Fall is officially here! It is my absolute favorite time of the year: hoodies, boots, changing leaves, vibrant color, and, of course, pumpkin spice! It is the perfect time to feature a no-bake, Pumpkin Cheesecake Truffle. A few years ago we presented a Red Wine-infused version of the chocolate cookie truffle – always a very popular holiday treat. We love the pure simplicity of the recipe – crushed Oreos and cream cheese, then a roll around in some melted chocolate. Easy and delicious.
For some time, Kyle had been searching for a Fall-themed version (that included pumpkin, of course). He did not have to go far – a quick Google search led him to literally millions of results. So, the final result had Kyle mashing up and trying several of the recipes. He used gluten free vanilla sandwich cookies in place of the chocolate Oreos and increased the amount of cream cheese to give the truffles a pumpkin cheesecake vibe. For the final step, the truffles were coated in melted white chocolate, creating a rich, and unfairly addictive Fall treat.
The filling for these treats is very soft and creamy – this adds a bit of contrast (and enjoyment) between the filling and the crunch! of the tempered chocolate. This process requires a bit of finagling and planning ahead ( although it is just a few simple steps!); otherwise the scoop-and-coat-system can create a gooey mess.
First, Kyle refrigerates the filling for few hours, which makes it firm enough to scoop. Then, he scoops filling portions onto a parchment-lined pan and pops them into the freezer for a few hours to fully solidify the filling. This makes it so much easier to roll the truffles around in the melted white chocolate. Anyone who has made this type of truffle has experienced the squishy mess it can make. Once I made Zombie Oreo truffles (just the Oreos, cream cheese, and green tinted white chocolate, and some fun candy eyes), the squishy-ness of the truffles was annoying and I fussed over them for some time. Luckily, the odd shape of them, once they had hardened in the fridge, worked because, well, they were zombies. However, a nice even shape for a truffle is the desired end result.
In the end, the active prep time is really not that long- you just has to plan it out and work on executing the recipe in stages a few hours apart.
Kyle used a larger-than-truffle-sized, 2 tablespoon scoop. This was mainly for laziness reasons, but also for efficiency when coating the truffles in the chocolate. Bigger truffles = less treats to roll in the tempered chocolate, saving time and some aggravation. Being able to quickly coat the batch of truffles in the tempered chocolate reduces the risk of the chocolate stiffening during the coating process, which would lead to more chocolate tempering and, ultimately, more time before you can dive into these Pumpkin Truffles!
Another “worst case”scenario is that the frozen fillings could start to soften and begin to bleed out into the coating, therefore ruining the pristine creamy-colored exteriors. So, in essence, being a tad lazy is the way to the most practical path of truffle making. With these larger truffles, you will most likely need to stop after having just one, which means there are plenty of leftovers for days to come. Uh-huh-sure, truffle leftovers, likely story.
You can decorate your Pumpkin Cheesecake Truffles with a dusting of pumpkin pie spice or some orange, pumpkin-themed sprinkles. Once that is complete-dig in! The truffles should be stored in the refrigerator to preserve the filling and to keep the exteriors firm. If you wish to store them in the freezer for a few weeks, go ahead, the more preserved Pumpkin Cheesecake truffles you freeze, the longer you can enjoy them! They only need to be thawed in the fridge for a couple of hours before they are ready.
This sweet treat can be enjoyed at home, a Halloween party, or any friendly gathering. Enjoy the truffles as we revel in this beautiful Fall season! Happy Autumn!
- 1 10.5 ounce package gluten free vanilla sandwich cookies
- 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
- ⅓ cup pumpkin puree
- 1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
- 1 ¼ teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 10 ounces white chocolate
- Orange sprinkles and pumpkin pie spice, for decoration
- In a food processor, blend the cookies until finely ground.
- Add the cream cheese, pumpkin, sugar, pumpkin pie spice, and salt and pulse until fully incorporated.
- Refrigerate for at least 2 hours, until mixture is firm and scoop-able.
- Scoop mixture into 2-tablespoon sized pieces and roll into balls. Place on a parchment-lined cookie sheet and freeze for at least one hour. (this will make them much easier to handle when coating with the chocolate).
- Melt the white chocolate in a double boiler Dip the pumpkin cheesecake truffles one at a time in the melted chocolate and return to the cookie sheet. Top with pumpkin pie spice or orange sprinkles for decoration. Store truffles in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
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