Champagne (or Sparkling Wine) Truffles

And the people preserving Black food culture (and your chance to help).

I grew up in a family that kept a healthy amount of chocolate on hand at all times. We treated it not so much as a dessert, but as a versatile ingredient to be incorporated into snacks and meals whenever possible. My dad, in fact, was notorious for his butter slathered rolls topped with chocolate chips (a baker’s quick fix for a pain au chocolat craving) and his chocolate spaghetti (a topic for another day!).

Ganache, the rich, velvety emulsion of chocolate and cream, was therefore a staple in our house too. During our December holidays (which included my mom’s birthday), my parents would often have dueling batches of ganache going as they each prepared for celebrating.

My dad would use his batch in building the birthday cake he made for my mom every year — an exquisite gateau succès au chocolat. And my mom would transform her batch into generous gifts of homemade truffles — a tradition she maintains to this day.

Now, you might think that with that much exposure to ganache-making in my life, I’d have nailed the process myself long ago. My relationship with this chocolate-cream emulsion (as with many other kitchen emulsions) has been somewhat rocky though. I have overheated and overworked ganache enough times to easily recognize the grainy, greasy signs of it breaking or curdling.

That’s why, for today’s email (and for a chocolate-themed class I taught this past week), I decided to tackle the ganache-making process. And, given that this week happens to include both Valentine’s Day (2/14) and Random Acts of Kindness Day (2/17), it seemed fitting to also share a splurgy variation on the classic chocolate truffle:

Champagne (Sparkling Wine) Truffles

These make great gifts. Just a few will go a long way towards improving someone’s day, so you can spread a lot of joy with just one batch. The flavor of the wine highlights the chocolate notes distinctively depending on what chocolate and Champagne (or sparkling wine) you choose. I like both on the fruit-forward side, so I used Chocolove's 65% cocoa content bar and Hillinger's Secco Rosé (shown above). You can certainly leave the wine out entirely for pure chocolate truffles, but it's a nice excuse to pop open a bottle and treat yourself to a glass of bubbly.
A special thank you to Nancy Serrell for taking on the recipe testing for this project!

Here are a few more tips about ganache in general, and this recipe specifically:
— As you might know from holding chocolate in your hands or fingers, it's sensitive to temperature change. The same is true of ganache. Rapid and intense fluctuations in temperature will cause the ganache to break (or separate). It's key to use gentle heating (short intervals in the microwave or over a water bath) and cooling (at room temperature and not in the refrigerator) methods when working with it.
— Chocolate and ganache are also sensitive to excess agitation or stirring. Again, it will break (or curdle) if it's mixed too vigorously. Stirring gently in one direction — and in a small area at first — will help the emulsion come together smoothly.
— Because I wrote this recipe for a group of students who had limited access to cooking equipment, I relied on a microwave for heat. If you need or prefer to use your stove or other burner, use a small saucepan in place of the measuring cup. 
— You'll notice that I call for chocolate that has a cocoa content between 60% and 70%. Fluctuating away from that range will affect the texture of your ganache and truffles. The higher you go with cocoa content, the denser, firmer your ganache will be.
— I strongly recommend using the good quality chocolate bars you find in the candy aisle at the grocery store to make ganache and truffles. Please do not use chocolate chips or chunks as these often have stabilizers to prevent them from melting. The opposite of what you want the chocolate to do!
— If you are a dairy-free or vegan chocolate lover, Nicola Lamb recently sent out her own newsletter about making ganache with water (and other cream alternatives).
— Finally, I'd like to note that there are many different methods for making ganache. This is a method that works for me. Feel free to share your own approach to ganache-making in the comments.

