Dark Chocolate Strawberry Cheesecake Truffles
Yields: 32 truffles
 
These decadent truffles are perfect for Valentine’s Day—or any time you have a chocolate craving! They taste similar to 72-75% dark chocolate. The truffles will stay fresh for at least one week if stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
  1. To prepare the cheesecake filling, add the strawberries and water to a small food processor, and pulse until smooth. Transfer the purée to a small saucepan, and cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until the mixture has reduced to a total of 3-4 tablespoons in volume. Immediately transfer to a small bowl, and cool completely to room temperature.
  2. Add the Greek yogurt cream cheese and stevia to the bowl with the strawberries, and beat with an electric mixer until smooth. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and drop the filling into at least 32 rounded scoops onto the prepared baking sheet, ensuring that each dollop is no larger than 1 teaspoon. Freeze for at least 1 hour or until firm.
  3. To prepare the chocolate truffles, add the cocoa powder to a bowl, and make a well in the center. Pour in the applesauce, maple syrup, and vanilla. Stir until everything is completely incorporated. Chill the chocolate mixture for at least 30 minutes.
  4. Line a second baking sheet with wax paper.
  5. Remove the baking sheet from the freezer. Working quickly, roll a small portion of the chocolate mixture into a sphere, and flatten. Transfer one dollop of filling to the center with a knife. Gently fold up the chocolate mixture around the filling, and roll into a sphere again. Place onto the second prepared baking sheet. Continue with the remaining filling and chocolate mixture. Transfer the finished truffles to an airtight container. Cover and refrigerate for at least 20 minutes or until ready to serve.
Notes: Before beginning, please read through the blog post above for tips on each step. It will save you lots of time!

Frozen unsweetened strawberries that have been thawed and drained may be substituted for the fresh.

Add as much water as is necessary to make the strawberry purée smooth. Since you’re cooking the purée, and extra will be evaporated and cooked off!

Neufchâtel (⅓-less fat) cream cheese may be substituted for the Greek yogurt cream cheese.

I do not recommend substituting another sweetener for the vanilla crème stevia. Any other sweetener would make the filling mixture too runny, and the truffles would be incredibly messy and frustrating to assemble.

It’s important to measure the cocoa powder like this, the same way as with flour. The chocolate mixture requires quite a bit of stirring to fully incorporate all of the cocoa powder! If the cocoa powder hasn’t completely mixed into the other ingredients after a few minutes of stirring, add a tiny bit of milk, ½ teaspoon at a time, until the mixture comes together.

Honey or agave may be substituted for the maple syrup.

For a sweeter chocolate component, substitute additional maple syrup for some (or all) of the applesauce.

Here is my video on how to make truffles!

{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat, low calorie, lower sugar}
Recipe by Amy's Healthy Baking at https://amyshealthybaking.com/blog/2016/02/02/dark-chocolate-strawberry-cheesecake-truffles/