Erin's Food Files » Pumpkin Cream Cheese Truffles

**UPDATE** I originally made these in 2008, back in my early stages of blogging. There seems to be a renewed interest in them, and since it had been 3 years since I made them, I decided to make them again and have a new photo shoot. You get new pretty pictures to look at, I get to eat these truffles again. It’s a win/win situation. My old pictures are still at the bottom, if you want to see how my photography has progressed in 3 years, lol. :)

I tried to come up with a creative/catchy title for this post. But I think simply the name says it all. Pumpkin. Cream Cheese. Truffles. Need I say more? We’re having a little Sweet Treat Potluck at work for Halloween, and needless to say I’ve went a little bit overboard with treats I want to make for it! I found this recipe the Whole Foods website, and I knew I already had ALL the ingredients, so I really couldn’t resist.

The mixture is really soft, and I highly suggest putting it in the fridge before for 30 minutes or so until you roll them into balls. I used my smallest Pampered Chef cookie scoop to form uniform balls, and put them on a wax paper on a cookie sheet. I knew the mixture was still pretty soft (especially once I’d rolled the last truffle), so I put the cookie sheet in the freezer for an hour or so. When it came time to dip them, I just cut the wax paper and only took out 5-6 balls at a time. This helped them stay cold & solid before dipping them in the hot almond bark. These were a hit at the party, and a hit with The Boy, who doesn’t share my love of pumpkin everything!

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Truffles

Yield: Approximately 30, depending on how large or small you roll them.

Ingredients:

½ cup white chocolate chunks or chips
2 cups white chocolate almond bark (I think I used around 4-5 cubes)
1/3 cup gingersnap cookie crumbs, plus more for garnish
1/4 cup canned pumpkin purée
1/4 cup graham cracker crumbs, plus more for garnish
1 tablespoon confectioners’ sugar
1/2 teaspoon orange zest
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch of fine salt
2 ounces cream cheese, softened

Directions:

Melt the 1/2 cup of white chocolate chips in a double boiler over medium-low heat or in the microwave for about 1 minutes. Stir often to keep the chocolate from burning. Transfer to a large bowl. Add gingersnap crumbs, pumpkin, graham cracker crumbs, sugar, zest, cinnamon, salt and cream cheese and beat with an electric mixer until smooth. Transfer to a shallow bowl, cover and chill until just solid enough to roll into balls, about 2 hours.

Line a large sheet tray with parchment paper. Melt remaining 2 cups white chocolate almond bark and transfer to a small, deep bowl. Roll 1 heaping teaspoon of the pumpkin mixture into a ball in your hands, then drop into the chocolate. Working quickly, gently spoon chocolate over to coat. Using a small spoon or fork, lift the truffle out of the chocolate, shake off excess and transfer to prepared sheet tray. Dollop a bit of extra chocolate on any parts that remain exposed, then sprinkle a few gingersnap or graham cracker crumbs over the top, if you like.

Repeat process with remaining pumpkin mixture and chocolate, then chill truffles until chocolate is completely set, about 1 hour.

adapted from Whole Foods

Ah yes… the old point & shoot pictures. :D