Active Time: 30 minutes
Inactive Time: 2 to 4 hours
Total Time: 2 hours 30 minutes to 4 hours 30 minutes
Yield: 2 dozen truffles

Ingredients
- 8 ounces (227g) dark (semisweet or bittersweet) chocolate (60% to 70% cocoa content)
- ½ cup (113g) heavy cream
- scant ¼ cup (50g) sparkling wine/Champagne, at room temperature
- about ¼ cup (20g to 40g) cocoa powder

1. Place the chocolate on a clean, dry cutting board and chop it into fine shards that are no greater than ⅛” in size. 
*A sharp serrated knife is helpful here, as the teeth can help break up larger pieces of chocolate as you're cutting it. Don't worry about being too precise, but the smaller your chocolate pieces are, the more readily they'll melt.
2. Transfer the finely chopped chocolate to a clean, dry heat-safe glass bowl and set aside.
3. Pour the cream into a microwave-safe 1 or 2-cup measuring cup and microwave on full power until it starts to simmer. 
*This will likely take anywhere from 45 to 75 seconds, depending on the strength of your microwave.
4. Immediately pour the hot cream over the chocolate in the bowl and leave the contents of the bowl undisturbed for 1 minute.
5. Gently stir the cream and chocolate together with a flexible spatula, beginning in the center of the bowl and working your way outward, until the ganache is smooth and glossy. 
*If you still see pieces of unmelted chocolate at this point, you can microwave the ganache in 5 to 10-second intervals, stirring briefly between each interval, until it’s completely smooth. Or, add ¾" water to a saucepan, bring the water to a simmer, and place the bowl on top of the pan for 10 to 15 seconds before stirring. Repeat the process until the chocolate is fully melted and incorporated.
6. Pour the sparkling wine into the same measuring cup you used for the cream and heat it briefly (10 seconds) in the microwave so that it’s about the same temperature as the ganache. 
7. Pour the wine into the ganache and stir in gentle circles (working from the inside of the circle to the outside again), until the wine is fully incorporated and the ganache is smooth again.
8. Set the ganache aside at cool room temperature until it’s about as firm as soft fudge and has lost its gloss.
* It could take anywhere 2 to 4 hours for the ganache to set. It's totally fine to leave it overnight or up to 48 hours if that's what your schedule allows.
9. Scoop the ganache with a spoon into clumps that are about 1 tablespoon in size and place them on a clean plate or work surface. 
10. Working quickly, roll the clumps of ganache into balls with your hands; they should be about the size of a hard-boiled egg yolk. 
11. Put the cocoa powder into a clean bowl and add the truffles 2 or 3 at a time, tossing them gently to coat them in the cocoa.
12. Return the truffles to a serving plate or store in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 weeks. The truffles are best served at room temperature.

Related Links

Ebony magazine’s original test kitchen has a new home: the Museum of Food and Drink (MOFAD) in New York City. Formerly housed in the Johnson Publishing Company Building in downtown Chicago, the Ebony Test Kitchen became a touchstone of African American food culture during it’s 41-year run. As such, when the Johnson Publishing Company Building was sold in 2017, Landmarks Illinois (a historic preservation nonprofit) worked quickly to ensure it wouldn’t get demolished. In 2019, Landmarks Illinois accepted MOFAD’s proposal to acquire the test kitchen and feature it in its forthcoming exhibition called African/American: Making the Nation’s Table. The team of curators for the exhibition is spearheaded by none other than Dr. Jessica B. Harris, a renowned leading scholar of culinary history. She and the team are advised by (among others) Charlotte Lyons, the food editor at Ebony for 25 years who oversaw the magazine’s famed “Date with a Dish Column”, and Carla Hall, a trained chef, cookbook author, and TV personality. Together, the the dynamic team has rebuilt the kitchen and recreated its “intimate feel”, “mid-century funkadelic” style, and overall head-spinning experience. Now that’s a test kitchen I would love to visit! The exhibition goes live on the 23rd if you’re with me.

Also on the curatorial team for MOFAD’s exhibition is Myriah Towner, a storyteller and digital curator who has another project launching later this year. Black Farmer Stories is “a nonprofit and digital platform that preserves the history, legacy, and agricultural knowledge of Black farmers and ranchers across the United States.” As Black land ownership continues to shrink — to shockingly minuscule proportions since its peak in the early 1900s — from systemic injustices, Towner’s project will safeguard the narratives and experiences of Black agricultural producers for generations to come. Her work is inspirational. And if it — or a particular story — strikes a chord with you, I hope you’ll find a way to support Black farmers.

