SQUOOSHED: Brigadeiro

A couple days ago, my friend Kelly invited me and a bunch of girls over to her house to make Brigadeiro, a chocolatey Brazilian dessert. It did not take much convincing!

Source

I had never heard of Brigadeiro before, but when I looked it up online, it reminded me of a chocolate truffle. According to Wikipedia, it was named after Eduardo Gomes, a Brazilian politician and military figure:

Eduardo Gomes was a Brazilian Air Force brigadier who later ran unsuccessfully for the presidency in 1946 and 1950. This was a time of shortage of traditional imports such as nuts and fruits because of the war. But, at the same time, Nestlé was introducing its brand of chocolate powder and condensed milk (known in Switzerland as Milch Mädchen) into the country.

Although Brazil is a major producer of cocoa beans, it is believed that the creation and success of the truffle was a combination of opportunities: the multinational corporation Nestlé, which introduced chocolate powder and condensed milk; the creators who named it after the famous politician, the need to find a replacement to imported sweets; and its ease of manufacture.

I found this rather interesting because the girls who taught me how to make Brigadeiro kept stressing that they usually use Nestle products.

Like in any culture, every Brazilian has his or her own special method of making Brigadeiro, but they almost always involve sweetened condensed milk and cocoa powder.

The method I learned starts with some sweetened condensed milk (Nestle, of course)...

... and some Lite Table Cream.

Combine it with some cocoa powder and stir constantly over medium heat until the mixture is thick and you can see the bottom of the pot.

Pour the mixture onto a plate and allow it to cool. Once cooled, you can roll it into balls (place some oil or butter on your hands so it doesn't stick to them)...