Wow... that's a mouthful of a name. I tried to think of something shorter but it just didn't get the point across. The inspiration for this original recipe comes from two things. My friend Natalie makes the best peanut butter eggs... creamy, light fluffy peanut butter covered in a thick layer of milk chocolate. I've been making her recipe at Easter time for the past few years. During this time I usually consume an entire peanut butter egg with every meal and at least two a day as a snack. It's a good thing I only make them once a year. Natalie's recipe calls for imperial margarine, marshmallow fluff, peanut butter, powdered sugar and Wilbur milk chocolate, made locally in Lititz, PA. I stayed true to the ingredients of Natalie's recipe with one small change - I exchanged the margarine for pure, unadulterated butter. Go big or go home, right?
The second inspiration for this truffle comes from Philadelphia. Marcie Blaine artisinal chocolates is a small chocolate shop located in a home goods store in center-city Philly. I found the shop while on a chocolate tour of the city. That's right, I don't tour cities to see the sites, I just go for the food. The shop created a series of Philadelphia inspired chocolates and the Philly Pretzel was a peanut butter and pretzel truffle covered in dark chocolate. It was small (and cost me $3), but the flavor was rich with the perfect combination of sweet and salty.
Keep Reading after the Jump!
So, here it is. My interpretation of a sweet and salty truffle. A crunchy peanut butter and pretzel ball with a smooth and creamy caramel center, covered in milk chocolate. Oh, and forgive me for the candied bacon. I just couldn't resist.
And please excuse the horrible photography. It's sad when my iPhone takes better pictures than my digital camera.
An Amber's Confections Original Recipe
Makes 40 truffles
For the Truffles:
1 stick butter, softened
3/4 cup marshmallow fluff
18 oz. jar of creamy peanut butter
2 cups powdered sugar
1 cup crushed pretzels
1/2 lb. soft caramel
1 lb. milk chocolate disks for melting
Mix butter, marshmallow fluff and peanut butter in a large bowl with a wooden spoon. Add the powdered sugar and mix until smooth. Add the crushed pretzels and mix until incorporated. Refrigerate the dough about an hour.
Roll the soft caramel into marble sized balls. I found my caramel like this at a candy store.
If you can't find caramel in this form, you could use the individually wrapped square caramels. Just warm them for a few seconds in the microwave to soften them up and cut them in half before rolling into balls.
Roll the peanut butter mixture into a truffle sized ball and stuff the caramel ball into the middle of the peanut butter ball. Make sure the caramel ball is completely covered.
Place the truffles on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Refrigerate the balls for at least 2 hours.
Melt the chocolate in a fondue pot or over a double boiler. Dip the truffles in the chocolate to get an even coating. Place the truffles back on the wax paper to cool and top with a small piece of candied bacon. Refrigerate the truffles until the chocolate is set.
For the Candied Bacon:
3 tbsp. Brown sugar
8 slices of bacon
Preheat oven to 375. Dredge bacon slices in the brown sugar, patting the sugar onto the bacon. Lay the bacon strips on top of a wire rack that’s on top of a baking sheet. Bake for 20-25 minutes, flipping once. Drain on a paper towel when finished. Cut into small pieces.
