These French chocolate mendiants make a great gift or petit four at the end of a meal.
Traditionally, these little morsels are served at Christmas time in France, but they can be served all year round. All you need to do is vary the ingredients to suit the time of year.
So simple to make, with just a handful of ingredients, this is a great recipe to make with the children, that is very little effort and great fun to make.
Bon appétit!
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When you are invited to a French home for drinks or dinner, it is always appreciated if you bring something homemade as an offering.
If you see my post on French dinner parties, you will see that there is a certain etiquette, so as not to offend your hosts, so these chocolate mendiants really fit the bill.
Of course, you can vary the toppings too, according to the time of year, or what you already have in your cupboard! A great way of using up half opened packets.
🤔 FAQs
A chocolate mediant is a small disc of melted chocolate, studded with fruit and nuts.
The word mendiant comes from the Latin 'mendicans', which relates to begging.
In this case the beggars would be people from religious orders begging for alms.
Traditionally the mendiants have 4 toppings which relate to the Roman Catholic medicant monastic orders and the colours of the robes:
almonds - white to represent the Dominicans
raisins - grey to represent the Franciscans
hazelnuts - brown to represent the Carmelites
dried figs - purple to represent the Augustinians.
❤️ Why you will love this dish
- Very easy to make in minutes.
- Great activity to make with children.
- Vary the ingredients to your favourites.
- Perfect gift for your hosts or at Christmas.
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🥘 Ingredients
- Chocolate - plain or semi sweet chocolate. Ideally with a cocoa content of between 40 and 60%, so it has a good flavour. The chocolate I used was 53% and is sweet enough for me. As a guide, the higher the percentage, the less sweet the chocolate will be.
- Nuts - unsalted shelled almonds, pistachios and cashew nuts. Use any nutunsalted s that you have or prefer. Larger nuts like brazils, walnuts and pecan will need to be cut or broken into quarters.
- Fruit - dried cranberries and small pieces of crystalised ginger, (candied) but use any dried fruit and cut into pieces if necessary.
The printable recipe card with full ingredient quantities and instructions can be found at the bottom of the article.
🍽 Equipment
- glass bowl to fit over a saucepan for a bain marie
- 2 trays lined with parchment or silicon mats
🔪 Instructions
Melt the chocolate in a bain marie by putting the pieces in a heatproof bowl and setting the bowl over a simmering pan of water.
💭 Top Tip
- It's important to not let the water touch the base of the bowl as this can ruin the chocolate. It's also important that you don't allow steam to escape from the saucepan as this can make the chocolate seize. When chocolate seizes it changes texture and becomes stiff and grainy.
- Alternatively, put the bowl in the microwave and heat on full power in 20 second increments, stirring each time so that no part of the chocolate is burnt.
Gently stir the mixture with a dessert spoon until it is melted.
Drop 16 spoonfuls of chocolate onto the parchment paper and use the back of the spoon to make rough circles about 4 cm or one and a half inches.
Immediately decorate them with 4 or 5 different pieces of fruit and nut.
Leave them to cool and set at room temperature.
Carefully peel them from the parchment to serve.
🥗 Serve with
Serve as part of a dessert or with after dinner coffee with some of these chocolate ideas.
- Chocolate Delice
- Chocolate Bavarois
- Nutella Macarons
- Chocolate Roulade
- Chocolate Mousse
- Nutella Meringues
- Chocolate Marquise
🥙 Substitutions
- nuts - macadamias, walnuts, pecans, brazils, hazelnuts, chopped nuts.
- fruit - raisins, sultanas, currants, cherries, dried apricots, dates, figs, candied peel.
📖 Variations
Try using white or milk chocolate for a change.
Add some of these toppings:
- popping candy
- freeze dried strawberries or raspberries
- smarties
- skittles
- edible glitter
- silver / gold balls
- caramel chips
- white chocolate chips
🍣 Storage
- Refrigerator - store in an airtight container, ideally at room temperature for up to 2 weeks. Place in the fridge if the weather is extremely hot.
🍱 Prepare in Advance
- You can easily prepare these a few days before serving or packaging as gifts.
Let me know what you think in the comments or you can post a picture and tag me on Twitter @chezlereve, Instagram @chezlerevefrancais, or Facebook @chezlerevefrancais
More French dessert recipes
📋 Recipe
Chocolate Mendiants
Equipment
- glass bowl to fit over a saucepan for a bain marie
- 2 trays lined with parchment or silicon mats
Ingredients
- 150 g plain chocolate semi sweet
- 16 almonds
- 16 dried cranberries
- 16 pieces crystalised ginger
- 16 cashew nuts or pistachios
Instructions
- Melt the chocolate in a bain marie by putting the pieces in a heatproof bowl and setting the bowl over a simmering pan of water. Gently stir the mixture with a dessert spoon until it is melted.
- Drop spoonfuls of chocolate onto the parchment paper and use the back of the spoon to make rough circles about 4 cm or one and a half inches.
- Immediately decorate them with 4 or 5 different pieces of fruit and nut.
- Leave them to cool and set at room temperature.
- Carefully peel them from the parchment to serve.
Disclaimer: The nutritional information provided is approximate and is calculated using online tools. Information can vary depending on various factors, but we have endeavoured to be as accurate as possible.
Detailed instructions for this recipe, including step by step photographs, hints and tips, can be found in the main article.
More dessert recipes
Food Safety
- Do not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw meat.
- Wash hands after touching raw meat.
- Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods.
- Never leave cooking food unattended.
- Use oils with high smoking point to avoid harmful compounds.
- Always have good ventilation when using gas.
Do you have a question or did you make the recipe? Please leave a rating as it helps other readers to discover this dish. Your name and email are required to avoid spam comments; they are never used for any purpose or shared with third parties.
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Tayler
I just love the simple ingredients in these chocolate mendiants! I can't wait to give them a try
Toni
These are really perfect treats!! I love how easy they can be made!! Thanks for the recipe!
veenaazmanov
Easy to make, delicious to eat , Nutty and fruity too. Perfect to make a Batch as Take away gifts or as a Party Bite too.
kushigalu
What a perfect gift recipe for the holiday season. Thanks for sharing.
Nancy
I know these are Christmas treats but I like them year round!
Dannii
These were lovely and so easy to make. They would make great gifts too.
Caroline
I haven't had one of these in so long, but they really are so easy, I should make them as a little treat more often. Yum!
Nic
Oh man, these were absolutely delicious! chocolatey and yummy!
gunjan
These look decadent and my kids will love these homemade chocolate. These will be perfect Christmas gift for my friends.
Dana
These are such a fun and easy treat! And I love the punch from the ginger. It adds such a nice touch.