling racks

measuring spoons and cups

rubber spatula

Holiday cookie cutters or enlarged words on paper
scissors
X-acto blade or paring knife

bamboo skewer or toothpick

ICING TOOLS
pipping bag
#2 tip
a few small mixing bowls if you decide to color your icing
food coloring
Holiday sprinkles 

DIRECTIONS

Cream together butter and sugar. Add the molasses and mix well. Sift together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, salt and cloves. With mixer on low speed, slowly add the dry ingredients and 1/3 cup water to molasses mixture. If dough gets too stiff, mix with your hands. Work dough with your hands. Turn out onto a piece of plastic wrap, form into a neat rectangle, wrap well, and refrigerate for at least 1 hr or overnight. 

Place a sheet of parchment paper on the baking sheet. With the rolling pin smooth and roll out dough to just under 1/4 inch thick. Press your favorite cookie cutter and cut out as many as you can. 

If you are doing the word template, with scissors or an X-acto blade carefully cut out each word. (I made a few copies in case I messed up!) Place each word on the dough and with the pairing knife or back side of the X-Acto blade carefully cut out/remove the dough. Chill your tray with your cookies in the refrigerator for about 1 hour. No need to move the word cookies as you will place the tray directly into the oven to bake. How easy it that!

Bake naked and decorate with icing and sprinkles afterwards.

 

Or before you bake if you are going to hang your gingerbread ornament and and want to add a hole for some string after it's baked,  use the toothpick or bamboo skewer to make a small hole 1/2 inch from the top of each cookie to accommodate a string or hook.

Now is also a good time to decorate w/ sanding sugar or sprinkles if you want!

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Place cookies on parchment-lined baking sheets and bake for 10-15 minutes, or until firm. Once baked very carefully move your cookies to a cooling rack and allow to cool. Now is a good time to make the icing.

Once cooled pipe icing with the #2 tip on each and decorate as desired. If you are covering your cookie entirely with icing re-insert skewer or toothpick to keep hole open. To allow icing to set, leave cookies overnight to dry on your kitchen counter.

ROYAL ICING INGREDIENTS

Makes 2 cups

5 tbsp meringue powder
1 lb of sifted confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup water

Mix all ingredients in a standing mixer. If icing is too thick, add a little water. If too thin, add more powdered sugar.

Merry Christmas!

Me on the right, not so merry!