Decadent chocolate truffles that bring the heat!

I recently skimmed through my recipe categories and noticed how the truffles and candy category was looking a bit empty compared to the rest, so I thought I’d share a truffle recipe with you this week. With Christmas coming up, it’s the perfect time to make some truffles. These make wonderful homemade gifts that chocolate lovers will adore. The combination of sweet and spicy creates a unique and interesting flavour, similar to something you’d find in a confiserie. If you like a spicy sweet dessert, you’ll love these chili infused truffles!

One of the first recipes I ever posted (back in 2015!) was a truffle recipe. These eggnog truffles were the first photo shooting I ever did for Home Baked Bliss. I still remember working with my first DSLR, for which I only had 1 lens, and trying to find angles that looked good. I worked with a highly reflective surface and crappy lighting which is something I learned not to do over the years. But honestly, its so much fun to look back at old photos as they are a reminder of how this all started.

When I started the blog I posted quite a few truffle recipes as those were in my comfort zone and what I was best at. Up till this day, I’d rather make 50 finicky little truffles than decorate an entire cake. Cakes are intimidating, but truffles aren’t. Tempering chocolate is a science and it’s something I feel like I can control, but cake decorating is all about technique and design. However, after blogging for a few years, I’ve also learned to step out of my comfort zone and do things I find difficult. I’m certainly not great in all culinary categories (eg. preparing a whole fish=scary!) but I’m constantly learning new things thanks to this blog.

If you have never made truffles before, these here are a good place to start. They do not require any special equipment and you do not need to temper the chocolate as we’ll be rolling them in cocoa powder thus hiding their exterior. Don’t worry about shaping them into perfect circles, these are meant to look handmade!

Chili

For this recipe we are using chili flakes to give our truffles a kick. You can certainly sub the chili flakes for fresh chilis. The reason I prefer chili flakes here is because I find it easier to control the spiciness by using a powder vs fresh. If using fresh chilis, I found that 3 chilis gave a good amount of spice without being overwhelming. Unfortunately most chilis at the grocery stores here are unlabelled which means there is no way of knowing what exact chilis they are. However, all chili packages are labelled from mild to very spicy to get a sense of how strong they’ll be. Whichever type you chose, make sure it is a medium spicy chili. We don’t want an overpowering spicy flavour, just enough to know it’s there.

These chili truffles also make wonderful homemade Christmas gifts that can be made up to 2 weeks ahead. Simply store them in the fridge and wrap them up nicely once you need a gift. I bet anyone with a sweet tooth will appreciate them!

If you give these spicy chili truffles a try, let me know in the comment section down below!

Spicy Chili Truffles

Decadent chocolate truffles that bring the heat!

Yield: 20

Ingredients

1 teaspoon chili flakes*
120g dark chocolate or couverture
120g milk chocolate or couverture
240ml heavy cream (1 cup)
30g butter, softened
300g dark couverture or chocolate for dipping,
cocoa powder for rolling, sifted

Instructions

Using a pestle and mortar, grind the chili flakes to a powder. Chop the dark and milk chocolate into small pieces and set aside.
In a small saucepan, bring the heavy cream to a boil and remove from heat. Add in the ground chili flakes and chopped chocolate and stir until smooth.
Let the ganache cool for about 2 hours in the fridge, until it has set but still can be stirred.
Add the butter to the ganache, and using a hand mixer, beat until smooth. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Using a piping bag fitted with a Wilton 1A tip, pipe the chocolate ganache in circles onto the parchment paper. Let the truffles chill for 30 minutes in a cool place, then flatten the tips with your finger.
When the truffles have fully set, chop the chocolate into small pieces and melt over a double boiler. ** Add some of the melted chocolate onto your hands and coat the truffles by rolling them on the inside of your palms. Immediately roll the truffles in cocoa powder and place onto a baking sheet and let them cool completely.
Store in the fridge and serve chilled.

Notes

*If subbing with fresh chilis, cut 3 medium spicy chilis into small pieces and infuse in the warm heavy cream for about 10-15 minutes until you reached the desired level of heat, then sieve out the chili pieces and add the chocolate.

**The melted chocolate should be no warmer than room temperature when you coat the truffles.

Store truffles in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 weeks.