International Whisky Day: Scotch Whisky Peanut Truffles

However you spell it--Whisky or Whiskey--today is International Whisky Day!

Whisky and chocolate go very well together, and I've been a judge at several Scotch and Chocolate pairings. It's a hard job, but someone has to do it.

It's often difficult to decide which chocolates pair best with which Scotch, but since today is National Whiskey Day, I thought I'd post a recipe for Single Malt Scotch Whisky Peanut Chocolate Truffles. It's the ultimate pairing of not two but three distinct flavors. You can decide on your own chocolate and your own Scotch. Keep the chocolate semi-sweet, so you have some sugar in there. I tend to go very dark, but not in this recipe. Recipe is adapted from one by Florence Fabricant that appeared in the New York Times in 2008.

I love truffles. They're easy to make and look and taste great!

Scotch Whisky Peanut Truffles

Ingredients
12 ounces dark chocolate (65-75% cacao-needs to be semisweet to offset the salted peanuts & Scotch)
2/3 cup heavy cream
1 1/2 teaspoons honey (original recipe calls for floral honey)
3 Tbsp Single Malt Scotch Whisky
6 Tbsp salted peanuts, coarsely chopped
1/2 tsp Madegascar vanilla extract

Directions
1. Break 8 ounces chocolate into small pieces and place in metal bowl. Heat cream to simmer and pour over chocolate. Stir until chocolate has melted and is smooth. If necessary, place bowl briefly over low heat to finish melting.
2. Stir in honey, Scotch, crushed peanuts and vanilla. Chill until firm, 2 hours.
3. Use  small ice cream scoop to scoop small amounts of chocolate mixture. Quickly roll into 1 inch balls. Place on platter or baking sheet lined with parchment. Put in freezer to firm up (about 30 minutes).
4. Break up remaining chocolate and place 16 ounces in microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on full power 2 to 3 minutes, stirring a few times, until melted. Remove from oven. Stir in remaining chocolate until melted. With two forks hold truffles and gently dip in melted chocolate to coat. Place on parchment-lined baking sheet at room temperature 15 minutes. Refrigerate until ready to serve.