Salted Licorice Brigadeiros Recipes

Steps:

• Spray a shallow dish with cooking spray and set aside. Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium-low heat. When the butter has melted, whisk in the condensed milk, cocoa powder and salt until well combined. Cook over a medium-low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon or heatproof spatula, until the mixture becomes thick and starts to pull away from the bottom and sides of the pan, 7 to 15 minutes.
• Pour the mixture onto the prepared dish and spread it out so it cools quickly. DO NOT touch the mixture with your hands at this point-it is VERY hot. If you are having trouble spreading, use a rubber spatula or spoon. (It doesn't need to look perfect.) Refrigerate until cool enough to comfortably handle, about 1 hour to 70 minutes. (The colder the mixture, the easier the next steps will be.)
• Place the coconut, sprinkles and cocoa powder in separate shallow bowls. Take a tablespoon of the candy mixture and form into a ball. Place the ball on a sheet pan. Continue forming the balls and placing on the sheet pan until all of the mixture is used; you should have 24 to 28 small balls. Once all the balls are prepared, roll each in one of the desired coatings, pressing the flaked coconut and sprinkles coatings so they stick. Place each coated ball in a little paper cup. Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to eat.

Steps:

• In a food processor, grind licorice until finely chopped, about 30 seconds (it will be noisy).
• Transfer to a heavy-bottomed saucepan and add 1/4 cup water. Cook gently over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, until licorice is shiny and almost melted (a few remaining licorice nibs are O.K.), 5 to 7 minutes.
• Add condensed milk and bring to a simmer, stirring. Scrape mixture back into food processor and add chocolate. Process until as smooth as possible (you will still have a few lumps but that's O.K.), about 1 to 2 minutes.
• Scrape mixture into a bowl and chill until very cold, at least 3 hours.
• Pour sprinkles into a bowl. Roll teaspoons of licorice mixture into balls (you may want to lightly coat your hands with butter or oil) and drop them into sprinkles, turning to coat. Place balls into paper candy cups and sprinkle tops with coarse sea salt.

Steps:

• Lightly grease an 8x8-inch baking pan (or another heatproof vessel with approximately the same dimensions) with butter or nonstick cooking spray.
• In a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine the sweetened condensed milk, cocoa powder, butter, and salt. Place the pan over medium heat and whisk often to encourage the butter to melt and the cocoa powder to dissolve. Once the candy comes to a bubble, reduce the heat to low and cook, whisking often. The candy is finished when it's the consistency of a thick brownie batter and slides in a soft mass from one side of the pan to the other when the pan is tilted-this can take anywhere from 15 to 25 minutes, depending on your stove, but it's better to keep the heat low and give the candy more time to cook down than to rush it and risk burning it. Stir in the vanilla extract. Pour the candy into the prepared baking pan. Chill in the refrigerator until the candy is somewhat firm with a claylike texture, about 1 hour.
• When you're ready to form the candies, pour your desired coatings onto individual plates. Use your fingers or a small ice cream scoop with a capacity of about 1 teaspoon to portion out bits of candy and roll them into 1-inch balls. Drop each ball into a dish of coating and roll to coat. Set the finished candies on a small baking sheet, or place them into small paper candy cups. Store in the refrigerator in an airtight container.

Steps:

• Fill a large bowl or pan with ice and water. Place a large, clean bowl in the ice bath and fit the bowl with a fine-mesh strainer.
• In a large, heavy-bottomed, nonreactive saucepan over medium heat, combine the cream, milk, licorice, and salt and cook, whisking occasionally, until much of the licorice has melted and the mixture is hot but not boiling, about 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar until well blended.
• Remove the cream mixture from the heat. Slowly pour about half of the hot cream mixture into the yolk mixture, whisking constantly. Transfer the yolk mixture back to the saucepan with the remaining cream mixture and return it to medium heat. Cook, stirring constantly with a rubber spatula and being sure to scrape the bottom of the saucepan so it doesn't scorch, until the liquid begins to steam and you can feel the spatula scrape against the bottom of the pan, 2 to 3 minutes.
• Remove the custard from the heat and immediately pour it through the strainer into the clean bowl you set up in the ice bath. Let cool, stirring occasionally.
• When the custard has totally cooled, cover the bowl and chill in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour or preferably overnight. When you are ready to freeze the custard, transfer it to an ice cream maker and spin according to the manufacturer's instructions. Eat immediately, or transfer to an airtight container, cover, and freeze for up to 1 week.

Steps:

• If using store-bought condensed milk, skip to Step 2. If making the sweetened condensed milk from scratch, add the milk and sugar to a large saucepan. Heat over medium-low, and simmer, stirring occasionally and scraping the sides and bottom of the pan with a spatula, for about 30 to 40 minutes. When the milk reduces to about 1 3/4 cups, thickens to a syrup texture and turns slightly yellow, it is ready.
• Prepare the brigadeiros: Melt the butter in a heavy skillet over low heat. Add the condensed milk, cocoa powder and salt, and whisk until no trace of cocoa remains, about 5 minutes.
• Turn the heat up to medium, and use a heatproof spatula to stir the mixture constantly until it becomes thick and shiny and pulls away from the bottom of the pan as a mass when you drag the spatula across it, about 7 minutes. If you're not sure the mixture is ready, take 1/2 teaspoon of it and run it under cold water. When it's cool enough to touch, squish it with your fingers - it should be the texture of a soft and fudgy caramel.
• Scrape all of the mixture onto a piece of parchment paper, and let it cool down until it's easy to handle, about 30 minutes. Lightly butter your hands, and use them to shape a scant tablespoon of the mixture into a ball or rough cube, then roll it in the sprinkles. Place each one on a paper wrapper, if you like. The brigadeiros will keep in the fridge for 1 week, or in the freezer for 1 month. Serve chilled or at room temperature.