Chocolate Truffles: The Alton Brown Way

I don’t know why I took so long to post about these truffles. I made these for Valentine’s Day! Since my Valentine/on-and-off girlfriend of more than 10 years lives in another state, I made these truffles for my two good friends/colleagues/neighbors.
We ate brunch at a Mexican restaurant, and then I gave them the truffles. They loved them! I made two kinds: one enrobed in cocoa powder dusted with powdered sugar and another with coconut flakes. I also poured a bit of espresso mixed with hot water into the ganache instead of using alcohol.
Many people say that making truffles is so easy. I agree that they require only very few ingredients and thus seem easy in theory, but when you have hot hands or reside in a hot area like I do, making truffles can be messy and hard to do.
So, this time around, I tried a recipe from Alton Brown because it is perfect for hot-handed folks like me. It takes a bit longer than most recipes, but it’s worth that extra refrigeration time. I’m so happy that I can make truffles now without melting the ganache while attempting to shape them into balls. These things are amazing and are much cheaper to make yourself than to buy them. Thanks, Alton Brown! hah!

Chocolate Truffles
adapted from Alton Brown on Food Network
PRINTABLE VERSION

10 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped fine (I used Callebaut semi-sweet)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
1/4 cup brandy (I used mixture of 1 tsp espresso with 2 tsps hot water)

OPTIONAL TOPPINGS:
1/2 cup Dutch process cocoa powder, finely chopped nuts, and/or toasted coconut, for coating truffles
8 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped fine (for tempered coating)

Place the 10 ounces of chocolate and butter in a medium-sized glass mixing bowl. Microwave for 30 seconds. Remove and stir, and repeat this process 1 more time. Set aside. (I did the bain-marie or water-bath-on-stove method to ensure I didn’t burn the chocolate.)

Heat the heavy cream and corn syrup in a small saucepan over medium heat until simmering. Remove from the heat and pour the mixture over the melted chocolate mixture; let stand for 2 minutes. Using a rubber spatula, stir gently, starting in the middle of bowl and working in concentric circles until all chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth and creamy. Gently stir in the brandy or espresso mixture, if using. Pour the mixture into an 8 by 8-inch glass baking dish and place in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
Using a melon baller, scoop chocolate onto a sheet pan lined with parchment paper, and return to the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Place the cocoa powder, nuts, and/or toasted coconut each in its own pie pan and set aside.

Remove the truffles from the refrigerator and shape into balls by rolling between the palms of your hands. Use powder-free vinyl or latex gloves, if desired.
Then place the truffle into the dish with either the cocoa powder, nuts or coconut. Move the truffle around to coat; leave truffle in the coating for 10 to 15 seconds before removing. In the meantime, continue placing the truffles in the cocoa or other coating. After 10 to 15 seconds, remove the truffle to a parchment lined sheet pan. Repeat until all truffles are coated. Allow to set in a cool dry place for at least 1 hour; or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Truffles are best when served at room temperature; however, they will melt in hot conditions.
IF USING TEMPERED CHOCOLATE:
In the meantime, place the 8 ounces of chocolate into a medium mixing bowl which is sitting on top of a heating pad lined bowl, with the heating pad set to medium. Depending on the heating pad, you may need to adjust the heat up or down. Stirring the chocolate occasionally, test the temperature of the chocolate and continue heating until it reaches 90 to 92 degrees F; do not allow the chocolate to go above 94 degrees F. If you do, the coating will not have a nice snap to it when you bite into the chocolate. Once you have reached the optimal temperature, adjust the heat to maintain it.

Dip an ice cream scoop into the chocolate and turn upside down to remove excess chocolate. Place truffles 1 at time into the scoop and roll around until coated.Then place the truffle into the dish with either the cocoa powder, nuts or coconut. Move the truffle around to coat; leave truffle in the coating for 10 to 15 seconds before removing. In the meantime, continue placing the chocolate-coated truffles in the cocoa or other secondary coating. After 10 to 15 seconds, remove the truffle to a parchment lined sheet pan. Repeat until all truffles are coated. Allow to set in a cool dry place for at least 1 hour; or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Truffles are best when served at room temperature; however, they will melt in hot conditions.

Copyright – Memoria James – http://www.mangiodasola.com

Valentine Lofthouse Cookies

Remember those Lofthouse Sugar Cookies I blogged about before? No? Well, here they are again in heart form. I am really really not a lover of all things pink with hearts. I tried to make the icing red, but it didn’t happen. I guess I needed to add the whole jar of dye to get that color. What I ended up with was hot pink! ugh!! This was my first time working with dye, so oh well…

Anyway, as everyone knows, the holiday of love is coming up. I might not have a Valentine this year, and I’m totally okay with that. Relationships bring on too much drama for my needs haha. I enjoy being single, especially while being a graduate student.
So, in honor of this holiday and for the people out there who actually like hearts and the color pink, you should try out this recipe. This is a soft, cakey, delicious cookie. These cookies are so good that I have to control myself from not eating the whole batch.
I made these cookies for my students (and made a few extra for me hehe). I’m trying my best to keep my hand out of their cookie jar. Because if I don’t control myself, only one student will end up with a cookie tomorrow LOL! They take some time to make, so make the dough the day before Valentine’s. I posted a few process photos below so that you can see how thick the dough is. You’ll need a bit of flour to handle the sticky dough, but it’s worth all the trouble.
Enjoy!

Lofthouse Cookies
adapted from Recipezaar
For 4-inch cookies, you will end up with two dozen cookies. So, if you make 2 1/2 – 3-inch cookies, you should end up with about 3-4 dozen cookies.

1 cup butter
2 cups sugar (in my halved version, I added 2 Tbsp (1/4 cup for full version) EXTRA of sugar to make the cake part a tad sweeter)
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract (optional)
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 cups sour cream
5-6 cups AP flour, until desired consistency for rolling (in my halved version, I used 2 1/2 cups in the dough and then added about half a cup more of flour while rolling out the dough. I needed more than a cup for the full version.)

Cream together butter and sugar. Beat in eggs, sour cream, and vanilla. Mix in dry ingredients.

Cover and refrigerate overnight (or 6-8 hours).


Preheat oven to 425ºF.
Roll out dough to a 1/4 to 3/8 inch thickness using a generous amount of flour (I used a combination of flour and powdered sugar for a non-stick surface and flavor). Cut out shapes, and bake on an ungreased cookie sheet for 8 minutes.

Cool on wire rack.
Frost (recipe below), and decorate as desired.

Lofthouse Cookie Frosting
adapted from Recipezaar
Yields enough for 2 dozen cookies, so double the recipe, if you need more.

3 1/2 – 4 cups confectioners’ sugar (depending on how sweet you want it)
1/2 cup shortening
5-8 Tbsp (or more) evaporated milk (or regular milk), until you reach the desired consistency
1 tsp vanilla extract
red food coloring (optional)

In a large bowl, cream together the confectioners’ sugar and shortening until smooth. Gradually mix in the evaporated milk and vanilla with an electric mixer until smooth and stiff, about 5 minutes. Color with food coloring, if desired.

Copyright – Memoria James – http://www.mangiodasola.com