Chocolate Fruit Truffles
Preparation 10 Minutes
Cook Chill: 3h Minutes
Serves 23
Method
- Add chocolate to a food processor and blitz until very finely chopped.
- Transfer chocolate to a bowl, pour over the hot thickened cream, add butter, currants and salt and stir to combine. Refrigerate for 3-4 hours until firm but still able to be scooped with a spoon.
- To make truffles, scoop 1 heaped tbsp of the mixture and use clean hands to roll into a rough ball. Repeat with remaining mixture (you should make about 24)
- Arrange crushed nuts, desiccated coconut and cacao powder in separate bowls. Roll each of the truffles into different coatings to decorate.*to make coloured coconut we combined desiccated coconut with a few drops of food colouring
Ingredients
200g Sunbeam Currants
400g dark chocolate
120mL thickened cream
70g butter, softened
pinch of sea salt
crushed nuts (to decorate)
desiccated coconut* (to decorate)
cacao powder (to decorate)
Recipe Collection
Chocolate & Prune Pudding
- Grease the base and sides of a 1.5L pudding basin. Combine prunes, raisins, sultanas and brandy in a microwave proof bowl and cook for 2 minutes. Stir well and set aside.
- Place butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer. Beat until smooth and pale. Add eggs one at a time until well incorporated. Fold in the flour, breadcrumbs, cocoa, chocolate and mixed spice, followed by the fruit mixture. Mix until well combined.
- Pour batter into prepared pudding basin and cover (if no lid, use a couple of layers of baking paper and secure with string or a large elastic band. Then cover with a layer of foil, securing with a large elastic band. Place into a large pot with a small saucepan in the base. Pour in enough boiling water to come halfway up the sides of the basin. Cover with a lid and simmer for 3 hours. Top up water as required.
- Remove from pot and either serve immediately, or leave in the basin and refrigerate until required.
- For butterscotch sauce, combine all ingredients in a small saucepan, and gently bring to the boil. Simmer for 5 minutes, then remove from heat and set aside.
- For mascarpone cream, fold mixed spice into mascarpone and set aside until required.
- For serving, place upturned pudding onto a serving plate and dollop with mascarpone and drizzle with butterscotch sauce. Decorate with seasonal fruits and toasted nuts.
Christmas Bark
Line a 25cm x 35cm with baking paper. Place chocolate into a medium heat proof bowl; stir over a medium saucepan of simmering water until smooth (don’t let water touch base of bowl). Stir in puffed rice and coconut.
Working quickly, spread chocolate mixture onto tray as thinly as possible; sprinkle with dried fruits, biscuit and nuts.
Refrigerate until set. Break bark into pieces to serve.
Rocky Road
Grease and line the base and sides of a 20cm square baking tin.
Mix together raisins, cherries, marshmallows and pistachios. Pour 1 cup of the mixture into the base of the prepared tin.
Combine chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl, microwave for 30 seconds, stir then microwave in 10 second bursts until melted. Allow to cool for about 5 mins before adding the remaining fruit and nut mixture. Toss to coat then pour into the prepared tin, gently flattening the surface. Refrigerate until firm (about 2 hours).
Remove from tin and slice into 4 long rows. Wrap in cellophane for Christmas gifting.
Baked Sweet Potatoes with Toasted Hazelnuts
- Pre-heat oven to 180°C (160°C fan-forced). Line an oven tray with baking paper.
- Rub sweet potatoes in half the olive oil and place onto baking tray. Roast for approx. 45 minutes or until just cooked all the way through.
- Heat remaining oil in a small fryingpan. Add hazelnuts and cook for 3-4 minutes or until golden. Add sesame seeds, cumin and thyme. Cook a further 1-2 minutes, remove from heat and stir in the lemon rind, season well.
- For serving, cut down the centre of each sweet potato and push out to make a small cavity. Top each with the hazelnut mixture, crumble over the feta and drizzle with lemon juice, additional oil and the harissa.
Sultana & Cinnamon Mini cupcakes
Preheat oven to 180°C (160°C fan-forced).
Line two 12-hole (1-tablespoon/20ml) mini muffin pans with paper cases. Combine flour, brown sugar, oats and Sunbeam sultanas in medium bowl.
Whisk milk, vegetable oil and egg in small bowl, stir into dry ingredients (do not overmix, mixture should be lumpy).
Divide mixture into paper cases. Bake about 15 minutes, turn, top-side up, onto wire rack. Combine caster sugar with cinnamon, sprinkle over hot muffins.
For the Icing: beat butter till white and fluffy add sugar then milk slowly till the perfect texture, fill into piping bag and decorate with grated chocolate & mini easter eggs.
Fruit & Nut Hot Cross Truffles
- Combine mixed fruit, dates, seed mix, hazelnuts, coconut, coconut oil and vanilla essence in a food processor and blend until a smooth, thick paste is formed.
- Divide into 25 equal portions and roll each into a ball before flattening slightly.
- Pipe melted white chocolate crosses onto truffles and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving cold.
