Ingredients
Biscuit base
- 200 gplain flour
- 100 gbutter
- 60 gsugar
- 1egg yolk
- a pinch of salt
Marshmallow cream
- 4egg whites
- 300 gsugar
- 100 mlwater
- 1 tbspglucose syrup
- 1 tspvanilla
- a pinch of salt
Coating
- 400 gdark chocolate
- 50 gcocoa butter or 2 tbsp neutral oil
Equipment
- a piping bag with a large plain nozzle
- a sugar thermometer
Directions
- Make the biscuit base first: rub the butter into the flour, sugar and salt, bind with the yolk, chill 30 minutes, roll thin and cut discs of about 5 cm.
- Bake the discs at 180°C (355°F) for 10 to 12 minutes until pale gold, and cool them completely. The base must be completely cold and completely dry before anything goes on it, or the marshmallow weeps into it.
- Pour the hot syrup into the whites in a thin steady stream down the side of the bowl, whisking continuously.
- Pour it against the side rather than onto the beaters, or the syrup flies out in threads and sets on the bowl instead of in the meringue. Keep whisking for 8 to 10 minutes, until the mixture is thick, glossy and has cooled to barely warm.
- Beat in the vanilla, and stop as soon as the mixture holds a firm peak on the whisk. The peak is the shape people recognise, and it takes a confident lift straight up at the end.
- Chill the piped krembos for at least 2 hours until firm. Melt the chocolate with the cocoa butter and cool it to about 32°C (90°F). The chocolate must be fluid but not hot.
- Hold each krembo by its base and dip it, or spoon chocolate over from the top, coating it completely. Set them on paper and chill until the shell is firm. There is a long-running national argument about whether to eat the chocolate top first or start from the biscuit.
Technique
- It is the Israeli member of a family that includes the Danish flødebolle and the German Schokokuss.
- The commercial version uses a stabilised marshmallow that keeps far longer than a homemade one.
- Eat them within two days, because homemade marshmallow weeps.
Substitutions
- Shop-bought digestive biscuits cut to size.
- Golden syrup in place of glucose.
Variations
- Flødebolle, the Danish version, often with a marzipan base.
- With a mocha or vanilla marshmallow.
- Coated in white chocolate.
History
Foil-wrapped marshmallow on a biscuit base, sold only in winter and produced by the tens of millions each season since 1966.
Frequently asked questions
What is Krembo?
Krembo is a snack from Israel: chocolate-coated marshmallow cream on biscuit, winter-only treat. Foil-wrapped marshmallow on a biscuit base, sold only in winter and produced by the tens of millions each season since 1966.
How long does Krembo take to make?
Krembo takes 40 min plus 2 hr chilling of preparation and 20 min of cooking. The recipe makes about 20. It is rated hard to make.
What can I substitute in Krembo?
Yes, within limits. Shop-bought digestive biscuits cut to size. Golden syrup in place of glucose.
What is the most important thing to get right in Krembo?
Bake the discs at 180°C (355°F) for 10 to 12 minutes until pale gold, and cool them completely. The base must be completely cold and completely dry before anything goes on it, or the marshmallow weeps into it.
