Chocolate Star Anise Truffles Recipes

Steps:

• 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 Grand Marnier, 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 confectioners' sugar, cocoa powder, or both. These will keep refrigerated for weeks, but serve at room temperature.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Combine the wine, granulated sugar, cinnamon sticks, star anise, vanilla bean seeds and orange zest in a medium pan over medium-high heat and bring the poaching liquid to a boil. Nestle the pear halves curved-side down in the poaching liquid (it is okay if they aren't fully submerged). Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 15 minutes. Turn off the heat, flip the pears over so the opposite side is now submerged and allow the pears to cool to room temperature in the poaching liquid, about 45 minutes.
• Meanwhile, roll out a sheet of the puff pastry on a lightly floured surface to a 12-inch square; this will be the bottom of your wreath.
• Roll out the second sheet of puff pastry on a lightly floured surface to a 12-by-13-inch rectangle. Trim off a 1-by-12-inch strip, then cut twelve 1-inch leaf shapes out of the dough with a paring knife. Gently press the paring knife blade into each leaf to make the impression of veins on the leaves, and set the leaves aside for later.
• Working vertically, cut a column of 1 1/2-inch vertical slits in the remaining 12-inch square of dough, leaving 1/4-inch of space in between each slit. Space a second vertical column of slits 1/2-inch from the first with the first slit of the second column starting halfway down the first slit in the first column and finishing halfway down the second slit in the first column. Continue this pattern until the entire square of dough is marked. Stack the top and bottom tart doughs and the leaves on a baking sheet with parchment between each and cover with plastic wrap. Chill in the fridge until the dough is firmer and easier to work with, about 20 minutes.
• Place the bottom piece of puff pastry on a sheet of parchment paper and assemble the tart by placing a 3-inch bowl in the center. Stuff each pear center with a chocolate truffle and arrange the 6 pear halves cut-side down with the stem ends pointing out around the bowl, leaving a 3/4-inch space between the bottom of the bowl and the bottoms of the pears.
• Brush the dough surrounding the pears with the egg white. Place the dough with the slits over the top of the pears and gently stretch it to create diamond-shaped openings. Press the dough down all around each pear to seal it. Use a paring knife to cut around the perimeter of the bowl, and remove the bowl and the central piece of dough. Press to seal that edge as well. Use your paring knife to trim the extra dough from the edges, following the outline of the pears, leaving a 1/2-inch border of the dough.
• Brush the tops of the puff with the egg white. Attach 2 leaves to the stem end of each pear, and brush those with egg wash too. Sprinkle the tart with sanding sugar. Use the parchment to carefully transfer the tart to an 18-by-13-inch baking sheet.
• Bake the tart until the pastry is risen and golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool 5 minutes before serving.

Steps:

• Heat cream in a pot until it steams. Put chocolate in a bowl, pour hot cream on top, and stir until chocolate is melted and incorporated into cream.
• Chill until solid all the way through, 1 to 2 hours. Using a chilled melon baller or latex gloves to prevent the ganache from melting or sticking to your hands, scoop out about a tablespoonful and quickly roll it into a ball. Repeat, lining truffles on a plate or a baking sheet.
• If truffles become too soft to handle, place them in refrigerator or freezer for a few minutes. Roll them in cocoa powder, confectioners' sugar or a mixture of sugar and ground cinnamon. Serve immediately or store, wrapped in plastic, in refrigerator for up to four days.

Steps:

• line a 23cm square cake tin or similar with cling film allowing plenty of overhang at the sides.
• bring cream to boil in a nonstick saucpan. put choclate in a bowl and add into saucepan. tale of the heat.
• leave for a minute or two and then stir and leave to stand for another minute or two until chocolate has completely melted.
• grind star anise with pestle and mortar, dust through seive to remove fine woody bits. fold dust into choco cream mixture.
• pour truffle mix into half of the cake tin, before it spreads to fill the whole cake tin fold the cling film back over to create a deep rectangle approx 2 cm deep. smooth surface with your fingers tuck clingfilm ends under tin to keep the slab in place. chill overnight until set.
• turn truffle slab out onto a work surface and peel off clingfilm trim edges and cut into 2cm squares, dust with cocoa powder.

Steps:

• Bring cream to a boil with star anise in a small heavy saucepan, then remove from heat and let stand 15 minutes.
• Finely grind bittersweet chocolate in a food processor and transfer to a bowl.
• Return cream to a simmer, then remove from heat and stir in Cognac. Sour cream mixture through a fine sieve onto chocolate and whisk until chocolate is melted and ganache is smooth. Pour ganache into an 8- by 4-inch loaf pan lined with plastic wrap, smoothing top, and chill, uncovered, until firm, about 4 hours.
• Loosen edges of ganache with a sharp small knife and invert onto a cutting surface. Remove plastic wrap and cut ganache into 40 squares.
• Dust your palms with cocoa and roll each piece of ganache between them to form a ball. Drop ball into cocoa bowl and turn to cover completely. Lift truffle with a fork and transfer to a plate. Chill truffles, covered, until ready to serve.