There is this Russian candy called sliva v shokolade, which translates to “plum in chocolate”. There are two (sometimes even three) kinds, depending on what colour the wrapper is. One of them has a hazelnut inside, one of them has an almond. If I’m not mistaken, the third kind has a walnut. Realistically, it’s nothing more than a nut inside a prune, covered in chocolate. Why is it that the simplest things are so much better than the sum of their parts?
When I was younger, sliva v shokolade was always my favourite candy, even when I had the choice of plenty of others. There was korovka (meaning “little cow” – a caramel candy), or griliaj (don’t know what that means, but it was a nut cluster that could chip your teeth if you weren’t careful), strela (meaning “arrow”, a confection made with cooked condensed milk, kind of like dulche de leche), or even ptichie moloko (which means “birds milk”, and was basically a chocolate covered marshmallow, although that name always grossed me out a little…)
Quick facts: making these is super simple, but these bon-bons are fancy enough to serve to guests. And the only reason I chose to call them plums in dark chocolate instead of prunes in dark chocolate is because prune has a geriatric ring to it that instantly conjures up thoughts of irregularity…
As usual, this is more of a method than an exact recipe, so feel free to adjust quantities as needed.
Directions
- As the prunes are pitted, each one will already have a hole – find it and stuff one hazelnut (or other nut) into each prune. Set the stuffed prunes aside.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Fill a saucepan with about an inch of water and set a small bowl on top to form a double boiler.*
- Melt chocolate in the bowl of the double boiler, stirring occasionally. Once the chocolate is mostly melted, add in several tablespoons of coconut milk and stir until everything is combined.
- Remove the bowl from the double boiler (careful, it will be hot!) and using a fork, carefully dip each stuffed prune in the chocolate. Shake off the excess and place onto the parchment paper.
- Once all the prunes have been dipped, place the baking sheet in the fridge and allow the chocolate to harden.
- Enjoy!
* You can also melt the chocolate in the microwave – make sure to use short bursts so that the chocolate doesn’t burn.
These are stupidly simple to make and taste absolutely divine. Give them a try – they’re sophreakin’ good!
Ingredients
- 10 pitted prunes (unsulfured are best)
- 10 hazelnuts, pecans, almonds or walnut halves, lightly toasted
- several squares of dark chocolate (I love Lindt 85% or 90%)
- several tablespoons of full fat coconut milk
1 Comment.
Too much coconut milk makes the chocolate too thick. I used 200g of cooking chocolate and one tablespoon of coconut milk, will use 1 or 2 teaspoons instead.