Last week, a friend gave us some homemade truffles, and they blew us away, so Jon decided to try his hand at making some. Of course, as with most recipes, we can’t go with the status quo. We have to push the boundaries and think outside the box, so we settled on Pistachio Covered Lemon & Lavendar and Cardamon & Chili Chocolate. There truly are no words. These truffles rock!
Though a tad bit difficult to make, it sure was fun to see Jon standing in the kitchen with chocolate melting all over his hands wearing that “icky” face he makes (kind of like a kid who stuck his hand in mud and doesn’t know where to put it, so he stands there with a big frown, shaking his hands on the verge of tears)… yeah, that was the scene in the kitchen, but he powered through and the results were worth it.
The Lemon/Lavendar truffles are by far my favorite and received the best reviews from family and friends during the holidays, but the Cardamon Chili are nothing to scoff at. Both are rich, creamy, mouth-watering and downright delicious. If you have some patience and are looking for a treat to truly impress, this is it. And I promise, you can do it.
Pistachio Covered Lavender & Lemon Truffles
Ingredients:
- 1 cup chopped white chocolate
- 3 1/2 tbsp. cream (25%)
- 4 tbsp. butter
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 3 tsp lemon zest
- 1 tbsp dried lavender flowers, crushed
- 2/3 cup finely chopped toasted pistachios
- 6 ounces of semi-sweet chocolate
Preparation:
Heat the cream, butter, zest and lavender in a saucepan over hot water, until hot but not boiling. Add the chopped white chocolate and stir until it has melted completely and is smooth.
- 3 1/2 tbsp. butter
- 8 1/2 tbsp. cream (25% fat)
- 1 1/2 cups chopped semi-sweet chocolate
- 3/4 tsp powdered cardamom
- 1/4 to 1/2 tsp chilli powder (according to taste)
- semi sweet Cocoa powder for shaping truffles
- 11 ounces semi-sweet chocolate
A Ginger in the Kitchen 
Those sound and look really good. I’m not a huge fan of chocolate, I’ll eat it when offered, but wouldn’t go out of my way for it. Then last year my niece made me bourbon (Wild Turkey) truffles for Christmas and they blew my socks off. I’m sure the bourbon helped a lot, but they opened my eyes to other possibilities for chocolate. Makes me wonder about combining other liqueurs and flavors like orange and Grand Marnier, hazelnut and Frangelico, espresso and Kahlua. But anyway, your flavor combinations sound more interesting and creative than mine. Despite the chocolate it would be fun to sample some of them. The cardamon and chili combination sounds especially good to me and makes me wonder how chocolate and the smoky flavor of chipoltes would taste. Fun to read what creative and adventurous spirits like you and Jon are coming up with. Keep it up.
Bombin’.