Huevitos de leche

Ingredients

The fudge

• 2 litreswhole milk
• 600 gsugar
• 1/2 teaspoonbicarbonate of soda
• 1 teaspoonvanilla
• a pinch of salt

Sometimes added

• 1cinnamon stick
• the peel of 1 lime
• 50 gbutter

To finish

• caster sugar, for rolling
• or icing sugar

To serve

• small paper cases
• coffee

Directions

1. Use very little, since too much tastes soapy. Use the widest heavy pan you have. A narrow deep pan takes twice as long.
2. Put the milk and sugar in the pan. Add the bicarbonate of soda to it. Add the pinch of salt as well. Add the cinnamon and lime peel if using them. Warm it until the sugar dissolves. Bring it up to a steady simmer. Cooking it takes real patience. Let it simmer steadily and uncovered.
3. Stir it every few minutes at first. Give it about forty minutes at that stage. Stir occasionally while it is still liquid. Stir constantly once it starts to thicken. It goes from a sauce to a thick paste.
4. Drop a little onto a cold plate. Let it cool for thirty seconds. It should be firm enough to roll. Cook it longer if it is still soft. The mixture is extremely hot at this stage.
5. Keep children well away from the pan. Finishing it takes only a moment. Take the pan off the heat entirely. Stir in the vanilla and the butter. Beat it for about two minutes. Tip it out into a shallow dish. Spread it out to cool it faster.
6. Let it cool until it is just warm. It must be cool enough to handle. Take a small piece of the fudge. Roll it between your palms into an oval. Aim for about the size of a quail egg. Keep them all to a similar size. Put caster sugar in a shallow bowl. Roll each sweet in it until coated. That coating stops them sticking together.
7. Set them on a tray to firm up. Give them at least three hours. Set them in small paper cases. Pile them onto a plate for a gathering. They keep two weeks in a sealed tin. Layer them with paper so they do not stick.

Technique

• Huevitos means little eggs and describes the shape rather than the contents, since there are no eggs in them at all.
• The colour and flavour come from the Maillard reaction between milk proteins and sugars, which creates hundreds of new compounds rather than simply caramelising sugar, and is why milk fudge tastes different from caramel.
• A little bicarbonate of soda makes the mixture slightly alkaline, which speeds the Maillard reaction for a deeper colour in less time and stops the milk curdling as it acidifies; use very little, since too much tastes soapy.

Substitutions

• Icing sugar can replace caster sugar for rolling, giving a softer look.
• Cinnamon and lime peel are optional additions to the boiling milk.

Variations

• Some makers add a knob of butter at the end for a richer fudge.
• A version left in a tray and cut into squares is also made.
• Similar milk fudges are made right across Latin America.

History

A Panamanian confection sold at fairs and in the interior provinces, made from milk boiled down with sugar.

Frequently asked questions

What is Huevitos de leche?

Huevitos de leche is a dessert from Panama: little milk-fudge sweets rolled into egg shapes and dusted with sugar. A Panamanian confection sold at fairs and in the interior provinces, made from milk boiled down with sugar.

How long does Huevitos de leche take to make?

Huevitos de leche takes 20 minutes plus cooling of preparation and 1 hour of cooking. The recipe makes about 30 sweets. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Huevitos de leche?

Yes, within limits. Icing sugar can replace caster sugar for rolling, giving a softer look. Cinnamon and lime peel are optional additions to the boiling milk.

What is the most important thing to get right in Huevitos de leche?

Let it cool until it is just warm. It must be cool enough to handle. Take a small piece of the fudge. Roll it between your palms into an oval. Aim for about the size of a quail egg. Keep them all to a similar size. Put caster sugar in a shallow bowl. Roll each sweet in it until coated. That coating stops them sticking together.