Entries tagged with “clove” from Sketchy's Kitchen

Truffles - the chocolate kind

By sketchy on November 3, 2008 9:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Truffles!

These were so stupidly simple to make. A bit messy, but gloves and equipment make it a little better.

I made three batches of truffles - about 36 per pound of chocolate. These were really easy to make. Melt the chocolate, mix in the cream, chill, scoop out, roll, chill, dip, coat. Done. And that's the complicated recipe!

I purchased two pounds of nice bittersweet chocolate, each recipe calls for about 9 ounces, so I had a lot to work with. I wanted to make some festive truffles with fall flavors. I think - cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, orange, ginger, etc. So I steeped some spices in the cream, strained it, then added it to the chocolate. This added a nice spicy flavor to the chocolate, and I infused some cocoa with cloves.

The second attempt was in response to the general question "Where's the crunchy shell"

--Same recipe, but I rolled the ganache centers in a spiced cinnamon/cayenne chocolate, then I rolled them in cocoa powder.

The Third set of truffles was the best. I took some liberties with all the recipes I could find online. First, I made some creamy peanut butter with a little added cinnamon. , I mixed that in with the hot cream, then poured it over the chopped chocolate. Once mixed in, I placed the batch in the refrigerator until the mixture solidified and the oil from the peanuts separated and floated tot eh top and hardened. I removed all the oil and started to roll out another set of truffles. Once cooled, the centers were rolled in semisweet chocolate and rolled in Oreo crumbs (just the cookies, no centers)

The trick with making truffles, freeze the centers if you plan to roll them in chocolate. The shells freeze very quickly, so there is little mess. Wear powder free plastic/latex gloves - you want the tight fitting kind, and switch out between stages. You do not need to temper the chocolate for coating, and you can coat multiple times if you want a thicker shell.

To coat: take a spoonful of melted chocolate and smear it on the palm of your non-dominant hand (left for me). Roll until coated and roll in any dry coating you want to use (except for cocoa - this goes on well when the chocolate is dry). Then with tongs, life the truffle onto a cooled cookie sheet.

Everything will get covered in chocolate. Your hands are in gloves for a reason. The spoon will have chocolate on it, the bowl will be edged in chocolate, the tongs will be coated in chocolate. You just have to accept this and keep going. Have a resting place for any utensils you will use, this will keep the mess off the counter.

All said and done, I wish I got better pictures of the finished product.

Recipe
Basic Chocolate Truffle

1 pound chocolate
1 cup heavy cream

chop the chocolate fine, bring the cream to a boil, pour over the chocolate and stir until combined. Place the chocolate in the refrigerator until solid. Scoop out and roll between hands.

If you want to coat them in chocolate, melt the chocolate and roll the chilled truffle centers between your chocolate coated hands. dust with cocoa or crumbs

Festive truffles and marshmallows!

By sketchy on October 24, 2008 11:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Tonight we have truffles, truffles, truffles, and marshmallows!

My wife is off at the local neighborhood drunken wives club, and I'm home with the little one. It's not that bad of a deal. He's asleep, and I can play WoW without any interruptions :D. I sent her off with a basket of festive halloween marshmallows and two containers of truffles.

We both think the marshmallows were the best I've ever made, but I'm afraid that the 24 hours of sitting might have changed the outside texture a little. The outsides were not as soft as they were the evening before. I made orange clove marshmallows. I used the el bulli recipe ad mixed it with the Alton Brown recipe. I think this is my favorite combination of techniques and ingredients. I steeped the orange zest, juice, nutmeg, allspice, and cloves, them mixed that with the gelatin - 2 packets powdered gelatin and three sheets of hydrated gelatin.

At first I was wondering if the mixture would come together, but after 13 minutes, everything was looking the way it should. I added the vanilla and orange extract (for extra flavor) and the smell was amazing. THese were the softest marshmallows i've made to date, The sagged under their own weight. I cut some in 1x2 inch rectangles, that was enough length for them to sag a little. To the tongue, this means they are very tender and fluffy. It's really hard o describe. It's like eating meringue straight from the mixer, granted, it was a swiss meringue for the most part. The whipped egg whites add such a lightness compared to gelatin only recipes. It is so worth adding the egg whites to the recipe. The shelf life is lessened, but the experience is much nicer. Recipe after the break

Next was an assortment of truffles.

This was my first real attempt at making truffles. I made a sample batch the week before to see if I could figure out the technique. It's stupid simple. It's a little technique and a lot of patience. That, and the proper equipment.

The first batch was spiced bittersweet chocolate rolled in clove infused dutch process cocoa. The second batch was spiced bittersweet chocolate, rolled in spiced chocolate (cayenne and cinnamon), and rolled in dutch process cocoa. The third batch was bittersweet chocolate, with cinnamon infused home made peanut butter, dipped in chocoalte, and rolled in Oreo crumbs. These were the best.

I've discovered that $20 in couverture chocolate and a few staples can make an insane amount of truffles. About 120 truffles for $25 dollars. These are Godiva quality if you do them right. Granted, you are stuck with a limited number of flavors, but for gifts or entertaining you can't beat the price. The recipe I ended up using was very rich and satisfying. The centers melt in your mouth,and the thin chocolate exterior keeps the ganache center from 'escaping'

OVerall, I think these were very successful. My wife didn't like the second batch of spiced chocolate truffles, I think it might have been the spiciness in the aftertaste, but I'm not 100% sure.

Entries tagged with “clove” from Sketchy's Kitchen

Truffles - the chocolate kind

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