Tahini-Chocolate Truffles

Diana Saker


My long-time buddy, Diana Saker, and her neighbors host an
annual Christmas ornament- cookie exchange extravaganza. Unfortunately Diana has an intolerance to wheat products, so I try to make flourless sweets
that she could eat and enjoy. I know Diana is a huge fan of hummus, so I
narrowed my search for tahini-based delights. (Last year I made
tahini cookies,
but this time around I was looking for something a bit more sinful.)

Tahini-Chocolate Truffles

I came across a sweet treat – more of a candy than a
cookie, actually – called chocolate tahini truffles. I first saw this recipe on
The Art of Armenian and Middle Eastern Cooking’s Facebook page; they found the
recipe by way of Anja’s Food for Thought website, and best of all… no baking
required!


The original recipe called for raisins, dates and agave
syrup which I did not have on hand, so I substituted those with things stocked in
my pantry – currants, dried plums and tamarind syrup. I crossed my fingers and
hoped for the best. 

The ingredients I used



Below you’ll find Diana’s unbiased evaluation.





Here’s my version of Tahini-Chocolate Truffles           

Yield: approximately 24 pieces, depending on size


Ingredients:

2 cups tahini, (sesame seed paste) well-stirred
3/4 cup currants, plumped in warm water and drained
1/2 cup dried
plums, finely diced

1 tablespoon unsweetened
cocoa powder

Tamarind syrup
(optional)



Approximately ¾ cup finely ground almonds for coating



Directions:

1.  Combine tahini,
currants, dried plums and cocoa powder in a food processor and blend until
smooth. If the mixture is too dry, add water one tablespoon at a time. You
should end up with a workable, not too sticky, ball. Taste mixture for
sweetness. If desired, add tamarind syrup to taste. (NOTE: The currants
and plums aren’t as sweet as raisins and dates, so I added about 1 Tbsp. of the
tamarind syrup.)



Uncoated truffles (Step #2)

 2. Roll mixture into
balls, about ¾ – inch to 1 – inch each.

(My suggestion:
these are quite rich, so smaller is better!)



3. Place ground almonds in a separate bowl. Coat each
ball completely with the chopped nuts. (Anja also suggests coating these with
coconut, sesame seeds or ground pistachio nuts.)

4. Place coated truffles in a single layer on a
parchment-lined tray and refrigerate until firm- about 1 hour – before serving.



5. Serve with coffee or tea. Take small bites and savor
the rich, decadent goodness!

6. Storage: These keep well in the refrigerator in a tightly
covered container.



Diana’s unbiased evaluation: The tahini-chocolate truffle is very rich (have a beverage nearby!). It’s
not as sweet as one would expect a truffle to be. It’s got an earthy flavor from
the tahini – not quite savory; not quite sweet. It has a delicious flavor that
stands alone. A real keeper!!

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2 Comments

  1. Hrag December 28, 2012 at 3:18 am

    This looks amazing. Can't wait to try it!

    Reply
    1. Robyn December 28, 2012 at 3:59 am

      Hrag, these are really rich and extremely yummy. The amount of sweetness depends entirely on the type and amount of dried fruit you add.
      I hope you'll enjoy them!

      Reply

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