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I may be jumping the gun a bit but here is my entry for Sugar High Friday #27 which is this month hosted by David Lebovitz.

In the foreground are dark chocolate truffles brushed with edible gold. Behind sits a large chocolate ball filled with more chocolate truffles. The chocolate of choice; Valrhona 70% Guanaja. It is a very intense dark chocolate with multiple stages of complexity. As the chocolate first sits on your tongue you taste the purity and smoothness but the longer is rests in your mouth the more you taste the sheer complexity of this chocolate. Although intense there are no harsh flavors just varying degrees and layers of decadence. I have tried numerous varieties of chocolates and have found it easier to describe what I don’t like… for example I have found that Callebaut‘s dark chocolate are to smooth and well rounded. If I am eating dark chocolate I want to feel it all the way down to my toes. I want to be overtaken with the chocolate. There should be different flavors that emerge throughout the experience. On the other end of the spectrum there is Scharffen Berger, which I have found to be far to astringent for my taste buds. It tastes as if it should have been left to conche a little longer (more refined). I do not claim to be a chocolate expert… I do however know what I like. Guanaja seems to meet somewhere in the middle. It is easy to eat, however, it will make you stop whatever you are doing as you are consuming this dark delight.

These truffles contain a very basic ganache (equal parts chocolate and heavy cream). Again I used the Valrhona 70% and added a pinch of Fleur de Sel to add even more depth of flavor.