Frozen Chocolate Truffles

It’s time to clean out the freezer – one of my least favorite chores. We do it once in the spring and again in the fall. Thankfully I’ve been more careful about labeling things this year so I don’t find mystery bags of who-knows-what. We found an opened one gallon French vanilla ice cream that contained just enough to make two servings of frozen chocolate cream truffles.

This decadent dessert takes only minutes to prepare, but make sure you allow time necessary for the ice cream balls to properly freeze in both steps. If you want to have fun with it, use a variety of flavors of ice cream for the three truffles that make a serving.

I consider desserts such as these truffles and affogato, the classic Italian ice cream dessert drowned in espresso, to be truly seasonless. Especially after a heavy meal, refreshing desserts are always appropriate regardless of the time of the year.

Frozen Chocolate Truffles
Adapted from The Complete 15-Minute Gourmet by Paulette Mitchell – makes 12 truffles for 4 servings 
Printable Recipe

1 pint of your favorite premium ice cream or a variety of your favorites (I used French vanilla)
2 ounces semisweet chocolate
2 tablespoons cocoa powder (unsweetened or sweetened – I used unsweetened)

Optional garnishes:
4 fresh strawberries
4 sprigs of mint

Use the bottom of a 9-inch pie plate as a template to cut a sheet of wax paper to fit the pie plate. Using a small (about 1 ½”) ice cream scoop, drop 12 balls of ice cream onto the pie plate. If the ice cream balls have rough edges, use a small teaspoon to smooth their surface. Cover lightly with plastic wrap and freeze for ½ hour or until firm.

When you are ready to assemble the truffles, put the chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave on MEDIUM for about 1 ½ minutes or until liquid. Stir the chocolate to melt any remaining chunks and set to cool slightly.

While the melted chocolate is cooling, spread the cocoa powder on a large plate or a sheet of wax paper for easy clean-up. Roll the frozen ice cream balls in the powder, pressing gently, and return them to the wax paper covered pie plate. Drizzle the melted chocolate over the ice cream balls. Return the plate to the freezer for at least ½ hour before serving. To store for up to 2 days, cover with plastic wrap. Recipe makes 12 truffles for 4 servings. Garnish each serving if desired with a strawberry and a sprig of fresh mint.

*Cook’s note: I placed the martini glasses in the freezer to help keep the truffles from melting. I suggest that you do the same, whether you serve them on a platter or in a glass.

For better viewing, click on photos to enlarge.

This will be shared with Foodie Friday at Rattlebridge Farm, Miz Helen’s Country Kitchen Full Plate Thursday, and Weekend Bites at Simple Recipes.

Have a great weekend everyone.