OK, I promise to switch out cookbooks for awhile and not keep cooking things from Eric Gower's, The Breakaway Chef. I did have this recipe for Maccha Truffles tagged however and decided to try them--the combo of bittersweet chocolate and green tea being too irresistible to resist.
Scoop out a heaping teaspoonful and make a ball using your palms. Repeat until all the chocolate is used--you should end up with about 50 truffles. Line them up on a tray or plate and dust them with the remaining tablespoon of maccha, using a fine sieve. Top with a very light sprinkling of maccha salt. Makes about 50.
Between the green tea and the chocolate, these have some nice antioxidants and so I am not feeling too guilty about eating a couple each night to work my way through them! They are delicious with a cup of green tea too.
Maccha Truffles
Eric Gower, The Breakaway Cook
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1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup maple syrup
2 Tbsp brown sugar
2 Tbsp maccha
12 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
Pinch of maccha salt (recipe here) or kosher salt
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Bring the cream to a simmer in a small saucepan over gentle heat, add the maple syrup and brown sugar, and stir until dissolved, about 2 minutes. Add 1 Tbsp of the macha, stir until dissolved and set aside. Place the chocolate in a large mixing bowl and pour in the cream mixture. Mix thoroughly and pour onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Smooth it out with a rubber spatula. Cool in the refrigerator for about an hour.
Scoop out a heaping teaspoonful and make a ball using your palms. Repeat until all the chocolate is used--you should end up with about 50 truffles. Line them up on a tray or plate and dust them with the remaining tablespoon of maccha, using a fine sieve. Top with a very light sprinkling of maccha salt. Makes about 50.Results: The truffles went together quickly and easily and I had them spread on the parchment lined pan and setting up in the refrigerator in just a few minutes. They seemed pretty set when I took them out about 2 hours later to form them into round balls, however for some reason, my chocolate never seemed to set that firmly. I found myself struggling to form even, round balls (therefore I am calling mine "rustic" instead of round as it sounds better than misshapen) and making a pretty melty mess all over my hands. I put them back in the fridge for another hour and then pulled them out twice more to finish shaping them. I let them firm up a bit more before dusting them with the remaining maccha and sprinkling a bit of my maccha salt on them. Taste wise they were incredible, the chocolate and maccha complimented each other well and the little sprinkle of maccha salt was that perfect sweet/salt combo without being overpowering. Texture wise they had to stay in the fridge and I would call mine more of a Maccha Ganache Bite, than a truffle. I don't know if my proportions were off, it was the chocolate I used, the recipe itself or what happened so I will probably make the recipe again at some point to see if I get different results. I had a hard time making them very small and I ended up with about 36 pieces.
Between the green tea and the chocolate, these have some nice antioxidants and so I am not feeling too guilty about eating a couple each night to work my way through them! They are delicious with a cup of green tea too.
I wonder if using a melon baller would have helped make them round. Still, they sound delicious as they are :)
ReplyDeleteThose are so purdy and a perfect dessert for your chicken salad and cucumber soup.
ReplyDeleteI forgot to mention that I love all your tunes. Are we the same age???? I'm 38 and there was a definite absence of new music on my music meme-just like yours.
I haven't tried truffles yet. I think they are supposed to be roughly shaped like the mushrooms. They look great. I would treat yourself to a couple of different sized scoops if you don't have them already, they are handy.
ReplyDeleteI haven't tried maccha yet either, what does it taste like?
Kat--I did try a melon baller but couldn't seem to pry them out of there very well.
ReplyDeletePrudy--I have about 4 years on you. I have always preferred older music though. I saw your list and loved what was on it--I almost put "Here Comes The Sun" on mine too. ;-)
Natashya, I think I do need a couple smaller metal scoops--my plastic melon baller was not so effective. The maccha has a green tea taste, a little pleasant bitter edge to it--makes the chocolate not so sweet.
Truffles are a great thing to have in your repertoire! And maccha truffles sound fantastic! They are supposed to be a little funny shaped, I think - it makes them look homemade!
ReplyDeleteI use a little cookie scoop (cuz then you can get them out easily) and put them in the freezer for a few minutes before scooping and rolling. You can coat your hands in cocoa powder to help with the melting, but rest assured it's very common! Also, I've found that the cream to chocolate ratio makes some more melty than others...I just haven't figure out what the differences are yet because I always forget to write down what I do.
hmm, I wonder if a mini-disher would have done the trick. though if they were soft, the rustic way would have been the only solution :)
ReplyDeleteMichelle and Kat--thanks for the tips. I think a small metal scoop or disher is the way to go and cocoa powder probably would have helped too. I'll try them again.
ReplyDeleteThese look amazing, never had maccha before and now I want to search for some. I love how you called them "rustic truffles" :) Maybe if you dipped them and gave them a shell of dark chocolate the ganache-y centers would work better. Let us know if you make them again!
ReplyDeleteI made the yum yum blog award just a few months to see where all she would end up and you would not believe the amazing food blogs she has ended up on. I have had so much fun seeing all of this and learning about more blogs and recipes along the way.
ReplyDeleteYou deserve it!
Noor from Ya Salam Cooking
Andrea--great suggestions!
ReplyDeleteNoor--thanks for creating the award--it was a pleasure to get one!
Where does one find maccha powder? Asian market?
ReplyDelete