Ingredients
- 2/3 cup (3oz) toasted and sknned hazelnuts
- 2 tblsp unflavored vegetable oil, such as canola or safflower
- 4 oz bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
- 2 oz dark milk chocolate, finely chopped
- 42 toasted and skinned hazelnuts
Preparation
Step 1
1. Pulse 2/3 cup of the hazelnuts in the work bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade until they are finely chopped. Add the vegetable oil and pulse until the mixture becomes a paste, about 1 minute.
2. Place the bittersweet and dark milk chocolates in the top of a double boiler set over hot water. Stir often with a rubber spatula to help the chocolates melt evenly. Or place the chocolates in a microwave safe bowl and melt on low power for 30 second bursts. Sitr with a rubber spatula after each burst. Remove the top pan of the double boiler, if using, and wipe the bottom and sides very dry.
3. Add the hazelnut paste to the melted chocoaltes and stir to blend thoroughly. tightly cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill for 30 to 40 minutes, until slightly thick but still soft enough to pipe.
4. Place the foil candy cups on a baking sheet or in a baking pan. Fit a 12 or 14 inch pastry bag with a 1/2 inch round plain tipa nd fill the bag partway with the gianduia truffle mixture. Pipe the mixture into the foil cups until they are three qurters full. Top each truffle cup with a hazelnut pointed end up.
5. Cover the pan with plastic wrap and let the truffle cups set up at room temperature. Serve them at room temperature.
Store the truffle cups between layers of waxed paper in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to 1 month. To freeze up to 2 months, wrap the container tightly in several layers of plastic wrap and aluminum foil. Use a large piece of masking tape and an inedible marker to label and date the contents. If frozen defrost the truffle cups overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before serving.