RECIPE: REC: Chocolate-Grand Marnier Truffles. Coulda sworn I've posted these before....

RECIPE:
J

joe

Well-known member
I cooked for a baby shower yesterday but I couldn't talk them out of a bakery sheet cake (day-glo pink with rubber duckies, and they could have had Julia's Queen of Sheba). So I made these to go alongside. I'll be posting the menu in Menus.

Truffles aux Chocolat

Julia Child

7 oz. semisweet or bittersweet chocolate

2 oz. unsweetened chocolate

1/4 cup strong coffee

5 oz. (1-1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, cut in pieces

1/4 cup Grand Marnier or other orange liqueur

Cocoa Powder

Break up both chocolates and put them in a covered saucepan with the coffee. Set the pan in a skillet of almost-simmering water (don't let it boil) and leave a few minutes until the chocolate melts. Stir until smooth, then whisk in the butter a piece at a time, just until melted in. Remove from heat and whisk in the liqueur.

Chill until firm but not hard. Roll into rough balls, then roll the balls in cocoa powder. Place in frill cups, or in a single layer in a covered container, and refrigerate.

Makes 18 large truffles or 36 small ones.

Note: I like to make these small, and I find it easiest to portion the mixture while still a bit soft, with a melon baller and a demitasse spoon, onto a silpat, then refrigerate until firm enough for rolling.

 
oh yeah, made these, love them. Anyone who hasn't tried them please do- they are perfectly wonderful

 
Oh yum. I do not have a sweet tooth, but I love chocolate and orange...

I cannot wait to try these. I used to get the chocolate-orange truffles from See's Candies, and I would tell everyone that they were chocolate coveried cherries. Mine, mine, all mine, sometimes a Gollum.

 
How did I forget these when you asked about chocolate orange things a while back?

They're not overly sweet. The orange flavor is not too strong--maybe a little grated zest would boost it. I'll have to try it.

And am I a freak for loving those chocolate covered cherries?

 
Here is one posted by Olga. REC: Chocolate Covered Cherries

and no, I love them too.


* Exported from MasterCook *

CHOCOLATE COVERED CHERRIES

Recipe By :Country Woman/OlgaD
Serving Size : 36 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : Candy Olgad

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method

2 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar
1/4 cup butter or margarine -- softened
1 Tablespoon milk
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
2 jars maraschino cherries with stems -- (8 ounces each)
well drained
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips -- (12 ounces)
2 Tablespoons shortening

In a mixing bowl, combine sugar, butter, milk and extract; mix well. Knead into a large
ball. Roll into 1-inch balls and flatten each into a 2-inch circle. Wrap around cherries
and lightly roll in hands. Place with stems up on waxed paper-lined baking sheet. Cover
loosely and refrigerate 4 hours or overnight. Melt the chocolate chips and shortening in a
double boiler or microwave-safe bowl. Holding on to stem, dip cherries into chocolate; set on waxed paper to harden. Store in a covered container. Refrigerate 1-2 weeks before serving. Yield: about 3 dozen.
Olga's note: These just get better with age.
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I've made a lot of choc covered cherries in the past and could never understand...

why they always say to add the 2 tbl. shortening to the chocolate! It just makes a too-soft coating which gets gooey as soon as it gets to room temp. My original recipe from WAY back years ago says to add 2 tbl. paraffin wax, so that is what I've always done. Works great.

 
Would I have to add anything? I'm not fond of shortening or parafin. Could I just add unsweetened

chocolate to make it stiffer?

 
parafin and shortening

are added to chocolate when it is melted as a quick and easy cheat to get around re-tempering chocolate after it's melted. If you melt chocolate, you break the temper and when it cools, it blooms and turns ugly. Still edible, but ugly. The parafin is definietly my choice over shortening as well because of what cheezz mentioned. Adding unsweetened chocolate without tempering would leave you with...untempered chocolate that will bloom.

 
ISO: Bittersweet Chocolate Covered Strawberriy Cordials

When I was in college, this little local drug store made handmade chocolate strawberry cordials: Giant whole ripe strawberries incased in bittersweet chocolate and floating in a stawberry cordial center. They were so amazing and I've never seen them since and that little drug store has now been made part of "progress" and is no more. I always laugh when I see a plain old berry just dipped in chocolate after experienceing those amazing berries. Anyone ever see these or try to make them?

