These 3-ingredient strawberry truffles are made with a luscious strawberry infused vegan chocolate ganache. Roll it into balls and either coat with crushed freeze-dried strawberries, or dip in melted chocolate for an easy homemade candy!
Thank you to Stahlbush Island Farms for sponsoring this post. All opinions are my own.
3 Ingredient Strawberry Chocolate Truffles
These vegan strawberry truffles are made with only 3 ingredients – chocolate, strawberries, and a bit of plant-based butter.
Strawberry flavored truffles are a simple yet elegant, melt-in-your-mouth chocolate treat, perfect as an edible gift on Valentine’s Day or the holidays. Expensive boxed chocolates have nothing on these easy to make vegan chocolate truffles!
Truffles = Balls of Coated Ganache
Ganache originates from France and is traditionally made by melting chocolate in hot cream. Depending on the ratio of chocolate to cream (by weight), the results can be anything from a glaze, sauce, or filling to something thicker, perfect for making chocolate truffles. Chocolate truffles are simply a thick, chilled ganache made with a 2:1 ratio of chocolate to cream, rolled into walnut-sized balls.
Classic French truffles are rolled in unsweetened cocoa powder – they are called truffles because they look like truffle mushrooms once coated in cocoa powder! This light coating makes eating the chocolate confections a bit less messy so they don’t melt right away on the fingers.
How to Make Ganache Without Cream
While ganache, and therefore truffles, can easily be veganized by using plant-based cream as a substitute for cream, we’re using the untraditional method of using a water-based chocolate ganache. These indulgent, mini vegan desserts are a testament to the fact that, you can make truffles without cream!
The water-based liquid we’re using instead of cream is reduced, pureed strawberries. Once blended up and then simmered until much of the liquid has evaporated, the strawberries are concentrated for maximum flavor.
How to Make Strawberry Vegan Truffles
Step 1: Make a Strawberry Reduction
Puree the strawberries, and then bring them to a simmer in a small pot over low heat. Cook the berries until they reduce in volume by half. This process of reducing the strawberries intensifies their flavor, and removes some of their water content so we end up with a thick strawberry ganache, perfect for rolling into truffles!
Step 2: Make a Thick Strawberry Ganache (2:1 Ratio)
Remove the strawberry puree from the heat and, while still hot, combine it with the chopped chocolate and plant-based butter. This gentle melting followed by stirring, creates an emulsion and a lovely creamy ganache. You can a pinch of salt if using unsalted vegan butter.
Step 3: Chill the Strawberry Ganache
Chill the strawberry ganache until firm enough to scoop, about an hour or two.
Step 3: Scoop the Ganache
Use a small cookie scoop or a spoon to portion the ganache for truffles. They are rich, so go with about a tablespoon (or the size of a walnut.)
Step 4: Roll the Ganache to Make Truffles
Roll the portioned ganache into round balls, and then roll each truffle in freeze-dried strawberries or another coating of choice. See other strawberry truffle coating suggestions below in the Featured Ingredients and Substitutions section.
Tips for Making Strawberry Ganache
If the chocolate and butter won’t melt once they’re added to the strawberry puree and have rested, place the pot back over VERY low heat and gently stir for about 30 seconds. Starting with butter that is room temperature is important, too. Cold butter will, naturally, cool the mixture rapidly before everything has melted.
Don’t overheat the ganache, or the emulsion can split. Ganache that has split will be greasy with a layer of butter over the top once cooled. If this happens, all is not lost! Simply scrape the thin layer of hardened butter from the top of the ganache. Doing this before scooping the ganache ensures you don’t end up with bits of butter throughout your truffles.
Tips for Less Mess When Rolling Truffles
- Roll the ganache between your fingers instead of your palms. Palms are warmer and will melt the ganache faster.
- Wear food safe gloves to limit the heat transfer from your hands to the chocolate.
- Cover your hands in cocoa powder.
- Chill the scooped ganache on a tray for about 15-20 minutes if it has softened and gets sticky during scooping.
