Chocolate Truffles

Learn how to make perfect chocolate truffles for special occasions, such as Valentine's Day, Holidays, and more! I'm sharing how to make them with various designs and shapes without a candy mold using one chocolate ganache. Fill them in a box, and it'll turn into a beautiful truffle box that they may think you bought it at a fancy chocolate shop!

If you are a chocolate lover, welcome! You came to the right place. I love making chocolate desserts, such as chocolate madeleines, classic chocolate cake, and chocolate creme brulee, and this one is rather for a special occasion, when I want to truly wow the guests. I've made them for home parties, work ceremonies, and even my sister's wedding.

But I hear you! - Making chocolate truffles can feel very intimidating in the beginning. I'm not going to say it is easy to draw your attention. Your kitchen can end up in a lot of chocolate mess. (Or we should say that is a part of the fun!😊) 

Things can go wrong without knowing the right tips and techniques. You may have encountered problems such as:

• The ganache was not smooth.
• The chocolate coating was too thick
• The chocolate coating was not set properly.
• It got white spots/marbles on the surface.

... and so on. 

That is why I am sharing detailed step-by-step instructions and troubleshooting tips so you can make them successful at home, even if this is your first time. 

​Let's get started! 💪🏻

📌 What's Unique About This Recipe

Many designs from one ganache.

You can make truffles with various designs using one chocolate ganache. I'm sharing my way of shaping each truffle and coating chocolate most effectively.

Make your own chocolate box!

These beautiful truffles would make a perfect gift box for all chocolate lovers! Imagine your loved ones opening it to find the homemade truffles. I guarantee you'll make their day!🎁

Fancy truffles without a candy mold

In this tutorial, I am sharing jewel-like truffles without a candy mold. They may think you bought them at a chocolate shop.

​The easiest way to temper chocolate

I'm sharing how to temper chocolate in my favorite way. Check out how to temper chocolate for a list of many ways to temper chocolate.

📌 What Is Tempering Chocolate?

Tempering chocolate refers to the process of heating and cooling chocolate to stabilize the crystals in the cocoa butter and give it a better look and texture. 

Here are the specific benefits of tempering chocolate:

The benefits of tempering chocolate

• Glossy shine: It creates a beautiful look with the glossy finish.
• Crisp snap: It makes a steady, hard chocolate that does not break easily, which is ideal for many chocolate creations, such as chocolate showpieces.
• Tempered chocolate does not melt easily: Successfully tempered chocolate does not melt easily at room temperature or when touching it by hand.
• Smooth texture: The beautifully aligned crystals feel so smooth and slowly melt in your mouth.

Untempered chocolate

• Blooms: You'll see white streaks (fat bloom) or white spots (sugar bloom) on the surface since the crystals are not stabilized.
• Crumbly: It does not snap like tempered chocolate and breaks more easily.
• It melts more easily: This is not ideal for almost any occasion, such as chocolate truffles and chocolate decorations.
• Rougher texture: The unstable crystals do not feel smooth in your mouth.

Even when using the same chocolate, tempered chocolate and untempered chocolate create a completely different look and texture. That is why it is so important to take time and work on the tempering process whenever you want the chocolate to look and taste exceptional.

📌 5 Tips For Making Perfect Dark Chocolate Truffles

1. 2 important temperatures

When tempering chocolate with the method I am using today, it's important to follow 2 temperatures:

1. The temperature to melt dark chocolate to: 113 - 122 ºF (45 - 50ºC)
2. The temperature to cool dark chocolate to: 87.8 - 89.6ºF (31 - 32ºC)

And please stick to them! Going outside of the ranges leads to unsuccessful tempering by breaking the structure of chocolate crystals. 

Hold the second temperature: 87.8 - 89.6ºF (31 - 32ºC) while coating it on the chocolate ganache. The most common mistake is reheating the chocolate too much after the tempering.

Keep in mind that these temperatures could vary slightly, depending on the percentage of the dark chocolate and the brand. Check the package and see if they list the temperatures to be most accurate.

2. Room temperature

I'll add it here as an individual tip because it is often taken rightly. You can go off of the second temperature ranges easily if your room temperature is too hot or too cold. Work on a cooling room to temper chocolate successfully at more ease. 

3. Water is your enemy!💦

Be very careful not to let any moisture go in the chocolate since it messes up the tempering. Ensure the tools, working surface, and your hands are completely dry.

Also, when heating the chocolate over a double boiler, use a bowl bigger than the size of the pot to prevent moisture from going in. 

4. Tips for coating tempered chocolate over the ganache filling

Be careful with the list below to avoid getting fat or sugar bloom:

1. Ensure no excess moisture is attached to the surface of the ganache.
2. Avoid dipping them while they are warm or soft. When dipping soft ganache, the ingredients, such as the butter, sugar, and cream inside, can be mixed in the chocolate.
3. Treat the ganache gently to prevent the ganache from going into the tempered chocolate.

5. Store them in a cooling place.

Leaving chocolate truffles in a warm room melts the chocolate. The ideal temperature to store chocolate is 59 - 68ºF (15 - 20ºC). If you don't have the space, you can store it in the fridge. Store them in a box or airtight container and wrap the box if necessary to prevent them from getting moisture damage.  

