DJL Dishes Dessert!

Title:  Pecan Truffles

The Dish:  Now, I'm a huge fan of truffles, of course what gal doesn't love a smooth chocolate ganache coated in a chocolate shell?  I have tried a variety of different truffles from many different confectionary stores and chocolateries, and one day I decided to try making them myself.  After finding a simple recipe (which most truffle recipes are fairly simple at least when it comes to a basic chocolate truffle), I and several friends found them to be a delicious success.  Even my beau, who originally thought all truffles tasted like liquor and thus didn't like them, loved these truffles and made a white chocolate variation. 

Recently, I began thinking about how I could possibly do a twist to the recipe to see what new flavors I could create.  Being from the south, I first thought about pecans.  I realize that most truffles are supposed to be smooth in texture, but with pecans I thought it would make a nice nutty flavor that people would like.  So I came up with a means to do pecan truffles.  They were well-received at my library, and I cannot wait to make them again. 

Ingredients:
8 ounces of Neufschatel cream cheese
18 ounce package of Oreos
1 cup chopped pecans (make sure not to chop them into coarse pecan butter)
10 squares Baker's chocolate
30-40 pecan halves

Directions: 
- Cover a cookie sheet with wax paper and set aside.
- Crush the Oreos into fine crumbs either using a food chopper or placing them in a large Ziploc bag and using a meat tenderizer or your hands.  A rolling pin works wonders too.
- Combine the Oreo crumbs and chopped pecans with the cream cheese until all are combined into a thick ganache.
- Scoop out a spoonful of the ganache and roll into about a 2-inch ball, placing the ball onto the cookie sheet.  Repeat until the ganache is gone.
- Unwrap and melt the Baker's chocolate squares according to the instructions on the box.  (I use the microwave since I don't have a double-boiler.)
- Drop the ganache balls into the melted chocolate and roll until coated.  Remove the covered balls and place back on the cookie sheet.  You can remove them either by hand if you have plastic gloves or using two forks to help drain the excess chocolate from the truffles.
- Take the pecan halves and set one on the top of each truffle, pressing down to make sure the pecan will stick to the chocolate.
- Place the truffles into the refrigerator and chill for at least 1 hour or until the coating has hardened.

You can use these as gifts or just enjoy them among family and friends.  The texture of the pecan truffles is almost similar to a moist brownie bite, so bon appetit!