Surprise Weight Watchers Truffles

So when you write about vegetables and really want to make truffles, the selected sweetness for November's Sugar High Friday food blogging event (hosted by Johanna of the The Passionate Cook), what do you do? Get creative, that's what! Enter pumpkin truffles!

For anyone who craves a rush of buttery chocolate sweetness after a meal, these are a great choice. Each truffle counts as 1 Weight Watchers point and since they're small with fiber, can be considered 'low carb' with 10 NetCarbs. And with lots of chocolate richness, it's easy to nibble on just one, making it last. Much to my surprise, I found that eaten slowly, 'just one' was entirely satisfying.

WEIGHT WATCHERS TRUFFLES This is a mean joke, right? It's no joke but it is a (big) lesson in (small) portion size. If we ate pieces of cake this small, they'd maybe rack up just one point too. I've been avoiding my favorite St. Louis chocolatier, Bissinger's, maybe one-a-day, you know, like a vitamin ...

SOAP BOX MOMENT Was I surprised by one-point truffles? You bet. But it's the reason I am so disciplined about providing nutrition information and Weight Watchers points and NetCarb info. (Mostly, however, the surprises go the other direction, more points than expected in a harmless-looking recipe.) If you're a cook, you can calculate nutrition information for your own recipes too with a great product called Accuchef. Its Import Wizard makes it easy to import recipes, then it's easy to adjust quantities and add/subtract ingredients for illuminating what-if analysis.

SO WHAT DO YOU THINK Do you buy this? Can a truffle fit into a weight loss and weight maintenance diet?

PUMPKIN TRUFFLES
Hands-on time: 30 minutes
Time to table: 1 1/2 hours
Made 14

1/4 cup pumpkin puree
2 ounces bittersweet chocolate
1 1/2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons liqueur
1 egg yolk
1/2 cup toasted almonds, ground
1 cup powdered sugar
Unsweetened Dutch process cocoa

Spoon puree onto a double layer of paper towels, spread evenly. Add a double layer of paper towels on top. Fold edges over the top side and the bottom side, pressing a bit to transfer excess liquid to the paper towels.

Meanwhile, melt the chocolate and butter in a small saucepan. Let cool a bit. Stir in the liqueur and egg yolk, whisking continuously til smooth. Add almonds, powdered sugar and pumpkin; stir in until smooth. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerate.

Roll into balls, then roll in cocoa. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

NUTRITION ESTIMATE
Per Serving: 98 Cal (45% from Fat, 4% from Protein, 51% from Carb); 1 g Protein; 5 g Tot Fat; 2 g Sat Fat; 13 g Carb; 1 g Fiber; 12 mg Calcium; 0 mg Iron; 12 mg Sodium; 18 mg Cholesterol

CREDIT WHERE CREDIT'S DUE
Adapted from "Potatoes" by Sue Kreitzman

(c) Copyright 2006 Kitchen Parade