Strawberry White Chocolate Truffles

I'm in that funny floating state of sleep-deprivation at the moment, after tumbling into bed around four in the morning (I seem to write best in the late, late hours of the night, and have yet to convince my brain otherwise). The much-anticipated senior spring will come, I'm sure, but at the moment, I'm bouncing between a mild frenzy to finish writing my thesis and gnawing worry over that dreaded question, "What am I doing after graduation?"

I can't say I'm in the mood for any sort of Valentine's Day baking at the moment, but I seem to still want chocolate. Chocolate truffles are a nice study break, easy to make in my microwave without needing to leave my room. I don't like the pressure that Valentine's Day seems to put on all parties involved--on the wallet, on couples to make  some sort of romantic gesture, on single people to justify our single-ness--so I'll just say that these are perfect for sharing and gifting, impressive-looking without requiring much effort. (For a more quantified measure of romantic, effortless desserts, I'll refer you to Monica's and my very scientific post from last year).

The only remotely tricky part of this recipe is tempering the chocolate for coating the truffles, but it really only requires one more bowl and two extra minutes of your time than melting chocolate the normal way. You could of course skip this step, but tempering chocolate gives it that classic shiny finish, and allows it to be solid at room temperature. 

My words all seem to have gone into the 15,000 for my thesis and I can't string together anything elegant to say right now, so I'll say it inelegantly: these truffles made me really happy. It was nice to flex my candy-making muscles, and see that special ability of a box of nice chocolates to bring joy. 

Caroline

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Strawberry White Chocolate Truffles

Yields 18-20 truffles

Ingredients
⅓ cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon butter
8 ounces good quality white chocolate, roughly chopped
pinch of salt
¼ cup finely ground freeze-dried strawberries

For Assembly
5 ounces good quality dark chocolate
1 tablespoon finely ground freeze-dried strawberries, for sprinkling

Directions
Place the heavy cream, butter, and white chocolate into a microwaveable bowl. Microwave on medium power for about 90 seconds, or until the chocolate is melted. Make sure to stop every 30 seconds to give it a good stir or else the white chocolate might burn.

Stir in the salt and freeze-dried strawberries. Refrigerate for 3-4 hours, or until the mixture becomes very firm.

Scoop out tablespoonfuls of the truffle mixture, and roll them into balls. Place on a lined cookie sheet and refrigerate for another 5 to 10 minutes.

Prepare and temper the chocolate coating (Stick with me here; it’s not nearly as difficult as it sounds!) Place about 4 ounces of the dark chocolate in a microwaveable glass or ceramic bowl, and microwave on medium power for about 90 seconds (or until the chocolate is melted), stopping every 30 seconds to give it a stir. 

Place the remaining 1 ounce of chocolate in a glass or ceramic bowl (I think the ability of glass and ceramic to absorb heat yields better results than plastic). Pour the melted chocolate into the bowl with the unmelted chocolate, but don’t worry about scraping out every bit of the chocolate. (In other words, leave a little bit of chocolate in the bowl--you’re going to need it again). 

Stir the chocolate until the it has cooled down quite a bit, and most of the remaining 1 ounce of chocolate has melted. When you put a bit of melted chocolate under your bottom lip, it should feel cooler than the surface of your skin. Fish out any bits of unmelted chocolate.

Return all of the melted chocolate to the original bowl, and let the residual heat from the bowl and remaining chocolate to slightly bring up the temperature of the chocolate again. Your chocolate is now tempered and ready for dipping!

With two spoons, dip the truffles in the melted chocolate. Decorate by sprinkling a little freeze-dried strawberry on top of each truffle. You will want to be organized, since the chocolate sets pretty rapidly.

Store in the refrigerator. For a softer truffle, serve at room temperature.

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Brigadeiros

I've been nursing a particular fascination for these little Brazilian chocolate candies for a few weeks now. Brigadeiros are a Brazilian fudge truffle, made from condensed milk cooked with flavors like chocolate, almond, and coconut.

