No, That is Not Steamy Cream

Like any new babe, these sweet little babies are not quite ready to venture out into the world just yet, well except for maybe a potential sneak peek to some that may find themselves on a Vosges taste-tester list soon. (If you are interested, please email your name and address here. The first 100 lucky people will be put on the coveted list!) Nevertheless, by autumn, you can all be sure to to find a line of vegan truffles that are truly, my new favorite obsession.

The idea has been stirring within for some time as I am a frequent spa-goer and a fan of the master cleanse – so a vegan program is no stranger to me. I felt even more compelled toward the vegan side of things when at Le Cordon Bleu we dealt with every offal, trotter and tongue you could imagine. I often feel caught and suspended, between two worlds. One side is drawn to the decadence of haute cuisine, the indulgence in sumptuous traditions of foie gras and duck fat; while my other half is pulled towards clean, healthy, spare-the-animal, super food love.

It is likely that on a recent trip to We Care Spa in Desert Palm Springs and a visit to the island of free hippie clean eating Kauai, that the reminder and call from the mighty cacao in its purest form hit me over the head. And so my two sides crossed like a solar eclipse. A set of dark chocolate, vegan truffles packed with super foods…Could it be?

To make a traditional truffle, you often add cream to chocolate. So the trick to a vegan truffle is creating a soft, sensuous chocolate bite without any dairy. I started with 100% cacao chocolate another challenge that may lead you to a bitter over note. Instead of cream, I am using coconut milk and some agave for sweetening. But, I just read an article on how agave is actually highly processed and the old agave methods are not used for the widely distributed agave nectar. Still searching, I may be back to Stevia soon.

As for flavors, I am still playing. But, anticipate walnuts, acai rolled in young green mango powder, caramelized cocoa nibs and probably matcha green tea. Looking forward to letting the cat out of the bag tout de suite.

Never too Much of a Good Thing

Even the most dreamy tasks can be daunting at times. When I occasionally have to leave the Vosges kitchen on a spice hunt or a visit to our New York or Las Vegas boutiques, my awesome team must execute my recipes in my absence. Upon my return, I am faced with a sea of truffles to taste. I ensure that each and every batch meets our strict standards before chocolates are placed in purple boxes or go into your lovely mouths.

Because we use all natural products and because much of our process is done by hand, there will always be natural variance. I taste to be sure the chipotle is smoky enough, the Maldon salt crystals are big enough and the Hungarian paprika is ground fine enough.

After my most recent excursion, I came home to find about 35 truffles awaiting inspection. I like to taste them first thing in the morning when my palate is most fresh, working my way from white to milk to dark chocolate. I start by cutting each truffle in half and looking for smooth texture and a maximum shell thickness of 2 millimeters. Consistency in chocolate deposit temperature is crucial to a nice, thin shell.

Although I don’t look forward to problem batches and errors, they do not anger me. Each misstep is an opportunity for improvement or a honing of our process. After all some of the best inventions are born out of mistakes, tarte tartin for example.

One of the most frequent comments I hear from people is, “If you need someone to help taste chocolate, I would be happy to volunteer.” Well, there is no denying that there is a lot of it to be done in my line of work. Although facing dozens of truffles at a time can be daunting, I  prescribe to the saying there is no such thing as too much of a good thing.