Chocolate Covered stawberries

Chocolate covered strawberries are a great way to say thank you or I love you to a special someone. If you don't have time to make a batch of truffles, try making some chocolate covered strawberries. It's easy! This is what you need:

about 8 oz. of melting chocolate (I suggest Bakers semi sweet chocolate baking bars), a box of large strawberries cleaned and patted dry (pull out any soft strawberries and use for another dish), a cookie sheet lined with wax paper, and an microwave safe medium bowl.

Break up the chocolate and put it into a clean microwave safe bowl. Put it into the microwave on power 8 for 1 minute. Stir. Repeat for 30 second intervals at power 5 until the chocolate is fully melted.

Take the strawberries and holding them delicately at the top (not by the greens) dip them into the chocolate about 3/4 of the way in. The idea is to leave some of the red from the strawberry show. Let the extra chocolate drip back into the bowl and place very delicately onto the wax paper lined cookie sheet. Continue until all of the strawberries are dipped!

If you have left over chocolate, find some yummies from your pantry that you might like to dip into the chocolate. Here are some examples: graham crackers or your favorite cookies, pretzels, potato chips, marshmallows, dried apricots. The list can go on and on so be creative and have fun!!

And of course, let me know if you have any questions.

Yours in chocolate!

Emily Marcovitz
The Truffle Lady

Put some "sin" in your truffle

The winner of the most recent truffle naming contest is Sharon of Reisterstown. Her winning name is Almond Sin-amon! We thought it was to the point while adding some fun to the title. Let me know if you would like to try this new flavor, maybe a nice early summer gift just for you!

Order your Almond Sin-amon truffles by visiting the website at Emily.

Yours in chocolate,

Emily
The Truffle Lady

Cinnamon Almond Truffle Naming Contest

It's time for another truffle naming contest. This new flavor is made with bittersweet chocolate, almond paste and cinnamon in the ganache. On the outside is more bittersweet chocolate and chopped almonds on top. It is not a very sweet truffle, but a very rich truffle that will be enjoyed by those that love dark chocolate.

Now is the fun part for you!

To enter the truffle contest, send an email with your truffle flavor name to yummy@TrufflesByEmily.com Make sure to include your name. Please, limit your entries to 2 per person. I will be taking truffle flavor names until 8pm Wednesday, June 4th.

The contest will be judged by a select group of truffle eaters. The names of the submitters will be kept anonymous to them. I will post the winning entry here on my blog by Friday, June 6th.

The winner of the contest will receive a FREE 10 piece box of this new flavor delivered (if local.) If the winning entry comes from someone out of the local delivery area, that person will be shipped a 10 piece box at the earliest time that shipping is resumed. (Truffles by Emily does not ship in warm weather months.) In the event of multiple entries of a winning flavor, the prize will go to the first person to submit the entry.

One note of advice, the name should give some indication of what flavors the person is about to eat.

Email any questions to emily@trufflesbyemily.com.

Have fun and good luck!

Emily
The Truffle Lady

Cool Networking

One of the things that I love about having a small business is the wonderful people that I've met in my networking encounters. I started going to networking meetings in Howard County with a friend who owns her own business. This wonderful group is called Mom's Inc. This organization was founded by a woman named Nancy Daniels. It meets in Clarksville and is set up as a networking/support group that meets monthly. The group is friendly towards women with children and has it's meetings in the daytime. Check out their website for more info. on location and meeting times.
Lisa Jo Finstrom was so excited about Mom's Inc. that she started a Mom's Inc. group in Bethesda. Check out their website for info. on members and meeting times and location.

Yihung Mohs of Dream Dinners in Cloverly also started coming to Mom's Inc. in Howard County and decided to start a group closer to her home and business. It is Mom's Inc. in Silver Spring and it just celebrated it's one year anniversary.

The women that come to these networking meetings have diverse businesses. If you or someone you know owns a small business feel free to come and visit a meeting. There is no charge to attend a meeting. This is a non-profit organization. Attendies are highly encouraged to join the chapter after the third visit. Annual dues are minimal and go towards meeting costs.

Yours in chocolate,

Emily
The Truffle Lady

Upcoming with Truffles by Emily

Couture and Confection
On April 26th at Cloverly Day in Silver Springs, MD, Truffles by Emily will be selling 4 piece boxes of truffles in a handmade cigar purse. This collaboration with Kimberlee Billok of Custom Gift Basket Design will be available for purchase. This FREE event will be held in front of Dream Dinners at the corner of Briggs Cheney Road and New Hampshire Avenue from 11-3.

Your purse and truffles can be purchased through Mother's Day, email Emily for more details.

Made for Mom A Mother's Day Special
On May 10th from 1-3 pm, come to Dream Dinners Cloverly Street with your kids and make truffles, dinner and a creative card. Age 5 and up welcome (with a parent). Cost is $10 and up. RSVP to CloverlyStreetMD@dreamdinners.com.

Bloomin Arts Fest
This Annual Craft Festival will be held on Saturday, May 31st from 10-5. It is located on the grounds of Franklin Middle School on Reisterstown Road in Reisterstown. Truffles by Emily will be there selling truffles and sampling new flavors and creations. Come and visit and have a free sample and enjoy springtime in Reisterstown.

