Champagne Truffles for New Year's Eve

New Year's Eve is coming up and what a better way to celebrate than with Champagne Truffles. I like this recipe because it uses more champagne than most Champagne Truffle recipes. The Cognac also adds some zip.

Martha Stewart's Champagne Truffles
Makes about 3 dozen

* 1/2 cup heavy cream
* 8 ounces semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
* 1/4 cup plus 1 Tablespoon Champagne
* 1 tablespoon Cognac
* Coarse sanding sugar, for rolling

Directions
1. Bring the cream to a boil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Immediately pour hot cream over the chocolate in a medium bowl; stir until smooth. Stir in the Champagne and Cognac. Refrigerate until chocolate mixture is firm enough to roll into balls, about 1 hour. (or more!!)
2. Using a small melon baller or ice-cream scoop, form 1-inch balls. Roll each ball in coarse sanding sugar, and transfer to rimmed baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate truffles at least 30 minutes or up to 3 days before serving.

You can also use unsweetened cocoa or confectioner's sugar if you don't have sanding sugar. This recipe was in Martha's wedding section, so the sparkly white sugar looks great for weddings, but cocoa tastes just as good.. just different.

*What Is Sanding Sugar?
Sanding sugar is a large crystal sugar used as edible decoration that will not dissolve when subjected to heat. Also called pearl sugar or decorating sugar, sanding sugar adds "sparkle" to cookies, baked goods and candies. The sparkling affect is achieved because the sugar crystal grains are large and reflect light. You can order Sanding Sugar online or buy it in cake decorating departments.