Blueberry chocolate truffles are an easy and elegant party favor.
To celebrate the upcoming arrival of her new little baby boy, a few friends and I have gotten together to surprise our friend Amanda of {i am baker} and {i am mommy} with a virtual baby shower. So that we can all celebrate together despite the distance between us, we have each posted a recipe today that represents what we would make for her shower since we couldn’t be there to throw her one in person.
Amanda is the sweet and very talented baker behind {i am baker} and an absolute genius when it comes to cakes and cookies. She creates art with butter, sugar and flour, and her blog is full of her awe inspiring creations. Behind all this talent is a woman with an enormous heart and an incredibly generous spirit that I am truly grateful to call a friend.
I decided to make chocolate truffles because in my mind no celebration is complete without chocolate, and truffles are an easy and elegant party favor. They can be served in individual paper cups or packed in cellophane bags tied with a ribbon to be distributed to the guests at a shower. The truffles can also be made ahead of time and keep well for weeks in the refrigerator.
There is something undeniably gratifying about offering a gift with such an intense hit of chocolate, and yet is thankfully easy to make. That’s what these chocolate blueberry truffles are – silky, creamy and dense, studded with tiny bits of chopped dried blueberries and lightly coated in cocoa powder.
The inspiration for the additions of blueberries came from an incredible flourless chocolate cake I’d recently eaten at a local patisserie. The cake was a rich torte with a thick, fudge-like interior similar to a dense souffle that came with the unexpected surprise of tiny little blueberries in each silky bite. The combination of the rich, dark chocolate and blueberries was memorable and I was eager to recreate it in truffle form.
Chocolate truffles start with ganache. Ganache is simply an emulsion of chocolate and cream to which flavorings are added. It is the ratio of cream to chocolate that determines the consistency of the ganache and what it is used for. An equal ratio of chocolate to cream (by weight) is considered a ganache of medium consistency, 2 parts chocolate to 1 part cream is considered a ganache of firm consistency, and soft ganaches have more than 50 percent cream.
For the centers of these truffles, I made a medium-hard ganache – utilizing more chocolate than cream to produce a somewhat dense filling that would firm up just enough to hold its shape for rolling truffles.
Heavy cream is heated with finely chopped dried blueberries and a touch of honey. The hot cream and blueberries are then poured over the finely chopped chocolate, and left to sit for a minute to start melting and bring down the temperature of the mixture to allow for better emulsification. After the resting period they are gently stirred together in a slow, circular motion from the inside of the bowl towards the edges until silky and smooth and very soft butter is incorporated to the mixture to increase the butterfat percentage and add richness to the filling. The result is intense.
What would you make for a baby shower?
Serves makes about 30 depending on the size of the truffl
Chocolate truffles flavored with blueberries and a touch of honey.
30 minPrep Time
3 hr, 30 Total Time
Save Recipe
Ingredients
- 8 oz (225g) dark chocolate (at least 60% cocoa solids)
- ¼ tsp fleur de sel
- ½ cup plus 2 Tablespoons (150 ml) heavy cream (double cream) (35-40% butterfat)
- ½ cup (92g) finely chopped dried blueberries
- 1 Tablespoon (15ml) honey
- 2 Tablespoons (28 grams) softened unsalted butter, cut into small pieces (it’s important that the butter be very soft)
- Dutch-processed unsweetened cocoa powder, for rolling
Instructions
- Chop the chocolate as finely as possible to allow it to melt quickly and easily. Place the chopped chocolate and fleur de sel in a medium bowl and set aside.
- In a medium saucepan, combine the cream, finely chopped dried blueberries and honey and bring to a gentle boil over medium heat.
- Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and let stand undisturbed for about 1 minute to begin melting the chocolate. Using a spatula, gently stir the mixture from the center outwards mix until all of the hot cream is incorporated and the ganache is homogenous.
- Whisk in the soft butter one piece at a time until incorporated. The ganache should be slightly thick and shiny. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate the ganache until set, about 2 to 3 hours. As it cools, it will firm and thicken; it should be firm, but soft enough to scoop out and roll into balls.
- Remove the truffle mixture from the refrigerator and using a melon baller or small scoop, scoop up a scant tablespoonful of ganache for each truffle. Roll each portion into a round in the palm of your hand and place onto a parchment lined sheet. Put the formed truffles in the fridge for about 15 minutes or until firm.
- Sift enough cacao powder to coat the bottom of a shallow plate or pie pan. Toss each truffle in the cocoa powder so that it is well coated, then carefully toss the truffles between your hands to shake off the excess or roll the truffles around in a sieve to shake off the extra cocoa.
- The truffles can be served immediately or can be stored tightly covered in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. Serve the truffles at room temperature.
Notes
Gluten-free, Grain-free, Vegetarian NOTE: You can substitute any chopped dried fruit you like for the dried blueberries.
