Chocolate Marzipan Truffles

Tonight i am off to a French themed soiree for my friend Jack's birthday. I was honored that he asked me to bring some food fitting to the theme, and was charged with desserts! In addition to the obligatory chocolate eclairs i also wanted to make truffles as something a bit special.

Although these truffles are not truly authentic in that they do not resemble the black fungi that is so relished across the globe, they are French in their shells of French marzipan, a pasta made from ground almonds and sugar. And they're also, ridiculously massive!! I used Lindt chocolate for a little extra extravagance.

This recipe was adapted from that of Jugalbandi

Ingredients (makes 20 large truffles or 30 regular)

Truffle Filling

• 150gm milk chocolate
• 200gm dark chocolate
• 2/3 cup double cream
• Pinch salt
• 1 tbsp honey
• 1 tbsp frangelico
• 50gm butter
• 1 tsp instant coffee granules
• Icing sugar for your hands

Marzipan Shells

• 3 cups ground almonds + 1/2 cup extra
• 2/3 cup water
• 1 tsp rose water
• 2 cups sugar + 1/2 cup extra
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• A few drops almond essence

Method

Truffle Filling

Finely chop the chocolate and butter.

Combine all ingredients except the cream in a container with a lid.

Heat the cream over medium heat, stirring, until it comes to the boil.

Pour the cream over the chocolate mixture, stirring until it is all smooth, glossy and combined.

Let cool to room temperature then cover and place in the fridge to set.
Remove the chocolate from the fridge and dust hands with icing sugar
Get teaspoons of the chocolate mixture and roll into balls, and place on a plate.
Repeat until all chocolate is used and you have at least 20 truffles
Transfer to the freezer to get very cold and hard

Marzipan ShellsBring the water to a simmer in a medium saucepan
Add the 2 cups sugar and stir until all dissolved.

Add the other ingredients (except 1/2 cup sugar and 1/2 cup almond meal) and stir.
Cook the mixture until it becomes very thick and claggy.

Let cool and then the mixture in cling film and transfer to the fridge to get cold.

Remove the mixture from the fridge and knead briefly, using the extra almond meal to get a doughy texture.
Note that the mixture will still be quite sticky.
Roll the mixture into small balls slightly larger than the chocolate balls from earlier.

Assembling the truffles

Take the remaining 1/2 cup sugar and place it in a shallow bowl.
Take one chocolate ball and push it into the marzipan ball, wrapping the marzipan around the chocolate.

Work quickly to avoid melting anything too much.
Roll the truffle between your fingers to make it smooth then roll it in the sugar bowl.
Transfer to serving plate.
Repeat for remaining truffles.
Refrigerate until ready to serve.