Chocolate Truffles Flavored with Triple Sec

I have a ton of recipes for fudge and truffles but had never made truffles so last night I started with a conglomeration of about a half dozen recipes and this is what I have come up with.  And,  they are good!!

It goes like this for my ingredients:

8 Oz. bittersweet chocolate ( I used Ghiradelli,)
8 Oz. semisweet chocolate ( I used Ghiradelli.)
1 C. heavy cream
1 T. brewed coffee
1 or 2  T. Triple Sec (optional, orange flavored liqueur)
1/2 t. vanilla
1/2 C. powdered sugar
1/2 C. cocoa

Line the surface of a cutting board with a double thickness of waxed paper for easier clean up.  Then chop the chocolate with a sharp knife. (I used my chefs knife.)   Place the chocolates in a glass heat-proof mixing bowl. 

Heat the cream in a small pan until it just boils then turn off the heat.  Strain the cream into the chocolate through a fine sieve.  Stir the cream and chocolate together until the chocolate is completely melted.  Depending on the temperature of the kitchen this may work perfectly.  If it does not you may heat the bowl IN NO MORE THAN 10-15 SECOND intervals in the microwave oven.  Stirring well after each span in the microwave.  Be very cautious as if it becomes too hot it may seize up.   Add the flavorings and continue to stir until perfectly blended together.

Let set in a cool room (I used my dinning room as the kitchen gets hot with the range on.) for at least an hour or two.  My truffles were still too soft so I let them sit overnight and they were perfect.  This is a judgement call based on your environment.  Some recipes recommend you refrigerate for 30 minutes then form into candies.  Again you have a bit of wiggle room here. 

The bottom line is you will need to be able to roll the mixtures by teaspoons of batter in the palm of your hand to form small balls.  The warmth of the palms of your hand will soften even stiff batter.  Lastly roll the formed candies in powdered sugar, cocoa powder, or a mixture of both.  I used a mixture of both.

Yield 1 pound truffles.  These will keep for weeks in the refrigerator but are best served at room temperature.