Peanut Butter and Bacon Truffles

Place the powdered sugar, salt, cayenne pepper, peanuts, and most of the bacon (save about 60 tiny pieces of bacon to top the truffles) in the bowl of a food processor. Process until the peanuts are finely ground.

Out the peanut butter in a small bowl and melt it for about one minute in the microwave. Add the warm peanut butter to the food processor and pulse until evenly combined. Transfer the peanut butter mixture to a medium bowl, cover it with plastic wrap and chill it in the refrigerator until it starts to harden, about two hours.

Line a baking sheet with waxed paper. Pull the peanut butter mixture out of the fridge and remove the plastic wrap. Scoop out the peanut butter mixture into your desired truffle size and place on the waxed paper. Repeat until all of the peanut butter mixture has been used.

Place the pan in the freezer for at least one hour or until the truffles have started to harden.

Pull the pan out of the freezer. Quickly roll the truffles in the palms of your hands to form smooth spheres and put them back on the pan. If they start to get too sticky, return the pan to the freezer and repeat when they have hardened. Once the truffles have been rolled, stick a toothpick into the center of each and return the pan to the freezer.

Temper the two and a half cups of bittersweet (dark) chocolate in a double boiler over simmering water. (See note below for tempering instructions *).

While the chocolate is melting, prepare your work station. Cover two foam blocks with plastic wrap, securing the plastic to the blocks with tape. Place the reserved bacon in a small bowl.

Once the chocolate has melted, remove the truffles from the freezer. Begin dipping each truffle into the chocolate, while holding the toothpick.** Once coated, stick the sharp end of the toothpick into the foam and immediately top with a small piece of bacon. Repeat until all truffles have been coated in chocolate and topped with a piece of bacon. Chill until the chocolate has hardened completely.

Makes about 60 small truffles.

*To temper the chocolate place two cups of the chocolate in a bowl over a pot of simmering water (double boiler). Once it reaches 110 F on a candy thermometer, remove the bowl from the heat and set aside. When the chocolate has cooled to about 90 F add in the remaining half cup of chocolate and stir until smooth and melted. You may need to place it back over the double boiler while dipping the truffles to make sure it stays smooth.

**I like to not cover the bottom of the truffle (the area surrounding the toothpick) so that the toothpick comes out easily. This also ensures a flat bottom so they don’t roll.

Adapted from The High Plains Sifter: Retro-Modern Baking For Every Altitude.