The Truffle, or Bliss-face Induction Unit

I've had a love affair with ganache for quite some time. If you're not familiar with ganache, it's one of the better things to do with chocolate known to man. That thing is to add fat. Yummy yummy fat in the form of butter and cream. One of the cool things that happens when you add butter and cream to chocolate is that you get shape shifting, state changing, stable, pliable chocolate that has yummy yummy fat in it - don't forget that part. The magic happens with the room temperature state of all of the materials involved. You get an intensely rich, chocolate thing that is not hard nor is it a liquid at room temperatures. You can use it as frosting, you can shape it, you can flavor it - oh my god you can can flavor it, but I get ahead of myself there.
So you've got ganache - the magical, pliable, chocolate love machine. Why stop there? Spread it between shortbread cookies for something Pepridge Farm could never match, frost cupcakes with it, eat it with a spoon in the dark in your kitchen. There I go again...more to the point you can make truffles with it.
Ah, truffles. So what the heck is a truffle anyway? Let's start with the concept that there are two very different things running around with this name. One is a very expensive mushroom, rooted out of wild, secret areas by truffle sniffing pigs. The other is a confection that happens to resemble this magical mushroom with a magic all it's own. That magic is brought to you by ganache.
Classically, a truffle is basically a ball of ganache, possibly flavored, and rolled in cocoa. Modernly, it seems they'll call anything chocolaty and ball shaped a truffle including a recipe I saw once involving only cream cheese and Oreos. Now, I'm not saying that wouldn't be good, in a preservative filled, processed food way, but I don't really think it's a truffle.
Snobbishness aside, lets talk about the classic truffle for a minute here. So you've got your bowl of ganache, lets make take it to a level of ridiculousness that just shouldn't be legal. Thank goodness it is, or I'd be in jail right now making bathtub ganache and shivs out of stale bread. I digress. Where was I? Oh right, flavoring ganache for truffles. AKA Easy directions for induction of the bliss face in total strangers while fully clothed.
Here's how it works: Make your ganache in a double boiler or the microwave, while it's still hot add your flavorings and chill it down. This is important. The butter has changed states in the heating process and needs to go cool off for a bit before it'll succumb to shaping. Once the ganache is ready to play nice, shape it into balls with a measuring spoon, melon baller, or small disher and roll in the coating. The butter has gotten mushy from all that handling again so stick those bad boys in the fridge and keep them cool till you intend to employ them.

Here are some flavoring ideas:
Coffee Liqueur + Instant Espresso
Baileys + Vanilla Powder
Kirsch + Ginger
Orange Extract + Cloves
Cider + Cinnamon
Any Booze + Compatible Spice

Most recently, the coffee liquor, espresso variety has been a serious creator of bliss face. The espresso bean on top takes it to another level. Come to think of it, you should buy some and try them. Who wouldn't want to invest in a little self-bliss-facing? Not you certainly.

Bliss Out,
The Pastry Goddess

PS. Leave more fun flavor combos in the comments if you like, or just tell me how much awesome I am made of.