Valentine’s Day Recipe: Chocolate Bourbon Truffles

It wouldn’t be Valentine’s Day without chocolate. This recipe from Culinary Director and Executive Chef Nicholas Walker is both decadent and surprisingly easy to make. Enjoy it with someone special this weekend.

Chocolate Bourbon Truffles

1/2 pound good bittersweet chocolate
1/2 pound good semisweet chocolate
1 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons bourbon
1 tablespoon prepared coffee
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Confectioners’ sugar
Cocoa powder

Directions:
Chop the chocolates finely with a sharp knife. Place them in a heat-proof mixing bowl.

Heat the cream in a small saucepan until it just boils. Turn off the heat and allow the cream to sit for 20 seconds. Pour the cream through a fine-meshed sieve into the bowl with chocolate. With a wire whisk, slowly stir the cream and chocolates together until the chocolate is completely melted. Whisk in the bourbon, if using, coffee, and vanilla. Set aside at room temperature for 1 hour.

With 2 teaspoons, spoon round balls of the chocolate mixture onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Refrigerate for 30 minutes, until firm. Roll each dollop of chocolate in your hands to roughly make a round ball. Roll in cocoa powder or confectioners’ sugar.