 
They sound marvelous, but I can't quite picture....

A whole strawberry... dipped in chocolate... then a liquidy cordial filling around that, then a chocolate outer shell???

 
Joe, as Richard says, you can temper the chocolate to get the consistency needed...

I know the chocolate can be heated, cooled, and re-heated to temper, but have also seen where you can heat the chocolate, then 'seed' it with a 2-oz. piece of chocolate, stirring until melted. I don't know why you couldn't do this with the unsweetened chocolate, perhaps breaking it up a bit. I'm not an expert in this area, so maybe someone can help me out here??

 
Now I understand. Thanks, you guys. I thought the parafin was just to make it firmer

and as a cheap extender. And come to think of it, I have had chocolate bloom on me when it's melted and cooled.

 
more info.

think of a chocolate covered cherry cordial but using a strawberry instead. I'm sure they molded some fondant around the strawberry, dipped it in chocolate, and waited for the center to liquify just like the chocolate cherry cordials, but fresh strawberries are so delicate and don't last so long as a maraschino cherry, so I just assumed there was a special process for it. They did keep them refrigerated.

And wow, were they ever good. And messy!

 
Tempering chocolate

After many problems with tempering chocolate for coating Easter eggs, I found this method on the internet. It is the easiest way I have found and works great:

* Exported from MasterCook *

Tempering Dark Chocolate


Chocolate

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method

1 1/2 pounds bittersweet chocolate

Chop about 18 ounces (70 to 75 percent) of the chocolate into small pieces. The smaller the pieces, the quicker your chocolate will melt and temper. Set aside the remaining 25 to 30 percent (about 6 ounces) to be used for seeding. There is no need to be exact on this measurement, as you just want enough unmelted, tempered chocolate to start the seeding process. Grate this seeding chocolate into fine pieces so that it will incorporate easily into the melted chocolate.

Step 1 - Melt chocolate. Place the 18 ounces of chopped chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave on half-power, being very careful to stir the mixture every minute for the first 2 minutes. After that, stir every 30 seconds until it is almost completely melted, which should take about three to four minutes.

Remove the bowl of chocolate from the microwave and stir to cool it slightly. Removing the bowl before all the chocolate is completely melted will help prevent over heating. You don't want your chocolate to burn. Those last bits of solid chocolate will melt as you stir. Using a thermometer, check the temperature of the melted chocolate - it should be between: 114-118° F (46-48° C). If it has not reached this temperature, return it to the microwave for 20 seconds or so until it reaches the desired temperature.

Step 2 - Add seed chocolate you have set aside.

Start adding handfuls of the grated chocolate you set aside to the melted chocolate. Stir in the seeding chocolate bits continuously until the desired temperature (see below) is reached and the bits have dissolved completely. This could take anywhere from ten to fifteen minutes depending on the temperature of your environment. Your chocolate should now be tempered. Test the temper by spreading a small amount on a piece of wax paper to see if it sets up without any blooming. This should take about 5 minutes.

Dark chocolate should be between 88 - 89° F (31° C)

Make sure to stir the tempered chocolate and check the temperature during the time you are using it for dipping or molding. You can put the tempered chocolate mass in the microwave for 10 - 15 seconds at half-power if the temperature starts to drop. Just make sure that you don't raise the temperature above 90° F (32° C) or you will lose your temper and have to start over again at Step 1.

A heating pad set at low will help if you are doing a lot of work at one time. Again, make sure the heating pad doesn't raise the temperature of the chocolate too high. Keep stirring and checking the chocolate mass with a thermometer.

S(Internet Address):
"http://chocomap.com/chocolate-making-tempering.php"
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Thanks, this sounds do-able. I've never understood the tempering process before.

 
What kind of Easter eggs are you coating?

That sounds like a great recipe, and fairly easy for tempering chocolate. What kind of chocolates do you usually make? I would love to make some homemade chocolates for the upcoming Fourth of July. Thanks!

 
Coconut

I make a coconut cream filling. It's quite easy if you would like the recipe. It's one my mother has developed over the years; and when she passed away, I took on the challenge.

 
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