Heart Of Gold....And A Winner!

Happy Valentines Day! I've been a miner for a heart of gold.....a pure chocolate heart of gold with velvety bittersweet chocolate, just like love. Eureka, I found it! The chocolate came to me not from St. Valentine, but crossed the ocean from Belgium as a gift. Kate from Serendipity sent it to a group of bloggers to make a Valentine creation. I don't think I even thought about what I'd make, I just knew. When you have fine chocolate, it doesn't need much dressing up in a recipe. One of my favorite ways to enhance a flavorful quality chocolate is to make truffles. Since it is Valentine's Day, a heart shaped truffle only seemed befitting. Then like a lover's soft touch that glitters with warmth, I brushed a dusting of gold dust that looks like it came from love fairies themselves. I gave them away in small origami boxes that I make, tied with a pretty ribbon. I can't wait to see all of the creations from the other bloggers, for the "Chocolate Valentines" event. Thank you Kate for the inspiration and the very tasty chocolate. She sent 3 different types of chocolate, with suggestions on which one would be best for eating, baking or making a "wicked hot chocolate". I used the artisanal bittersweet chocolate from La Maison Saive for the truffles. Kate thought that would be the best eating chocolate. The rich dark color with a slight gloss shone through the cellophane. The bite into the bar was a firm crunch. It had a rounded cocoa flavor and as the name implies, a slightly bittersweet and smooth finish. I could tell from the first bite that this would be the one for the truffles. My instincts were right. I am no longer searching for a heart of gold!♥
Heart Truffles

6 ounces bittersweet chocolate
5 ounces heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
powdered sugar to dust
cocoa powder to dust
round tipped watercolor brush (I used a #6)
edible gold Luster Dust*
*available mail order from kitchenkraft.com

Break the bittersweet chocolate into small pieces and process in a food processor until very fine. Heat the cream until just boiling and pour through the food processor feed tube in a steady stream, with the motor running. Add vanilla. Process just a few seconds, until smooth. Transfer to a bowl to firm. This should take a few hours at room temperature. You may also put it in the refrigerator. Once firm, using a 1 inch melon baller, scoop out balls of ganache and place on a parchment lined tray. Place in refrigerator to firm, about 30 minutes. Dust hands with powdered sugar and roll ball between your hands to smooth into a round ball. Dust with unsweetened cocoa powder. Chill again until firm to touch, but not all the way through. If they are too cold, they will crack when forming into hearts. Holding a round truffle with one hand, hold the end of your paintbrush horizontally and make an indentation into the top, while pinching the bottom into a point. Try to do this quickly, since the chocolate melts with the warmth of your hand. Continue shaping into a heart. Each one will have it's own personality and don't need to be uniform with each other. Place on a clean parchment lined tray or silicone mat, and chill again until slightly firm. Finish forming by smoothing them into a final shape. Scoop out a small amount of the gold luster dust into a separate dish. Dip the paintbrush into the gold dust and brush the truffle with it. Layer until the color you prefer is achieved. Put into small individual candy cups and store covered in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

Makes about 36.

Origami Boxes
Start with a square 6" x 6" (15cm x 15cm) origami paper. Flip the sheet so that the colored side is face down. Now make two mountain folds (a mountain fold is formed by folding the paper away from oneself) as shown. Using the mountain fold lines as guides, fold the four corners of the paper into its center. Then fold the right edge and the left edge into the center line. Fold the top edge down and the bottom edge up, as shown. Now undo the last two-and-a-half steps.Now comes the tricky part that makes the box. The center square will be the box bottom. Take the 2 small folded squares (just below and to the right and left of the top triangle), and fold in while folding the top part up, over and down. This will also bring the left and right sides up and form the sides and bottom of the box.Repeat on the other side. You now have the top of a 2x2 inch origami box! To make the bottom, do the same steps with a square piece of paper that is 1/4 inch smaller. I use sturdy paper, but not card stock. For the box above, I used origami paper, but I've made boxes from catalog covers, grocery bags, wrapping paper, greeting cards...just about anything. Recycle, re-use, repurpose. The paper has to be perfectly square for it to work, and have a non coated surface. I'd love to hear any of your ideas.

