These indulgent homemade truffles are my gluten free and vegan version of the Ferrero Rochers I used to love before my coeliac disease diagnosis! They are such a delicious alternative and would make the perfect homemade Christmas gift for someone special this year!
They require only three ingredients and are really easy to make! I like to add a whole hazelnut to the centre of each of my truffles but this is completely optional! Make sure you use a good quality chocolate for these, I personally use Bournville, as this really will make all the difference when it comes to how these taste. I love these truffles but if you fancy trying a more nutrient dense version you will like this recipe for a healthier alternative to these!
Before going vegan I would make these using dairy containing double cream so I was very happy when a plant based version came out and I could start eating them again.
I have noticed a few differences between the dairy containing cream and the plant based version with the main one annoyingly being that it is easier to go wrong with the plant based version! Not only does it seem to split more easily than the dairy version but it also seems to attract air bubbles – both of which will ruin the ganache and create a sticky, grainy almost caramel like consistency.
There are a few things I have started doing in order to minimise this risk which include:
- Make sure you do not accidentally boil the cream. Remember you are just warming it over a low heat and don’t want any bubbles in the cream
- As the temperature of the cream won’t be that high it won’t melt every single chunk of chocolate, no matter how small you chop the pieces. For this reason, I have started grating the chocolate, (or at least as much of it as I can), rather than just chopping it into chunks with a knife)
- When you have poured the cream over the chocolate just allow it to sit for a few minutes before touching it
- When the time comes to start stirring, move the spoon slowly and tentatively. You need to be careful you don’t stir too quickly and trap air bubbles into the ganache. Aim to touch the ganache as little as possible
- I find that making small movements and starting from the centre of the bowl and slowly working my way out in a spiral shape helps to ensure everything is combined without trapping lots of air in
If, however, you take as much care as possible when making these and you are still left with a sticky slightly grainy ganache do not worry. You can easily rectify this by throwing the mixture into a food processor along with a few tablespoons of cocoa powder and blitzing. Just add a little bit at a time unntil the mixture is firm and easily rolled into balls that do not stick to your hands.
I have noted that these will need to be left to sit for a minimum of one hour, I usually leave the ganache in the fridge to firm up overnight and find this works well too so do not worry if you forget about them and end up leaving the mixture in there for longer than noted. Please note that the ‘prep time’ stated includes the time needed for these truffles to set! How many truffles you create will depend on the size of the balls you roll but I generally get around 10 to 12 from one batch.
If you like these truffles you might also like my White Chocolate Pistachio Truffles that you can find here.
If you like this recipe and want to show some support please leave a comment below or visit my Ko-Fi account to donate! x
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