Dubai Chocolate Cockroaches
Made with only 5 ingredients, these Dubai Chocolate Cockroaches are a fun spin on the viral Dubai Chocolate Bars. With a variety of textures, these 2-bite roaches are perfect for Halloween!
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If you happen to be a fan of the unique flavor and texture combination of Dubai Chocolate, you just might love (biting the heads off) these Dubai Chocolate Cockroaches!
I love the combination of dates and my homemade pistachio butter. I love the combo so much that I have it for breakfast often.
When my sister had a get-together at her place, I even took some dates stuffed with pistachio butter for dessert. Everyone there raved about those dates. Unfortunately (for me), there were no leftovers for me to take home that night.
So, when I came across some chocolate peanut butter cockroaches, @chefgenevieve shared on her IG account, I had to recreate those with a Dubai Chocolate spin.
By the way, if you are wondering…
What company makes Dubai chocolate?
A Dubai-based company called Fix was the first company to sell Dubai Chocolate. Filipino chef Nouel Catis Omamalin and British Egyptian entrepreneur Sarah Hamouda were the creators behind these bars.
What we refer to as The Viral Dubai Chocolate Bars were called “Can’t Get Knafeh of It” and were made with an irresistible (to some of us) combo of pistachio butter, tahini paste, toasted kataifi, and creamy milk chocolate. Fix is currently selling 6-packs of these bars, with a unit price of $120 per pack. Or, you could also make a more budget-friendly option by making these healthy-ish Dubai Chocolate Cups.
Getting back to these Dubai Chocolate Cockroaches…
Instead of stuffing dates with peanut butter (like @chefgenevieve did) or simply pistachio butter (like I love), I figured I would toast some kataifi and mix it into my homemade pistachio butter, then use this to stuff the dates that would be the “body” of the cockroaches.
I am not a great decorator, and so these chocolate cockroaches are a bit on the messy side. But they are so delicious. And fun to make and eat!
What are the ingredients needed to make these Dubai Chocolate Cockroaches?
You will need:
- Pistachio butter
- Butter (to toast the kataifi),
- Kataifi,
- Dates, and
- Milk Chocolate chips.
How to make these messy Dubai Chocolate Cockroaches?
These are pretty easy to make,
Step 1: First, add the butter to a pan and set it over a stovetop set to medium heat.
Step 2: Add in the kataifi and stir until it starts to brown. Then, remove it from the stove and let it cool slightly.
Step 3: Mix the toasted kataifi into the pistachio butter.
Step 4: Cut the dates in half and spoon a little bit of the pistachio kataifi mix into the date cavity. Repeat with all the date halves.
Step 5: Then, melt the chocolate. I did this by placing the chocolate into a microwave-safe dish and microwaving it for a couple of 30-second intervals. Spoon the melted chocolate into a frosting bag or plastic bag and snip off the end.
Step 6: Carefully squeeze some melted chocolate on the back of the body of the stuffed cockroach. Then, place the date, chocolate-side down, on a piece of parchment paper set on a board or flat plate.
Step 7: Pipe a chocolate head, antennae, and legs. Repeat this on the other pistachio kataifi-stuffed dates.
Step 8: Set the parchment paper in the fridge for the chocolate to harden and enjoy!
Recipe Tip
When melting the chocolate in the microwave, microwave it for 30 seconds. Then, take the chocolate out of the microwave, give it a stir, and return it to the microwave for 20 to 30 seconds more. You don’t want to overheat the chocolate as it will burn.
Variations
While I used homemade pistachio butter, store-bought pistachio butter or cream could be used instead.
If you are looking to keep the prep work down, you could get a tub of Dubai Chocolate Bar filling on Amazon and use some of that.
I used milk chocolate to make these Dubai Chocolate Cockroaches. However, you could also use dark chocolate, white chocolate, or a combination of each.
And, cockroaches aren’t the only thing you can make. You could get fancy and grab a mold from the many selection results of “Halloween molds” on Amazon. And, use that to mold your own spider, skull, and pumpkin-shaped Dubai Chocolate creations.
I am willing to bet your Dubai Chocolate Cockroaches (and creations) are a lot less messy than the ones you see here today!
Love Dubai Chocolate?
Then check out these other Dubai-Chocolate-inspired treats:
Ingredients
- 4 dates
- 3 tbsp. Pistachio butter
- 2 tbsp. kataifi
- 1/2 tbsp. butter
- 1/2 cup milk chocolate chips
Instructions
- First, add the butter to a pan and set it over a stovetop set to medium heat.
- Add in the kataifi and stir until it starts to brown (2 to 3 minutes). Then, remove it from the stove and let it cool to room temperature.
- Mix the toasted kataifi into the pistachio butter.
- Cut the dates in half and spoon a little bit of the pistachio kataifi mix into the date cavity. Repeat with all the date halves.
- Then, melt the chocolate. I did this by placing the chocolate into a microwave-safe dish and microwaving it for 30-second. Then, I removed the dish, stirred the chips, and microwaved them for 20 seconds. At this point they were melted.
- Spoon the melted chocolate into a frosting bag or plastic bag and snip off the end.
- Carefully squeeze some melted chocolate on the back of the body of the stuffed cockroach. Then, place the date, chocolate-side down, on a piece of parchment paper set on a board or flat plate.
- Pipe a chocolate head, antennae, and legs. Repeat this on the other pistachio kataifi-stuffed dates.
- Set the parchment paper in the fridge for the chocolate to harden.
- And, when the chocolate is set ~ enjoy!
Oh – at first I thought you had somehow used actual cockroaches in this recipe, Shashi. Then I realized it’s October, and this is a great recipe for the season! Well done. 🙂 I do love Dubai chocolate, but I hate how expensive it is. $20 for 1 bar!? I like the homemade approach much better!