This virtual book tour is presented by Bewitching Book Tours.
You can see the entire tour schedule by clicking HERE.
You can see my review by clicking HERE.
Welcome to The Wormhole and my day on the tour.
It is my pleasure to feature Death by Chocolate and a guest post from author Lucy Swing!
My name is Lucy Swing and I am a YA Paranormal/ Romance author. I was originally born in Argentine, from Italian descent, and moved to the Sunny state of Florida when I was 17.
Thanks to my mother, who reads as much as me – if not more, I became a fanatic of books. I first remember enjoying everything that was stamped with R.L. Stine (Fear Street and Goosebumps) Then I went on to the likes of Danielle Steel and Nora Roberts, thanks to my mom. But I am happy to say that I have finally found MY genre and that is, of course, YA.
I am an absolute book hoarder and must always have a book at arms distance. Music is my muse, and there is always a soundtrack that plays along my life.
I have just finished my first book, "Feathermore" (first of many!) and I am also a part of "Death by Chocolate," an anthology consisting of 6 fantastic YA short stories with a chocolaty twist. Death by Chocolate was released on February 14th, 2012!
I live in Naples, FL with my husband, our two wild children and two even wilder pups!
Beverly, thank you so much for having me here today!
Working on Death by Chocolate was a really amazing experience, but what was best about it is that, as the chocoholic that I am, I used this story as an excuse to try every single type of chocolate.
Although I did not use it in my story, my favorites were the chocolate truffles. I made two types of these, the ganache ones and a cake based one. In my opinion, I liked the cake ones better as they were not too heavy on the chocolate. I can eat chocolate all day long, but I hate it when I need to have a glass of milk or water to wash it down.
If you are a baker like me, then you will really enjoy these two amazing truffle recipes.
Ganache Chocolate Truffles Recipe
INGREDIENTS
Basic Truffle ingredients
· 8oz of semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate well chopped into small pieces
· ½ cup of heavy whipping cream
· 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
Optional base flavorings:
· Mint leaves (1 bunch, stems removed, chopped, about 1 cup)
· Cinnamon and cardamom (1 cinnamon stick, 2 cardamom pods)
· Amaretto (1-2 tablespoons)
· Almond extract (1 teaspoon)
Truffle Coating
· Cocoa Powder
· Finely chopped walnuts
· Finely Chopped almonds
· Shredded and chopped coconut
METHOD
1. In a small, heavy saucepan bring the heavy whipping cream to a simmer (this may take a while, be sure to stir and scrape down the sides with a rubber spatula every few minutes)
If you are using one of the recommended flavors, stir it in with the cream (and ignore vanilla in step 3.) If adding mint or other solids, after the cream simmers, remove from heat and let seep for an hour. Then strain away solids and return to a simmer and proceed with recipe.
2. Place chocolate in a separate bowl. Pour the cream over it, add vanilla and allow to stand for a few minutes. Then stir until smooth.
3. Allow it to cool, and then place in the refrigerator for two hours. Remove and with a teaspoon roll out balls of the ganache. Roll in your hands quickly, as it will melt from the heat of your hands. Place in a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and leave in the refrigerator overnight.
4. Roll in cocoa powder, coconut or nuts and serve.
NOTE: You can also melt white and dark chocolate and dip them. Refrigerate
Makes about 30-40 truffles.
Cake Based Truffles
Red Velvet Cake Truffles are simply balls of delicious red velvet cake mixed with real cream cheese frosting. The truffles are then dipped in candy coating, for a moist, sweet, and tangy cake bite in candy form!
This recipe is very versatile. You can use other flavors of cake, frosting, or candy coating with great success. Be warned that the red cake tends to show through the white coating, so if you want perfectly white candies, you will probably need to dip these truffles twice.
Ingredients:
· 1 box red velvet cake mix, and ingredients to make the cake
· 1 can (16 oz) prepared cream cheese frosting
· 1 lb candy coating, white or dark chocolate
· Sprinkles or small candies to decorate (optional)
NOTE: You can use chocolate, yellow or any type of cake. When I do the chocolate cake truffles, I use chocolate frosting for step 3.
Preparation:
1. Prepare and bake the red velvet cake mix according to the directions of the package for a 9x13 cake. Once baked, allow the cake to cool completely.
2. Crumble the cake into a large bowl and work it with your hands until it is in small pieces. If desired, reserve a few spoonfuls of crumbs to use as decorative toppings on the finished truffles.
3. Spoon three-fourths of the frosting into the bowl and stir with a rubber spatula until the mixture is well-combined. It should be very moist and hold together if you squeeze a ball of cake between your fingers, but not too wet or greasy. If the cake mixture is still a bit dry, add more frosting to get it to the desired consistency.
4. Using a small cookie or candy scoop, scoop out small balls of cake and roll between your palms until they are round. Place the cakes balls on a baking sheet covered with aluminum foil, and refrigerate them while you prepare the candy coating.
5. Place the candy coating in a medium microwave-safe bowl and microwave it until melted, stirring after every 45 seconds to prevent overheating.
6. Using dipping tools or a fork, submerge a cake ball in the melted candy coating. Remove it from the coating and drag the bottom across the lip of the bowl to remove excess coating. Replace the dipped truffle on the foil-covered baking sheet. If desired, top it with a sprinkle of cake crumbs, small candies, or other decorations while the coating is still wet. Repeat with remaining cake balls.
7. Refrigerate the truffles to set the coating completely, about 20 minutes. These cake truffles are best served at room temperature, and can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Author Bios
Cheryl Carvajal goes by the name Shakespeare at her two blogs: http://creativeartsanonymous.blogspot.com/ and http://notwritinganythinganymore.blogspot.com/ You can also contact her by email at shakespeare824@hotmail.com Over the last decade she has ventured into YA writing. She has three degrees in English, teaches Zumba and works on her writing with help from her husband who is president of Bainbridge College , Georgia
Nikki Jefford is a third generation Alaskan now residing in the not-so-tropical San Juan Islands
Lucy Swing is a mother of two and a wife to a Firefighter/Paramedic. She is the author of the upcoming paranormal YA romance novel "Feathermore". She is a Goodreads author and you can find out more about her writing endeavours on her website http://www.LucySwing.com
Kira is a magic junkie and loves writing YA paranormal romances. Some of her heroes include: Jack the Pumpkin King, Willy Wonka, Larry David, Princess Jasmine, the vampire Lestat, Andy and her Maltese Costanza. You can email her at kirakatwritingservices@gmail.com and you can find out more about Kira on her website http://kirasaito.blogspot.com/
Suz Korb loves comedy. She also loves magic. She loves, loves to inject these key elements into her paranormal stories. She also loves, loves, loves cereal and eats way too much of it whilst novel writing. She’s an expat of the
