Tart London: how to make Christmas truffles

A Christmas present made by someone with their own hands, just for you, is always the one you treasure the most.

While this is a time for family, for cosiness, for carols, it has also become a time of heaving department stores and hectic high streets. On the big day itself there are mountains of shiny paper and short-lived plastic tat. Perhaps David Attenborough’s Blue Planet will change all of that. Everyone we know now worries about the amount of unnecessary waste we create. So what better way to avoid all that, and to show someone real appreciation, than to get busy at home making them something they’ll adore.

’Tis the season when a cold, dark afternoon means hunkering down in the kitchen with the radio blasting festive songs and making delicious treats: buttery cardamom shortbreads, glowing fruit preserves, Christmas spiced chutneys, mince pies and, of course, our own homemade truffles. There is something so joyful about rolling out perfectly sized baubles of chocolate and decorating them with sesame seeds, flecks of salt or a dusting of cocoa. And they make such wonderful gifts — guaranteed to put a smile on the face of anyone lucky enough to receive them.

Ingredients

Almond and tahini truffles

Makes about 20

80g almonds

2 tbsp coconut butter

3 tbsp tahini

1 tsp cinnamon

2 tbsp maple syrup

1 tsp sea salt

100g good quality dark chocolate

Method

Preheat oven to 180C. Roast almonds for 10 minutes then blitz in a food processor to small chunks. Take out half, set to one side then blitz the remainder to a smooth butter. Add the coconut butter, tahini, cinnamon and maple syrup and blend until silky. Use a spatula to scrape it into a bowl and add the chunky almonds and salt. Place in the fridge for a few hours to firm. Remove from fridge, and with a spoon dipped in hot water, scoop out a small amount and roll into a 2cm wide ball. In a small saucepan, gently melt the chocolate. Use a wooden cocktail stick to skewer each ball and dip into the chocolate. Place on a baking paper-lined tray and set in the fridge for a few hours.

Ingredients

100g good quality white chocolate

2 tbsp coconut butter

90g cashew nuts

2 tbsp desiccated coconut

Pinch of sea salt

2 tsp rose water

Seeds of 1 vanilla pod

2 tbsp dried raspberry

2 tbsp pistachios

Method

Melt the chocolate and coconut butter in a pan over a low heat. In a food processor blitz the cashews, desiccated coconut and salt to a fine crumb. Add the melted white chocolate and blitz for a couple of minutes with the rose water and vanilla. Add a little more salt to taste. Pour into a bowl and put in the fridge for a few hours to firm. Blitz the dried raspberries and pistachios to a fine crumb. Remove the bowl from the fridge. With a spoon dipped in hot water, scoop out a small amount of truffle mixture and roll into a 2cm wide ball, then roll each ball in the crumbs to coat.