Wednesday, October 15, 2008

White chocolate, cranberry and Cointreau truffles

White chocolate, cranberry and Cointreau truffles

Before I got married, people used to tell me that brides never eat during the wedding – they are too busy walking around, talking to guests, thanking for presents...

I might not have eaten tons of food during the wedding but not because I was terribly busy. I did talk to everyone and it was wonderful to see all those dear faces on such a magical day for me, but that was my day and I wanted it to be about things I like doing. That’s why I danced a lot – so much my shoes were off by the end of the night – and enjoyed the moment with Joao to the fullest, with a slice of cake and ice cream on the side.

The catering company we hired prepared a snack box for us to take to the hotel – that was so nice! There were a lot of sweets in the box and they were delicious – I could enjoy the ones I hadn’t eaten during the wedding. :)

I am telling you all that because my Brazilian buddy Fernanda is hosting an event about wedding sweets and candies, which is something absolutely traditional here in Brazil.
I’m taking part on the event with these truffles; the ones I had on my wedding were plain, with just a touch of brandy, but I wanted to add an unusual ingredient for Brazilians that goes so well with orange – cranberries.

White chocolate, cranberry and Cointreau truffles

White chocolate, cranberry and Cointreau truffles
adapted from here

300g good white chocolate
¼ cup (60ml) whipping cream
1 ½ tablespoons of Cointreau or other orange flavored liqueur
½ cup dried cranberries, finely chopped
1 teaspoon grated orange zest or rind
½ cup (70g) icing sugar

Melt the chocolate in a double boiler (bain-marie).
Warm the cream in a saucepan or microwave but be careful not to scald.
Add the warm cream to the chocolate (still in the double boiler) and mix together until evenly combined.
Remove from heat, add the Cointreau, cranberries and the grated zest and beat the mixture until smooth – chocolate will look curdled, don’t worry. Just beat well until glossy again.
Cover and refrigerate the mixture until it has set, 4 hours or overnight – remove mixture from fridge 10 minutes before rolling the truffles.
With a small spoon or cookie scoop roll small balls of the mixture.
Dust the truffles by rolling them in icing sugar and refrigerate again until hard.
Place into small paper or foil cases to serve if desired.

Makes 25-30

White chocolate, cranberry and Cointreau truffles

42 comments:

Katie said...

Oh my goodness. This just screams holidays to me for some reason. These look heavenly. I know what you mean about not eating on you wedding, I had people bringing me food while taking the pictures because I hadn't eaten in so long!

Peter G | Souvlaki For The Soul said...

Oooh! How decadently sweet Patricia!

Maria said...

Lovely looking truffles!

sunita said...

Patricia, those look really decadent...i don't remember eating anything much on our wedding day :-)

Meeta K. Wolff said...

you are so mean for teasing me with this. this is just what i need now!

Deborah said...

I was famished at my wedding, so I made sure to eat!! I wish I would have had some of these truffles, though - they look so good!

Manggy said...

Aren't you so sweet?! I love that you chose to dance and enjoy Joao. Thanking guests?! That's what thank you cards are for.
I'm on a white choc renaissance so I'm seriously craving these right now! They look so creamy and soooo good!

Anonymous said...

Oh, my, Patricia! Those look positively wonderful!

Anonymous said...

oh Patricia, they are gorgeous! i love all the flavours you;ve used. Truly decadent.

Peabody said...

Oh, I am saving these for Christmas...yum!

Cathy - wheresmydamnanswer said...

These look amazing and will make great holiday gifts!! Thanks for sharing these yummies :)

Anonymous said...

That is such a nice treat for them to have packed a box for you. I did leave my wedding starving...we went and got fast food...nice huh?

Anonymous said...

These truffles look wonderful! I love the combination of flavors and colors, an elegant and delicious treat for sure!

Lydia (The Perfect Pantry) said...

I can see these served with champagne on New Year's Eve -- what could be more elegant?!

Anonymous said...

i want one, i want one! those are just killing me....

Anonymous said...

white chocolate and cranberries are a lovely combination. i bet these are absolutely decadent!

Anonymous said...

I absolutely love the sound of this combination Patricia! And how clever of you to think to get a snack box :) Like you I was too busy to partake of all of the yummy food and wished that I had something a bit later.

Nina Timm said...

I can make these delicious treats for Christmas gifts....
Ps I left my wedding starving too, but my friend did pack us an amazing picnic hamper...

Anonymous said...

Patricia, At first glance, these looked a little like Mexican wedding cookies (I hope I'm remembering correctly). But these are way better! Because they have orange, cranberries and cointreau - three of my absolute fav things! yum!