I first saw them a while back on the Youtube channel Dulce Delight (If you haven't watched Raiza's videos before, definitely check them out!), and later found a microwave version on Sorted Food, which completely sold me on them. 

There's something magical about watching a simple combination of condensed milk, chocolate, and butter turn into thick, fudgy candies in just a few motions. It's a nice reminder that very standard baking ingredients like sugar have such potential to transform in shape and flavor and texture.

These are definitely some of the easiest candies I've ever made, and just require throwing a few ingredients into a bowl and sticking it into the microwave. Shaping the brigadeiros is much easier and less messy than traditional truffles, which tend to melt all over your hands.

The texture and taste is a cross between fudge and caramel; they're slightly chewy yet melt in your mouth. Throwing in the fact that you can store them in your fridge a couple days ahead of time, I'd definitely recommend making them part of your holiday cookie platter!

Caroline

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Brigadeiros

Yields: about 15 brigadeiros
Loosely adapted from Betty Crocker
Click here from the printer-friendly recipe.

Ingredients
1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
⅛ teaspoon salt

For Assembly
Butter, for greasing
½ cup topping, such as finely chopped semi-sweet chocolate, finely chopped nuts, finely shredded coconut, or sprinkles

Directions
Pour the condensed milk in a large microwaveable bowl. Add the chocolate and butter. Microwave on high for about 45 seconds. Take the bowl out and give the mixture a good stir.

Microwave for another 5 minutes, taking the bowl out every 2 minutes or so to thoroughly mix it. The brigadeiro mixture is done when it has become thick and fudgey, and you can pull it away from the side of the bowl when you stir it. (Your cooking time may vary by a minute or two depending on the power of your microwave). Stir in the salt. 

Spoon the mixture onto a large plate and chill for at least 3 hours, or overnight.
Shape the brigadeiros. With a spoon, scoop out about 2 teaspoons of the brigadeiro mixture. Rub a little butter into your palms, to prevent the chocolate from sticking. Roll the brigadeiro into a ball, and roll the ball in your topping of choice.

Brigadeiros keep at room temperature for about 2 days, and in the refrigerator for up to a week.

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Chocolate-Covered Strawberries

As you know, it's been blizzarding here in New England. As Juno dumped almost two feet of snow on us (seriously, the weather was so bad that even the tourists disappeared), I spent much of the week hibernating in the dorm, watching the snow swirl past my window. 

It's times like this that I remember just how incredibly spoiled I am as an undergrad at Harvard. We call getting caught up with school and activities "the Harvard bubble," but Harvard was quite literally a bubble during the snowstorm. I got to spend the blizzard curled up by the radiator while being fairly confident that the power wouldn't give, and if something did break, it would be fixed quite soon. I was able step downstairs and get my hot meals in the dining hall as usual, because some of the staff had slept over the night before so they could be at work during the blizzard. And the next day when we woke up for class, we found all the side walks cleared into neat channels through the deep snow, after the yard workers had worked through the night.

It really makes you realize who has the better work ethic at this place. 

Since the communal kitchen is in another building, I decided to make some no-bake goodies that didn't require me to leave my room. These really are an ideal dessert for making in the dorm. You don't even need a microwave to melt the chocolate; I used a hairdryer, which actually works beautifully.

As you might have noticed, the Pass the Cocoa's logo has long been a chocolate-covered strawberry. Though it's taken on many guises, that strawberry has remained a constant through all our design overhauls. 

There's no real story about why we chose it; I made some chocolate covered strawberries for Monica's birthday some three years ago, and later wrote this post about them. We decided it would make a cool graphic, and it's stuck around since.

Anyways, I thought it was time that we re-visited that old post. Considering how many times we've changed the graphic strawberry, it seemed fitting to take new pictures to match the new design.

As I pointed out two years ago, these are a perfectly Valentine's treat, impressive yet requiring almost no effort. Though I know strawberries are still out of season, they're also a wonderful dessert to make on a cold winter's afternoon, sure to lend some brightness and sweetness to even the snowiest day.

