INGREDIENTS:
8 ounces whipping cream
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
2 tablespoons dried cherries, chopped
1 lb. semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
Cocoa powder, for dusting truffles
METHOD:
Line the bottom and sides of a small square dish with parchment paper.
Bring cream and butter to a simmer in a sauce pot. Remove from heat and add cherries. Let steep 5 minutes.
Melt chocolate in a stainless steel bowl set over a pan of simmering hot water.
Pour cream into the melted chocolate and whisk until the filling appears smooth and glossy. It will have thickened slightly.
Pour truffle filling into prepared pan and let harden at room temperature overnight. You can speed up the hardening process by refrigerating the truffle filling. The truffles won’t be as silken in texture.
When ready to finish truffles. Remove the truffle filling from the pan and cut it into small squares. With gloved hands roll truffles into balls roll them incocoa powder. Place truffles onto parchment paper.
Store the truffles in a covered container at cool room temperature for up to 10 days.
SOURCE: Recipe courtesy of Anne Baldzikowski. Ms.Baldzikowski is an award-winning chef instructor in the Monterey Bay area. She has owned two wholesale bakeries and written countless food articles. She brings a wealth of knowledge and enthusiasm to her classes.
Anne has been teaching for the past nine years in the Culinary Arts and Hospitality Department at Cabrillo College. She also teaches weekend professional classes, with a casual feel, through the Cabrillo College Extension and The Professional Culinary Institute in Campbell. Her most recent accomplishments include purchasing the equipment to make chocolate from freshly roasted and ground cacao beans into silky smooth chocolates as people did 2,000 years ago.
Attend one of Anne’s classes and you will leave with a box of goodies, recipes, and the confidence to produce beautiful and great-tasting treats.
