Last month I took a truffle making class at The Kitchen Studio. First off, if you have never taken a class there you should. What’s better than learning to make chocolate truffles? Making them with friends. I was fortunate enough to share the evening with April and Cathy. I was late, of course, so I missed the discussion and tasting of the different kinds of chocolates, but Cathy was kind enough to get me caught up.
Class was on a Friday night and the week had been pretty tough on me, but ending the week by playing with chocolate
was just what the doctor ordered. Chefs Christine and Caroline did a lot of prep work for us during the day and had prepared the flavored ganaches for us. There was hazelnut, aztec (with a kick of cayenne), cappuccino, and chai tea. Chef Christine demonstrated how to make a salted caramel center. Yes, chocolate, caramel and salt. I was in Heaven.
I have read many truffle recipes and watched them made, but this was the first time I actually got to get my hands dirty. Believe me you will get dirty, but having chocolate everywhere doesn’t suck. To keep the chocolate from melting too much it is advisable to wear latex gloves when rolling the truffle centers. Cathy and I worked with the aztec filling. It was a little harder than I expected, but Cathy tackled it like a pro by scooping it out. My job was to roll them into balls, but some of mine resembled the truffles that the pigs forage, rather than pretty balls of chocolaty goodness. The good news is no matter what they looked like, they all tasted great!
Now it was time for coating the truffles and Chef Christine pulled out the chocolate temperer. This allowed us to put the perfect chocolate coating on the salted caramel truffles. This also marked the beginning of my next culinary adventure with chocolate. Because of this class, I have ordered a chocolate tempering machine that should be here in a week or so. Stay tuned for that.
The class was great and I now have enough confidence to move forward and try truffles on my own as well as many other chocolate concoctions.
{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }
YUM! I would have loved to take that class! I now understand the discussion on the chocolate temperer. I can’t wait to see/hear more!