Stay warm!
Caroline

One Year Ago: Abbracci Cookies
Two Years Ago: How to Make Homemade Nutella

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Chocolate-Covered Strawberries

Click here for the printer-friendly recipe.
Yields: about 20 strawberries

Ingredients
4 oz. semi-sweet chocolate, roughly chopped
4 oz. white chocolate, roughly chopped
1 lb. fresh strawberries
2 tablespoons finely chopped nuts (optional)

Directions
Melt the white and dark chocolates over a double boiler, or with a hair dryer. Simple turn the blow dryer on low/medium power and hold about 10 inches from the chocolate, stirring occasionally.

Dip half the strawberries in dark chocolate, half in white. Place on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper or plastic wrap. Sprinkle the nuts of some of the strawberries, if desired.
Drizzle the white chocolate on the dark chocolate-dipped strawberries, and vice versa.

Refrigerate the strawberries for about 15 minutes, to set the chocolate. 

Enjoy!

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Chocolate Peanut Butter Mousse Cups

I struggled with starting this post, and out of curiosity, I looked up "chocolate peanut butter" on Food Blog Search, just to see  how other people start them. Phrases like "One of the best flavor pairings on earth" and "Hello chocolate peanut butter perfection!" aren't uncommon, and we've used them several times for recipes like this chocolate peanut butter mug cake and this brownie pie: It is a truth universally acknowledged on the blogosphere that chocolate and peanut butter go together.

So anyways, I'm just going to describe the anatomy of a bite. Your teeth first sink through a layer of fluffy, creamy, sweet mousse that is strongly flavored with peanut butter while remaining light as air. You then encounter the thicker crunchy peanut and chocolate ganache, chewing through the slightly salty peanuts (I used the Smoked flavor from Planters, to give it a slight savory edge to balance the sweet), and feel the intense dark chocolate of the cup melt on your tongue. 

Apart from just the standard peanut butter/chocolate combination, the flavors, textures, and levels of sweet and salty balance each other out perfectly.

Plus, you can get plenty mileage out of the fact that they look super fancy but are actually no-bake, and are fairly easy to make. The chocolate cups, which is the most time-consuming part, can easily be made ahead a day or two ahead, if you're planning a dinner party or something. I'm imagining a scene in which you say oh-so-casually "I just made some peanut butter cups" and then whip these out.

Enjoy, all!
Caroline

Disclaimer: I was provided a free sample by Planters to review. All opinions are my own.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Mousse Cups

Click here for the printer-friendly recipe
Yields: about 15 chocolate cups

Ingredients
For the Chocolate Cups
6 ounces good quality semi-sweet chocolate

For the Crunchy Peanut Ganache
1 ounce semi-sweet chocolate
1 ounce milk chocolate
2 tablespoons heavy cream
¼ cup salted peanuts, roughly chopped

For the Peanut Butter Mousse
½ cup peanut butter
2 ounces white chocolate, chopped
⅔ cup whipped cream
⅓ cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions
Make the chocolate cups. Melt the chocolate in the microwave at medium power, stopping every 20 seconds or so to give it a stir. 
With a clean paintbrush or a butter knife, carefully spread a thin layer of chocolate on the inside of 15 mini cupcake liners. Chill in the refrigerator for about 15 minutes, until firm. Spread a second layer and chill for another 15 minutes.

Make the peanut ganache. Place the chocolate and heavy cream in a microwaveable bowl and microwave for about 20 seconds. Let sit for 1 minute, then stir until smooth. Stir in the peanuts. 
Place about 2 teaspoons of the ganache in each of the chocolate cups. Replace the cups into the refrigerator.

Make the peanut butter mousse. Place a large mixing bowl in the freezer for about 20 minutes.

Mix together the peanut butter and white chocolate in a microwaveable bowl. Microwave at medium power, stopping every 20 seconds to give it a stir, until the chocolate has melted.

In the pre-chilled bowl, Whip the cream until it forms soft peaks. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla extract and whip until stiff peaks form.

Mix about a quarter of the whipped cream into the peanut butter mixture to lighten it. Fold the peanut butter into the remaining whipped cream.
Pipe the mousse into the chocolate cups, on top of the ganache.