Save Money With Chocolate

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Being green and saving money don't mean you have to stop treating yourself. Chocolate is one of life’s guilty pleasures that we should all partake in every now and then. There was a time when chocolate was an artisanal product created by small European chocolate makers, and then chocolate production went main stream and started being churned by large industries. Quality chocolates come with so much packaging and often cost a fortune, so how about making some Chocolate Truffles worthy of Thorntons? Read on for more.

Before having a go myself I thought it would be hard, but it turned out to unbelievable easy, and the results are delicious. My family having been begging me for the recipe, so here it is. This recipe will create between 20-30 rich chocolate truffles.

Ingredients (makes 20-30)
175ml/ 6fl oz - double cream
275g/ 10oz - plain chocolate (chopped)
25g / 1oz - unsalted butter (cut into pieces)
30-45ml - brandy (optional)
For the coating
cocoa powder or finely chopped nuts or plain, milk or white chocolate, or whatever you fancy

Steps
1. Bring the cream to the boil. Remove from the heat and add the chocolate, then stir till melted. Stir in the butter and the brandy (if using), then strain into a bowl. Cover and chill overnight.

2. Line a large baking sheet with greaseproof paper. Using two teaspoons, or ice cream scoop, or hands, form into 20-30 balls and place on the paper. Chill if mixture becomes soft.

That’s it, just two steps. Nice and simple, just how I like it. Now you could just eat them like that, but I recommend coating them in something. You can cover them in anything you like but here are some suggestions.

Dry Coating

To coat the truffles with cocoa, soft the cocoa into a bowl, drop in the truffles, one at a time, and roll to coat well, keeping the round shape. I put the cocoa powder in a cup then to coat a truffle I simply put it in the cup and swilled it around till it was coated.
To coat with nuts, roll truffles in finely chopped nuts. Store chilled and wrapped.

Chocolate Coating

1. To coat the truffles with chocolate. Freeze the truffles for at least 1 hour. In a small bowl melt the plain, milk or white chocolate over a saucepan of barely simmering water (can melt in microwave as well, just keep an eye on it as the chocolate can get very hot), stirring until the chocolate has melted and is smooth, then allow to cool slightly.

2. Using a fork, dip the frozen truffles into the cooled chocolate, tapping the fork on the edge of the bowl to shake off the excess. Place on a baking sheet lined with non-stick backing paper and chill at once. If the melted chocolate thickens, reheat until smooth. Wrap in clear film and store in a cool place.

Variations

Here are some ideas for you to try:

ORANGE TRUFFLES:
Use orange liqueur instead of brandy and add grated zest of 1 orange.

COFFEE OR ESPRESSO TRUFFLES:
Use Kahlua or other coffee-flavoured liqueur (or syrup).

RASPBERRY ALMOND TRUFFLES:
Use raspberry-flavoured liqueur (or syrup).

I’m sure you get the idea, try experimenting and let me know what your favourite flavour is. I hope you enjoy as much as I did.