Brigadeiros/Chocolate Truffles/Amazeballs!!

A few weeks ago, during a lull at work I was scrolling through twitter on my phone when I saw a tweet from the America's Test Kitchen Feed about how easy it is to make the Brazilian chocolate truffles known as brigadeiros. They looked so rich and decadent I knew I had try it out to see just how easy it was.
There was discrepancy between the step-by-step instructions and the recipe page as to how much butter to use. The step-by-step instructions called for 3 tablespoons of butter and the recipe page called for 2 tablespoons. Not much of a difference, but given America's Test Kitchen's methods of rigorous testing of recipes in pursuit of ones that work well and are easily reproduce at home that has made them a standard and go to source for recipes, techniques, reviews of equipment and all around kitchen knowledge I decided to reach out to them to correct the recipe!
I sent an email last weekend and got a response Monday morning from Christine, an associate editor of social media with America's Test Kitchen thanking me for my sharp eye, confirming that 2 tablespoons was the correct amount and letting me know that both the instructions and recipe linked above have been updated to reflect the accurate recipe, which is posted below in case you are too lazy to click a link:

Brigadeiros (Brazilian Chocolate Truffles aka Amazeballs!!)  via America's Test Kitchen
makes 30 (though I ended up making 40 so it really depends on size)
If the candies stick to hands while rolling, spray them lightly with cooking spray. The thickened chocolate mixture can be chilled up to 24 hours. The finished candies can be stored in the refrigerator up to 3 days.


1 14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder
2 tablespoons butter (might be 3 tablespoons, but I used 2)
sprinkles, powdered sugar, crushed nuts, etc for coating
1) Combine sweetened condensed milk, cocoa powder, and butter in medium sauce pot over medium-low heat.
2) Cool. stirring frequently, until mixture is very thick and rubber spatula holds its line across bottom of pan, about 25 minutes. Pour into a greased 8"x8" baking dish and refrigerate until cooled, at least 30 minutes.
3) Working with approximately 1 tablespoon pieces at a time, roll into 1-inch balls. Place toppings in bowls and roll chocolate in coatings until covered.

Really, that is it! This was as easy as described above. Rolling and coating the balls is a bit messy but this was not a complicated process. My mix cooked a little faster then 25 minutes, closer to 15 but they came out great and this was pretty idiot proof, just keep stirring!!

An easy recipe like this that can be made a day in advance, would be a fun activity with kids, and is easy to customize with the variety of coatings you can use! These will definitely be a go to when we need an easy 'special treat' for something!