Sunday, December 4, 2011

Baking GALS Round 6 - Chubby Hubby Balls



Ok, so honestly, what got you to open this post – the name or the picture?  If the name, it may be time to question your moral character…no more than I am questioning my own right now.  Have no fear (or I apologize for the disappointment??) but there are no pictures of anything remotely inappropriate in this post.  These balls of sweet salty deliciousness (that’s what she said) were originally called Chubby Hubby Truffles, but of course I had to put my own twist on them.  J  Alright alright, mind-out-of-gutter, let’s get serious…


The blog I found this recipe on calls these Chubby Hubby Truffles because of their similarity to the Ben & Jerry’s ice cream flavor.  Sans ice cream, obvs.  They remind me of Hersey’s Take 5 bars, if you’ve ever had those.  Either one – delicious.  Basically, you combine peanut butter with some sugar and crushed up pretzels, roll it into balls, then dip them in chocolate.  I tried to add caramel as it seemed like that was the one thing that was missing, but it proved a little more difficult than I anticipated, namely because the melted caramel was hardening faster than I could dab each ball with it (stop laughing).  At any rate, I got lazy and gave up.  They’re great either way though and for this Baking GALS round I wanted to make something a little more unique for the guys that are stuck away from home during the holidays.  Enjoy fellas and thanks again for everything!

Naked!

Clothed - shew!

Recipe adapted from Brown Eyed Baker
Peanut Butter-Pretzel Truffles (a.k.a. Chubby Hubby Truffles)
Yield: About 18 truffles
Prep Time: 20 minutes | Chill Time: 1 hour, total

1½ cups pretzel pieces
½ cup creamy peanut butter
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
Pinch of salt
3 tablespoons powdered sugar
1 cup milk or semisweet chocolate chips
1 tablespoon vegetable shortening

1. Put the pretzel pieces into a resealable plastic bag and crush into very small bits using a rolling pin.
2. In a small bowl, combine the peanut butter, butter, brown sugar and salt. Stir until all of the ingredients are completely blended and smooth. Add the pretzel bits to the peanut butter mixture and mix thoroughly. Add the powdered sugar and mix until completely combined.
3. Line a small baking sheet with wax paper. Using a small cookie scoop, or about 2 teaspoons worth of peanut butter mixture, gently shape into a ball with your fingertips. Place the ball on the wax paper-lined cookie sheet and repeat with the remaining peanut butter mixture. Place the baking sheet into the refrigerator and chill for at least 30 minutes.
4. When ready to dip the truffles, microwave the chocolate chips and vegetable shortening together in a small bowl at 50% power in 30-second increments, stirring after each, until completely melted and smooth.
5. Working one at a time, dip one peanut butter-pretzel ball into the melted chocolate and use a fork to roll it around, ensuring that it is completely coated with chocolate. Let any extra chocolate drip off and place back on the wax paper-lined sheet. Repeat with all of the peanut butter-pretzel balls.
6. Return the baking sheet to the refrigerator and again chill for at least 30 minutes. Garnish with a drizzle of melted peanut butter and crushed pretzels, if desired. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
**NOTE**  I found that this was not enough peanut butter for the balls to keep shape.  I recommend doubling what the recipe calls for.

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