Be sure to check out everyone’s contribution to the baby shower:
- TidyMom – Ducky Bath Punch
- Confessions of a Cookbook Queen – Homemade Butter Mints
- GoodLife Eats – Cucumber and Watercress Sandwiches
- Bake at 350 – Baby on Board Cookies
- Bluebonnets & Brownies – Mini Fruit Pizzas
- My Kitchen Addiction – Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls
- What’s Cooking with Kids – Hamentashen cookies
- Add a Pinch – i am baby Shower Punch
- Simple Bites – Spring Crudité, Buttermilk-Black Pepper Dip
- A Farmgirl’s Dabbles – {i am baby} cakes
- Food for My Family – Baby Shower Macarons
- Wenderly – A Bundle of Bebe Cards for the Bundle of Joy
- She Wears Many Hats – “B” is for Boy – Itty Bitty Baby Cupcakes
- Dine & Dish – Stuffed Mushrooms
- My Baking Addiction – Crab Rangoons
- Smith Bites – Strawberries w/Brown Sugar Dip
- Bakers Royale – Baby Shower Cupcakes
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This is just so beautiful Sylvie.You are a star when it comes to writing and a perfectionist when it come to taking pictures.I love love the ease with which truffles can be done in no time.And using dried berries is a brilliant idea.What sharp pictures Sylvie…I can almost see the texture of cocoa powder.
Have a nice weekend my friend.
Hi Sylvie, These Chocolate truffles look absolutely beautiful! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Have a great weekend,
Aldy.
I just finished making a double batch of these truffles to take to my cousin’s house tonight. Of course, I had to set aside a few for myself. These are by far the best truffles I have ever made. The combination of dark chocolate and the flavorful dried berries is wonderful. I used a 65% chocolate that I found at Trader Joe’s (and I also got the blueberries there for much less than I would have paid at our local grocery store). Even though I doubled the recipe, I only used a little over 1/4 teaspoon of the salt. The salt definitely added something. I cannot wait to try other flavors, but the blueberry is unique and very tasty.
That’s great Lisa, I’m so happy you liked them. I use the chocolate and dried berries from Trader Joe’s all the time, they have great stuff. The salt is definitely “to taste”, you can leave it out completely or just add a pinch, whatever amount you like is just perfect. I think that dried cherries would also be a good choice for these. I hope everyone enjoys them tonight!
I had no made chocolate truffles since I moved to Argentina,but you tempt me . Last week I made a lot of Brigadeiros, a kind of condensed milk and chocolate truffles.
What a delightful post! Especially when we are caught up in the tulmut of world wide chaos it is great to remember that life goes on and that joy is brought into the world. I love this idea of a babyshower.
Hmn… what would I bring? Well… as my oldest daughter is still on her red velvet cake mission (this week she is making it with beet juice), I guess I’d bring that.
Absolutely the most luscious truffles I’ve ever seen! What a beautiful way to celebrate with Amanda.
What a beautiful blog Sylvie! I already love your photos on flickr but you have so many great recipes too. Thanks for sharing!
I sense you are a truffle fan! Them are some inspired words… GREG
Just beautiful; your photos convey so clearly the richness of this simple treat. And what a fun idea; I’ve enjoyed the invite and the treats from the shower!
These are beautiful and decadent, Sylvie. I wish this kind of treat would show up at every baby shower.
Sounds wonderful! I am obsessed with truffles, never had them with blueberry though, and such a shame too, they look amazing. I will have to give this recipe a try.
These look gorgeous! A must try but since blueberries aren’t easily available in India, I am going to settle for some other fruit – maybe strawberries?
http://ruchisimplyfood.blogspot.com
Every time you photograph the color brown, magic happens. These are beautiful.
Wow your photos are always so incredibly stunning. I’m just in awe at your talent. These look soooo good. I love dried blueberries and I love truffles, so what’s better than this? 🙂
Those truffles look and sound AMAZING! I am definitely going to have to make them and soon!
Thanks for posting.
These pictures are wonderful! And I would love to taste these truffles!
mmm yummy can’t wait to try it, I wonder what it looks like from the inside 😉
FABULOUS! My son loves chocolate/raspberry truffles:) I’ll have to use your recipe with raspberries. THANKS!
I’m planning to make these truffles but my question is how much time can they be kept outside fridge? I need to carry them on a journey and gift it to my friends. So can I gift it after taking out of fridge and keeping in airtight container?
Or is there any recipe of truffles which doesn’t need to be kept in fridge?
Most homemade truffles will require refrigeration but that being said you can transport them for a short period of time if you are able to refrigerate them again once you get to where you are going, or alternatively you can transport them in a cooler bag with an ice pack if your trip is a long one. Hope that helps!