Anybody else out there gone soccer-crazy? My family is glued to every game, and when the United States is up, watch out! The screams can be heard a mile away. Personally I’ve never been much for sports, but I do love how a good game can bring the whole family together. It was my husband who suggested I post a recipe for the World Cup. “Something Brazilian,” he said, “in honor of the host country.” I suddenly remembered an easy Brazilian treat a friend taught me years ago called brigadeiros. Just the memory made my mouth water. They taste like chocolate milk in truffle form. It’s such a simple concept, I just had to share it with you.
Brigadeiros are truffle-like confections made from cocoa or chocolate powder and condensed milk. As the story goes they were named after Eduardo Gomes, a Brigadier (brigade commander) in the Brazilian Air Force. When he ran for president of Brazil in 1945, his slogan was “Vote no brigadeiro, que é bonito e é solteiro,” which translates to “Vote for the brigadier, who is handsome and single.” Whether it was his good looks or his platform promoting middle-class families we can’t be sure, but Gomes did attract many female supporters who sold these chocolate brigadeiro candies as fundraisers. These sweet little treats are also known as negrinhos in some southern parts of Brazil.
Brigadeiros could not be easier to make and they taste amazing, plus they make your house smell bonkers delicious while you’re cooking them. They’re definitely worth trying. What a fun addition to a World Cup party. Go Team USA!
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Brigadeiros - Brazilian Chocolate Truffle Candies
Ingredients
- 28 ounces sweetened condensed milk 2 cans
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 5 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder make sure it's unsweetened!
Optional Toppings
- Candy sprinkles
- Sweetened shredded coconut
- Crushed nuts
- Crushed pretzels
- Crushed vanilla cookies
- Mini chocolate chips
NOTES
Instructions
- Grease a small pan with 2 tbsp butter over medium heat. Pour in the 2 cans of sweetened condensed milk and 5 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder. Whisk the mixture together over medium heat until the butter melts and the cocoa is fully integrated into the sweetened condensed milk.
- Switch from a whisk to a wooden spoon. Continue stirring over medium heat till the mixture begins to boil.Reduce heat to medium low and continue to cook, stirring constantly. Scrape the sides of the pan from time to time to make sure the mixture doesn't stick or burn. Do not stop stirring; if you leave it alone for even a minute it will burn.
- After 10-15 minutes the mixture will begin to thicken and pull away from the sides of the pan. You can run your spoon through the middle of the mixture and a valley will appear-- it should take around 3-5 seconds for the valley to close. At this point you're almost done. Continue stirring for 2 more minutes till batter is quite thick and collecting in the center of the pan. Resist the urge to eat the whole pan of brigadeiro batter. It's super tempting.
- Remove pan from heat and pour the batter into a greased bowl.Refrigerate the batter for about 45 minutes until cool and somewhat firm.
- Butter or oil your hands. Scoop the batter and form into small balls of about 2 teaspoons each, rolling between your greased hands.
- Once they are rolled into balls, brigadeiros can be rolled in a variety of toppings. Here I've used sprinkles, coconut, nuts and mini chocolate chips. I've made several more suggestions above. After they are rolled, they are traditionally placed into mini paper baking cups. I didn't have any on hand when I photographed these brigadeiros, so I placed them directly onto my grandma's pink glass plate for a pretty presentation.
- You can eat them right away, or chill them again till firm. Brigadeiros should be stored in the refrigerator to preserve their freshness, they will last about 1 week.
Nutrition
Wow, I’ll make it very tasty.
To make it chalav israel you can make it with dulce de leche and cook for less time, havent tried this exact recipe but should work
Dear Tory, I´m Brazilian, and I live in São Paulo. I love your blog and I´m so happy for this post. I love “brigadeiros” na d I have a lot of recipes of it, with many other flavors. Try this other version, that is called “brigadeiro de colher”. Just cook the same mixture till starts boiling, reduce the temperature to low, cook just more 3 to 5 minutes. Let it cool and add a can of evaporated milk (creme de leite) or 2 cans of nestle table cream. Put it in litlle glass cups and cover with the toppings, a little spon and serve it cold. It´s delicious !!! And you can serve with a passion fruit mousse over it (in this case don´t put the toppings). A big brazilian kiss for you, with brigadeiro flavor! Andrea Beverari
Love this idea Andrea! Thank you for sharing!
I can go for that anytime
Thanks!!!
Oh em gee, my blood sugar spiked just reading the recipe! But whatta way to go…
Do you know a brand of condensed milk that’s chalav Israel?
Veronica Carnation and Eagle are both kosher certified, I believe, but I’m not sure what kind of hechsher they have.
You always post food items that make my mouth water!! Yummy
If you use pieces of a good quality dark chocolate (maybe 85% cacao) bar instead of the cocoa powder the brigadeiros will last longer and keep firm even in warm weather days 😉
” YUMMY ” !!!
Muuuuuito gostoso! 🙂
Yummm! Thx for the recipe, you have some great ideas that I can actually do 😉
Yes please!!
Julia, let me know when – I will be over -:)
Wow these are amazing!
ty
hmmmmmmmmmm my favorite food of all times!
These look amazing! Will be making them soon!
They wouldn’t last a week in my house! The plate brings back many good memories!
I love that plate Kathy Stapley! <3
OMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM