Milk Chocolate Truffles

1. Place the milk chocolate chips into a medium bowl. Pour the heavy cream into a saucepan over medium heat. Heat the heavy cream until little bubbles start to form on the surface. Remove from the heat, and pour the hot cream over the milk chocolate chips. Let it sit for 1-2 minutes to let the chocolate chips start to melt.

2. Using a whisk, mix together the chocolate and cream until completely incorporated. Place the bowl of ganache (aka chocolate and cream mixture) into the freezer for 45-50 minutes, or until the ganache is firm enough to scoop and roll into balls.

3. Take the ganache out of the freezer. Using a spoon, scoop out about 1 tablespoon of filling, place in your hands, and roll it into a ball (this works best when you have clean, cold hands). Place the rolled balls onto a baking sheet lined with foil or parchment paper. Freeze for 30 more minutes, or until the truffles are extremely cold.

4. Put the semi-sweet chocolate and the shortening (if using) in a microwave safe bowl. Heat it in the microwave in 30 second increments, stirring after every 30 seconds. When the chocolate looks almost melted, microwave the chocolate for only 10-15 seconds more.

5. Take the truffles out of the freezer, and dip each one in chocolate, dripping off the excess. Place the dipped truffles back on the baking sheet lined with foil or parchment paper. After each 2 or 3 truffles, decorate the tops of the truffles with sprinkles, if desired.

6. Freeze for at least 20-25 minutes before serving, and then store in the refrigerator. Serve cold. Enjoy!

Notes:
1. I add a little bit of shortening to my chocolate because it makes the liquid chocolate a little more fluid, causing the chocolate coating to be a little less thick and harden a little bit better. If this doesn’t appeal to you, it is totally okay to leave it out. Also, if you use shortening, it does cause the chocolate coating to harden faster. So be sure to decorate the tops of your truffles every 2 or 3 that you dip, because the chocolate does harden a bit quickly, and once it does, the sprinkles will not stick well.
2. Your hands will get messy making these truffles. Use good food-grade gloves if you’d like, but if you don’t, make sure you wash your hands every 4-5 truffles because your hands will get warm and sticky and it will make rolling the truffles difficult. If your truffle filling starts to feel too soft, pop it back into the freezer for 5-10 minutes to harden up again.