About a month ago, my guy barely made it home to California from New Jersey. The East Coast had experienced severe flooding all weekend, creating small lakes out of roads that rose halfway up the sides of sedans. At the airport, the stormy weather grounded half of the planes and drastically delayed the rest. My guy texted me as the minutes ticked by. The departure computer screens delayed his flight by half an hour… Then an hour… Then two…
Finally, his plane took off, but with its late start, my guy only had 10 minutes to catch his connection in Salt Lake City—barely enough time to sprint between the gates! After a few tense moments of waiting on my end, he texted me again, explaining that he made it and was still due in at the original time.
Just before 1 am, he pulled open the front door and carried in his luggage. After a huge hug, he slipped a white paper bag out of his backpack and handed it to me, saying, “Here, I got this for you in Salt Lake City.” Completely confused by how he had time to dash into a store, let along purchase anything, I opened the bag…
…and pulled out a box of gourmet dark chocolate truffles. He explained that he thought of me as he ran past the shop and that he nearly sacrificed his own dinner by stopping. He managed to pick up a burger from the next stall over in less than 60 seconds after paying for my treats, but he had no time to eat until he buckled himself onto the airplane and the meat was stone cold.
How sweet is that??
I slowly savored the decadent truffles over the week, starting with the cherry, followed by the orange, mint, pure dark chocolate, and ending with the festive gingerbread. It had been the last one my guy picked out and a bit of a toss-up, but at the last second, he remembered how much we both enjoy Trader Joe’s gingersnap cookies and bought that flavor too.
Since I’d rather that he didn’t break his bank account by buying me gourmet truffles every week, and since I can’t quite run enough miles to burn off all those calories, I created my own healthier copycat: these Dark Chocolate Gingerbread Truffles!
These truffles are the easiest you’ll ever make. Just 5 ingredients—no heavy cream to heat and no chocolate to melt. Simply stir together everything in a bowl, refrigerate, and shape them into balls. They’re almost too easy… And maybe a little bit dangerous because of that too!
Note: Make sure you measure the cocoa powder correctly using the same spoon-and-level method as with flour or a kitchen scale, if you own one. I included the perfect amount of liquid ingredients to absorb that much cocoa powder, so if any extra ends up in the bowl, you’ll need to add a touch more applesauce.
The truffle mixture will stick to your hands as you roll. There’s just no way around it. If it seems as if an excessive amount stays on your skin, moisten your palms with a few drops of water before rolling each truffle, and wipe off anything left on your hands using a paper towel in between shaping each treat. I promise these truffles are worth it!
Hello truffles. Good-bye self-control.
But at only 30 calories each, I won’t feel quite so guilty about eating three in one go!
| Dark Chocolate Gingerbread Truffles | | Print |
- 1 c (80g) unsweetened cocoa powder (measured correctly)
- 1 ½ tsp (2g) ground ginger
- ¼ c (63g) unsweetened applesauce
- 2 tbsp (30mL) molasses
- 2 tbsp (30mL) agave
- In a small bowl, whisk together the cocoa powder and ginger. Stir in the applesauce, molasses, and agave until all of the cocoa powder is completely incorporated. Chill for 1 hour.
- Divide the truffle mixture into 16 segments, and roll each into a small ball. Place into an airtight container. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Honey or maple syrup may be substituted for the agave. Do not substitute anything for the molasses; along with the ginger, it gives the truffles the characteristic gingerbread taste.
If the cocoa powder is not completely incorporated after a few minutes of stirring, then there was probably a little too much cocoa powder in the bowl. Add a touch more applesauce ½ teaspoon at a time until all of the cocoa powder is incorporated into the truffle mixture.
{gluten-free, vegan, clean eating, low fat, low calorie}
More truffle recipes from other food bloggers…
Inner Goddess Chocolate Truffles by Pinch of Yum
S’more Oreo Truffles by Crazy for Crust
Salted Caramel Mocha Truffles by Shugary Sweets
Caramel Apple Truffles by The Gunny Sack
OMG Amy, these look so good! I love that your BF stopped and grabbed you these- so sweet! I am currently on a Ginger bread everything kick and can’t wait to make these! I’ve got all the ingredients! Pinned 🙂
Thank you so much Alex! He really is a sweetheart. Yesterday I had a breakdown in the kitchen with a massive recipe testing fail (you’ll hear all about it on the blog in a few days!), and he wordlessly walked out of the house, drove to the store, and picked up the ingredients I needed to try again, all without me asking. He’s the best! 🙂 I really hope you enjoy the truffles too!
I love how simple this is!! They look soooo dreamy.
Thank you sweet friend!
He sounds like a keeper;) I like your healthier version because this time of year I have NO self control. (I can’t even tell you how much butter english toffee I’ve eaten today….)
I have no self-control any time of the year, so I’m impressed you just lose yours during the holidays! 😉
I can’t believe he stopped to get you truffles when he was so rushed! What a guy!!
I feel so lucky to have him Karen!
a healthy truffle – oh YES!!
Sending some your way Heather! 😉
These are truffle heaven, girl! So healthy, and SO good! 🙂
Thanks so much Jocelyn! 🙂
I’m going through your blog and pinning pretty much every gingerbread recipe! Going to do some Christmas baking this weekend!
You’re so sweet Meghan — that means SO much to me that you’ve pinned so many of my recipes! If it helps at all, you can find all of my gingerbread recipes here. 🙂 I’m so excited to hear what recipes you make and what you think of them!