On the second day of our 12 Days of Christmas Desserts,
we are featuring Chocolate Truffles!
Chocolate Truffles from Tamara's the Cake Guru
We all know that the holiday season isn’t complete without lots and lots chocolate! And no chocolate treat compares to the chocolate truffle. The truffle packs so much flavor into such a tiny morsel and adds a touch of elegance to any event.
Where do truffles come from? While people had been experimenting with chocolate for centuries, the year 1828 was deemed to be the greatest year in the history of chocolate-making, due to a new innovation called the cocoa press, which solidified chocolate by removing the cocoa butter.
However, the most important period in the history of the chocolate truffle was 1879, the year Henri Nestle created the first milk chocolate. Soon after, experiments on this milk chocolate conducted in France and Switzerland led to the creation of ganache, which is a combination of cream and solid chocolate melted together to form a smooth, velvety mixture. Today, this ganache has become the inner core and heart of the chocolate truffle.
Chocolate Truffles from Neat-O's Bake Shoppe
A French invention, the original chocolate truffle was a ball of ganache, chocolate and cream, often flavored and rolled in cocoa. While no one knows for certain who invented it, according to legend, truffles happened by accident, just like many other important discoveries. The chocolate truffle was created in the kitchen of French culinary giant Auguste Escoffier during the 1920s.
One day, as his apprentice attempted to make pastry cream, he accidentally poured hot cream into a bowl of chocolate chunks rather than the bowl of sugared egg. As the chocolate and cream mixture hardened, Escoffier found he could work the chocolate paste with his hands to form a lopsided ball.
The name ‘truffle’ came from the chocolate balls’ strong physical resemblance to the truffle fungus once it was covered in cocoa powder. This resemblance to a valuable ingredient that was only available to the elite elevated the chocolate truffles’ status in the world of desserts. As the concept developed, different truffle textures were created by rolling the center ganache in white confectioners’ sugar or finely chopped nuts.
Chocolate Truffles from Clasen's European Bakery
This holiday season, add chocolate truffles to your must-have list. Whether you make your own or get them from your local bakery, truffles are the perfect gift for everyone on your list! After all, the best gifts come in tiny, delicious packages!
Chocolate and Truffle fun facts:
- May 2nd is National Truffle Day!
- It takes 400 cocoa beans to make one pound of chocolate
- 70% of the world’s supply of cocoa beans comes from West Africa
Find Chocolate Truffles at one of these WBA member bakeries:
Clasen's European Bakery
Neat-O's Bake Shoppe
Tamara's the Cake Guru
To find a WBA Member bakery near you, click here.
Previous post:
Day 1 - Traditional Christmas Stollen
Next post:
Day 3 - French Macarons
