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I want to be Corinne Le’s Valentine. Yeah, I know, I already have three Valentines – my darling husband of 27 years and our two children – but if I were Corinne’s Valentine, I just know I would be getting some of her homemade cookie dough truffles.
And that would be sweeeeet.
Corinne Le, baker extraordinaire!
Corinne, who is the instructional aide in my son’s 3rd grade class, is quite the baker. She puts on an annual Christmas dessert party in early December that is the talk of the town, and is a delicious sugar fest not equaled anywhere but perhaps Hershey, PA. Every surface in her Pepperdine University home is covered with plates of cookies, bars, cakes, candies…and oh, oh, oh…the truffles.
Of all the 70-some sweet treats she makes, these are her favorite.
I managed to score a few of them when she sent them home in my son’s backpack so I could photograph them to accompany the recipe here. I unearthed the container from his backpack, looked at the 6 banged-up truffles, put my hands on my hips, and said, “Niiiiiick! How many truffles did you eat on the bus ride home?” Four, he thought. No, maybe five. Well, perhaps six. His excuse? “You didn’t tell me NOT to eat them!”
I’m just smart enough to know I will never win an illogical argument with a 9-year-old, so I didn’t try too hard. And it turns out, they’re his favorite, too.
Corinne has her own Valentines – husband Hung, and four sons. But maybe if I beg a little, I, too, can be wrapped in her sugary hug for just a moment.
Happy Valentine’s Day!
Recipe: Cookie Dough Truffles
Source: Corinne Le
Prep: 1 hour + chilling
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
- Candy coating/semisweet chocolate chips
Cream the butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add the flour, milk and vanilla; mix well. Stir in the chocolate chips and walnuts.
Shape into 60 1-inch balls; place on waxed paper-lined baking sheets. Loosely cover and refrigerate for 1-2 hours or until firm.
In a bowl, melt candy coating, stirring often until smooth. Using a spoon and fork, dip balls in coating and place on prepared baking sheets. The technique is to use one spoon to scoop the dough out of the chocolate and one fork to transfer the dough to the waxed paper-lined sheets. It can take a little while for this to feel right, so practice makes perfect. Refrigerate until firm, at least 15 minutes, or pop into the freezer for a few minutes just to harden the chocolate. If desired, re-melt remaining coating and drizzle over candies for a textured effect.
Store in the refrigerator.
Makes 5 dozen (60).
Hints from Corinne
- On one occasion, Corinne experienced dough that was too soft to roll. She recommends pre-measuring the flour before adding it to the mix so there is no confusion as to how much was already added. If, after adding flour, you roll a ball of dough and it still seems extremely sticky, then add 2-4 tablespoons flour until it seems less sticky and easy enough to roll into a ball.
- She often uses chocolate chips with a little shortening added instead of the candy coating. She finds it cheaper to use chocolate chips, and usually doesn’t have candy coating on hand. If the melted chips are too thick, then add a tiny bit of shortening or even a tiny splash of vegetable oil.
Another sweet thing for your sweeties
Corinne Le also makes a killer Coffee Ice Cream Punch that is the star of her holiday dessert party. It would make a wonderful addition to a Valentine’s Day party or special dinner.
Welcome to my kitchen!
At ShockD, you’ll find scrumptious, tried & true, "scary good" recipes, tips and coaching to make YOU a fabulous home cook! Don't blame me if you need a 12-step program to wean yourself away!
E-mail me: Dorothy.Reinhold@gmail.com
{ 17 comments… read them below or add one }
Still Amazing
Nena,
I agree! Corinne gave us some the other day, and we just closed our eyes when we ate them, they were so good!
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Dorothy-I sent this recipe to my sisters back East. My older sis prepared the Truffles last week when her 12-yr.-old daughter had a house full of girls in the choir over after a rehearsal–the truffles were a HIT! My 5-yr.-old nephew even took to serving them on trays to the guests, she said all he needed was a tux! Thanks again for another great recipe!
Barbara,
I can just picture the little server, delivering the goods with a flourish! You are welcome!
Is that regular butter or unsalted? Sounds delicious.
Wow–I am just now breaking my addiction to “Teeny Tiny Pies” introduced a few weeks back for NPD (National Pie Day) and now come these sweet treats? Ah well, we must honor the holidays that celebrate sweets, musn’t we? Here’s to trying this recipe, too! Thanks for sharing!!
What a divine creation.
Cookie Dough Truffles from the Le kitchen? Now this IS sweet news, indeed, for any dinner table. I have a captive audience, guaranteed at my own, with such a word. Thank you for passing on the tasty news! May Corinne’s chocolate Le tradition thrive and flourish!
Leslie Alford
Hmmm….sounds to me like you might have a lawyer in the making with the 9 year old. Stickler for detail that one. LOL
Your son is hysterical. 🙂
And cookie dough was my absolute favorite treat growing up. I think these truffles are GENIUS. Adding to the weekend file. 🙂
[K]
These look like they could be my favorite! Then again, whichever of Corinne’s desserts is in front of me is my favorite! Great website. –Gary
Corinne is a dynamo! Amazing that she is such a terrific and creative baker while still being a role model of a mom. I am officially volunteering to be a confection taster.
Amazing woman, my Corinne. Love her so much. I already know about all of her desserts – she is a marvel – but I just love her because she is the sweetest, kindest, most generous woman I know. However, I will share this recipe with my daughter-in-law, she loves to bake too and I know she will want to try this one.
At least he brought some home… if it were my sons all I would find would be an empty container – which is probably all I will find if I make these!!
Perfect treat for my crew for Valentine’s – so glad you posted this!!!
I am afraid I have to agree with your son. You did not tell him not to eat them, did you? GREG
Greg,
Quite right! It’s funny with kids…at the same time that you are annoyed with something they did, you want to give them points for creativity, ingenuity and resourcefulness!
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