OK...now for the Valentine Giveaway of the Nordic Ware Platinum Rose bundt pan, sponsored by CSN. The winner is........lostpastremembered!! Congratulations! Also many, many thanks to everyone who left a comment. This was really fun to do and I hope to do many more. My heart always tugs, as I want to give each and everyone the giveaway. Just an old sap, I guess ;-) Please email your address lostpastremembered, and I'll pass it along to the folks at CSN to mail the pan to you.

Thanks again Kate at Serendipity for hosting the "Chocolate Valentines" event.

Heart Truffles recipe, click here.

Let It Snow...

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow! What do you do when life gives you a snowstorm? Make snowmen...truffle snowmen. I'm on a truffle roll. I had some ganache made for truffles to give to my crew on our trip before Christmas, so I thought I'd try making truffle snowmen. They were fun to make, but like my penguin truffles, a little labor intensive. I experimented and think I have come up with the easiest way to do it. This recipe is for 20 snowmen, but I made about 10 and made single truffles with the rest of the ganache. They are really more of an accent, and not something you'd want to give some a dozen of. It is said that to be a good truffle maker, you need cold hands and a warm heart. So dust off your small motor skills, grab your patience, take the phone off of the hook and let it snow!

Snowman Truffles

For the ganache:
12 ounces bittersweet chocolate
1 1/4 cups heavy cream

For the dipping:
12 ounces white chocolate

For the buttons:
1/4 cup mini chocolate chips

For the twig arms, eyes and mouth:
1/3 cup melted semi-sweet chocolate (approximate)
wooden skewer
toothpicks

For the "carrot" noses:
2 tablespoons melted white chocolate
orange food coloring

To make the ganache: Break 12 ounces bittersweet chocolate into small pieces and process in a food processor until very fine. Heat the cream until just boiling and pour through the food processor feed tube in a steady stream, with the motor running. Process just a few seconds, until smooth. Transfer to a bowl to firm. This should take a few hours at room temperature. You may also put it in the refrigerator. Once firm, using a 1 inch melon baller or ice cream scoop, scoop out balls of ganache and place on a parchment lined tray. Dust hands with powdered sugar and roll ball between your hands to smooth into a round ball. For the snowmen, make 3 balls for each one. Make the largest 1 1/8 inch, make the middle size 1 inch and make the smallest 3/4 inch. Place on a parchment lined cookie sheet. Stack them on top of each other, largest on the bottom and smallest on the top. Press down slightly so they are flat on the bottom. Put aside. To make the "carrot" noses:
Dab a toothpick into the orange food coloring and mix thoroughly into the melted white chocolate. Color the melted chocolate a carrot orange color. Put the colored chocolate into a small zip lock bag, seal and diagonally snip a 1/8 inch piece off of the bottom corner. On a parchment or plastic lined plate, pipe the chocolate into carrot noses by pressing the chocolate out of the bag and then tapering to a point. Make 20-25 and let harden.To make the "twig" arms:
Place the melted semi-sweet chocolate in a small zip lock bag, seal and diagonally snip a 1/8 inch piece off of the bottom corner. Onto a parchment lined tray, pipe a 3/8 inch wide "V" shape. Then pipe a straight line through the "V" continuing for about an inch long. Make about 50. Let harden.
To coat in white chocolate:
Melt 12 ounces white chocolate by breaking it into a medium bowl placed over a pot of hot water. The bowl must not touch the water and the water must not simmer, but just remain hot. Stir until melted and then take off of heat and cool until it is about 84 degrees, or dab a small amount on your upper lip. It should feel slightly cool.

With a wooden skewer, poke a hole at a slight downward angle into the middle truffle of the stack of 3. Carefully insert a "twig" arm into the hole. They are delicate, so be careful. Place a grilled rack (cooling rack) over a lined cookie sheet. Holding the stack in your fingers over the slightly cooled melted chocolate, carefully spoon the white chocolate down the top and sides of the snowman. Do not let the white chocolate get onto the twig arms. Make sure the snowman is covered and let the excess chocolate drip off. Then place on the grilled rack to continue dripping. The carrot nose may be placed on while the chocolate is still soft or applied later with a dab of melted white chocolate as the glue. The mini chocolate chip buttons may also be placed on at this time or later with a dab of melted white chocolate. Let harden.

