Boozy Cherry Vegan Truffles
The holiday season is in full swing, and you really should have some treats planned by now. No? Well I’m here with a simple little treat that everybody will think was hard to make. I’m talking about Vegan Truffles.
No Special Skills Are Needed to Make Vegan Truffles
I know, people spend big bucks on fancy truffles, many of which are pretty awful. They are also usually made with cream. I’m here to tell you, all you need is chocolate, coconut milk, and a flavor of your choice. Vanilla, almond, booze, any will do.
If you can boil a little coconut milk and pour it over some chocolate, then stir, you have the truffle filling. Chill it, scoop it, and you have truffles. I like to gussy it up with some liquor-soaked dried fruit, but you don’t have to. It’s optional in the recipe below.
They Don’t Have to Be Perfect-They’re Delicious!
Vegan Truffles are Easy to Make in Stages
It’s easy to throw the ganache together in the morning before work, or after dinner. Just stir it up and chill it. Then, plan about 20 minutes for forming the truffles into balls. You need a small scoop to make this go quickly, I’ve used a melon baller in a pinch. Chill them again and you can dip them later in about a 15 minute session. I melted chocolate to coat them, but you can just roll in cocoa, powdered sugar, nuts, or whatever sounds good to you.
Because I don’t make you take time to temper the chocolate, the coating will not be glossy and snappy. That’s why I like to sprinkle it with some crunchy, flavored sugar or other decoration to cover the less-than-perfect look of the coating.
(if you want to temper chocolate, you’ll need more time…)
Once You Scoop Them They are Truffles!
Everybody Loves Chocolate
The plain truffle is vegan, alcohol free, and really, kind of a healthy little pick me up. It’s mostly dark chocolate, packed with antioxidants, so it’s good for you. The fruity version has healthy dried fruit in it as a bonus.
Truffles Are Fun To Share
If you want to go all out with candy boxes and foil, or just put them on a plate and serve them, people will love them. I put mine in those mini-muffin papers so I could pack them into reusable containers for my friends. Just keep them in the refrigerator until time to serve.
Happy Holidays with Truffles!
Vegan Truffles
Ingredients
- 8 ounces very dark chocolate chopped
- 1/2 cup coconut milk thick
- 2 teaspoons vanilla (use glycerine vanilla for no-alcohol) for plain truffles
For Boozy Cherry Truffles
- 1/2 cup dried cherries
- 1/2 cup cognac or brandy
Coating
- 8 ounces very dark chocolate
- cocoa, colored sugar, chopped nuts, powdered sugar, etc
Instructions
- If using cherries, soak the cherries in the booze before starting. When soft and plumped, squeeze them out and chop the fruit, and reserve the liquor.
- Chop the chocolate. Place the coconut milk in a small pot and bring to a boil. Take off the heat and dump in the chocolate, let stand for a couple of minutes before stirring. When all the chocolate is melted, stir in the vanilla or 2 tablespoons of the liquor from the cherries.
- Scrape the chocolate mixture into a storage container, cover, and refrigerate until firm, at least 3 hours.
- Prepare a large storage container for the truffle scoops. Scoop the ganache into portions, then roll between your palms for a nice round shape. Place in the storage container and chill for at least half an hour.
- Line a sheet pan with parchment. Melt chocolate in a double boiler and dip the truffles, using a fork to lift each one out of the chocolate, shake off extra chocolate, and place on parchment. Decorate with a sprinkle of sugar or nuts.Alternatively, skip the melted chocolate coating and simply roll in coatings.
- Refrigerate until time to serve, keep tightly covered.
