Peace Offering

I’ve been a neglectful blogger, I know!

(In my defense, it has been a crazy week.)

Anywho, I have a peace offering for my neglect—yummy, yummy Oreo-filled truffles. Last week, my baking buddy, Lindsey, invited me to come over and help her make these little Oreo chocolates as a Valentine’s surprise for her boyfriend. I couldn’t refuse.

Be warned though, these truffles are absolutely addictive. And the following recipe makes a lot of them…and after you’ve downed all 30 while watching an America’s Next Top Model marathon on VH1 (Hey, it happens!), don't say I didn't give you fair warning.

Oreo Truffles

Recipe adapted from RecipeZaar, although credit goes to my Aunt Carolyn, who introduced me to the Oreo Truffle at our family Christmas party this year.

1 package regular size Oreo cookies, very crushed
1 8 oz package cream cheese, softened
1 package white almond bark (we used regular white chocolate chips, since we only used the white chocolate for drizzling)
1 or 2 packages chocolate almond bark (we used both semi-sweet and German chocolate baking chocolate bars instead)
Sprinkles!

Using a blender or hand-held mixer, mix Oreos and cream cheese together. This might take a while if you’re using a hand-held mixer. Keep blending until there are no Oreo chunks and you have a smooth consistency. Roll into Walnut size balls and place on a cookie sheet. Chill in the fridge for an hour, or sit in the freezer for about 10 minutes if you’re in a hurry. Melt chocolate according to chocolate instructions. Stick a toothpick into an Oreo ball and dip it in the melted chocolate. Place on sheet of wax paper. You can dip all balls into the regular chocolate or you can dip half in chocolate and half in white chocolate. (We chose to dip all in regular chocolate and drizzle with white chocolate.) After all are dipped, drizzle with remaining chocolate and white chocolate. If you want to decorate with sprinkles, be sure to do it before the chocolate dries and hardens. Devour.

Makes approximately 30-35 candies.

And just because these things turned out so cute and Lindsey took such good pictures, here are some more images to enjoy! P.S. Those giant heart sprinkles were L's idea and they really just made the truffles that much more awesome!

A few words about Valentine’s Day, because obviously, I’m an expert on this crap.

I’m a sucker for Valentine’s Day. I know it’s annoying and completely commercialized, but…I do love chocolate truffles and conversation hearts, so what can I do?

My approach to Valentine’s Day has always been to be cheesy and go all out. The trick is to not take yourself too seriously. For example, for our first Valentine’s Day together, I convinced Jon that we should write each other corny, ridiculous poems. We didn’t buy any gifts, we just dusted off our dormant “Roses are red” skills. And the poems were funny, heartfelt and sweet. To me, that’s the point of the day.

That, and candy.

We took care of the candy part last year. For some reason, we were sharing a brainwave and bought the same thing for one another—a heart-shaped box of chocolates.

With all the chocolate taken out.

In place of the chocolate we both bought the other’s favorite candies and filled the spaces. Mine was full of Sour Patch Kids, Snowcaps and bite-size Twizzlers, and his was packed with Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups and Circus Peanuts. I thought it was perfect—thoughtful, personalized and tasty.

Because ladies and gents, if there’s anything you can learn from Valentine’s Day, learn this: the way to about 99 percent of the population’s collective heart is through food.

(Or, a gift certificate for a pedicure and full-body massage. Ahem. Just sayin’.)