Easter Truffles

For this Easter, I made yummy lavender vanilla truffles with a cute little bunnies pattern on the tops. The truffle recipe came from San Francisco’s chocolatier Michael Recchiuti’s book Chocolate Obsessions, though slightly altered to fit the ingredients I had on hand. I met Michael at a chocolate class in SF. He was really nice and signed my book. The lavender came fresh from my mom’s garden.

I met Michael at a chocolate class in SF. He was really nice and signed my book 🙂

To make patterned chocolates, you need to use chocolate transfer sheets. These are plastic sheets that have colored cocoa butter printed on them in specific patterns. Melted chocolate gets poured onto the transfer sheet and after the chocolate hardens, the transfer sheet is peeled off and the pattern is on the chocolate. To make molded chocolates with a transfer sheet, you need a specific kind of chocolate mold called a “magnetic mold” which allows you to insert the transfer sheet into the bottom of the mold. I bought the magnetic mold and bunny pattern with money that a reader generously donated to Cream and Cocoa through my Paypal donate button.

I was very excited to use the magnetic molds for the first time and learned while doing it. They are a great way to make your truffles look professional!

Before you start, make sure you have all the ingredients and that they are good first. I needed to make multiple runs to the store- first because my cream was sour and then because my vanilla bean was hard (even though I had just bought these ingredients!). Finally I was able to get started…

To make the lavender vanilla truffles you will need the following:

• 3 tablespoons fresh lavender
• 3/4 cup cream
• half a vanilla bean
• 3.75 oz sugar cane syrup
• 10.75 oz chocolate
• 6 T softened butter
• Tempered chocolate for the molds

Mix the syrup and cream together in a saucepan. Scrape out the vanilla seeds from the bean and add them to the saucepan as well as the vanilla bean skin. Heat until the mixture starts to boil. Remove from heat, add in the lavender, cover with a lid or plastic wrap, and let it steep for 20 minutes.

While it is steeping, melt the 10.75 oz chocolate in a double boiler until it is 115° F, then remove from heat. When the cream mixture is ready, strain it through a cheesecloth, check the temperature and heat it up to 115° F if not warm enough. Combine the chocolate and cream mixture and blend using an immersion blender. Add in the butter and blend until smooth. Now you have lavender vanilla ganache to fill your truffles.

For instructions on how to assemble the truffles using a magnetic mold, watch this video. If using a non-magnetic mold, the technique in the video still applies (excluding the placing of the transfer sheet in the beginning). If you prefer to make hand rolled truffles, wait for the ganache to stiffen (~3hrs), then use your hand to roll it in to balls and either dip in melted chocolate or roll in cocoa powder.

I am giving the truffles to people for easter in these boxes that my boyfriend bought for me:

I sampled some beforehand and they were really good! Just the right amount of lavender so that you can taste it but not too overpowering. I am definitely a fan of infused ganaches now. So many more flavoring options to try! Eventually, I will try them all.

Happy Easter!

Jenna, Cream, and Cocoa