Make Your Own Hazelnut Ganache Chocolate Truffles - aka - "Nutella" Truffles

 Food   Thu, April 19, 2018 12:35 PM

Doyestown, PA - I don’t know about you but I have fond memories of Nutella®. It was manna-from-heaven for me as a kid. It always seemed to disappear faster than it came home from the grocery store. I didn’t even know what a hazelnut was, I just knew that whatever came out of that jar was irresistible. 


One of the first chocolate truffles that I made was a hazelnut chocolate truffle for my brother. The both of us were mad scientists trying to get the proportions right. I called it "John’s Buddha" because we were using Buddha shaped chocolate moulds and filled them with this amazing ganache we created.
 
I was grateful for his help in refining the recipe to meet our high standards! It worked really well. 
During the time I owned Cocova, now "The Chocolate House, D.C., I had become exposed to other high quality hazelnut pastes that are delicious beyond any description I can utter!
 
Take the Creme de Noisette from Francois Pralus. OMG UFB!! I don’t know if I can say that here, but I did!
 
Absolutely the best I have ever had. I have used this a few times in my truffles to the ecstatic delight of those fortunate to have tasted them.
 
The reason I do not use it all the time is that in the U.S. it costs about $30+ for a 6.0 oz tube of this heavenly cream.
 
My next favorites to use are Shawn Askinosie and Amedei!!! Try them. Try them all! Any excuse to make hazelnut truffles is a great excuse!
 

This recipe below is super easy to make and it is directly out of my second cookbook: The Chocolate Chef - Missing Recipes. You can purchase the book for $2.99 through your favorite online retailer! Or click here :-)

 
The Recipe
 
Ganache:
- 8 ounces fine milk chocolate (I prefer the Cocoa Barry Lactee 38.2% milk chocolate)
- 4 ounces heavy cream 
- 3 tablespoons Nutella® or your preferred hazelnut paste. 

For Tempering:
- 7.2 ounces milk chocolate for tempering
- 1.8 ounce milk chocolate for temper seeding
For Decorating:
- 1/2 cup crushed toasted hazelnuts
Method
Add the 8 ounces of fine milk chocolate to a small metal or glass bowl and set aside.
 
Add the heavy cream to a small sauce pan and bring to a full boil. Be careful it does not boil over the edge. 

Remove and cool for 30 seconds. Bring to a full boil again.

Cool for 30 seconds and bring to a full boil a third time.
 
*** Note: To fully understand why you should boil your cream three times, read the full text in The Chocolate Chef: Uncovered.

Cool for 20 seconds. Pour directly into your bowl of chocolate through a strainer.
Jiggle the bowl a little to get the chocolate covered in the cream. 
Let sit for 30 seconds while you bring 1 cup of water in a small saucepan to steaming level.
Stir the ganache well and then place it on the saucepan over the steaming (not bubbling) water. 
Stir gently until smooth, creamy, and silky, but do not let the temperature exceed 117 degrees. 
Let the ganache cool to about 90 degrees and then add the hazelnut paste, or Nutella®, stirring until it is fully incorporated. 
Forming
It is going to take a lot longer for this to cool than a typical ganache because of the extra oils in the hazelnut paste, or Nutella®. 
Use the piping method (filling a piping bag with a medium tip) to pipe out 1” roundish mounds of ganache. 
Wearing latex or vinyl gloves, roll the ganache into balls, remembering not to keep them in your hands too long.  
Tempering
Bring 1 cup of water in a small saucepan to a heavy steam, but without any bubbles.
 
Place the 7.2 ounces of milk chocolate in a small metal or glass bowl on top of the saucepan, making sure that the bowl is not touching the water. 
When the temperature reaches 116.4 degrees, remove the bowl from the saucepan and add the 1.2 ounces chocolate seed.
 
**** Use caution if your thermometer has a delay. You may need to remove the bowl a few degrees sooner. Try not to let the chocolate overheat.

Stir the chocolate gently until cooled to 85.4 degrees. 

Warm for 15 seconds over steaming water to get the temperature to 88.6 degrees. 

The milk chocolate is now tempered and ready to use.

Decorating
You will need to monitor the temperature of your tempered chocolate occasionally. Place it over the steaming water 10 seconds at a time, stirring gently to acquire an even temperature.

Wearing a pair of latex or vinyl gloves, place a little milk chocolate in your hands.
 
Roll a couple of the ganache balls in it to create a very thin coat and place on the parchment paper.
 
Continue until all are coated. 
Using a dipping fork, take one truffle and place it at the end of the fork.
 
Dip it all the way into the tempered chocolate.
 
Lift the fork and gently tap it on the edge of the bowl to shake off excess chocolate.
 
Then, gently drag the bottom of the fork on the edge of the bowl to help prevent “feet” from developing. Place the truffle on the tray lined with parchment paper. 

Immediately top with a few bits of crushed toasted hazelnut. 

Let cool completely and enjoy!
 

As an alternate, and faster, method, after rolling the ganache balls in the chocolate, immediately roll them in the crushed hazelnuts and let set until cooled. You will need extra hazelnuts for this method. 

CONTACT:
chef@thechocolatechef.cooking
 
Robert Cabeca is a chef, pastry chef, and chocolatier. He has revealed many trade secrets in his book, The Chocolate Chef: Uncovered. He teaches how to discover the subtle flavors in chocolate so you can learn to create spectacular chocolate truffles and desserts in fun and easy ways. Chef Cabeca is a life-long student of chocolate and health and has trained over 2000 students how to make and love chocolate.