Brigadeiros are a must-have on any birthday party in Brazil. It's simple to make and almost everybody loves them. It's a little bite to sweet heaven. But if you are not so much into sugar - I found out pretty quickly that many Germans don't really care for a super sweet candy - maybe this will not be for you. Just a warning.
Anyways, the history of this candy is somewhat curious. They were created around the 1940´s, during the presidential election in Brazil. One of the candidates was Eduardo Gomes. He was a military brigadier (or Brigadeiro, in Portuguese) and a notorious ladies man. To make him even more popular, their supporters decided to create a sweet named after him, and that's how the brigadeiro was created.
Because this all happened after the second World War, there was a food shortage in Brazil. Sugar and milk were scarce, so they decided to use condensed milk and voilá, it was an instant success. Just for the sweet though, because the candidate never won the elections.
Today there are a lot of variations for brigadeiros, but I like the traditional ones, of course. So that is the one I´m going to show here. The ingredients are super easy to find, just pay attention at the time you buy the condensed milk. Here in Germany you need to find the Gezuckert kondensmilch. They sell in any supermarket.
Ingredients
1 tablespoon of butter
1 can of condensed milk
¼ cup of cocoa powder
To decorate (if you want):
1 cup of chocolate sprinkles
Instructions
Melt the butter in a saucepan over low heat and then add the condensed milk.
Next, add your cocoa powder and start stirring continuously. Keep stirring until the mixture is thick enough to start to shape.
When you get to the point of brigadeiro, set the mixture aside and allow it to cool. After this the mixture should be firm enough to be able to roll into small balls, which can then be rolled in chocolate sprinkles.
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