Champagne Truffles

Use a sparkler made with blanc de noir grapes (full rosé color) here for a richer flavor, and serve with a glass of bubbly – perfect for romantic toasting!

By Dede Wilson

Use a deeply flavored rosé sparkler for extra flavor in this dark chocolate truffle.

Yield: 45 pieces

Ingredients

3/4 cup (180 ml) heavy whipping cream
8 ounces (225g) bittersweet couverture chocolate, very finely chopped
3 tbsps. (45 ml) champagne or sparkling wine
Dutch-process cocoa powder
2 tbsps. (30 ml) superfine sugar
45 small fluted paper cups (optional)

Optional Chocolate Coating: 12 ounces (340g) chocolate (see tempering instructions)

Recipe Instructions

Place cream in a 2-quart wide saucepan over medium heat until it just comes to a simmer. Remove from heat and immediately sprinkle 8 ounces (225g) chocolate into cream. Cover and allow to sit for 5 minutes; the heat should melt the chocolate. Stir very gently until smooth.

Stir in champagne. Pour mixture into a shallow bowl. Cool to room temperature, cover with plastic wrap, then allow to sit, preferably overnight, until firm enough to roll. (Or refrigerate ganache until firm, about 4 hours.)

Coat your hands with cocoa powder and roll ganache into ¾-inch (19mm) balls. Place in a single layer on a jelly-roll pan and refrigerate until very firm.

At this point you can either: simply coat with another layer of cocoa powder and place in fluted cups or temper the additional 12 ounces (340g) chocolate (see tempering instructions).

Line a jelly-roll pan with aluminum foil, shiny side up, smoothing out any wrinkles, or cover the pan with a piece of acetate. Dip truffles in the melted chocolate, making as thin and even a coating as possible. Place truffles on the prepared pan. Sprinkle each truffle with a tiny bit of sugar while chocolate coating is still wet. Refrigerate until firm. Place in fluted cups, if desired. Any remaining tempered chocolate can be spread out on parchment or a silicon mat, hardened and broken up for chocolate bark.

Serve at room temperature.

Truffles - 50 Deliciously Decadent Homemade Chocolate Treats | Dede Wilson | Harvard Common Press, 2006. All rights reserved.

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Photography by Jessica Washburn, Bliss Chocolatier and Ecole Chocolat