Hi! I have a tiny chocolate company in S.E. Wisconsin - something of a social venture project. Sweet Impact Chocolates is in it's 4th year, but I only started doing full-fledged chocolates in the summer of last year. I'm focused on all-natural products, using ethically-sourced chocolate and then 10% of my sales goes to NGO's that help trafficked kids and education for girls/young women. I could go on and on, but I'll leave it at that to spare you all 

Among many other things I'll be running to this forum for, I have a fundamental question for you all. Honestly, I hadn't needed to address it until a florist approached me about carrying my chocolates in her shop. 

What differentiates a "truffle" from a "bon bon?"  My understanding was that a shell, with truffle filling, no matter the shape, could be called a truffle. But, based on what lines they already carry, a truffle needs to be enormous and a ball, and dipped. They carry a product that, honestly, after taking the class I did from Ecole Chocolat, offends my food snob sensibilities. It's 1.5 ounces and has so much artificial junk in it, including the coating not actually being chocolate, that I was stunned. She wanted to know if I could do anything like it. Which I can, but if I'm going to put my name on it, it won't be that sort of product. Trouble is, she only pays 1.42 for each one, and has a 3-6 month shelf life. Color me gob-smacked!

So, are there any technical rules about what makes a truffle?

Thanks in advance and I'm so happy to have found this forum!

-Kristi

I've never completely convinced myself that I clearly know what a truffle is vs a bonbon. I tend to think of the little (and I do mean little) one bite ganaches shaped like the thing that pigs dig up in France - to be a truffle. A cut piece made from ganache might also qualify. And when I pipe a ganache into a shell - I might call it a truffle filling. 

To me various chocolate items count as bonbons - truffles, molded chocolates, enrobed chocolates...

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www.eztemper.com

www.thechocolatedoctor.ca

Ahh, so they are a sub-category of Bon Bons. That's a helpful way to think of it. Tho, the ones they are selling can be cut into quarters easily! They're cake pop sized. 

Thanks for the input.

Yeah - those huge honking pieces they sell at various places are not my idea of a 'proper' truffle. Lazy man's truffle - got tired of scooping and rolling so made them bigger!

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www.eztemper.com

www.thechocolatedoctor.ca