Saudade

Saudade is a beautiful word in Portuguese, it means a longing, missing something or someone, a heart sickness. I do miss Brazil, and I find myself thinking about it very often. Though my Portuguese is nothing like it was, I still recall so many memories of friends and places so fondly. And the food too! I could go on, but this isn't a page to bore you all with memories that would mean very little to most people. But I will share one of the yummiest things I could bring back with me :)  I have made these as a surprise to share with a group of friends tonight.... it has been difficult not to dip into them!

Brigadeiro is almost a Brazilian version of a truffle, but more like a caramel. EVERYONE makes it, and it is divine. The good news is, unlike much of the food I loved, the ingredients are easily available in the rest of the world. Hooray for me!

Brigadeiro


1/2 cup chocolate Nesquick Powder

15g butter

1 tin (400g) sweetened condensed milk

chocolate hail, coconut, cocoa powder, chopped nuts, or icing sugar

Prepare a greased plate or dish.

In a small to medium saucepan, melt the butter and add the chocolate powder and condensed milk.

On a low heat, stir continuously for approximately 15 minutes. You can use a whisk at first to make sure the powder does not go lumpy, as it will burn. The idea is not to let the caramel forming on the bottom burn, so keep stirring! Take a book with you if you need to! And don't answer the phone. This is much more important ;)  A good spatula (obviously heat proof!) is ideal for this as it gets into the corners. Stir until it is a thick custard consistency, and you can see a good deal of the bottom of the pan with each stir.

Remove the pan from the stove and scrape it onto prepared greased dish and let it cool. Once cooled, grease your hands, and using a teaspoon roll into small balls, then roll in your preferred covering. Chocolate hail is the prevalent favourite! In the pictures, I have used chocolate hail, coconut and ground almonds.