Truffle Slices

For my first post I blogged about the Scotch Shortbread recipe in the 150 Delicious Squares cookbook. It was one of two recipes from that book that I tried this last weekend, the second being Truffle Slices. I picked Truffle Slices partly because they sounded delicious but also because I already had most of the ingredients (margarine, icing sugar and cocoa) and only had to run to the store for pecan pieces.

As you can see, I'm a big fan of No Name products. I've been in arguments with other bakers who believe it's important to buy top quality ingredients and, while I see their point, I disagree. I think if you put care into what you're making and you're using a good recipe, it doesn't matter what the brand name on your cocoa is. But that's just my opinion.

I also fully believe in substituting margarine for butter in most every recipe, the Scotch Shortbread being one of my rare exceptions. Does it change the end product a bit? Yes but not for the worse.

This was another super simple recipe; simply mix the first three ingredients together until well combined and then roll into a log. This proved a bit tricky as the mixture was pretty sticky but I managed by putting a bit of icing sugar down on the counter. Then you roll the log in the pecans. What I learned is that I should have smashed my pecan pieces into much smaller bits because it was nearly impossible to roll the sticky truffle log to get it covered evenly. In the end I found myself actually pressing the pecans into the log and then flipping it over to repeat on each side. It worked but it changed the shape entirely. You finish by wrapping it all in plastic wrap. The end result, I've got to be honest, did not look all that appetizing. Plus, somehow with all that rolling my log had doubled in size so I ended up with two skinner pieces.

That was pretty much the end of the recipe since after that you just chill in the refrigerator for an hour and then remove the plastic and cut into slices. Again, this would have been much easier with smaller pecan pieces. The size of mine prevented me from cutting clean slices so my final product really didn't look much like the one in the cookbook. Presentation aside, these things are delicious! I got rave reviews from my husband and my parents and I would definitely make them again.

Unfortunately, I can't find this recipe online anywhere so I can't share a link but if you'd like a copy, leave your email address in the comments and I'll send it along!