Remove from the rack carefully by slicing underneath the snowman and place on a parchment lined cookie sheet. Using a toothpick dipped into melted semisweet chocolate, place 2 dabs of chocolate for the eyes. For the mouth place 4 smaller dabs, into a smiling face. Don't worry about any pointy ends, once hardened they can be broken off if desired.
Let the snowmen harden at room temperature.

Have fun by displaying on a bed of freshly fallen powdered sugar and with a satin ribbon (1/4 inch wide) scarf tied around the neck. A little glue stick glue helps to keep the ends of the tied scarf in place.Makes 20-25 truffle snowmen.

Snowman Truffles recipe.

I always try and use the least amount of packaging as possible, and I thought I'd share a way I wrap presents. Many times I use extra fabric and wrap a present with it. Or I make the wrapping part of the present, like a scarf or tea towel. Years ago I bought some silk organza napkins...don't ask me why, and they seem better suited to wrapping presents than wiping mouths. Just place the present in the center and bring opposite corners together and tie. I also recycle old Christmas cards to use as gift tags the following year. I think this makes for a prettier and more interesting package.

Enjoy your holidays!

Truffles, Dipped And Sprinkled

After making my Penguin Truffles last week, I had some ganache leftover to experiment with other chocolate combinations. I had just gotten a fascinating book in London, called "Adventures With Chocolate", by Paul A. Young. Wild Strawberry and Pink Peppercorn Truffles, Basil and Lemon Thyme Ganache and Maple Macadamia Ganache, are just a few of his interesting concoctions. He inspired me to try some of my own. I dipped some truffles in white chocolate and topped them with pink peppercorns. Next I sprinkled some bittersweet chocolate dipped truffles with lavender sugar. The last ones were just rolled in cocoa since they are delicious in their purity of simple flavors. This book will keep me busy for a while as I try his exotic flavors and play around with a few of my own. His photos are artful and and enticing as chocolate methods are explained.I prefer my truffle recipe since he adds sugar to his, but his unique flavor combinations are inspiring. It now sits among my current cookbook reads before it takes up residency with my 100 plus cookbooks.

Chocolate Truffles

For the ganache:
12 ounces bittersweet chocolate
1 1/4 cups heavy cream

For the rolling, dipping, coating and sprinkling:
2 tablespoons powdered sugar (for rolling)
8 ounces good quality white chocolate* (for dipping)
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate* (for dipping)
1/2 cup cocoa (for coating)
1 tablespoon pink peppercorns (for sprinkling)**
1 tablespoon lavender sugar (for sprinkling)**
1/4 cup shredded coconut (for sprinkling)**
*Use couverture chocolate or tempered chocolate. Click here for video on tempering chocolate.
** Alternatively use any combination of flavors you desire to sprinkle on top.

To make the ganache: Break 12 ounces bittersweet chocolate into small pieces and process in a food processor until very fine. Heat the cream until just boiling and pour through the food processor feed tube in a steady stream, with the motor running. Process just a few seconds, until smooth. Transfer to a bowl to firm. This should take a few hours at room temperature. You may also put it in the refrigerator. Once firm, using a 1 inch melon baller, scoop out balls of ganache and place on a parchment lined tray. Place in refrigerator to firm, about 30 minutes. Dust hands with powdered sugar and roll ball between your hands to smooth into a round ball.

To coat in cocoa: For the truffles you plan to coat in cocoa, place the cocoa in a large zip lock bag and add truffles a few at a time to toss and coat. If you want to dip them in chocolate as well as cocoa, dip into melted chocolate, let excess drip off and the place in a pan of cocoa. Roll them around to coat in the cocoa. Remove from the pan and let harden on a parchment lined baking sheet.

To coat in white chocolate: Melt 8 ounces white chocolate by breaking it into a medium bowl placed over a pot of hot water. The bowl must not touch the water and the water must not simmer, but just remain hot. Stir until melted and then take off of heat and cool until it is about 84 degrees or dab a small amount on your upper lip. It should feel slightly cool. Using a spoon, dip truffle into chocolate to coat and let let excess drip off before placing on a parchment lined baking sheet. Sprinkle with pink peppercorns, lavender sugar, coconut or other flavor of choice at this point, if desired. Let harden at room temperature.

