Hey everybody, welcome back to the blog! This week I want to share with you yet another sweet treat in honour of the fast-approaching Valentine’s Day: Milk Chocolate Truffles.

Some of you know that growing up, my family made their living making chocolate, and truffles were among the favourite items we used to sell. We never did anything super fancy, like making our own chocolate from scratch or tempering high quality chocolate for fancy, delicious treats… rather, we made the kinds of things that you might say are “like Grandma used to make,” a taste of home and good memories for our customers.

When I learned to make truffles

I learned to make simple homemade truffles when I was only around 12 years old, and I continued making them for many years! They are one of those things that always take me back to my younger days living at home with my family, and I love the nostalgia that comes with that.

Are truffles easy to make?

These most certainly are! As I mentioned above, I learned to make truffles the old and simple way, which is honestly so cool because it makes the method pretty accessible to anyone who wants to learn. Anyone, yes, including you! Don’t be intimidated, they really are fun and simple to make.

Is dipping truffles in chocolate difficult?

No, but it might require some practice to feel confident and to get them all consistently nice and smooth. Take heart, though – They will taste great, and the more you do it, the better you get at making them beautiful!

Easy Milk Chocolate Truffles

These smooth, creamy delicious milk chocolate truffles are easy to make and even easier to eat! Perfect for gifts or holiday gatherings.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American, Canadian, French

Keyword dessert, favors, milk chocolate, truffles

Prep Time 4 hours

Servings 24 truffles

Ingredients

1-1/2 cups milk chocolate chips
1/2 cup whipping cream
2-1/2 cups milk or dark chocolate melting wafers optional
1/2 cup white chocolate melting wafers
chocolate or black sprinkles optional

Instructions

In a small-medium glass bowl, measure the chocolate chips and set aside.
In a small, heavy bottomed saucepan, bring the whipping cream just to a boil. Remove from heat immediately, and pour over the chocolate chips.
Allow the mixture to rest for a moment, and then whisk until the chocolate is melted and you have a thick, smooth mixture. Cover, and refrigerate at least 2 hours or until set. (Do not overmix.)
Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. If using a melon baller, boil some water.
Using a small ice cream scoop (or a melon baller dipped in hot water and then thoroughly dried), scoop the truffles out of the bowl until you have evenly sized balls (they will be rough shapes) onto parchment paper. If you have used a melon baller, you will have to re-heat the utensil every 1-2 truffles, drying it thoroughly before it comes into contact with the chocolate every time. Set the pan of roughly shaped truffles in the refrigerator until firm, at least 20 minutes.
Using your fingertips (and being careful not to handle them too much), gently shape the truffles into smoother ball shapes. Return to the fridge while you melt the coating chocolate.
In a small heat proof bowl over a double boiler, or in the microwave for 30 second bursts (stirring well between each), melt the milk chocolate wafers. Once the chocolate is melted, remove from the heat and allow to sit until the bowl feels just slightly warm.
Set the truffles onto a fork, dip the fork into the chocolate, and then spoon more chocolate on top to cover them. Use a butter knife to scrape the coated truffles off of the fork onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Repeat until all of the truffles are coated.
Allow the truffles to set, either in the fridge or at cool room temperature.
Using a sharp knife, trim the edges of the truffles so that they look more clean, with no trails of chocolate attached to the edges.
Melt the white chocolate and spoon it into a 12" piping bag. Snip off the tip with a pair of scissors, and drizzle the melted chocolate over the truffles, decorating with sprinkles if desired. Allow to set.
Store the finished truffles in the refrigerator until serving.

Milk Chocolate Truffle Tips

My truffles are too soft/runny

Milk and white chocolate are sort of a “watered down” version of real chocolate, with less cocoa butter content than real dark chocolate. Sometimes this can happen if you’re using a cheap brand of milk chocolate chips, which may have a low cocoa butter content and would not yield the best result. You can sometimes correct this by adding a little bit of butter (about 1 Tbsp per cup of chocolate) to the ganache, to increase the amount of fat.
It could also be that your ganache has separated. This means that the fat and water portions in your ganache are not blending well, and the ganache will take on a more grainy, runny texture. If this has happened, your finished truffles will be quite soft, the texture will not be as smooth, and you may have a difficult time getting them to hold their shape. If this is the problem, for dark chocolate you can fix it be re-heating your ganache to 95-100 degrees F, and then whisking it like the dickens until it comes together again in a thick, smooth mixture. I have never had to do it with milk chocolate, but it’s worth a shot to try!
In the event that doesn’t work, you can then add a small amount (1-2 tsp) of room temperature milk (not cream), a little at a time, to the ganache while whisking vigorously. If the ganache comes back together before you’ve added all your milk, stop adding liquid; the lesser amount added the better. In a pinch, you could also add some graham cracker crumbs to the ganache to add a little stiffness and body, although – this will give you a textured ganache instead of a smooth one.

Should the truffles be hard?

Firm enough to shape, yes. They will be a little soft, but if you work with your fingertips rather than the palms of your hands, they should hold their shape very well.

Can I roll milk chocolate truffles in nuts or sprinkles?

You could. This recipe makes a fairly soft filling, so if you plan to have them sitting out of the fridge for long, I recommend sticking with a hard chocolate coating instead.

How long will my truffles last?

In the fridge they should keep for several months. At room temperature, I would not expect them to last more than a week.

How should I store truffles to keep them from spoiling?

Keep them in the fridge! The sugar in the chocolate chips will cause them to last a long time in the fridge, but the real cream does make it that they wouldn’t last at room temperature for a very long time.

Can I use 18% or Half and Half cream instead?

No, unfortunately you need to stick with the full-fat stuff if you want your truffles to turn out. The high fat content is key for allowing the truffles to keep their shape.

Used in this post:

Do you have any other truffle recipes?

Yes! So far, here’s what I’ve got available on the blog (although trust me, there’s lots more where that came from!).

As always, thanks so much for stopping in! I might have a few other sweet treats up my sleeve for the next little while, but no fear – I do make real food as well, and the blog is going to be seeing more of it soon.

Do you have a favourite kind of chocolate? Let me know in the comments!

Bye for now,

Naomi

NaomiCakes

A Blog about Food, Family, Life & Cake

Easy Milk Chocolate Truffles [Recipe]