📌 Tips For Chocolate Truffles Ingredients

Ganache

• Dark chocolate: I recommend chocolate with 50-65% cacao content. (I used 64% this time.) Use the one with more cacao percentage if you want a more bitter and firmer ganache.
• Heavy cream: Use regular heavy cream or heavy whipping cream.
• Honey: Inverted sugar, such as honey, helps to create a smooth ganache. You can omit it if you like.
• Butter(soft): Butter creates a creamier texture. You can omit it if you like.
• Dark chocolate to coat the bottom of the ganache

Chocolate coating

• White chocolate: I used this couverture chocolate today.
• Dark chocolate: I used 64% couverture chocolate this time. 

Decorations

You can decorate the truffles with your favorite toppings. This time, I used toasted mixed nuts, pistachios, cacao nibs, gold leaf, and pieces of white and dark chocolate.

What type of chocolate should I use to temper chocolate?

Couverture chocolate

Use couverture chocolate for the best results. It is the most high-quality chocolate with the minimum amount of additives. It works best to maximize all the benefits of tempering chocolate, which I mentioned above. Try online if it's not sold locally. (I personally order on Amazon.) You'll find a lot of selections from various brands with various cacao percentages and flavors.

But! If you cannot get couverture chocolate, use any chocolate you get. I believe in starting with what you can get. It's not exactly the same result, but it's still amazing and delicious because, you know, ...it's chocolate!!

Compound chocolate

Compound chocolate refers to chocolate with more additives, such as chocolate chips, candy melts, and some chocolate bars. 

Although it works great for baked chocolate desserts, it will not give the same look and texture as couverture chocolate when it's tempered.

📌 VIDEO: Chocolate Truffles

Watch this video to learn how to make the white homemade truffles and have a deeper understanding of all.

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📌 Step-By-Step Instructions To Make Chocolate Truffles

Make chocolate ganache.

1. Melt the dark chocolate.

Heat it to 113 - 122 ºF (45 - 50ºC)

2. Meanwhile, prepare the tin.

Set parchment paper inside a square tin or cake ring (15 cm | 5.9 inches).

3. Add hot heavy cream and mix.

Heat heavy cream to 158 - 176ºF (70 - 80ºC) and add it to the melted chocolate:

1. Add about ⅓ of the hot cream and mix gradually from the center towards the edge until smooth. 
2. Add about half of the heavy cream and repeat the same process. 
3. Finally, add the rest and repeat. Don't forget to clean the bowl and spatula on the way to make an even ganache.

4. Add honey and mix. 

5. Add softened butter and mix.

• Add butter to the ganache when it feels gently warm. (98 - 102ºF | 37 - 39ºC).
• As an option, mix it with an immersion blender at the very end to create a smoother ganache

6. Pour it into the prepared tin or ring.

Chill it in the fridge until it gets firm completely. (more than a few hours to a day) Wrap it tightly so that it's not going to get any moisture damage in the fridge.

Cut the chocolate ganache.

1. Spread melted chocolate on one side.

Spread melted chocolate over one side of the chilled ganache very thinly. It's gonna be the bottom side of the truffles.

2. Flip it and cut the ganache.

Mark it with 1.1 inches (3 cm) intervals to create 25 pieces.

Cut into 5 different shapes (5 pieces each): Heart, circle, square, rectangle (cut off the edge of the square a little bit to create the rectangle shape), and octagon. 

Form balls with the palms of your hands using the leftover ganache. You should be able to get 4-6 truffle balls.

In total, you will get about 30 pieces with 6 designs.

3. Chill them in the fridge.

Take them out ahead before use so that they are not too cold by the time you coat the chocolate. Comfortably cold ganache is perfect!

Temper dark chocolate

1. Melt chocolate.

Heat about ⅔ of the dark chocolate in a heat-proof bowl over a double boiler until it reaches 113 - 122 ºF (45 - 50ºC)

Meanwhile, cut the remaining chocolate (⅓) into very small pieces so they can melt more easily.

2. Add diced chocolate and cool it.

Add the chopped chocolate and mix. Let the dark chocolate cool to 87.8 - 89.6ºF (31 - 32ºC) right around when all the dark chocolate is melted. 

3. Mix it with an immersion blender (optional). 

I highly recommend mixing it with an immersion blender at the end if you have one. It helps to emulsify chocolate completely and eliminate air bubbles if there are a lot. Many chocolatiers use it for those reasons.

Tip💡: Use it immediately before the chocolate cools down. When you need to work with it for a longer time, check the temperature sometimes and heat it with a hair dryer to hold the temperature range. Mix it well each time you heat it.

Coat the ganache with the tempered chocolate.

1. Drop the ganache on the melted chocolate.

2. Push it down with a fork.

3. Scoop it up.

3. Toss some time to remove excess chocolate.

4. Clean off the bottom with the edge of the bowl.

5. Place it on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

By the way, if you don't have the special fork for chocolate, use a regular fork - it works just fine!

6. Repeat the step 1 - 5.

​Finish them off.

1. Cut off the excess chocolate around the bottom edge.

2. Decorate the finished truffles. 

Decorate with any topping you like! If necessary, use a little bit of melted chocolate as glue to attach them.

📌 Frequently Asked Questions

What is chocolate truffle?

It is a bite-size chocolate ganache often coated with a thin layer of chocolate or other ingredients.

What is the shelf life of homemade chocolate truffles? 

Store them in the fridge. I recommend consuming them within five days or a week - There are so many opinions about this (Some chefs say a few weeks or a month, while others say a few days!)

Can I freeze chocolate truffles? 

It is possible to freeze them, but there is a risk of getting moisture damage. To minimize that, seal them in an airtight container. Do not move the box of frozen truffles to room temperature right away - Leave it in the fridge overnight to thaw.

📌 Printable Recipe

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