Pseudo Chocolatier Fridays - The Revered Earl Grey

Alas... I jumped into making Earl Grey truffles, I had meant to try out the classics a few more times before I go on to try the infused ones, but I just couldn't wait, after drinking some very-fragrant earl grey tea.

After the ganache has set, I tasted it and to my dismay, the tea flavour turned out very strong, and further sharpened by an intense sweetness. I don't have a very sweet tooth to be honest, so the first reaction was "oh mannnnnnnnnnnnnnn". I was a little disheartened to roll them out to give out, so I scooped them (with a melon scooper) into tiny spheres and froze them (knowing I won't be able to continue in the same day).







I returned to the frozen balls of ganache yesterday (4 days after I first tasted them, no, please don't even start thinking I'm gross. According to Alice Medrich, with whom I would continue to "apprentice" fervourly, ganache can kept in an airtight container and be frozen up to 2 months.)

I was decidely very positive that morning and my head was almost ringing," I am sure some people with a sweet tooth would like to taste you". I went ahead to handroll them lightly with chocolate on both palms (another great tip from Alice M. from Bittersweet) in melted (untempered) bittersweet chocolate, and then drop them in trays of cocoa powder, nibs and chopped pistachios.

I tasted a few during the chocolate making process (and whilst photographing them.. keke..), it was as if I gained a sweet tooth or two, because I started finding them a little addictive. The cocoa powder created a bitter coat, and the chocolate coating was almost nonexistent. As I pop it into my mouth, the bitter coat melts almost seamlessly into an intense burst of bergamot flavour. The ganache though not as smooth as the previous plain truffles I made, is still mouth-melting. (arrgghh! how come not as smooth!??!! I suspect I need a finer strainer and I whisk a little too hard this time round...) Nuts and nibs tamed the sweetness with a crunch. (fine discovery, yup I admit that was more of an after thought and counter reaction to the ganache's sweetness.)

The earl grey flavour could be too strong for some, but lovers of full citrus flavour won't complain. I think I would lessen the amount of tea and sugar in my next try; I am a lover of earl grey but I am anxious to taste how a mildly flavoured earl grey truffle would be like (especially with such good chocolate used!), and definitely not as sweet as this one. Bittersweet is always yummier.

Sorry, but I can't resist putting this trivia down. You may have already known and find me silly actually: Do you know that earl grey tea is flavoured by an essential oil from the aromatic peel of the bergamot orange? And that the bergamot orange has no relations to the bergamot herb, which is grown primarily for ornamental purposes (and potpurri making). It is named so, because its "odor" is considered similar to that of the bergamot orange. All the while, I thought bergamot flavour had something to do with the bergamot herb! Yes, you would have realise I don't find knowledge that general, and sense not that common! haha... I love Wikipedia for many reasons.

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