Messenger Smiley Truffles

It's up to you.

14 detailed steps, from preparation to service.

1. Separating chocolate from ganache and decor

   Install a scale, a saucepan, a heat-resistant bowl, a spatula, a shallow dish and two small spoons. Weigh 250 g of 60% dark chocolate for ganache and chop it into small pieces. Do not mix it with dark chocolate intended for eyes or faces: this separate amount will later be used for decor. Cut the 30 g of butter into small cubes.

2. Heat the cream

   Measure the 150 ml of whipping cream and pour them into the pan. Heat over medium heat until small bubbles appear around the edge; remove the pan from the heat, without letting the cream boil for a long time. Stir once to distribute the heat. Keep the chocolate bowl close to you to pour without splashing.

3. Start the ganache in the center of the bowl

   Pour a first third of the hot cream over the 250 g of chopped chocolate. Wait 30 seconds, then stir with the spatula in small circles in the center, staying at the bottom of the bowl so as not to incorporate air. The mixture may at first appear thick or slightly separated: continue gently until a smooth and shiny core appears.

4. Add the last two-thirds of the cream

   Pour the second third of the cream and mix again from the center to the edges. Finally add the last third, then scrape the bottom and walls of the bowl. The ganache should become smooth and shiny, without hard lumps. If a few pieces remain, place the bowl on a pot of warm water for a few seconds and then stir out of the bath, without adding cream or water.

5. Incorporate butter when ganache tiéd

   Let the ganache cool for a few minutes; it must no longer release steam. Add the 30 g of butter in three small portions by mixing after each addition until the pieces disappear. Avoid the energetic whisk: a spatula is enough to achieve a uniform texture without bubbles. Scrape one last time the edges to incorporate all the preparation.

6. Let firm for three hours in the refrigerator

   Pour the ganache into the shallow dish, about 2 cm thick so that it cools regularly. Cover the dish without trapping any steam that is still hot and place it in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours. It is ready when the spoon can take a portion that keeps its shape; if it spreads, prolong the cold by 30 minutes before rolling.

7. Divide the ganache into twenty-four portions

   Cover a baking sheet or tray with baking paper. Take 24 small portions, about 18 g each, with the two spoons: one takes the ganache and the other pushes it on the paper. Divide any leftovers between the portions so that they are close in size. Work on one half of the dish at a time and leave the rest in the refrigerator if the room is hot.

8. Roll balls without warming the ganache

   Wash and dry your hands thoroughly and refresh them if necessary. Take a portion and roll it between the palms for just a few seconds. Rest it as soon as it forms a small irregular ball of about 3 cm: no need to look for a perfect sphere. If the ganache sticks or softens, put the portions back in the refrigerator for 15 minutes before continuing.

9. Coating the cocoa truffles

   Pour the 40 g of unsweetened cocoa into a hollow plate. Roll two or three truffles in one at a time with a spoon, then lift them and tap to bring down the excess. Replace them on baking paper and keep them in the refrigerator while the decor is being prepared. Some of the cocoa will remain in the plate: this quantity is used to roll truffles, do not try to make it adhere entirely.

10. Preparing the twenty-four smileys discs

    Trace 24 circles of 2.5 cm on the back of a baking paper and place it on a flat baking tray. Chop 140 g of white chocolate with a knife and put it in a small, perfectly dry bowl. Place the bowl on a saucepan containing 2 cm of barely simmering water, without the bottom of the bowl touching the water. Stir gently with the spatula and remove the bowl as soon as the pieces are almost melted; continue to stir off the heat. Wipe the bottom of the bowl before moving it: no drop of water should enter the chocolate. Gradually add the fat-soluble yellow dye according to the manufacturer's dose, without adding water. Reserve a small spoon of yellow chocolate for gluing, then spread the rest in small spoonfuls in the markers, about 2 mm thick; only use what is necessary for this thickness.

11. Making records before faces

    Leave the discs flat for 25 to 30 minutes in a cool room. They should be firm under a light touch and no longer mix at the tip of a spoon. Meanwhile, keep the truffles in the refrigerator. Do not take off the discs yet: the paper holds them while you draw the faces.

12. Drawing eyes and smiles

    Chop 20 g of dark chocolate with a knife and put it in a small, perfectly dry bowl. Place the bowl on a saucepan containing 2 cm of barely simmering water, without the bottom of the bowl touching the water. Stir gently with the spatula and remove the bowl as soon as the pieces are almost melted; continue to stir off the heat. Wipe the bottom of the bowl before moving it: no drop of water should enter the chocolate. Pour the chocolate into a small baking paper cone or piping bag, fold the top and cut an opening of 1 to 2 mm. Test on a piece of paper: the chocolate should flow with gentle pressure, without running on its own. Hold the tip a few millimetres above the surface and guide it with your hand, without dragging the decoration. On each yellow disc, place two well-spaced black dots for the eyes. Trace below a simple thick bow for the smile, leaving a yellow border around it. Let the decor take 20 minutes; avoids complicated expressions or very fine strokes that would break with manipulation.

13. Attach a smiley face to each truffle

    Gently peel off the discs by folding the paper backwards. Remove some cocoa from the top of each truffle, then place a drop of reserved yellow chocolate, briefly re-melted if necessary. Lay a smiley flat or very slightly inclined, with its entire base supported by the truffle. Hold for a second and then cool the truffles for 20 minutes before moving them.

14. Keep the decors without overloading them

    Leftovers of yellow or dark chocolate can harden into small pellets on paper for another preparation. Do not thicken the discs to use all the chocolate: they would be more difficult to chew than ganache. Store the truffles in a box in the refrigerator and take them out 10 minutes before tasting, taking them by their base rather than by the smiley.