{Fresh} Strawberry White Chocolate Truffles
Yield: Approximately 60 small Truffles
Ingredients
1 c cream
1 c finely chopped fresh strawberries (frozen work well for this recipe, when fresh are not in season)
14 oz chopped white chocolate
2 Tbsp unsalted butter, at room temperature
Approximately 1/2 lb white or milk chocolate, for coating truffles
Instructions
The night before making the truffles, mix the chopped strawberries with the cream. Let the mixture steep in the refrigerator over night.
When ready to start the ganache, strain the mixture through a fine mesh strainer to remove pulp and seeds. Using a rubber spatula, gently press on the fruit to extract the fruit juice; the cream will be a lovely shade of pink when strained.
Place the cream in a small saucepan over medium high heat, and bring to a boil. Pour the hot cream over the chopped chocolate. Let sit 2 to 3 minutes, then whisk until smooth.
Add the room-temperature butter and whisk until incorporated.
Place powdered sugar in a shallow bowl; you will need it to dust your hands and the truffles.
Use a spoon or small melon baller to form balls of ganache; roll them between your hands to make them round. Place on a wax paper (or parchment) lined tray.
Using a fork, dip the truffles in white or milk chocolate until completely submerged; tap fork against rim of bowl to remove excess chocolate. Place coated truffles on tray and refrigerate for approximately 15 minutes to set the chocolate.
The truffles can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 2 weeks, and are best served at room temperature.
Notes:
Truffles are all about the chocolate: the better the quality, the better the candy. I used Valhrona white and milk chocolate, which I bought at the NY Cake in Manhattan. It was a king's ransom, but so good! Many grocery stores carry premium Scharffen Berger and Ghirardelli chocolate, which can also be used.
The white chocolate (used for the ganache) just needs to be chopped. However, if you use real chocolate for the shell, you will need to temper it. David Lebovitz has an informative write up about tempering dark chocolate here.
White and milk chocolate melt at lower temperatures, and are generally considered more challenging to temper. However, I find that is is much easier to control the temperature of the chocolate when melting a larger amount (1- 1.5 pounds).
Valhrona has very clear instructions for tempering their chocolate here. Ghirardelli's instructions are here.