I have to say I do enjoy these “grown-up” sweets, they tend to be more… hummmmm hehehe, so for today i went with these Dark Chocolate & Cocoa Brazilian Brigadeiros! By the way if you dont live in this planet a Brigadeiro is a Brazilian delicacy, its basically cooked condensed milk with chocolate, a kinda fudgjy chocolate truffle.
And i know a lot of Brazilians and even Portuguese will be grumbling that these are not the “proper” brigadeiro, that the proper ones are made with drinking chocolate powder, something like Toddy, Garoto or Nesquick in Brazil, and here in Portugal that would be Suchard Express or maybe Cola Cao.
Trust me, there’s nothing wrong with using those, you’ll just end up with a sweeter brigadeiro, because it’s worth remembering that drinking chocolate powder is mostly sugar with a little cocoa and flavoring thrown in (since cocoa alone doesn’t dissolve well in water or milk), while real chocolate is cocoa plus sugar plus fat. And since the condensed milk is already loaded with sugar and fat, all you really need to add is cocoa.
And the result speaks for itself, these cocoa brigadeiros are still plenty sweet, but they come out a bit denser and less sickly than the more common version. And yes, I used dark chocolate for extra contrast, but feel free to experiment, there are a thousand and one coatings you could use for brigadeiros, thats really up to your taste! So let’s get to the recipe, I hope you enjoy it ;D
Dark Chocolate & Cocoa Brazilian Brigadeiros Fudge Truffles
Here's the classic kitchen truism, better ingredients give better results. In this case, I love a classic Brazilian brigadeiro, but if you use a better quality dark chocolate, you'll get an even more indulgent and delicious brigadeiro, just saying...
Ingredients
- Condensed Milk – 1 can (approx. 400g)
- Butter – 1 tablespoon (approx. 12g)
- Cocoa – 3 tablespoons (approx. 45g)
- Salt – A pinch
- Butter – For greasing (optional)
- Dark Chocolate – 1/2 bar (approx. 60g, finely chopped; 70% cocoa)
Directions
- Start by adding the condensed milk, butter, cocoa, and a pinch of salt to a small saucepan, cook over low heat, stirring constantly.
- Cook until the mixture begins to thicken and pull away from the bottom of the pan, this can take anywhere from 10 to 20 minutes. A good trick to check the consistency is to leave a little of the mixture on the rim of the pan, if that bit thickens and becomes elastic, it’s ready (alternatively, place a teaspoon of the mixture in the fridge for about 2 minutes).
- Remove from the heat and transfer the mixture to a container, I recommend glass, as it makes it easier to scrape out every last bit. Cover and refrigerate for at least 12 hours, but 24 hours is ideal to let the flavors develop.
- When you’re ready to make the brigadeiros, finely chop the dark chocolate and place it on a plate. Take the brigadeiro mixture out of the fridge and set up a little assembly line with a tablespoon, a scale, the mixture, and the chopped dark chocolate, this makes the process of rolling a batch much more efficient.
- A great trick for perfect brigadeiros is to grease one hand (or both, if you’re a bit clumsy, haha) with a little butter. This allows you to scoop the mixture off the spoon, roll it into a ball, and drop it into the chopped chocolate.
- Roll each ball generously in the chocolate, and—voilà—they’re ready to devour. Yum! If you aren’t eating them right away, store the brigadeiros in an airtight container in the fridge. Enjoy!
5 Weigh the empty spoon (or tare the scale with the spoon on it), scoop up a portion of the mixture, and weigh the spoon with the mixture on it. This way, you know roughly how much each brigadeiro weighs and can ensure they are all uniform, just repeat the weighing process for each one. I went with 30gr thats the classic weight (something around 25 to 35gr).
I personally like the slightly denser texture of this version, but if you’d prefer something a bit lighter, stir in 1 to 2 tablespoons of milk, heavy cream after you take it out of the heat, to smooth it out.
Pick up some small paper or foil cups to hold the brigadeiros, it helps them keep their shape and makes them much easier to transport or give as gifts ;D
And yes, some of the photos show a few brigadeiros losing their shape a little, that’s just the reality of shooting a recipe and taking lots of pictures in a very hot, sunny day, brigadeiros left out too long start to soften up ;D
As mentioned above, feel free to use whatever coating you like. For instance, some supermarkets carry lots of colorful sprinkles shaped like stars and hearts, but you could also go for something more indulgent like chopped almonds, shredded coconut, or extra cocoa or chocolate powder.
Ohh if you can, use a nonstick or heavy-bottomed saucepan and a silicone spatula, it makes stirring constantly (which you really do need to do) much easier and helps prevent scorching on the bottom.
If you don’t have a kitchen scale, you can eyeball roughly a tablespoon per ball, but weighing really does make for a more professional, even-looking batch.
Let the mixture cool for a few minutes at room temperature before it goes into the fridge, this helps it set evenly instead of forming a thick skin on top.
Brigadeiros keep well in the fridge for about a week in an airtight container, and they can also be frozen for a couple of months, just thaw in the fridge before rolling and serving.
This recipe for Dark Chocolate & Cocoa Brazilian Brigadeiros Fudge Truffles was originally created on BakeAfter.com. Esta receita de Brigadeiros de Cacau foi publicada em português no Iguaria.com.
Nutrition
Per Serving: 104 calories; 4.5 g fat; 15.1 g carbohydrates; 2.5 g protein.Did you try this recipe?
Let me know how it turned out for you! Have you tried brigadiros before? You can leave a comment below ;D
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