HOMEMADE CHANUKAH GELT & TRUFFLES: Hanukkah

The Jewish holiday of Chanukah starts tonight and lasts 8 days, so there's plenty of time to make chocolate treats! Perhaps the most familiar Chanukah treat is Chanukah Gelt (money), a chocolate coin covered in gold foil. This tradition probably dates from the late 18th and early 19th century in Europe, when Jews figured prominently in chocolate manufacturing.

There are many chocolatiers who sell Chanukah Gelt, and some of it is very tasty, but if you want the very best, make your own!

The first recipe for Homemade Chanukah Gelt is from the  Oh Nuts! Sweet & Crunchy blog and is pretty traditional in appearance. This Chanukah Chocolate Gelt is fun to make with kids. Easy and quick.

The second recipe is for Chocolate Truffle Gelt. The truffles can't really be flattened like a coin, but you can individually wrap them in gold foil to mimic the gold coins. The truffles contain a bit of alcohol that helps to "cook" the yolks in the mixture. If you want to avoid alcohol totally, useone Tablespoon of orange juice, but it will slightly alter the taste and consistency.

And, you don't have to be Jewish to enjoy any of this Chanukah Gelt!

HOMEMADE CHANUKAH GELT 

Ingredients
8 ounces (about 1-1/3 cups) melting chocolate wafers (or dark or milk chocolate, chopped)
2 mini muffin tins
Gold luster dust
Clean food-safe paintbrush

Directions
Put chocolate in microwave-safe bowl. Microwave chocolate in 30-second increments, stirring after every 30 seconds, until melted and smooth. Alternatively, you can melt the chocolate in a double boiler or in a pot over a pot over simmering water.
Drop a spoonful of melted chocolate into 24 mini muffin cavities. Don't use a lot if you want them to look like coins.
Hit muffin pans against counter to level out chocolate and reduce “peaks” on top of chocolate. Refrigerate pans until chocolate is completely set, about 20 minutes.
Turn pans upside-down over clean surface, and flex to release the coins. If some stick in pan, knock on bottom of tin to dislodge the coins.
Use clean, dry food-safe brush and brush luster dust over the surface of coins. Luster dust and water do not mix, so don’t get any fancy ideas about mixing them together to make gold paint–you’ll just end up with a mess. Dry brushing works better.

If you don't want to use the luster dust, you can wrap the coins in gold foil and press a coin pattern (or not) into the foil (preferably while still a bit soft).

CHOCOLATE TRUFFLE GELT

Ingredients
6 ounces dark or milk chocolate
1/4 cup unsalted butter
2 egg yolks
1 Tbsp coffee liqueur, cognac, or Grand Marnier
Dried sweetened cherries
Cocoa
Gold foil paper

Directions
Put chocolate in one quart bowl and place in saucepan filled halfway with hot but not boiling water. Over low heat, melt chocolate and stir to remove any lumps. Remove bowl of chocolate from hot water bath.
Cut butter into 4 pieces and whisk in, one piece at a time, until smooth.
Whisk in yolks until thoroughly combined. (Mixture might look grainy and separated. Don't worry about using raw yolks; the yolks will essentially be "cooked" by alcohol in liqueur.) Then whisk in the cognac or other flavoring.
Cover and refrigerate for hour, or until mixture is firm but not rock hard.
Working quickly, place heaping teaspoon of chocolate in hand. Press dried cherry into center of chocolate and shape into ball, about an inch in diameter, covering the fruit.
Roll truffle in cocoa. Place on plastic wrap-lined plate, cover with additional wrap, and refrigerate until firm (about 30 minutes for dark chocolate and 15 minutes longer for milk).
To create "coins," wrap truffles in gold foil.