chocolate balls

i would like to share with you my favorite dessert while growing up in israel. a desert my late mother used to make. no matter how many times she told me to stop, i would eat those chocolate balls one after another. to this day, the smell and taste of this dessert, is a sweet reminder of her. so for this mother’s day (yes i know i am really late) i have decided to make them in her memory.
glancing at the recipe it seemed like an easy dessert to make and it was till i had to form the actual balls and roll them in the coconut flakes. my mother, as was her nature, never mentioned how much time, work, and patience it took to roll and coat these balls properly. especially when you want them to be perfectly round and evenly white from the coconuts rather than smudged up and elliptical. i guess kids (me included) do not really care how they look, but at my old age it is important.
these particular chocolate balls are made with crushed tea biscuits called petit beurre which are crisp cookies made with butter. what i like to do, is put the biscuits inside a big sealed plastic bag and crush them with the help of a rolling pin. i crush them till they reach to the approximate size of a grain of rice. once i actually make the balls, i found it helpful to keep my hands wet. the wet hands prevent the mixture from sticking to my fingers making the chocolate balls smoother. after couple of hours i had my chocolate balls all lined up, pretty and ready to be eaten. they sure tasted as i remembered them.



INGREDIENTS
7 ounce (200 gram) petit beurre biscuits
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup cacao powder
2/3 cup milk
7 ounce (200 gram) butter at room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup coconut flakes
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PREPARATION
place biscuits inside a big sealed plastic bag and crush them with the help of a rolling pin. crush them till they reach to the approximate size of a grain of rice. transfer into a medium bowl.
mix together with the sugar and cacao powder. stir in milk, butter and vanilla extract until well blended.
in flat plate put coconut flakes.
form the mixture into 1 inch balls by rolling in your hands, or by using a cookie scoop. cover with coconut flakes and place on wax paper.
store in an airtight container in the fridge.

*כדורי שוקולד