I would never judge someone for outsourcing their Valentine’s Day chocolates. Candy making is known for its exact temperature requirements and screaming-hot boiling sugar, to say nothing of tempering chocolate. But Brazilian Brigadeiros are as easy to make as they are delicious. Even if you plan to purchase the classic heart-shaped box of confections, I recommend supplementing with a batch of these slightly chewy, caramel-soft chocolate candies.

Unlike old-fashioned fudge, which hinges on the crystallization of sucrose, Brigadeiros don’t require you to heat sugar past its boiling point. In fact, they’re actually quite similar to the “easy fudge” recipes you’ll see online, which use a combination of sweetened condensed milk and chocolate chips. These round, truffle-like candies that straddle the line between fudge and ganache are made from little more than cocoa powder, condensed milk and butter. Once gently cooked down and cooled, they’re rolled in candy sprinkles or chopped nuts.

Equipment-wise, all you need is a nonstick pan, whisk and silicone spatula. There’s no need for mixing bowls or a candy thermometer—though an instant read thermometer is recommended to help you spot the end point. If you don’t have a thermometer of any kind, don’t panic. The brigadeiros will let you know when they’re done. Once the chocolate mixture takes on a matte appearance and slides around the pan with ease, it’s ready to be transferred to a baking dish for cooling.

And while the simplest version of the brigadeiro is three ingredinets—sweetened condensed milk, cocoa powder and butter—we include a few common pantry items to add depth and complexity. Ground cinnamon adds spicy warmth, salt tempers the sweetness, and instant espresso amplifies the roasty, toasty notes in the chocolate. (Espresso and chocolate share many flavor compounds; a little bit of the former intensifies the flavors of the latter.)

For a finishing touch, the candies are rolled in chocolate sprinkles, though you should certainly feel free to play around here. We add chopped roasted cashews for a buttery crunch, but hazelnuts, almonds, peanuts or a combination of your favorites would be delicious. You could even finish a batch with red and pink sprinkles, just to fit the theme.

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Claire Lower

Claire Lower is the Digital Editor for Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street, with over a decade of experience as a food writer and recipe developer. Claire began writing about food (and drinks) during the blogging boom in the late 2000s, eventually leaving her job as a lab technician to pursue writing full-time. After freelancing for publications such as Serious Eats, Yahoo Food, xoJane and Cherry Bombe Magazine, she eventually landed at Lifehacker, where she served as the Senior Food Editor for nearly eight years. Claire lives in Portland, Oregon with a very friendly dog and very mean cat. When not in the kitchen (or at her laptop), you can find her deadlifting at the gym, fly fishing or trying to master figure drawing at her local art studio.