Nutella Truffles

Yield: about 20 truffles

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

10 ounces semi chocolate or bittersweet chocolate, chopped (or chocolate morsels)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup Nutella
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 tablespoons Frangelico liqueur

1/2 cup toasted hazelnuts, finely chopped (see notes)

Directions:

1. In a double boiler over barely simmering water, combine chocolate, butter, heavy cream and Nutella. Heat until chocolate is melted. Stir until you have a smooth mixture.

2. Remove from chocolate mixture from heat and allow it sit at room temperature for about 10 minutes. Whisk in vanilla and Frangelico. Pour mixture into a shallow dish (example: 8x8 pyrex dish) and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for about 2 hours. If you refrigerate longer than two hours, the mixture will be too hard to work with. If this occurs, allow the mixture to sit at room temperature until they are pliable enough to work with.

3. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Using a small scoop (2 teaspoons) or a melon baller, scoop out chocolate mixture, roll into one inch balls, and place on prepared baking sheet. Continue with remaining chocolate mixture. Roll balls in chopped hazelnuts. Refrigerate truffles until ready to serve.

Notes:

- For information on how to skin and toast hazelnuts, check out my post, How to Skin Hazelnuts
- Truffles will store well in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- If you do not have Frangelico, simply omit the ingredient, just note the recipe will lack the layer of flavor that the Frangelico imparts to the truffles. You can typically find mini bottles of Frangelico for about $2.99 at liquor stores.