One such way would be to add your voice to a campaign to protect Black land in Illinois. For context: Nicor Gas, a natural gas company in the state, is pursuing a project to place more than 30 miles of gas pipelines through Pembroke Township. Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzger signed a bill in August, allowing the company to fund the project, and last month the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) voted to approve the company’s application for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity. Proponents say the pipeline will bring much needed economic stimulus to Pembroke. But those opposed to the project — the residents and Black Farmers of Pembroke — make the valid claim that it “underscores and perpetuates a legacy of environmental degradation, injustice and systemic Black land theft.” Lack of transparency, questions of eminent domain, and ambiguity around planning and the environmental impact all contribute to the residents’ and farmers rightful concerns and mistrust. There’s also the awkward juxtaposition of Nicor’s gas pipeline moving forward at the same time as the Illinois Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (legislation that steers money towards renewable energy as oppose to fossil fuels). The Black Farmers of Pembroke and the Pembroke Environmental Justice Coalition (PEJC) need your support to get the word out about the fight to preserve Pembroke, its land, and its people. Please consider making your voice heard in your communities and social media networks.

What I’m Making

I took a stab at this pernil asado recipe (a Puerto Rican garlic-infused roasted pork shoulder) for the first time. Overall, I was very pleased with the results. And because I’m someone who has a very hard time throwing away food, I wanted to see what would come of boiling down my leftover marinade. The result was an incredibly pungent and aromatic sauce, some of which I stirred right back into the shredded meat. I’m storing the rest of the sauce in the fridge to use perhaps in a salad dressing or as a condiment alongside another dish one day soon.

I’m continuing on my turkey meatball kick (I’ve never been much of a fan of ground turkey or meatballs for that matter) and made these without the Parmesan or chives. They were great, especially in a bath of marinara. I don’t love that the recipe doesn’t specify the amount of seasoning. Unless you take the time to cook a small piece of the turkey mixture before forming your meatballs, there’s no way you could possibly taste and adjust the salt (or pepper, which I also left out). I used 1 teaspoon of table salt, per the Smitten Kitchen recipe I shared in my last newsletter, and found the flavor to be ideal for 1 1/4 pounds ground turkey.

After a week’s delay (due to non-Covid illness), we were finally able to celebrate both my son’s and my husband’s birthdays with my family. I was in charge of the side dishes (and dessert) and made Toni Tipton Martin’s “Mashed Turnips and Carrots” from her Jubilee cookbook. The recipe calls for a tablespoon of rum, which I omitted. Otherwise, I followed the recipe exactly and was not the least bit disappointed. It provided so much great flavor from some of the local veggies still available in Vermont. I’m really excited to make more recipes from this book!

For the birthday cake, I also turned to a cookbook: Samin Nosrat’s Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat. Her “Chocolate Midnight Cake” (p. 410) was true to her description of it and “rivaled the moistness of cake mix cakes, yet offered that fancy-bakery flavor.” It was not the best cake for layering (with its doming), but I made it work and used trimmings to decorate the top (into a pile of delicious fill). Layered between the cake, I piped on the incredibly light, flavorful, and not too sweet “Caramel Cream” (p.425) from her book. That was after smearing each cake layer with a generous coat of ganache, of course!

I hope you’ve enjoyed this second edition Balanced Diet. I’m working to build out the newsletter’s about section and have decided that you readers might be better served by shorter, more focused posts (please share if you disagree!).

Towards that effort, I’m planning to send more frequent posts that will tackle one of the three separate sections I’ve included in the past two posts (recipe, related links, and what I’m making). For now, you’ll likely see a “new recipe” and “related links” post every other Sunday (alternating Sundays for each of the two types of posts), and a “what I’m making” post once a week on Fridays. I also plan to include more photos (including step-by-step photos for the recipes), which I hope will improve your experience Let me know what you think and please share this newsletter with anyone you feel might find joy in it.