Chocolate Balls – Palline di cioccolato
Fast and easy to make. These are really good for just about any occasion.
Ingredients:
3-1/2 oz. unsweetened chocolate
1 cup shelled hazelnuts
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 Tbsp. unsalted butter
1 Tbsp espresso coffee (cold)
3 Tbsp. un-sweetened cocoa
Instructions:
1. Grate the chocolate in a bowl.
2. Blend the hazelnuts in your food processor.
3. Add the hazelnuts to the chocolate along with the sugar, coffee, butter.
4. Mix well with a spoon.
5. Prepare a plate with the cocoa.
6. Roll the mix into 1 inch balls with your hands and place them on the cocoa.
7. Once they are all ready roll them gently in the cocoa and then a bit between your hands to remove the excess cocoa.
8. Place them on a serving dish and keep them in the fridge or a cool place until you are ready to serve them.
Notes:
If the batter won’t stick together for you just add a little extra coffee.
If you don’t have espresso you can use instant coffee. Just make it really strong! Use decaffeinated if you prefer, the important thing is the coffee flavor.
Don’t have Hazel nuts? No problem these are good with Almonds too.
How many balls does this recipe make?
@Brittany: it makes about 24 to 36 balls depending on the size you make them.
hi patty!! i just wanted to tell you that my friend and i chose this recipe for a history project on Italy and my teacher loved it! she gave us an A. thanks patty!
Sounds really good and I’m doing it for a home economics project, but are the shelled hazel nuts really needed?
@Mikayala: Yes, hazelnuts are important for the final result. If you don’t find them, try to substitute them with peeled almonds.
Hey, I’m allergic to nuts, what could I use instead?
Dear Debbie,
I would try crushed graham crackers instead of the nuts and use less powdered sugar. I can not guarantee you they’ll come out good because I’ve never tried them this way.
Patty
How long does this recipe take???
Excellent! Everyone loved them.
“Fast & Easy”
Great for Christmas gifts.
Hi, what part of Italy are these from? I am going to make them for a school project.
Thanks
Dear Nicole,
They’re not specific to any region in Italy that I know of.
My son is doing this for his HE exam, i think we may have messed up the recipe somewhat. He thinks the cocoa powder has to be made into a paste??
@Louise: No, it doesn’t need to be made into a paste. The cocoa powder only needs to be put on a plate to roll the balls in.