Hungarian Gerbeaud Balls – Zserbó Golyó
Hungarian Gerbeaud balls are the most popular treats during the Holidays. Festive bonbons made with walnuts, apricots, chocolate & biscuits.
Gerbeaud balls were named after Emile Gerbeaud, a Swiss born Hungarian confectioner and chocolate maker. Besides many other Hungarian desserts, he invented the Gerbeaud cake, a layered cake, there are ground walnuts and apricot jam between the layers and the cake is covered by chocolate. The became so famous and popular, everybody has to taste it in Cafe Gerbeaud downtown Budapest. It is a beautiful café house and cake shop, one of the significant places in Budapest.
To make the cake is very timeconsuming, so in the last 10-15 years when life is so much faster, they created the quick version of the cake that tastes just like to original. Also, Christmas season is coming, they can be your beautiful homemade Christmas gift for your family or friends.
The main ingredients are walnuts, biscuits and apricot, in Hungary we use the most simple biscuit you can get. (78% wheat flour, sugar, palm oil, salt).
Gerbeaud Ballas - Zserbó golyók
Equipment
- Medium ball
- Measuring cups
- Measuring spoons
- Chef's knife
- Cutting board
- Food processor
- Flat tray
- Plate
- Double boiler
Ingredients
- 1 cup ground walnuts
- 1 cup ground biscuits
- 1 cup melted dark chocolat (minimum 50%)
- 4 pieces dried apricots cut into small pieces
- 1/3 cup apricot jam plus extra if needed
- 1 tbsp rum extract
- 1/2 teaspoon vegetable oil sunflower, canola
Instructions
- Chop thedried apricots into very small pieces and soak them in 1 tablespoon of rumextract. Set aside.
- Fine grind the walnuts and the biscuit. Mix them together in a bowl. Add the soaked apricots with the rum extract and combine. Add the apricot jam, mix well. Add as much jam step by step that creates a soft mixture, it is good when it is abit sticky. Set aside.
- In a doubleboiler boil 1 cup of water. Break the chocolate into small pieces and melt them in the double boiler, add 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil and mix well.
- Form the walnut/biscuit/jam mixture into walnut size balls. Place them on a plate. Star tto cover the balls with the melted chocolate using a spoon. Place the balls ona tray covered with a piece parchment paper.
- Place thetray with the Gerbeaud bonbons in the fridge for about 30 minutes.
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I live in us what type of biscuits should I use, my in laws were from Hungary, and my adult son asks me to make Hungarian desserts for Christmas (I have to mail them)
Hi Marianne,
In Hungary we use the most simple biscuit you can get. (78% wheat flour, sugar, palm oil, salt).
Looks easy and delish. May i use other fruit also.
Hi Fran,
You can try with other fruits, however, Gerbeaud cake and bonbon is always made with apricots.
Agnes