T is for Treats

Tomorrow is Easter and each of the boys will be getting an Easter basket filled with treats. Every year, the Easter Bunny stocks their baskets with eggs filled with jelly beans, a chocolate bunny, and a variety of chocolates. This year, the Easter Buy enlisted my help and asked if I would be willing to make some of the chocolates for their baskets. Now, I'm not brave enough (and I don't have a bunny mold) to make the chocolate bunnies but I did decide to tackled chocolate covered peanut butter eggs and I pulled out the old favorite of Oreo based truffles. And, let me tell you, the Oreo truffles can not be any easier.

Oreo Truffles

Ingredients
1 16oz package of Oreos
1 8oz package of cream cheese
1 16 oz package or chocolate chips

Directions
1. Crush Oreos into fine crumbs. If you have a food processor, the cookies can be put in there intact and they will be able to be crushed. If you plan on placing the cookies into a plastic ziploc bag and crush them using a rolling pin, first open the cookies and scrape the cream filling into a bowl. Save the cream filling.
2. Thoroughly blend softened cream cheese with crushed Oreos (and the Oreo cream).
3. Roll the resulting mixture into small, bite sized balls.
4. Place truffle filling balls onto a wax-paper covered cookie sheet and thoroughly chill (you can place them in the freezer if you have space).
5. Dip truffle balls into melted chocolate and return to wax-paper covered baking sheets. Allow chocolate coating to harden (if it is humid, you may need to put them in the fridge to aid the hardening of the chocolate shell).

To melt the chocolate chips
1. Put chocolate chips into microwave safe bowl.
2. Microwave for 30 secs at a time, stirring  after each 30 sec heating, until you get to desired consistency.
3. Can be repeated as needed throughout truffle making.


Chocolate Peanut Butter Eggs(sorry no picture)

Ingredients
2 cups peanut butter
1 8oz package of cream cheese
2 tsp vanilla
2 16oz packages of chocolate chips

Directions
1. Mix first 3 ingredients until creamy.
2. Form into egg shapes and place on a wax-paper covered cookie sheet and thoroughly chill (you can place them in the freezer if you have space).
3. Dip into melted chocolate (see directions above for process to melt chocolate)
4. Return to wax-paper covered baking sheets. Allow chocolate coating to harden (if it is humid, you may need to put them in the fridge to aid the hardening of the chocolate shell).