Chili Chocolate Almond Truffles

Tweet this!
The rich sweetness of chocolate, the slight kick of chili powder, and the delicious crunch of almonds... what's not to love?

Warning: You're going to want to make these. I would advise trying to make them before a social gathering, so that you don't blink and accidentally eat them all. I also should warn you that you may inadvertently "taste test" far too many heaping tablespoons of the melted chocolate mixture. Don't say I didn't warn you.

Another warning... as I made these, I started singing a little song. The lyrics are simple, so you should probably join in: "Everyday, I'm truffling... Everyday, I'm truff-fa--fa--faling." <--There you go. Now you have an awful song stuck in your head. You're very, very welcome.

I made these for blogger book club this month. I hadn't spent much time thinking of recipe development for the group, so I had to kind of scramble the day before. I found a recipe online that looked pretty good, but I didn't have all of the ingredients, so it turned into a bit of an experiment.

This recipe is adapted from this Chocolate Chili Truffles recipe from Elana's Pantry. I love her recipes and would have followed it to a "T," except that I didn't have all of the ingredients on hand, so I had to improvise. Since I was bringing this to a book club where I know at least one person has a coconut allergy, I omitted coconut milk in exchange for almond milk (with almond extract already in the mix, I figured anyone with that allergy was already out!). Also had run out of agave, so I subbed honey for that. And had no finely chopped almonds (and no desire to chop whole ones), so I just subbed chia seeds there.

Chili Chocolate Almond Truffles

Ingredients... For Truffle Base:

• 2 cups Chocolate Chips
• 2 tbsp Honey
• 1 tsp Almond Extract
• 2 tbsp Chili Powder
• 3/4 cup Almond Milk
• 1 tbsp Chia Seeds

...For Truffle Powder:

• 2tbsp Cacao Powder
• 3 tbsp Chia Seeds
• 1/2 tsp Chili Powder

Directions:

1. Melt Chocolate using a double boiler or the microwave. I put it in the microwave for 90 seconds, take out and stir, then again for 30 seconds, and take it out and stir.
2. Add honey, almond extract, chili powder, chia seeds, and almond milk and mix well. If the almond milk is not mixing in with the chocolate, try heating it for another 30 seconds with all ingredients in the bowl, and then stir again.
3. Refrigerate for 20-30 minutes, until it reaches a frosting-like consistenct.
4. Scoop into balls and place on parchment paper-lined sheet. Set aside.
5. Combine ingredients for truffle powder (Cacao Powder, Chia Seeds, more Chili Powder). 
6. Roll balls in truffle powder.
7. Serve.

Frozen Tapioca Brownie Cups - Perfect Party Food!

Tweet this!

Frozen Tapioca Pudding that is thawed just enough to make it ice cream like. Small brownie bites. And whipped cream. What's not to love?! Here's a unique and delicious treat that will have your guests peppering you with questions - What's in it? Where's it from? How'd you make it taste so delicious? 

We had a first here, people. Well, a "first" since I started this blog, at least. For once, I actually followed the directions on the back of a box. I'm usually trying to make substitutions, like swapping a can of La Croix for eggs, oil, and butter or adding applesauce instead of oil. It's fun!

For this recipe, I was a good girl and followed the directions on the boxes. First, I made a pan of brownies. As they were baking, I made one batch of Tapioca pudding using Instant Tapioca granules. As usual, they overflowed. I have a Tapioca curse, I swear, which means that every - and I mean EVERY - single time I make Tapioca, I manage to boil it over and make a huge mess. This is how my kitchen looked:

Yeah, I know. Somebody save me. Bake on!

Frozen Tapioca Brownie Cups

Servings: 20 (This recipe makes enough for a whole party. If you like Tapioca Pudding and Brownies, though, feel free to make it all and eat the leftover ingredients as separate treats!)
Ingredients:

• 1 box Brownie Mix and necessary ingredients (See box)
• 1 batch Tapioca Pudding Instant Granules and necessary ingredients (See box - probably 1 egg, 3 cups milk, 1/3 cup sugar, 1 tsp Vanilla)
• 1 can Whipped Cream
• 1/2 cup Almonds

Directions:

1. Make the brownies. Preheat oven to 350 degrees (or other temperature, as listed on brownie box). Mix brownie batter and pour into a greased cake pan, then bake for time prescribed on box. Make Tapioca while it bakes, then remove from the oven and let cool.
2. Make Tapioca. Mix your Tapioca batter and bring to a boil. Watch it carefully! This is where I always mess up because I get so impatient that I go to do something else. Once it boils, remove from heat and stir in Vanilla, then let it cool.
3. Once everything is cooled, cut the brownies into small, bite-sized pieces. This is not an exact science, just make them very small. Mine were about 1/2 inch by 1/4 inch.
4. In small cups (or martini glasses - someone try that, please, and send me a picture!), start with a heaping spoon full of Tapioca pudding. Next, add a layer of whipped cream, then the brownie bites, then more whipped cream, and then some sliced almonds. Feel free to continue layering if you'd like to fill the cups up even higher!
5. Optional: Freeze for 2 hours, thaw for 5 minutes before serving. I initially did this on accident -- I wanted to keep them cold but planned to thaw them fully before serving. Instead, I ended up serving them straight from the freezer... but my coworkers seemed to love it and enjoyed the temperature and consistency. Apparently, frozen-and-slightly-thawed Tapioca pudding is to die for. Who knew?! Hey, kind of like how they discovered chocolate chip cookies...

Oh, and because I love you...