Despite my love for making and eating truffles, I don’t really love rolling them into little balls. It’s just one of those kitchen tasks that I try to avoid (we all have them, right?). So instead of making truffle balls, I make my truffles slightly firmer in texture and then slice them into cubes. They lose the roly-poly truffle look, but something about the neat edges feels so festive to me. I also use edible gold leaf on these champagne truffles, which ups the fanciness factor considerably. But even if you skip that extra gilding, these truffles, dusted simply in cocoa, are still impressive and most importantly, delicious. You can also substitute dark beer, like porter or stout, in place of the champagne. If you’d like to swap out the champagne for liquor, use half the amount called for. Remove from the heat and whisk in the champagne. Trim the ends of the truffle to square them off if you want. (And save the trimmings for yourself!) Cut the block in half through the middle to make two squares. Cut each square into thirds and then cut into fourth to make cubes. As needed to prevent sticking, wipe down your knife, dip it again in warm water, and wipe dry. Repeat until all the truffles have a little gold leaf on top.
