Truffle Shuffle

As a mental health residential program coordinator, it's my job to create fun news ways to help my clients engage in self-care practices. I decided to treat them to a DIY Spa day where they could learn how to make homemade face scrub, soak their feet, and pamper themselves. However, no spa day is complete without a little chocolate indulgence. These truffles were the perfect way to not only promote self-care but also to encourage the idea of treating ourselves now and again.

This recipe, which is listed below, is super simple and versatile. The recipe calls for 3 cups semisweet chocolate chips, 1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk, 1 tablespoon vanilla extract, and optional coatings (Chocolate sprinkles, espresso powder and cacao nibs). My goal was to make a cookies and cream truffle (using white chocolate chips), peanut butter truffle (using half milk chocolate and half peanut butter chips), and a milk chocolate truffle. The recipe suggests that all of the ingredients should be melted in the microwave. However, I decided to melt them on the stove top in a saucepan. Unfortunately this method caused my white chocolate chip mixture to curdle and become grainy. While I was unable to make my cookies and cream truffles, I did learn from my mistake before making the other truffles and recommend following the instructions. The coatings I decided to use for my truffles were Oreo cookie dust (crushed Oreos), chocolate sprinkles, and cinnamon sugar. For the cinnamon sugar I mixed together powdered sugar, coco powder, and cinnamon.

This recipe was very tasty and taught me something new about self-care as an amateur baker. I am often quick to doctor up or put my own spin on a recipe. While creativity is key and highly encouraged, there is also something to be said about trusting the process and the creators of the recipe. This truffle recipe taught me to relax, pay attention, and enjoy the process.

https://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/chocolate-truffles/