Chocolate Orange Hazelnut Truffles

Hello and welcome to the official first recipe of Culinary Couture photographed with a DSLR camera! Before you get too excited, it's not my camera. It belongs to a friend of mine who graciously lent it to me after my nephew broke my beloved point and shoot camera over the weekend. Yes folks, the Nikon s3100 that I have used for three years is gone. But I've come to terms with it. In fact, I believe it's time I bite the bullet, and buy my own fancy shmancy DSLR.

However, for this week, I'll be using my friend's and getting some practice in while I'm at it. I never realized my hands were so unsteady until I tried taking an overhead shot with this camera. Woah. And all these different modes and controls? I have a lot to learn. 


Anywho, aren't these truffles beautiful? As a DSLR newbie, I really couldn't go wrong with them as my photography subject.

Not only are they pretty, but they are DELISH. Chocolate and orange is not a combination I would normally try, but this month's Mystery Dish ingredient list gave me that push I needed to experiment. Marcie from Flavor The Moments was our host and she gave us pork, fennel, kabocha squash, hard apple cider, heavy cream, orange, farro, hazelnuts, quince, thyme, maple syrup, and brussel sprouts.



I've never actually made real chocolate truffles before, so I was really looking forward to whipping these up. They did not dissappoint! Super simple to make and I loved the undertones of orange and crunch of the hazelnuts. And of course, the way they melted in my mouth was absolutely glorious and something no other truffle has done before.

So yeah, I'm pretty much sold on these truffles. Chocolate and orange is divine, and these would be SO perfect for the holidays. Don't you agree?

Chocolate Orange Hazelnut Truffles

Yield: 18 truffles

Ingredients:

7 oz. semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon orange juice
1 teaspoon orange zest
1/2 cup chopped hazelnuts

Directions:

Place chocolate chips in a bowl. In a small saucepan, bring heavy cream and orange juice to a rolling boil. Immediately pour over chocolate chips. Toss in orange zest. Let the chocolate chips sit for about a minute, then start to whisk them together with the heavy cream, until they are completely melted and smooth.

If the chocolate chips do not melt completely, simply place the bowl over a pan of simmering water and stir until they melt.

Transfer ganache to the fridge and refrigerate for 30-45 minutes, or until it is firm enough to scoop.

Scoop out teaspoon sized dollops and place onto a wax paper lined baking sheet. Refrigerate the dollops for about 30 minutes.

Then, remove from the fridge and roll into balls. Roll the balls into chopped hazelnuts. Place in mini baking cups to serve, if desired. 

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