Spicefreak

Happy christmas eve, everyone, who wants chocolate?

This month I had chance to borrow a little bottle of extract off a friend but, like the Chilpōctli that we saw recently, it’s not a super hot one. In fact, it’s another from Grim Reaper Foods’ lineup, the same strength as their Raging Goblin.

Their chipotle and orange “Sepulchre”.

Perfect for spicing up milk chocolate truffles.

Unfortunately, though, if you don’t happen to have any on hand, you’re unlikely to see this extract again.

If you’re making this yourself, my advice would be to substitute the ten drops of it that I’m using for the same amount of Dorset Chilli Shop’s Chilpōctli and 5 similarly-sized ones of orange essence (available in most supermarkets).

A teaspoon of chipotle powder might also do the job but won’t produce quite as smooth a ganache.

Anyway, here’s what you’ll be needing for these simple chocolates:

400g milk chocolate

100g double cream

10 drops Sepulchre or substitute as above

And that’s it. Just these three ingredients are all we need for today’s bonus recipe.

So, to start making the filling for our truffles, we’re going to take 150g of that chocolate and break it into a bowl. Heat up some water in a pan underneath and use the warmth that rises up to melt your chocolate (making sure not to get it wet).

Once it’s melted, add the cream and chilli extract (or powder) and mix until smooth.

Allow to cool slightly, then refrigerate.

Next, melt roughly a third of of your remaining chocolate.

Line a chopping board with baking paper and use a teaspoon to drop the chocolate on, creating thin disks of roughly the spoon’s own width. These will form the base of each truffle but, for now, will also need refrigerating.

Finally, melt the last of the chocolate and use another teaspoon to scoop a ball of the cream mixture onto each base. Then cover each of these truffle centres in the melted chocolate.

When your done, everything will need to go in the fridge one last time and then you’ll have a set of lovely chocolates to share with friends and loved ones. Or hog for yourself if you’re feeling greedy. I won’t judge.

And, while the extract I’m using is definitely a

6/10

Heat

not much goes into this (otherwise all dairy) treat. The truffles themselves work out at a mere

1.5/10

Heat

at the end that almost anyone could enjoy.

They’re a lot more about the silky smooth texture of that ganache filling and the chocolate orange flavour, with smoked chilli back-notes, than they are about that chilli’s heat.

A tantalising combination of texture and taste with just a bit of warmth for these cold months.

Enjoy!