Truffles

I didn't get to craft much during this week so here is a previous project that I did last december but never posted here. Last Christmas, I decided to make truffles for all of my relatives:


Here we have, from top left to top right:Dark chocolate, peppermint, grand marnier and coffee.

I you want to make some, here's the recipe.First, make some basic truffles, just chocolate flavored. For this part I took the Martha Stewart recipe that you can find on her website:

MAKES ABOUT 3 /12 DOZEN Use different brands of cocoa powder (such as Hershey's, Valrhona, Droste, and Ghirardelli) to make truffles of assorted colors.

Ingredients

-8 ounces best-quality bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped

-1/2 cup heavy cream

Directions

1. Put chocolate into a large heatproof bowl. Bring cream just to a boil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat; pour over chocolate in bowl. Stir in liqueur, if desired. Cover with plastic wrap; let stand 10 minutes. Stir until smooth. Let stand until thick, about 15 minutes.

2. Pour chocolate mixture into a shallow 8-inch dish or pie plate. Cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until mixture is very cold and set but still pliable, about 30 minutes.

3. Using a teaspoon or a 1/2-inch melon baller, scoop balls of chocolate mixture, transferring them to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper as you work. Refrigerate truffles 10 minutes.

THEN, when you have your chocolate mix, the fun/messy part begins.

For the dark chocolate truffles: This is the easiest recipe. Just take your truffles and roll them in cocoa powder until they are completely covered.

For the peppermint truffles: add some peppermint extract (how much you put is up to you) to your chocolate mixture and roll the truffles in powdered sugar

For the grand marnier truffles: Add some grand marnier (once again, you decide how much) to your truffles and let them cool in the fridge for about 10 min. While they are cooling, Melt some dark chocolate with cream in a small pan. Dip your truffles in the melted chocolate and let them cool for a while. Add some grated orange peel for decoration.

For the coffee truffles: Add some coffee granules to your chocolate mix and roll your truffles in some powdered sugar mixed with a bit of coffee granules. Add a chocolate dipped coffee grain on top for decoration.

When all your truffles are done, put them in these little foil containers and package them neatly:

And voilà! You now have the perfect fun to eat and fun to make Christmas gift. ;D