GELATO DI TARTUFO / serves 6 chocolate lovers.
Ingredients: 3 C rich chocolate ice cream or gelato 1 box (3 1/2 oz. size) glace cherries 1/4 C Cheri-Suisse liqueur 2 pkg. (8-oz.) bittersweet or unsweetened chocolate 2 C heavy cream 4 T superfine sugar or powdered sugar 1/4 t pure vanilla 6 pirouette cookies
Directions: Two days or more before serving, cut cherries in half and marinate in liqueur at room temperature,. Chop the chocolate very fine (best done in a food processor) and refrigerate. Make 6 ice cream balls and place in individual dishes. Insert in each of the balls 6 halves of the cherries. Roll each ball in chopped chocolate, coating thoroughly. Place the Tartufos in the freezer overnight (if you like they can be frozen for a week ahead).
To serve, pipe a dollop of whipped cream into the center of a dessert plate. Place a Tartufo in the corner of the cream and top with a big cap of whipped cream. Sprinkle with finely chopped chocolate and then stick a pirouette cookie into the cream on a diagonal. Looks amazing, tastes even better!