065. Chocolate truffles (recipe)

I'd long been meaning to make the truffles my best friend taught me on New Year's Eve. The recipe is simple, but the truffles come out very tasty.
Welcome under the cut for the details ;).

Cooking time ≈ 30 minutes (not counting a night in the fridge).

Ingredients:

• 400 g dark chocolate
• 300 ml heavy (33%) cream
• a vanilla pod (a real pod, not vanilla sugar!)
• 50 g butter

First break the chocolate into pieces.

Pour the cream into a heavy-bottomed pan, drop in the vanilla pod split lengthwise and bring to the boil. Take the pod out (it will do for a couple more times), put the butter into the pan and bring to the boil again (the butter should melt).

Tip 300 g of the chocolate into the pan (the remaining squares will become chocolate shavings) and stir until smooth. If you like, pour in 30 ml of any liqueur (for a hint of some flavour). Whisk the mixture for 2–3 minutes. Put the pan with the mixture in the fridge overnight.

The next day grate the remaining chocolate on a fine grater. Take the pan out and quickly (before it melts) start rolling the mixture into balls, coating them in the grated chocolate and laying them on a plate. Sprinkle with the leftover shavings and put in the fridge for another couple of hours.

The chocolate truffles are ready.

Bon appétit!