Trufffles

Last night as I pondered on what my next post should be about several ideas popped into my head and the word "Truffles" stood out from everything else. Truffles can be  very intimidating things to make but the taste of homemade compared to store bought is a big difference. For one, when you make truffles at home you don't need to add any of the preservatives found in commercial products.
The invention of the cocoa press in 1828 made possible separating the natural fat in cocoa beans, called cocoa butter, from the bean solids. This not only improved the consistency and taste of the remaining cocoa powder but made possible the development of solid chocolate. Eating chocolate or solid chocolate, as opposed to drinking chocolate, was first produced in 1847 in Fry's chocolate factory in Bristol, England. Solid chocolate is a combination of cocoa powder, sugar, cocoa butter and often flavorings like vanilla. In 1879 Swiss Henri Nestle and Daniel Peter developed milk chocolate by combining solid chocolate with milk powder. Experimentation in France and Switzerland led to the development of ganache.
Ganache is the center component of a truffle. Ganache is a velvety smooth combination of solid semisweet chocolate and cream. Cooked at just the right temperature it cools to form a rich and firm paste with intense chocolate flavor. A truffle is a confection made of a round ganache center, often flavored, covered with a shell of milk, dark or white chocolate. Truffles are often covered in cocoa powder, sugar or finely chopped nuts.
Perhaps originating in France, the truffle is named for its visual similarity to the French mushroom-like fungus of the same name. Like the original truffle, chocolate truffles have become synonymous with luxury and a sumptuous taste experience. Truffles are made in a wide variety of tastes. In many chocolate houses the Chocolatier's finest ingredients are reserved for the truffle.
A chocolatier is a type of chef that specializes in chocolate. A chocolatier has the skills of making chocolate, including tempering, molding, and making other pastry designs.
enerally chocolatiers start out as pastry or confectionery chefs, but anyone can become a chocolatier. Through proper schooling, or possibly self education, one could become a chocolatier. Although, proper training may be necessary to obtain an actual job as a chocolatier or to be considered a master chocolatier. Being a master chocolatier involves perfecting the art of working with chocolate to create not only delicious desserts, but also beautifully and skillfully crafted pieces of art with the chocolate. Generally it takes years of experience and a good background of confections and pastries to master the art of working with chocolate.
There are a variety of culinary schools and even specialty chocolate schools, like Ecole Chocolate School in Canada or The Chocolate Academy, with twelve different schools in the world. The French Culinary Institute also offers pastry and confectionery courses that are said to help a chocolatier learn the trade.
To become a chocolatier one must learn how to make and work with chocolate on different levels to create handcrafted pieces of art that also must taste sensational. Generally schooling consists of learning how to make chocolate from a variety of different origins. Once students learn how to make chocolate and begin to understand the physical and chemical aspects of chocolates they can learn to work with chocolate in many different applications. Chocolate is a versatile food thus different courses offer learning about different techniques when working with chocolate. Once someone becomes well-educated about all of chocolates' applications, or specializes in specific applications of chocolate they may be considered a chocolatier.
Often perfecting technical techniques of design and the art of flavor takes many years of practice. Advanced studies can lead to a better understanding of the components of chocolate and how to make chocolates along with sculpting and creating beautiful masterpieces from chocolate.
I'm going to post two different recipes for truffles. One will be the most widly used recipe and one will be more of a user friendly truffles. I encourage you to try both. Good luck and good tasting, Carren