Chocolate Truffle Bomb Cookies And Chocolate Chip Cake Food

TRUFFLE-STUFFED CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

Steps:

• Place the chopped chocolate in a medium bowl. Pour the heavy cream into a small saucepan and place it over medium heat. Heat the cream until it comes to a simmer and bubbles form along the sides of the pan. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and let it sit and soften the chocolate for one minute. Gently whisk the cream and chocolate together until your ganache is shiny and smooth. Add the room temperature butter and whisk it in to incorporate it.
• Press a layer of cling wrap on top of the ganache, and refrigerate it until it is firm enough to scoop, about 60-90 minutes. It should be hard enough to roll into a ball, but not so firm that you can't easily scoop it. While you're waiting for the truffles to set, make the cookie dough (instructions down below).
• Use a small 1-inch candy scoop or a teaspoon to form twenty small balls of ganache. Roll them between your palms to make them round, and if necessary, dust your palms with cocoa powder to prevent them from sticking. Refrigerate the truffles until they are very firm and you're ready to bake your cookies. Truffles can be made in advance and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.
• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit (162 C). Whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl and set aside for now.
• In the large bowl of a stand mixer, combine the melted butter and both sugars, and mix them on medium speed with a paddle attachment until the sugars are moist. Add the egg and mix until it is well-incorporated, then add the yolk and mix well again. Add the vanilla extract. Finally, with the mixer running on low, add the dry ingredients and mix just until they are almost fully incorporated and there are just a few streaks of flour remaining. Add the chocolate chips and stir them by hand, scraping down the bottom and sides of the bowl with a spatula until everything is well-mixed. For the best results, chill the dough for 45 minutes, until it is firmer but still able to be rolled into balls. If it's too hard straight from the refrigerator, let it warm up on the counter for a few minutes once you're ready to use it.
• To form the cookies, use a cookie scoop or a large tablespoon to form a 1.5-inch ball of dough. Press your thumb in the center to create an indent and spread the cookie out a little bit. Set a chilled truffle in the center of the cookie, then place a little more dough-about the size of a quarter-on top of the truffle. Pinch the bottom and top of the cookie dough together, then roll it between your palms to make it round. Place the cookie on an ungreased parchment-lined sheet, and repeat until the sheet is filled, leaving 2-3 inches between the cookies.
• Bake the cookies at 325 F for 12-13 minutes, rotating halfway throughout. They're done when the cookies have spread, have a touch of color along the outer edge, and the raw sheen is off in the center. They should still be soft in the middle.
• Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet until they're just warm, then carefully transfer them off with a spatula. These cookies are best enjoyed slightly warm, so if you aren't lucky enough to eat them fresh from the oven, I recommend heating them in the microwave for 10-15 seconds to melt the centers.

CHOCOLATE TRUFFLE CAKE

Steps:

• For the truffles: Combine the chocolate, cream and butter in a small heatproof bowl set over simmering water and let melt. When almost melted, remove from heat and stir the mixture until smooth. Stir in your flavoring of choice and refrigerate until thick enough to mound on a spoon, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes.
• Line a baking tray with waxed or parchment paper. Scrape the chocolate mixture into a pastry bag fitted with a #3 plain tip. Pipe 8 (1-inch) mounds onto the prepared tray. Place 1 raspberry in the center of each chocolate mound and pipe a little more of the chocolate mixture to enclose completely. Refrigerate until firm, about 15 minutes.
• For the cake: Position the rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter or coat with vegetable spray, 8 oversize muffin cups (4-inches wide and 2-inches deep) or 1 1/4-cup custard cups. Line bottoms with rounds of waxed paper.
• In the top of a double boiler or a small heatproof bowl set over simmering water, melt together the chocolate and butter, cool slightly.
• Meanwhile in the bowl of an electric mixer with a paddle or beaters, beat the eggs, egg yolks and sugar on high speed until tripled in volume, about 5 minutes. Scrape in the chocolate mixture and, on low speed, beat until just combined. Remove the bowl from the mixer and fold in the flour, using a rubber spatula. Spoon a little of the batter into each of the prepared cups, top with 1 truffle, and cover with the remaining batter. Arrange the cups on a baking tray and bake until the edges of the cakes begin to pull away from the sides of the cups, 12 to 13 minutes.
• Let stand 10 minutes. Invert onto individual dessert plates and carefully peel off the paper. Serve warm. Spoon softly whipped cream or ice cream next to each cake and, if desired, garnish with a few fresh raspberries. Serve immediately.

CHOCOLATE CAKE BOMBE

Steps:

• Thinly slice pound cake, diagonally cut each piece in half.
• Line 1 ½ quart bowl with plastic wrap or strips of waxed paper, then line with cake pieces, trimming as necessary to line bowl completely.
• Sprinkle cake with liqueur.
• Set aside remaining cake pieces.
• Whip the cream with sugar and vanilla until soft peaks form.
• Fold melted chocolate into half of the whipped cream and spoon mixture into cake-like bowl.
• Fold pecans and cherries into remaining whipped cream, spoon into bowl over chocolate mixture.
• Cover completely with remaining cake pieces.
• Freeze until firm about 4 hours.
• In saucepan, melt 3 squares chocolate with the butter over very low heat, stirring constantly until smooth.
• Cool slightly.
• Invert frozen cake onto serving plate.
• Remove plastic wrap and spread chocolate evenly over cake.
• Freeze about 10 minutes or until chocolate is firm.

CHOCOLATE TRUFFLE BOMB COOKIES AND CHOCOLATE CHIP CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl, combine flour, salt, and baking soda, and set aside. In a stand-mixer bowl fitted with a paddle attachment, mix the butter and sugars on medium speed until combined, 1 to 2 minutes. Slowly add the eggs, mixing until homogeneous, scraping down the sides of the bowl. Add vanilla. Add the flour mixture and mix on medium until barely combined. Add the chocolate chips and mix until just combined. Using a rubber spatula, fold the batter from the bottom to the top several times to ensure the mixture is homogeneous. Grease 2 24-count mini muffin tins with oil or butter. Separate out half the batter. Using your hands, gently press a heaping tablespoon of dough around each truffle; make sure no truffle is exposed. Place the balls in the tins and bake 15-20 minutes, until tops are golden brown, switching racks halfway through baking time. Remove from oven and allow to cool in the pan 15 minutes before unmolding. Eat warm for a chocolate explosion or later rewarm in the microwave for 20 seconds for the same effect. To bake the cake, spray a 9-inch pan with nonstick spray. Using your hands, pat batter down evenly and bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes, until the top is golden brown and a skewer comes out clean. Transfer to a wire rack to cool. Slice and serve. (For a single large cake, use the full batch of dough in a 12-inch pan for the same baking time.) Variation CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES Makes 34 Large cookies Follow directions for Chocolate Truffle Bomb Cookies, except: Instead of muffin tins, line 2 large baking sheets with parchment. Omit truffle candies. Drop large balls (about 2½ tablespoons of batter) onto the sheet, leaving 1½ inches between the cookies, for about 10 cookies per sheet. Bake 15 minutes, rotating racks halfway through the baking time. Remove from the oven when cookies are light golden brown. Allow to cool 5 minutes on the sheet & transfer to racks. Repeat with remaining dough.