Growing up in Chile, there is a bunch of candies embedded in my memories. The most popular ones like Super8 have chocolate, and I have never been a chocolate person. Maybe that is why I was always happy to buy a Mantecol (Wikipedia short story).
Mantecol is an Argentinian candy but is present in Chile forever. It’s like a peanut butter fudge, but mild and with hints of cinnamon. Very easy to make at home and keeps well.
It was usually eaten on the way to school or work or going back home. Mantecol is sold in the streets. With time different varieties have emerged: some with other nuts, chocolate, and even one with Nutella. It’s not commonly made at home, but I ask around for a recipe since I live in the USA and am not readily available.
Powdered milk is ubiquitous in Chile, almost always in the pantry in case of a power outage. Peanut butter is not usually available, but peanuts are, so you must process them first.
This homemade Mantecol can be the perfect addition to the Holiday baking to take to parties or exchanges. It’s a people pleaser.
You may also like the recipe: Wine Jelly.
Print
Homemade Mantecol
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 20
- Category: Snack
- Method: Food processor
- Cuisine: Argentinian
Description
A tasty and easy peanut butter fudge.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup powdered sugar (Imperial brand)
- 1 1/2 cup powdered milk (Bob’s Red Mill brand)
- 1 1/2 cup smooth peanut butter (Jiff)
- 2–3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
- Line a baking sheet or baking pan with parchment paper.
- Place all ingredients on the food processor. Pulse until smooth, stopping to clean the sides of the bowl.
- Scoop a tablespoon and form a ball using your hands. If it doesn’t crumble, it is ready.
- Dump onto a baking sheet and press, forming a rectangle 1″ thick.
- Refrigerate for 2 hours or overnight. Remove from the baking sheet and cut in squares.
Notes
Some instant powdered milk doesn’t work in this recipe; I have tested twice with the old-fashioned milk powdered without problems. It needs to be powder-like flour milk, not with small granules.
Keywords: mantecol, peanut fudge
I followed this to the letter and it was very wet not crumbly. I tried again and put only 1/4 cup peanut butter and it was better but not correct. I don’t know how you got the results you did with these measurements.
★
Hi Debbie, I’m sorry you run into problems with this recipe. I added the brand names to the powdered sugar and peanut butter, but the most likely problem is with the powdered milk. Recently I have seen on the market powdered milk with small granules; I always use the powdered milk (flour-like consistency).
I did another sweet confection with the granular powdered milk, and it didn’t work, so I’m suspicious of it.
Hi Debbie, I’m sorry you run into problems with this recipe. I added the brand names to the sugar and peanut butter, but the most likely problem is the powdered milk. I have recently seen powdered milk in the market with small granules; I have always used powdered milk (flour-like consistency). I did another confection with the granular powdered milk, and it didn’t work out, so I’m suspicious of it.