Spiced chocolate orange truffles

Another batch of chocolate truffles, this time with orange and a few drops of Fiori di Sicilia, an intensely fragrant citrus extract, often used in panettone.

As with all cooking, a good quality chocolate with a high percentage of cocoa solids is essential, but I often get these from the budget supermarkets: certainly as good quality as the brand names, but much cheaper.

Finishing them off!

You can roll the truffles in either good quality cocoa powder or crushed chocolate flakes, but I like to dip these truffle in melted or ideally tempered dark chocolate and finish with a sprinkling of finely grated orange zest.

Storage

These truffles should be kept in the fridge, where they will sit happily for 2 weeks.

Recipe: spiced chocolate orange truffles – makes about 30

• 100ml double cream or single cream
• 150g good quality dark chocolate (around 70% cocoa solids)
• finely grated zest of 1 large orange
• 2 tablespoons Cointreau, optional, or the juice of 1 orange
• 5 drops of Fiori di Sicilia

To finish:

• 200g dark chocolate, melted or tempered
• finely grated orange zest

(1) Heat the cream, most of the orange zest and the Fiori di Sicilia in a small pan until the cream just comes to the boil. Remove from the heat and leave for 2-3 minutes to cool slightly.

NB: if the cream is too hot, it can cause the chocolate so split and go grainy. If it does split, simply beat in a splash of cold cream and it will come back together.

(2) Put the chocolate into a small bowl and pour the cream over it. Give the bowl a gentle shake to help the cream settle and leave for about 5 minutes to allow the hot cream to slowly melt the chocolate.

(3) Stir well to give a smooth, shiny ganache and stir in the Cointreau or orange juice.

(4) Chill for several hours or overnight until set and then take a teaspoon or so at a time, roll lightly into balls and then dip in the melted chocolate: a cocktail stick makes life easier: just lift out of the bowl of chocolate, allowing the excess to drp back into the bowl, and place on prachment. If there is a hole where the cocktail stick was, dab a little melted chocolate over.

(5) Sprinkle over a little orange zest and leave to set. Keep chilled.

Author: Philip

Finalist on Britain’s Best Home Cook (BBC Television 2018). Published recipe writer with a love of growing fruit & veg, cooking, teaching and eating good food. View all posts by Philip