- Or, roll a few truffles at a time keeping the rest in the refrigerator until you need them.
If the coating isn’t sticking to the truffles, leave the truffles out for a few minutes at room temperature or roll them a little in your hands to get the surface tacky.
Featured Ingredients & Substitutions
Chocolate
Chocolate is one of the two main flavors in these dairy-free truffles, so use a vegan chocolate you enjoy eating on its own. If you don’t enjoy a particular chocolate, it won’t be much better in a chocolate truffle!
A good quality semi-sweet chocolate (50-60% cocoa solids) is perfect for making these homemade vegan truffles. Bittersweet chocolate (70% cocoa solids) is also a good choice if you prefer a deeper dark chocolate flavor. Truffles made with bittersweet chocolate will naturally be less sweet.
If you use chocolate chips, check that they are made of good quality chocolate. They should melt nicely in your mouth instead of feeling a bit waxy. Many chocolate chips have less cocoa butter in them or contain stabilizing ingredients which make them resist melting. This is why chocolate chips usually maintain their shape when in chocolate chip cookies, for example, without melting into tiny puddles. That said, I have made these truffles with the Kirkland chocolate chips from Costco with great success! Check the label to make sure they are dairy-free as I’ve heard the ingredients for this product may vary between stores.
Do not use white chocolate in this strawberry truffle recipe. It tends to have a much higher cocoa butter content and is too thin to contribute to the thick ganache we need to roll truffles.
Strawberries
I used Stahlbush Island Farms‘ frozen strawberries – they are available year round and are harvested at the peak of ripeness!
If you have fresh strawberries to use up, they work well in this strawberry truffle recipe, too.
For more texture in your truffles, don’t strain the strawberries after you’ve pureed them. If on the other hand, you’d like silky smooth strawberry truffles, strain the puree to remove any seeds or bits of strawberry.
Vegan Butter
Butter is added to the ganache to make it creamier and meltier in your mouth. Use a plant-based butter that’s sold in a block, or wrapped in foil. The types of vegan butter sold in tubs often have a higher water content (and therefore less fat. Fat contributes to the mouthfeel we’re after.)
I use salted vegan butter. If you use unsalted butter, add a pinch of salt to the ganache when stirring everything together. A bit of salt helps enhance the flavors of the chocolate and strawberries.
Coatings
For strawberry chocolate truffles, crushed freeze-dried strawberries offer a punch of extra strawberry flavor. Freeze-dried strawberries are available online and in many grocery stores.
If you don’t have freeze-dried strawberries, you can use other coatings to roll the truffles in such as:
- finely chopped nuts like almonds, pistachios,
- chocolate shavings,
- sanding or coarse (turbinado) sugar,
- fine coconut shreds,
- sprinkles,
- unsweetened cocoa powder,
- melted chocolate, or tempered chocolate if you don’t want it to melt as quickly and to delay any blooming, especially if you’re giving these dairy-free strawberry truffles as gifts. Check out this article on how to temper chocolate.
Make-Ahead Suggestions & Storage Instructions
The ganache can be made ahead of time and kept in an airtight container in the refrigerator for about 2 weeks. If the ganache has been in the refrigerator for more than 4 or 5 hours, it may need to rest for about 10 minutes at room temperature before scooping and rolling the truffles.
Store in a single layer over parchment or wax paper (or in individual glassine paper candy cups) in an air-tight container. Do not stack the truffles – the coating softens with time and the truffles will stick together, ruining their pretty coatings.
Room Temperature Storage: the truffles keep for about 2-3 days at room temperature in an airtight container.
Refrigerator Storage: store in an airtight container for 2 weeks in the refrigerator. For a softer and creamier texture, leave out for 20 minutes at room temperature before serving.
Freezer Storage: freeze for about 3-6 months in an airtight container. First, place them on a parchment lined tray and freeze uncovered until completely frozen, then transfer them to a freezer safe bag or airtight container.
