Pumpkin Truffles

The smell of pumpkin mixed with cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger wafting through the house brings up warm memories of childhood.  My mom didn't bake too often, but she always made pumpkin bread each year.  The bread was always so moist and tender and full of spicy goodness.

My husband's favorite dessert is pumpkin pie, so we have it often throughout the fall.

As a chocolatier, I am always looking to create new flavors. I wanted to make a filled chocolate truffle that encompassed all the wonderful flavors of pumpkin pie and pumpkin bread. I think this recipe is just right.

Ingredients

Pumpkin Ganache

pumpkin puree - Canned pumpkin is fine. Do not use a can of pumpkin pie filling. That is already flavored.
brown sugar - This will add a rich caramel flavor to the ganache.
spices - Use cinnamon, ground ginger, and nutmeg.
vanilla extract
freshly squeezed lemon juice - This helps to brighten up the flavor of the pumpkin ganache.
salt - Just a pinch to balance out the sweetness.
heavy whipping cream - Makes your ganache rich and creamy.
good quality white chocolate - I used bars of Lindt White Chocolate.
Hershey's cinnamon chips - I found adding a ¼ cup of these cinnamon-flavored chips really adds an amazing cinnamon flavor. If you can't find them, you can add more white chocolate instead and add a little more cinnamon.

Chocolate Pumpkins (the outer shells)

semi-sweet chocolate or dark cocoa candy melts or almond bark - I created the outer shells from pure-tempered chocolate.  If you aren't experienced at tempering, you can use compound chocolate, also known as confectionery coating, candy melts, melting wafers, or almond bark.

Check out my chocolate-making tips page for detailed instructions on choosing the right chocolate, melting chocolate or candy melts, and tempering pure chocolate.

Make pumpkin ganache.

Prepare a double boiler. Set the bottom pot of the double boiler, filled with 1" of water, over low heat.

Set the top bowl on the bottom pot, making sure that water does not touch the bowl.

Combine all the pumpkin ganache ingredients in the top bowl. Stir occasionally until melted and smooth.

Let it cool.

Pour ganache into a bowl.  

Press a piece of plastic wrap directly on the top of your ganache, so a crust won't form.  Let cool to room temperature.

Create the chocolate pumpkins.

Melt and temper (heat and cool to exact temperatures) pure semi-sweet chocolate or melt dark cocoa Candy Melts, almond bark, or melting wafers. For instructions, check out my chocolate-making tips page.

Pour melted chocolate into a disposable pastry bag. Cut off the tip of the bag.

Pipe chocolate into the cavities of a pumpkin-shaped candy mold filling them all the way up to the top edge.

Remove air bubbles.

Tap the mold on the table several times to allow air bubbles to rise to the surface.  I use a small vibrating table to do the work for me.

It's not that I'm lazy, it's just that at times I fill hundreds of molds a day, and this machine just makes it easier.

Pour out excess chocolate.

Turn your filled mold upside down over your bowl of melted chocolate.  Allow most of the chocolate to drip out of the mold, leaving only a thin shell of chocolate.

Scrape the chocolate off the mold.

Use an offset spatula or a putty knife (from the hardware store) to scrape off the excess chocolate. You want the top edge of each cavity to be clean.

Chill the chocolate.

Once cleaned, put mold in the refrigerator if you are using tempered chocolate, or the freezer if using confectionery coating.

Allow the chocolate to set completely. This should take 5-10 minutes.

Pipe pumpkin ganache into chocolate pumpkins.

Spoon the pumpkin ganache into a disposable pastry bag.  Cut off the tip and pipe the ganache into each chocolate-filled mold. 

Once you fill the mold, set it aside for about an hour so that the ganache can firm up.

Cover the ganache with chocolate.

Sorry, I missed snapping a picture of this step, so I'm sharing a picture from my Chocolate Raspberry Eggs recipe.

Pour a thin layer of chocolate over the top, spread it over the opening to ensure it is completely covered, and then scrape across the mold using the scraper to remove any excess chocolate.

Chill until set.

Unmold the chocolates.

Turn the mold upside down and allow the chocolate to fall out of the mold. 

If the pieces don't come out easily, you can press the backside gently until the chocolates come out. 

I hope you can excuse the ugly photos of these chocolate pumpkin truffles.

I made this recipe in 2010 for my Hungry Halloween website (which has been forwarded to Hungry Happenings), and I was not a very good photographer back then.

However, the candies taste amazing. I do hope enjoy making them.