The Heart Fires: Chilli Chocolate Truffles

Truffles remain the next level of simple chocoholicism, taking the deep, dark, aromatic hum of the cocoa bean and placing such flavour onto a pedestal of velvety creaminess and softly-solid smoothness. Easy to make (albeit not baked I admit, but an exception will be made) and essentially only requiring two ingredients, they can be made for any occasion or gift; providing a light option for dessert when a sweet finishing note is needed for dinner or wrapped elegantly and presented to a loved one. Adding a pinch of salt allows the chocolate flavours to sing and meet their fullest potential, while the chilli allows for a dichotomy in taste; the creamy chocolate beginning that amplifies into a thrumming spike of warm heat at the throat. The supple coolness of double cream is able to tame and quench the fiery spice of the chilli, quelling it from being apparent when you first pop a truffle in your mouth, until a crescendo of heat flourishes when almost finished. What I find unique about truffles is in the simplicity of its creation and execution, but with a variety of textures and mouth-feel. The powdered outside is a subtle discomfort; dry cool cocoa dust that instantly dries your mouth until your teeth sinks into the brown, yielding flesh of each truffle and a flood of flush, gently whipped chocolate sends both taste and touch into realms of pleasure, before being tested by spicy fire as the truffle begins to finish, like an explosion of chilli with a chocolate flavoured fuse.

Makes a ~50, depending on size.

• 375 g ~50 % Dark chocolate, chopped or chips
• 250 ml Double cream
• 2 tsp Chilli flakes, less or more depending on taste
• 50 g Cocoa powder, sifted
• Pinch of sea salt

1. Put the cream and chilli flakes into a saucepan and heat on medium until just beginning to boil, allowing the chilli to infuse the simmering cream for a minute or two. Take off the heat.


2. Pour the hot cream into a fine sieve over a heatproof bowl containing the chocolate, removing the chilli flakes.


3. Stir the chocolate and cream together until the chocolate has fully melted, thus becoming ganache. Add the salt, stir, and leave to cool.


4. When the ganache has cooled and is beginning to thicken, beat thoroughly with an electric whisk to incorporate air. The ganache should increase in volume and become paler. Whisk until the ganache resembles mousse and is slightly stiff, with the consistency of lightly whipped cream.


5. Line a large baking pan with baking paper and using two teaspoons, make the truffles by spooning just under a teaspoon amount of ganache onto the tray. Do this with all of the ganache and then leave to chill in the fridge for an hour or until firm.


6. When ready, sift the cocoa into wide shallow bowl. Take the truffles using your hands and roll each one between your palms until the outside just begins to melt and becomes smoother. Toss them in the cocoa powder until fully covered and shake off the excess.


7. Repeat with the rest of the truffles and store in an airtight container in the fridge. If so desired, leave at room temperature before serving to warm up, or eat straight from the fridge.

________________________________________

Desire. Anger. Love. Hatred. Such passions of the fire, such emotions and feelings likened to the fiery throes of hell and the belly of humanity; these are some of the truest, basest, strongest we humans can ever experience, leaving echoes and outermost ripples of pain, happiness and longing in their wake. We have an astounding capacity to feel these roaring emotions that many have attempted to capture, trying best to bottle that internal flame for the world to see. Acts of irrationality become our faults and freedoms; sparks that fly and flourish into wildfires and infernos; firestorms of the heart. These brave emotions we feel that burn us can be unquestioningly obvious and subtle. Roiling love can threaten to overcome our being, prickling our skin from the inside, consuming our breath and feeding on our thoughts, expunging excitement and passion and care as kindling for the next wave to spring from the heart. A slow, hateful rage can idly consume us, smouldering us into subservient, snarling embers until we are but shades of smoke left to haunt our bitter ashes. We are but mere pawns to such lively flames, our bodies but vessels for such forces that shatter and rebuild our very being; they fight against the shackles of our minds, yield to our appeasements, long for realisation and hunger for satiation.