Ocho chocolate truffles

Ask a Chef reveals the secrets of those superb dishes you ate in cafes and restaurants and wanted to try yourself.

PHOTO: LINDA ROBERTSON
PHOTO: LINDA ROBERTSON
I make the truffles from Ocho's double chocolate cake, which gives them their special flavour, says Liz Rowe.

 

Little double chocolate cakes or triple layer cake

200g dark chocolate (we use Ocho PNG 66%)
250g butter, chopped
150g flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
330g sugar
50g cocoa
3 eggs
180ml (3/4 cup) buttermilk (or use milk with a scant 1 Tbsp lemon juice added. It will curdle but don't worry)

 

Chocolate butter cream
200g butter, softened
320g icing sugar
60g cocoa
1 tsp vanilla
30ml milk

 

Ocho truffles
4 slices left-over iced cake (or 4 little cakes)
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup roasted cocoa nibs
1 dsp plum jam
coconut for rolling

 

Method
For the cake, preheat oven to 180deg (160deg fan forced). Grease and line three 20cm tins or prepare 16 patty tins.

Melt chocolate and butter together. Set aside to cool. Sieve flour, baking soda, baking powder and cocoa together. Whisk eggs and buttermilk together. Stir buttermilk mix then chocolate and butter into dry ingredients.

Bake for around 16-20 mins, but test with a skewer. Cool on a wire rack.

Ice with chocolate butter cream and decorate how you like.

If making the triple cake, some plum jam between the layers along with the butter cream is nice.

 

Chocolate butter cream
Beat everything together until very light and fluffy.

 

Ocho truffles
Mix everything together. Only use enough jam to hold the mix together as the cake will be quite moist. Roll into golf ball-size balls and toss in coconut. The truffles can be frozen in an airtight container for up to two months.

Recipes provided by Liz Rowe.

Recipe requested by Sally Marrett.

If you have enjoyed a dish in an Otago cafe or restaurant and would like the recipe, write to Ask a Chef, Features, Otago Daily Times, PO Box 181, Dunedin, fax 474-7422, or email odt.features@odt.co.nz, including your name, address and a daytime telephone number, and we will request it.

 

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