A recent interview with a now-local pâtissier from France inspired me to try my hand at homemade truffles.
This vegan version includes a bit of berry puree, which he said is commonly used for French Valentine treats. There might have been a bit of beginners luck in addition to his good advice, but the results were better than some truffles I’ve purchased in tiny, expensive boxes.
Who knew?
Here’s the recipe if you’d also like to try this at home:
Dark Chocolate-Strawberry Truffles
Weigh out and finely chop 9 ounces of dark chocolate — dairy free if you want to keep it vegan. (I did this with a chef’s knife, but later learned that a serrated knife is better.) Set chocolate aside in a medium-sized bowl.
In a small pan, heat 6 Tablespoons of canned, full-fat coconut milk (or heavy cream if you eat dairy) and 1 Tablespoon of smooth and seedless strawberry jam to the point at which tiny bubbles begin to appear. Before a boil can commence, quickly pour the coconut milk over the mound of chocolate pieces and put a lid over the bowl to trap the heat.
After five minutes, add ½ teaspoon vanilla and gently stir until the mix is smooth and shiny. Cover the resulting ganache with a thick towel or cling wrap and let it cool on the counter just until a table knife inserted into the mix comes out clean.
(The counter cooling is slower, but the local expert said refrigerator-cooled ganache tends to get grainy.)
When the ganache is ready, use a measuring Tablespoon to scoop up the mix, shape it into balls with your hands and then dredge each through unsweetened cocoa powder. Don’t overdo the cocoa like I did or it will literally make you cough between bites — not a good thing during a pandemic. 🙂
Yields 1 dozen truffles.
Nora Edinger -- JOY Journal 
They are beautiful! I love making truffles, and once I discovered how easy they are, they became a part of my holiday and Valentine’s treats.
P.S. Next time, try rolling them in pulverized dried raspberries. Out of this world!
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Oooo. That sounds so good. I’d also like to try finely chopped pistachios. So excited to do a bundle for Valentine’s Day since it’s so hard to find dairy-free stuff in ordinary stores.
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Pistachios sound perfect. I always do a mix, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with just plain! As an option anyway!
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These look so good!!
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Can’t wait to try another batch!
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Chocolate and strawberry, killer combo for truffles!!
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🙂 True! I’m on board with chocolate and any fruit!
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I love when a recipe gives better results than what you can purchase in the store. In my family we call that a “keeper”- a recipe that needs to be handwritten on a card and handed down to the next generation.
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🙂 Love it. Confession: That’s actually why I started putting recipes on my blog. Sharing them forced me to write the best of everything I make down for my daughters in one place. I plan on printing it all out and getting a nice cover as they head out into their own kitchens. Have a great start to the week.
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These truffles look so irresistible. 🌝
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🙂 They were so good. I’m not sure it’s a good thing that I now know how to make these, though!
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