There was no dancing at my wedding. But that's another story...

Y said...

They look gorgeous! At most of the weddings I've ever been to, the bride and groom rarely get a chance to eat much too. I'm sure that would never happen if your truffles were a feature :D

ChichaJo said...

This sounds absolutely luxurious! I know what you mean about the bride getting to eat at the wedding...which is why I made sure I had time to -- it is, after all, one of my favorite things to do ;) But my oh my if only I had these luscious truffles!!!

Lo said...

You've lured me with the promise of Cointreau. And it's lovely.

I think I ate at my wedding... but, it was because someone (like you) reminded me beforehand that I'd need nourishment to deal with the hoards! Great post.

pam said...

I just made a cranberry orange sorbet, and was thinking that I needed to make more things with cranberries. This is perfect!

Anonymous said...

Oh, these would be perfect for a dessert party, but why wait for a party, when I can make these right now?
I don't often have all the ingredients at hand, but, that's not the case today.
Thanks Patricia!

Snooky doodle said...

these look really delicious. Traditional wedding sweets in Malta are small almond biscuits. I love white chocoalte and the cranberries add an extra bonus :)

LyB said...

Those would make perfect holiday treats! Thanks so much for sharing the recipe, and the story. :)

Patricia Scarpin said...

Katie, I think they are very Christmassy, indeed.
I could not eat before the ceremony, because I was too anxious, but then I was starving! :)

Pete, decadent, indeed! :)

Maria, thank you for stopping by!

Sunita, so I believe people here were right. :)

Meeta, they were gone very fast, hun! :)

Deb, I was famished too - from not eating before the ceremony! :)

Mark, we had so much fun together, it's a great moment in our lives. Thank you, my friend.

Michelle, thank you!

Syrie, your truffles were absolutely gorgeous, my dear.

Pea, I hope you make these!

Cathy, thank you for dropping me a line!

Cathy, it was indeed a nice thing and it came in very handy! :)

Ari, my darling, how great to see you here, tks!

Lydia, that is very elegant! You are so posh, my friend. ;)

Liz, have some, darling!

Megan, they were very delicate!

Lorraine, we got to the hotel, opened a bottle of champagne and had a snack. Wonderful!

Nina, your friend is a great friend, I'll say! :)

Mari, you are right - they do! With the icing sugar on top and all.
I love dancing and made sure the band played our song - Police's "Every breath you take". :)

Y, I'm a crazy kind of bride, I guess. :)

Joey, the food on weddings is usually so delicious, we can't miss that, can we? :)

Lo, thank you so much for your comment! :)
I'm glad someone fed you. After all, we need energy to go through all those emotions, right?

Pam, your sorbet was amazing!

Marysol, go ahead and make these, sweetie!

Snooky Doodle, I think I'd love those almond biscuits. :)

LyB, you are so kind, thank you, dear!

Shari said...

These sound delicious and your wedding caterer was brilliant to package up some treats for you to take back to the hotel!

Nic said...

OMG, I want these so bad! I guess I'm going to have to make them, I adore Cointreau.

Emily Rose said...

Oh these sound wonderful! I'm going to try to make them for Christmas this year!

Deeba PAB said...

Delicious beyond words Patricia. What beautiful flavours...

Bron said...

They look gorgeous Patricia, the cranberries are a fabulous addition!

Sarah said...

I made time to eat at my wedding--food is very important to me!!
These truffles look divine.

Anonymous said...

This looks so yummy! I like your version of it. The cranberries were the perfect touch :).

Beth said...

These would be terrific for Christmas!

Leonor de Sousa Bastos said...

How could I have missed this truffles?!?

The combination sounds absolutely divine!! And they look sooooo delicious...

RaymentW said...

I ate tons at my wedding, but then I am a guy. Danced a lot, too. As for the truffles, white chocolate has always intrigued me because it seems such a contradiction in terms. I agree with Katie who said they "scream holidays". I think I will give this recipe a try.

Anonymous said...

I just made these for my family but dipped them in tempered dark chocolate.

The reviews have been brilliant. Amazing recipe!

Anonymous said...

I made these not too long ago and while the recipe worked beautifully, next time I would substitute shredded coconut or the like, instead of the icing sugar, as it was far too sweet with the icing sugar.

Anonymous said...

What is icing sugar? Is it sugar or icing? I would like to make these...they sound wonderful.

Anonymous said...

Hi will these truffles last in the freezer?!

Patricia Scarpin said...

I do not know if the truffles can be frozen.

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