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Nipples of Venus




Source of Recipe


Condra Easley, pastry chef-co-owner of Patisserie Angelica in Santa Rosa


Recipe Introduction


Makes 60 truffles


List of Ingredients




For the ganache:
1 pound, 3 ounces high-quality dark chocolate, finely chopped
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
6 tablespoons softened unsalted butter
2 pounds high-quality dark chocolate, finely chopped for tempering.
1 pound high-quality white chocolate, finely chopped, for the final dip

Recipe



For the ganache: Heat the cream just to boiling and pour over chopped chocolate. Add softened butter and whisk together slowly until emulsified and shiny. If necessary, heat 30 seconds at a time if not fully melted.

Let this mixture sit at room temperature until it thickens enough to pipe out, or stick the tray in the refrigerator to hasten things.

With a piping bag and a No. 7 open piping tip, pipe onto a parchment-lined sheet. Chill in the refrigerator or let set up at room temperature.

For the tempering: Melting chocolate is usually done best in a bain-marie or double boiler, which is just a pan of hot or simmering water, with a bowl placed over it. Melt about 2/3 of the chocolate. Use a bain-marie pan until the chocolate is completely melted, not to exceed 120 degrees. Alternatively, to melt the chocolate, place it in a small heatproof bowl. Then rest it over a saucepan of barely simmering water and leave for a few minutes, stirring occasionally, until melted.

Remove from the heat, wiping the bottom of the bowl to remove any water. Add the remainder of the chocolate and stir in. The added chocolate should melt down. This will recrystallize the chocolate, causing it to solidify. The perfect temperature for dipping chocolates is between 88 and 90 degrees. If the chocolate is still too hot, allow to cool further. If the chocolate gets too cool, the bowl can go back briefly on the bain-marie. You can melt chocolate in a microwave, choosing a low setting and after intially melting for 30 seconds, use short hits of 10 to 15 seconds each time to see if it has melted.

For the white chocolate: Temper in the same fashion as the dark chocolate, but the bain-marie or saucepan should have very warm, not simmering water. Melting temperature should not exceed 115 degrees. Dipping temperature should be between 87 and 89 degrees.

Dipping the truffles: When the ganache has set, temper the dark chocolate. With a tempering fork (or dinner fork) immerse one truffle into the chocolate completely. Remove from the chocolate and carefully shake off excess. Place the truffle on a parchment-lined sheet. Continue with all truffles, slowly reheating chocolate if necessary. Chocolate can be maintained at a constant temperature by putting a heating pad on its lowest temperature and placing the bowl of chocolate on top. Cover with plastic wrap.

After the white chocolate is tempered, dip just the tip of the truffle in it.

Keep in a tightly covered container in the refrigerator for up to a week, but these are best gobbled within a few days (with help). They may be stored, tightly wrapped, in the freezer. To defrost, remove from freezer and let defrost still wrapped until they come to room temperature. This will eliminate any condensation.

Truffles should be enjoyed at room temperature.

Variations: the cream can be infused with coffee, vanilla beans, or tea by using a "cold infusion" method. This method produces a pure flavor, free from the harshness you sometimes get with a "hot infusion."

Place 1 vanilla bean cut in half and scraped out into the cold cream, steeping in refrigerator for two days. Steep with 2 teaspoons of black or green tea for one day. Steep with 1/2 cup coarsely ground coffee beans for one day. Strain the material out and heat the cream as indicated in recipe.