To coat with bittersweet chocolate: Melt 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate by breaking it into a medium bowl placed over a pot of hot water. The bowl must not touch the water and the water must not simmer, but just remain hot. Stir until melted and then take off of heat and cool until it is about 84 degrees or dab a small amount on your upper lip. It should feel slightly cool. Using a spoon, dip truffle into chocolate to coat and let let excess drip off before placing on a parchment lined baking sheet. Sprinkle with pink peppercorns, lavender sugar, coconut or other flavor of choice at this point, if desired. Let harden at room temperature.

Makes 60 truffles. Store at cool room temperature for 2 weeks in an airtight container. May also be frozen for up to 3 months, and thawed overnight in the refrigerator.Chocolate Truffle recipe (pdf)

Penguin Truffles

Sitting in a waiting room last week, I was thumbing through a magazine...in the food section, of course! I saw the most adorable Penguin Truffles that came packaged all neatly in a box of 9 for $32. O-O-K...maybe not this year, it's too much of a folly in this recession. I could make them, couldn't I? It couldn't be that hard. I mean, making truffles is just about as easy as anything gets. Mix hot heavy cream into top quality bittersweet chocolate and voilà, perfection. Dipping truffles into chocolate is also a no brainer, but these little cuties had form...and flippers! I had to give it a try. I made my truffle recipe, let it firm up and then shaped them into what looked like a Hershey's Kiss with a drooped-over top. Then I tucked a slivered almond into each side for the flippers, and dipped them into white chocolate. Now came the tricky part. Resting (balancing) on a fork, I spooned rich dark chocolate down the penguin's top, back and sides, with a little drip on the "beak". Only one took a dunk in the pool ;-)....and one fell in the "snow". Other than that they came out pretty well. My intention was to make the whole batch into penguins, but it was a little labor intensive, so I decided that I'd only make 10, and they'd be a single feature on my holiday gift plates. I made a variety of truffles with the rest of the ganache and was very happy with my sweet afternoon.
Chocolate Penguins

For the ganache:
12 ounces bittersweet chocolate
1 1/4 cups heavy cream

Break the chocolate into small pieces and process in a food processor until very fine. Heat the cream until just boiling and pour through the food processor feed tube in a steady stream, with the motor running. Process until smooth, just a few seconds. Transfer to a bowl to firm. This should take a few hours at room temperature. You may also put it in the refrigerator.
For the rolling and dipping:
2 tablespoons powdered sugar (for rolling)
12 ounces good quality white chocolate* (for dipping)
12 ounces bittersweet chocolate* (for dipping)
*Use couverture chocolate or tempered chocolate. Click here for video on tempering chocolate.

For the flippers:
1/4 cup slivered almonds (or about 60 unbroken)

Using a 1 1/2 inch melon baller, scoop out balls of ganache and place on a parchment lined tray. Place in refrigerator to firm, about 30 minutes. Once firm, dust hands with powdered sugar and roll ball between your hands to smooth. Then continue rolling while pulling and shaping the top to resemble a small head with a drooped, thin pointy end (the beak). To insert the slivered almonds for the flippers, take a knife and insert it about 1/2 inch deep at the placement and angle you want the flippers. Gently insert a slivered almond into the slit, rounded end facing out. You should have about 25-30 penguins. Return to tray and put in refrigerator to chill.

In the meantime, melt the white chocolate by breaking it into a medium bowl placed over a pot of hot water. The bowl must not touch the water and the water must not simmer, but just remain hot. Stir until melted and then take off of heat and cool until it is about 84 degrees or dab a small amount on your upper lip. It should feel slightly cool. Resting a penguin on a forks tines and holding over bowl of melted white chocolate, spoon the chocolate over the penguin to coat. Let excess drip off. Place on parchment to cool and harden. Continue coating all penguins.Break the bittersweet chocolate into a medium bowl and place over hot water to melt in the same manner as the white chocolate. Once cool to 84 degrees, pick up penguins in the back behind the flippers, so as not to touch the tummy, and place on the tines of a fork. Holding over the bowl of bittersweet chocolate, gently spoon the chocolate down the back top and sides of the penguin. Carefully spoon a little down over the beak to form a point. Keep the tummy white and don't touch it or you'll get fingerprints on it. Let excess chocolate drip off and place on clean parchment to harden.

Makes 25-30 Penguin Truffles. Lasts up to 2 weeks at cool room temperature.
Penguin Truffle recipe (pdf)