Category Archives: Chocolate

Strawberry Liqueur Truffles

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Strawberry Liqueur Truffles from britinthesouth.comA couple of weeks before Christmas I strained and bottled the strawberry liqueur that I had started in the spring, much of it being given away to friends.

I was left with a pile of alcohol infused strawberry pulp that I was reluctant to waste. As it is not the most visually appealing of ingredients I have always thought that using it to make chocolate truffles is ideal as the pallid appearance is disguised by copious amounts of chocolate, but previous attempts to do this have proved difficult as the alcohol content prevented the chocolate mix from firming up sufficiently to roll into truffles.

Strawberry Liqueur Truffles from britinthesouth.comLast time this happened I turned the sloppy mix into a dessert but this time I was determined to come up with a ratio of chocolate to fruit that I could work with to roll into truffles but still had good strawberry flavour and a pleasant hint of alcohol. It took a number of attempts but I eventually got there.

Strawberry Liqueur Truffles

8oz white chocolate

2oz strawberry liqueur pulp (leftover from making strawberry liqueur: recipe here)

Pinch of salt

4oz chocolate of your choice for coating (I used Ghirardelli semi sweet)

Melt the white chocolate over medium heat in a double boiler or a glass bowl over a pan of water. Once melted, stir in the strawberry pulp and a pinch of salt.

Strawberry Liqueur Truffles from britinthesouth.comAllow to cool and then put in the fridge until the mixture is firm. Taking a teaspoon full of the mixture at a time roll it into balls to form the centre of the truffles. This recipe should yield around a dozen. Return to the fridge to firm up again.

Melt the chocolate for coating the truffles in a double boiler. I went for a semi sweet coating which I found contrasted well with the white chocolate centre but you could opt for a darker covering or more white chocolate if you wish. Dip the centres in the chocolate to coat and place on baking parchment to set before enjoying.

Strawberry Liqueur Truffles from britinthesouth.com

Boozy Chocolate Truffles

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I love making chocolates and candy and experimenting in the kitchen with combinations of chocolate, sugar, fruit and occasionally alcohol. One of my go-to chocolate truffle recipes originally featured on a River Cottage TV show a few years ago.

The beauty of this recipe lies in its simplicity and versatility. It just requires chocolate and jam with optional alcohol and cocoa powder. The possible combinations are only limited by your imagination.

In the past I have had success with combos such as Thai whisky, pepper jelly and dark chocolate, limoncello, lemon curd and white chocolate and homemade strawberry liqueur, strawberry jam and milk chocolate.

With the festive season fast approaching it was time to do an inventory of the various jams, boozy infusions and bottles in my basement and see what confectionery magic I could conjure up.

Blueberry & Ginger Wine Truffles from britinthesouth.comThere were a number of tempting permutations but my eye was drawn to a jar of homemade blueberry and ginger jam, as I knew I could pair it with Stone’s Ginger Wine, a staple in many British households, especially during the festive season.

The recipe simply combines the jam with melted chocolate and a little bit of alcohol.

Blueberry & Ginger Wine Truffles from britinthesouth.comAfter chilling the mixture the centres of the truffles are made by rolling the mixture into balls and coating them with cocoa powder. These are then coated in more chocolate to produce a decadent treat.

Blueberry and Ginger Wine Truffles from britinthesouth.com

Blueberry and Ginger Wine Truffles

7oz Blueberry Ginger Jam (Mine was made using this recipe from the excellent “Food In Jars”)

14oz Dark Chocolate (I used Ghirardelli 60%)

2 tbs ginger wine

Unsweetened Cocoa powder

Melt 7oz of the chocolate over medium heat in a double boiler (or use a glass bowl over a pan as I do).

Once melted add the jam and wine and stir to combine. Allow to cool and then put in the fridge until the mix is firm.

Use a teaspoon to scoop walnut sized balls from the chocolate mix and roll into balls before covering with a light coating of cocoa powder. Put the balls on a baking tray lined with parchment paper and then return to the fridge to firm up again.

Melt the remaining chocolate over medium heat in a double boiler and then coat the chocolate balls. Once again place them on a parchment paper lined baking tray for the chocolate to cool and set.

These make an ideal gift but make sure you test a few first for quality control purposes.

Blueberry & Ginger Wine Truffles from britinthesouth.com

Bonfire Night Fare: Chocolate Sea Salt Caramel Apple Bites and White Bean & Stilton Soup

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November 5th is an important date in the English calendar, namely Guy Fawkes Night.

Guy Fawkes was one of a group of plotters who were caught trying to blow up parliament on November 5th 1605. Celebrations that the plot had been foiled included the lighting of bonfires around London and thus was born a tradition that endures to this day.

When I was young you still occasionally encountered kids making crude effigies of Guy Fawkes and wheeling them around begging for “pennies for the guy” with which to buy fireworks, but that tradition is fairly rare these days.

Modern day events around November 5th revolve around fireworks and food. Many towns hold large organized firework displays but it is also a good excuse for a back yard party with suitably warm, comforting seasonal food. Bowls of spicy chili, hearty soups, sausages, baked potatoes and toffee apples are all firm favourites.