Chocolate and Herbs Workshop
Have you ever wanted to make your own truffles? Have you ever wanted to taste chocolate infused with lavender? Are you looking for something fun to do with your friends? If you have answered yes to any of these questions, then come to this fun workshop on June 8th at Blue Heron Wellness in Silver Spring. This event will take place at 1:30. More details to come!

Need a quick delicious gift, check out Joshua's Garden Gift Shop in Reisterstown. They are now carrying boxes of Truffles by Emily. They are open Thursday-Sunday 11-4. Call 410- 517- 0200 for directions.

See you soon!

Yours in chocolate,

Emily
The Truffle Lady

New Crunch Product

So, I had a request for an even healthier alternative to the Crunch Munch. Crunch Munch is made with Corn Chex cereal. Today I made a version using Wheat Chex. The texture is different and it is much crunchier. I'm trying to determine if this is a snack that appeals to my customers. Please, let me know what you think!

I'm working hard in the kitchen, infusing herbs into chocolate and getting ready for some new food adventures.

Yours in chocolate,

Emily
The Truffle Lady

Crunch Munch anyone?

Crunch Munch started when I had leftover chocolate that I didn't want to throw away. I hate wasting food! I have dipped many things into chocolate including: apricots, strawberries, a variety of cookies and graham crackers, caramels, nuts, pretzels, dried fruits, bananas, blueberries to name some. One day I was looking around my kitchen for something different to try and I came upon the Chex Cereal. I was hesitant to try it because I don't like Chex, but I decided to see what would happen when it found it's way into the chocolate and then hardened. It was transformed! The cereal was delicious and very crunchy, almost like eating a chocolate covered pretzel, but without the salty part of the combination going on. I really liked it. I knew right away that it is a winning combination because it is delicious without being rich like the truffles (no butter added) and it quickly becomes addictive.

My 90 year old aunt loves it and calls it Crunchin Munchin. Whatever you want to call it, call it delicious and order some today! www.trufflesbyemily.com

Yours in Crunch Munch Heaven,

Emily
The Truffle Lady

Infusing your truffle

Spring is here. (or at least that is what the daffodils in my garden are telling me.) I have brought back the silky delicious Earl Grey truffle to celebrate spring. I have been asked how the truffle gets its great smooth Earl Grey flavor, so I thought I would tell you about it.

Adding tea (or any herb) to the ganache is done using a process called infusion. Ganache is the center of the truffle. A traditional ganache is made with chocolate and cream and/or butter. Most of my truffles use both cream and butter. It creates a rich and smooth texture that is easy to make into truffle balls. If I use just butter, it will be a drier center, so I will add a jam or another flavoring to soften it up.

When I make the Earl Grey truffle, I start by melting the butter into the cream. I do this very slowly in the microwave, careful not to scald the cream. After the butter is melted, I add several tablespoons of the tea leaves directly to the cream mixture. I stir and let steep for about 10 minutes. After it is steeped and I've stirred a bit more, I strain the tea out of the cream. Then I add the cream to the chocolate. The tea has now been introduced into the ganache and I can continue on with the truffle.

So, that is how you get the delicious flavor!

I would love to get more questions about making truffles. Please, send questions as comments to my blog and I will do my best to answer.

Yours in chocolate!

Emily
The Truffle Lady

The winner is . . .

Banana Cream Dream. This name was submitted by Jessica and Cheryl. We had 55 name suggestions. Their suggestion was the 1st entry and the one the judges felt gives the best description of the truffle. It was another hard decision. Some of our other favorites were:

White Chocolate Banana Blossom
Dark 'N Light Banana Split
Banana Yum!

There were several variations on all of these. The name that was suggested the most was: Bananarama. We had one entry from an elementary-school class and an entry by a 4 year old: Banana Cream Daisy.

Thank you to all of you who took the time to participate. Keep checking the blog; there will be another truffle naming contest soon! Feeling like a taste of the new Banana Cream Dream? Check out my website http://www.trufflesbyemily.com/ for information about how you can have some sent to you.

Yours in chocolate,

Emily
The Truffle Lady

Truffle Naming Contest is starting today!

Earlier in the week, I made a truffle that I was not very happy with. I realized that I had a good idea, but it just didn't come together. I knew that I wanted a new flavor, something fun and sweet, just in time for Easter! I really liked the idea of the white chocolate filling, so I tried it again with banana flavoring. Using extract instead of liqueur made a big difference in the consistency of the truffle. So, not only is the flavor delicious, but the consistency of the center is better and it was much easier to work with when dipping into dark chocolate.

Now is the fun part for you! It is a truffle naming contest to name my new flavor. I would describe the truffle by saying it has a white chocolate center with a banana flavor. It is enrobed in dark chocolate with a pretty candy flower on the top. (see picture on the left)

To enter the truffle contest, send an email with your truffle flavor name to yummy@TrufflesByEmily.com Make sure to include your name. Please, limit your entries to 2 per person. I will be taking truffle flavor names until 8pm Wednesday, March 5th.

