These are the end result…

These are the end result of the truffle-making party I hosted in early February, which was a wild success, and I hope to repeat it next year. It's inexpensive and lots of fun. We ate snacks and chatted and made truffles -- some with kids, some without, after the kids ran off to play. I was slightly over-ambitious, with recipes and ingredients for six different truffles; in retrospect, three or four would've been plenty for a relaxed afternoon activity. I finished the others the next day by myself.

If you're going to do this, I recommend, as I did, making up the batches in advance, so all your guests need to do is roll the truffles. Well, except for the Oreo ones, because it's super-fun for the kids to whack the Oreos into submission (in a big Ziploc, with a rolling pin). We ended up with plenty of truffles for folks to take home, plus some to eat, plus two boxes to send off to Jed and my parents, and two little bags to give to my sisters and brothers-in-law. Food gift supplies (boxes and bags) all from Michael's, which has an extensive selection.

Pictured here:, left to right: Wattleseed (most exotic flavor, provided by Karina / Kat), candied clementine bits dipped in chocolate, ganache rolled in coconut, nutella sea salt, pink velvet in white chocolate (too sweet for me, but a big hit with the kids) and Oreo.