Chocolate Facts: Theory #1

Chocolate Truffles were invented by accident in the kitchen of illustrious French chef, Georges Auguste Escoffier, in the 1920s. It seemed that one of his apprentices was attempting to make pastry cream. He accidentally poured hot cream into a bowl of chopped chocolate instead of sugar and eggs.

As you can just imagine, Escoffier was outraged. You "ganache” he yelled, which apparently means “fool…” although etymology dictionaries say it means “jaw.” Whatever. It seems the creamy mixture hardened and the ever-resourceful Escoffier rolled it into a walnut-sized ball which he then rolled in cocoa powder and voila' – it looked like a truffle. In this case, the truffle it resembled was the mushroom truffle. No one seemed to mind…or even question …the relationship between the chocolate and a fungus. The resulting candy was esteemed and expensive.

True? Probably not. In researching the story of truffles, I discovered an advertisement for chocolate truffles in The Times Record of Brunswick Maine dated, 1891, among other places. Granted they were advertised in the “Parisian Style” but still, this was Maine and Escoffier hadn’t invented them yet.

Chocolate Facts: Theory #2

Another theory is that famous French baker Louis Dufour ran out of ideas for Christmas treats. In a moment of inspiration, he made a batch of round ganache that he dipped into melted chocolate and rolled them in cacao powder. So Dufour invented chocolate truffles, just as Escoffier did several years later. Only in this scenario Antoine Dufour, who was a relative of Louis Dufour, immigrated to England and took the truffle recipe with him. And somehow, the illustrious truffle ended up in America where it was discovered…except, as previously noted, Americans were already making them. In fact, in 1906, the Hartford Courant advertised truffles that were “exceptionally good.”

Chocolate Facts: Theory #3

Other experts tell us that the Spanish “invented” the chocolate we know today. It seems when the Spanish brought chocolate back after exploring (and soon pillaging) the land we now call Mexico, with a recipe for making chocolate to Spain, specifically to the abbot of the monastery, Don Antonio de Álvaro. It was there, in the kitchens of the Aragonese monastery, that chocolate was sweetened with milk, sugar and honey, thus losing its pagan bitterness. And, so they say, the more palatable European chocolate was born. Except that the Aztecs were already adding sweeteners, vanilla, chili and other spices to cut the bitterness and enrich its food value. Never mind, the story goes that, at some point in time, 160 years ago or something like that, monks may or may not have invented truffles.

One More Chocolate Fact! I Promise this is the Last One!

The earliest known authentic recipe for chocolate truffles was recorded in the 19th edition of Rigby’s Reliable Candy Teacher in the 1920s. According to the author, truffles are made by dipping a plain vanilla cream center in a milk chocolate coating and then rolling it in macaroon coconut before it dries. The coconut-covered chocolate vanilla cream balls then rest on a piece of wax paper to set. The author adds that truffles are not truffles unless filled with ganache - a key component of the original form conceived in France.

So, what do we really know about truffles?

Actual Chocolate Truffle FACT 1: No one knows how truffles originated. Most likely they morphed over time. Was it in Spain? Or France, s many claim. The answer is “yes.” The Spanish took chocolate to Spain where it stayed, more or less a secret, for about 100 years. But certainly – the secret leaked out. Jews, hiding from the Inquisition in the XXX mountains, were said to be early innovators of chocolate. Did they invent the truffle? Or nearby monks, as others claim?

Actual Chocolate Truffle FACT 2: Nineteenth and early twentieth century American truffles were much like the truffles we think of today. One ad in the San Franciso Chronicle of 1920 tells us: “Chocolate Truffles. Generous pieces of whipped chocolate – a solid chocolate candy of delicate sweetness…They’re different.”

Actual Chocolate Truffle FACT 3: Today’s variety of truffles – with coconut, mousse, strawberry and countless other fillings…is nothing new. In 1903, one paper described “Chocolate-Coconut Truffles” as “One of the choicest confections made” while another in 1899 describes their chocolates as “Cream chocolate flavored with fresh orange, new coconut and English Walnut rolled into powdered chocolate.”

But most important is this: Regardless of who invented it, chocolate truffles have always been considered sumptuous and prized. They have long been a gift of love, romance and celebration, no matter who, or how many, invented it.

Likely Actual Chocolate Truffle FACT 4: Most likely the first chocolate truffle was a chocolate covered ganache rolled in chocolate powder. That early specimen looked much like the fungus of the same name. The name, albeit not the size or shape, remains the same.