The contest will be judged by a select group of truffle eaters. The names of the submitters will be kept anonymous to them. I will post the winning entry here on my blog by Friday, March 7th.

The winner of the contest will receive a FREE 10 piece box of this new flavor either shipped or delivered (if local.) In the event of multiple entries of a winning flavor, the prize will go to the first person to submit the entry.

One note of advice, the name should give some indication of what flavor(s) the person is about to eat.

Good luck!

Emily
The Truffle Lady

P.S. If you would like to order this flavor or any other flavors, check out my Web site http://www.TrufflesByEmily.com/

And you call that a truffle?

The fun part about owning my own business is that I get to create new truffle flavors for everyone to enjoy. It all starts with my personal taste. I have vowed to myself that I will only make truffles that I will eat or feel good about giving to family and friends.(i.e. I will never make a peanut butter truffle, sorry Noam) Today I really had a challenge to that truffle sense.

The idea was to make a melon flavored white chocolate ganache with dark chocolate on the outside. I used a melon liqueur added to the white chocolate and frosting center. It tasted like sweet alcohol. You couldn't taste the melon at all. To top off my frustration, the chocolate slid off the centers. Yes, it slid off (not all of them), but enough to make it annoying and out of the race for new truffle flavor.

However, I like the idea of a truffle with white chocolate on the inside and dark chocolate on the outside, so I'll keep trying with that one.

It's back to the kitchen for me . . .

Thinking good truffle thoughts,

Emily
The Truffle Lady

A word of thanks

I want to thank all of my customers and friends who have written comments on my new blog. It is really appreciated. I have always valued the opinions of my friends, family and customers in regards to my business. You have added to the flavor of this business. It is a start-up company that has relied on you for advice, encouragement, truffle tasting, and honest feedback.

My friends have given me some great tips. For example, my friend June suggested that I add a flavor guide to my boxes. It helped to clarify for customers what exactly is in the box. Now the guide is visual with pictures of my popular flavors.

Coming up with new truffle flavors is an art. Shira recommended I try making an Earl Grey truffle. She gave me a recipe that I adapted and it has been a very popular flavor. The idea of infusing tea into the chocolate was new at the time and now I know what a delicious result it can have.

Sarah, who loves dried cherries, gave me a recipe for the Chocolate Cherry Truffle. I love the dried Montmorency cherries that I chop up and add into the ganache. With the addition of Cherry liqueur, it is a decadent truffle.

Ashley said that she liked the raspberry truffle but wanted me to make a Grand Marnier Truffle. So, for that truffle, I add Grand Marnier liquor and orange marmalade. It's very similar to the raspberry truffle, but with a completely different taste and look.

Dan has helped me with the design of my business cards and labels. Adrienne has helped with the design and layout of my brochure and my new flavor guide. I guess what I'm saying is that it really does take a village. Thank you to all the villagers. And keep sending me feedback.

I would like to respond to the kosher question that Patti asked. My truffles are not certified kosher at this time. They are not for two reasons: 1) all of my ingredients are not certified kosher (just a few of the liqueurs), and 2) I do not work in a kosher kitchen.

Coming soon: A truffle naming contest AND the introduction of a new "Crunch" product!

Yours in chocolate,

Emily
The Truffle Lady

Welcome to the Truffle Lady Blog!

Truffles by Emily started over 5 years ago in my kitchen. I made Raspberry Truffles. I used chocolate that I bought at the grocery store and other yummy ingredients like butter, cream, Chambord and raspberry jam. I boxed them up and gave them as holiday gifts to my children's teachers and my husbands colleagues at work. They were a big hit! Within a month, I had my first order for a box of truffles.

After that order, I started experimenting with different types of truffles: double chocolate, chocolate cherry, chocolate mint mousse. I was excited to work with dark chocolate (my favorite) and see the different combinations of flavors I could make and then decorate. What fun!

Simultaneously, I was thinking about starting a business where I would come to people's homes and give a cooking party where I teach people how to make delicious food. I held my first party at my house for two of my close friends. We made ravioli with homemade filling, and brownies. When we sat down to eat, we shared the ravioli with homemade sauce, salad and had delicious chewy brownies (my mother in law's recipe) for dessert. We all had a good time, but I was exhausted. I liked the idea of the party, but knew that it would have to change in some way.

Several months passed and I had the idea to have truffle making parties. The idea being that I would get groups of friends together and teach them how to make yummy delicious truffles. I had two parties in my home. They were fun, but I also knew that it would be better to have them at other people's houses. I started advertising the parties and my truffle sales and now I do both.

As of April 2007, I started working in a commercial kitchen at Har Sinai Synagogue. I now make over a dozen different truffle flavors. I have also created two products called Crunch Munch and Super Crunch Munch. Crunch Munch is Chex cereal and dark chocolate. Super Crunch Munch is Chex cereal, dark chocolate, dried cherries and raw pumpkin seeds.

I continue to do truffle making parties in people's homes and I collaborate with Yihung Mohs to make truffle making parties at her store, Dream Dinners in Silver Spring, Maryland.

I hope you will visit my website and taste my handmade truffles!

Emily
The Truffle Lady