Chocolate truffles

Source: unknown

Ingredients:

Truffles:

• 200ml double cream
• 75g light muscovado sugar
• pinch of sea salt
• 250g best-quality dark chocolate, finely chopped
• a further 150g best-quality dark chocolate, finely chopped to coat

For the flavour variations:

Candied orange:

• 25g candied orange peel, finely chopped

Stem ginger:

• 25g stem ginger in syrup, drained and finely chopped

Cherry and coconut:

• 25g desiccated coconut, lightly toasted
• 50g dried morello cherries, chopped

Method:

1. Before you start, line a baking tray with non-stick baking parchment
2. Put the cream, sugar and salt into a pan over medium heat. Bring to the boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar, then reduce the heat and simmer very gently for one minute. Put the chopped chocolate in a bowl. Remove the pan from the heat and pour the mixture over the chocolate. Stir until the chocolate has melted and the mixture is smooth.
3. Divide the mixture evenly between two bowls and add whichever flavour you have chosen. Mix thoroughly, then leave to cool and set in the fridge for about two hours.
4. Scoop 1 tsp of set truffle mixture into the palm of your hand. Roll it quickly into a ball and place it on the lined baking tray. Repeat. Chill until firm.
5. To temper, the chocolate for the coating, place 100g of the chocolate in a small bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water. The bottom of the bowl should not come into contact with the water. Stir the chocolate until melted and smooth. Remove the bowl from the pan and add the remaining 50g of chopped chocolate. Stir until melted and the chocolate had cooled and thickened slightly. Return the bowl to the pan and warm over the water once more. 
6. First, lay out a clean sheet of baking parchment. Taking one truffle at a time drop it into the tempered chocolate. Using a fork and working quickly, roll the truffle to coat it in the chocolate, then lift it and allow to excess to drop back into the bowl, tapping the fork on the edge. Carefully slide the truffle off fork onto the clean baking parchment. repeat with the remaining truffles and leave to harden before packing into pretty boxes. 
7. Store in a cool place, truffles will keep up to one week. Bring out 30 minutes before serving.