More Vegan Chocolate Treats
Peanut Butter & Jam Chocolate Cups
Chocolate Raspberry Dream Tarts
Chocolate Strawberry Truffles (Vegan)
Recipe Video
Ingredients
- 8 oz semi-sweet dairy-free chocolate (chopped, or good quality chocolate chips)
- 10 oz strawberries, thawed if frozen (do not strain)
- 3 tbsp vegan butter, block style, room temperature
- Pinch salt, if using unsalted butter (to taste)
For the Coating
- 1 oz freeze-dried strawberries, blended up to a powder (See Notes for Substitutions)
Instructions
- If using frozen strawberries, thaw them (do this in the microwave if you're short on time.) Place the strawberries (and any juices) into a blender, and blend until pureed. If you want very smooth truffles, blend well until smooth and then strain the seeds out with a fine mesh strainer. Otherwise, the strawberry seeds and bits of strawberry can enhance the strawberry experience! You should have about a cup (250 mL) of strawberry puree.
- Pour the strawberry puree into a small saucepan. Over medium-low heat, bring to a simmer until the volume is reduced by half (125 mL). This will take about 15-25 minutes depending on the size of your pot and the heat setting. Stir frequently to prevent scorching, and keep a heat safe measuring cup nearby to check the volume occasionally.
- Remove the pot from the heat and add in the chocolate. Allow the heat from the hot puree to begin melting the chocolate for a minute, then stir. Add in the vegan butter, and (if using) salt. If the chocolate is fully melting, place the pot over very low heat, stirring until incorporated but don't bring to a boil or the ganache may burn and/or become greasy (broken emulsion). If you did not strain the strawberries, the mixture will not be perfectly smooth and this is okay!
- Pour the strawberry ganache into a heat safe bowl, cover and place in the refrigerator until chilled and firm, about 2 hours.
- Using a small cookie scoop or a spoon, scoop the ganache into walnut-sized pieces (about 2-3 teaspoons). Roll each mound into a ball with clean, dry hands. This process gets sticky pretty quickly from the warmth of your hands melting the chocolate. See tips in the Notes below.
- Roll each truffle in the freeze-dried strawberry powder. Store in a single layer over parchment or wax paper (or in individual paper candy cups) in an air-tight container. See Storage Options in Notes, below. Do not stack the truffles – the coating softens with time and the truffles will stick together, ruining their pretty coatings.
Nutrition Info:
Notes:
Tips for Less Mess When Rolling Truffles:
- Roll the ganache between your fingers instead of your palms – palms are warmer and will melt the ganache faster.
- Wear food safe gloves to limit the heat transfer from your hands to the chocolate.
- Cover your hands in cocoa powder.
- Chill the scooped ganache on a tray for about 15-20 minutes if it has softened and gets sticky during scooping, or roll a few truffles at a time keeping the rest in the refrigerator until you need them.
Truffle Coating Suggestions:
- finely chopped nuts like almonds, pistachios,
- chocolate shavings or sprinkles,
- sanding or coarse (turbinado) sugar
- fine coconut shreds
- sprinkles
- unsweetened cocoa powder
- melted chocolate, or tempered chocolate if you don’t want it to melt as quickly and to delay any blooming, especially if you’re giving these dairy-free strawberry truffles as gifts.) Check out this article on how to temper chocolate.
Storage:
The ganache can be made ahead of time and kept in an airtight container in the refrigerator for about 2 weeks. If the ganache has been in the refrigerator for more than 4 or 5 hours, it may need to rest for about 10 minutes at room temperature before scooping and rolling the truffles. Room Temperature Storage: the truffles keep for about 2-3 days at room temperature in an airtight container. Refrigerator Storage: in an airtight container for 2 weeks – for a softer and creamier texture, leave out for 20 minutes at room temperature before serving. Freezer Storage: about 3-6 months in n airtight container – place them on a parchment lined tray – freeze uncovered until completely frozen then transfer them to a freezer safe bag or airtight containerThe Nutrition Information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the Nutrition Information for any recipe on this site cannot be guaranteed.
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