Bonfire Night Fare: White Bean & Stilton Soup from britinthesouth.comFor November 5th this year I opted for a twist on the traditional toffee apple and a creamy soup to combat any chills in the air.

Food on a stick is always fun at an al fresco gathering but rather than a full size apple coated in caramel I cut bite sized pieces of apple with a melon baller and dipped them in dark chocolate before sprinkling them with homemade toffee pieces.

The soup combined creamy cannellini beans with the classic English blue cheese of Stilton. Simple to make with just a few ingredients it is a warming and comforting soup to drink from a mug on a cold evening.

Chocolate Sea Salt Caramel Apple Bites

8oz Dark chocolate

Apples

Toffee pieces: you can buy them or make them yourself. I used this simple recipe, adding a generous pinch of flaky sea salt: http://www.zestuous.com/2012/01/homemade-toffee-bits/

Chocolate Ses Salt Caramel Apple Bites from britinthesouth.comMelt the dark chocolate over medium heat in a double boiler (or put a glass bowl over a pan of hot water)

Using a melon baller cut balls from the apple and place on a skewer or stick.

Chocolate Ses Salt Caramel Apple Bites from britinthesouth.comDip the apple pieces in the melted chocolate, and before the chocolate has totally set sprinkle with the toffee pieces. Put in the fridge until the chocolate is fully set.

Chocolate Ses Salt Caramel Apple Bites from britinthesouth.comFor a variation on the toffee theme you could of course sprinkle the apple pieces with crushed nuts, sprinkles, or whatever else takes your fancy.

White Bean and Stilton Soup

1 tbs butter

0.5 cup of diced onion

2 cups Vegetable stock

14oz can of cannellini beans

4oz Stilton cheese, crumbled or coarsely chopped

Bonfire Night Fare: White Bean & Stilton Soup from britinthesouth.comMelt the butter over medium heat. Add the diced onions and cook until they soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.

Pour in the vegetable stock and add the drained beans. Bring to a boil over medium high heat and then turn down to simmer for 5 minutes.

Add the crumbled Stilton to the pan and cook for a further 5 minutes until the cheese is melted.

Season to taste with freshly ground pepper.

Blend to a creamy and smooth consistency in a blender or food processor, or using a stick blender. Double check the seasoning before enjoying.

White Bean and Stilton Soup from britinthesouth.com

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Strawberry Bourbon Chocolate Pots

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This is not the recipe I originally intended to write about.

Instead it is the tale of how I achieved a very satisfying result despite one of my kitchen experiments not going to plan.

I set out to make truffles. Strawberry bourbon cream truffles to be exact. I still hope to make them but that particular recipe needs a bit more tweaking and trial and error in the kitchen before it comes to fruition.

It all started with a slushy pile of bourbon infused strawberry pulp that I was left with after straining and bottling  a batch of strawberry bourbon a couple of months ago.  I’m not a fan of food waste and try to make the most of all the ingredients that pass through my kitchen.

Strawberry Bourbon Chocolate Pots from britinthesouth.comIt was not the most appealing thing to look at but smelt wonderful and it would be a crime to waste all that bourbon and strawberry goodness. The obvious solution was to whip up a batch of truffles to make the most of the glorious taste but hide the slightly unattractive appearance with copious amounts of chocolate.

Over the years I’ve made all sorts of boozy truffles so I had high hopes for this variation on the theme.

I started by whizzing the pulp to a smooth puree in a food processor while I melted white chocolate. I then added the pulp to the melted chocolate along with a pinch of salt and a little heavy cream.

Strawberry Bourbon Chocolate Pots from britinthesouth.comThe next step would be to chill this mixture until it sets, roll it into balls to form the truffle centres and then coat those in yet more chocolate. Just one problem: this mixture wouldn’t set. The alcohol content was simply too high. I tried freezing it and although it firmed up nicely as a result, as soon as I tried to handle it the mix just reverted to a sloppy mess.

I would clearly have to revisit the truffle recipe, but what to do with my batch of pink gloop?

Inspired by the French pots de creme I decided to turn my truffle faux pas into an elegant little dessert.

Strawberry Bourbon Chocolate Pots

1 cup strawberry bourbon chocolate mix (which I made by melting 8oz white chocolate and stirring in 4oz of pureed bourbon infused strawberry pulp, 3 tbs heavy cream and a pinch of sea salt)

0.5 cup whole milk

0.5 cup heavy cream

3 egg yolks

2 tbs sugar

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

Gently warm the milk and cream over medium heat.

Whisk together the egg yolks and sugar until they become pale and thickened.

Strawberry Bourbon Chocolate Pots from britinthesouth.comGently stir the strawberry bourbon chocolate mix into the milk and cream.

Remove from the heat and slowly add the whisked eggs to the mixture.

If you are the proud owner of a set of little pots de creme cups you can pour the mixture into those, or alternatively you could use small ramekins or 4oz mason jars as I did.

Strawberry Bourbon Chocolate Pots from britinthesouth.comCook in a water bath: I used a large roasting pan with hot water added to come about halfway up the sides of the jars.

Strawberry Bourbon Chocolate Pots from britinthesouth.comCook for about an hour until the mixture is set but still slightly wobbly. Allow to cool and then chill in the refrigerator for at least a couple of hours before enjoying.