Baba de Camelo – Portuguese Caramel Mousse “Camel’s Drool”

Baba de Camelo or Camel’s Drool is a mousse type dessert that combines cooked condensed milk and eggs. The name is possibly due to its camel colour and slightly runny texture. It’s very popular across Portugal, from the more traditional tascas to your high-end restaurants, and one of my favourite Portuguese puddings. It’s sweet but not too sweet, light and perfect for the summer months. With the bonus that’s super easy to make at home and it only requires three ingredients. 

To say that the Portuguese are inventive with food names is an understatement. From starter to dessert there’s always a humorous name or a reference to an inedible object. Some examples are the tempura green beans baptized as ‘Peixinhos da Horta’ meaning ‘Little Fish From the Garden’ or the bacalhau dish ‘Roupa Velha’ which literally translates as ‘Old Rags’. In the dessert field there’s no better representative than ‘Baba de Camelo’ which means ‘Camel’s Drool’ in Portuguese.

Baba de Camelo Recipe

For this recipe you will only need three ingredients, eggs, cooked condensed milk and leaf gelatine. In Portugal you will find cooked condensed milk in most supermarkets labelled as ‘leite condensado cozido’. For those in the UK, Nestlé’s Carnation Caramel is what you are looking for! In Brazil it’s quite common to cook your own tins of condensed milk in the pressure cook, so that’s an option if you are experienced with pressure cooks.

Alternatively, you can use Argentinian dulce de leche, which has similar taste and texture. I topped mine with an almond praline for some texture, but that’s totally optional. You can also add some berries, crumbled biscuits, chocolate, cinnamon powder or any nuts of your preference.

Caramel baba de Camelo

How to Make Baba de Camelo

Baba de Camelo – Portuguese Caramel Mousse “Camel’s Drool”

Recipe by Ana Veiga
5.0 from 1 vote
Course: DessertCuisine: Mediterranean, PortugueseDifficulty: Easy
Servings

8

servings
Prep time

10

minutes
Cooking time

15

minutes
Calories

266

kcal

Baba de Camelo or Camel’s Drool is a mousse type dessert that combines cooked condensed milk and eggs.

Ingredients

  • 1 Tin of cooked condensed milk

  • 6 Large Eggs

  • 2 Leaves of Clear Gelatin (4g)

  • Crushed Almonds for Decoration

Directions

  • Start by soaking your gelatine leaves in cold water. Set them aside.
  • Separate the egg yolks from the whites, also set them aside.
  • Place your cooked condensed milk in a deep mixing bowl, give it a gentle whisk to break down any lumps. Add in the egg yolks, and whisk for a couple of minutes to combine.
  • Using a stand mixer or wire whisk, whip the egg whites until it forms firm peaks.
  • Drain your gelatine leaves, squeezing out any remaining water. Microwave it for 5 seconds to melt it. Add it to the condensed milk mixture, stirring well to combine.
  • Fold in the whipped egg whites. I like to first add a third of the egg whites, whisking it thoroughly to combine, them add the remaining egg whites, folding it very gently until just combined.
  • Spoon the mousse into individual pots or a larger dish, refrigerate it for 4 hours. Serve it topped with crushed toasted almonds.

Notes

  • After preparation, they will need to be chilled for around 4 hours.
camels drool mousse

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