EasterComments Off on Easter chocolate nests with little chicks
It was inevitable. It’s almost Easter, I have small children, I love novelty. What did you expect? I’ve upgraded my mini Easter nests recipe. This time they’re bigger, the nest is more nest like as it’s made of All Bran rather than Shredded Wheat, and… well a chick has hatched. These are altogether a better grade of Easter nest.
Place 12 cupcake cases into a 12 hole cake tin. Melt the chocolate in a large bowl. I used the bain marie method to be sure the chocolate didn’t burn or seize up. Just be careful not to let any water get into the chocolate or allow the bottom of the bowl to touch the water in the pan. Once completely melted remove from the heat and add the All Bran. Stir really well until combined, giving a good dig about at the bottom of the bowl.
Spoon equally between the 12 cases, using the spoon to make a little dent in the middle of each ‘nest’. Add three eggs, then a little pastry chick. Leave to set completely (takes 4 hours ish) before eating.
If you don’t have the time or inclination to make pastry chicks then do sub with marshmallow chicks or similar from the supermarket.
I may love Easter more than Christmas as Christian school holidays go. I know this might be controversial. Hear me out. (Most reasons are chocolate and present buying related for those wondering if this is a rather unusual Christian themed blog post):
There’s more chocolate about on a volume basis. Okay most of it is plain and shaped like an egg, but that reduces the risk of eating a strawberry crème so frankly, I’m okay with it. Plus excess chocolate eggs, bunnies and the like can be ceremoniously melted down on the last day of the Easter hols to be made into brownies for Mummy to enjoy at elevenses. If you snooze with the egg eating, the bunny gets it).
There is less expectation, so of course less stress. If you burn Christmas dinner the family will talk about it for years (and you will have to smile and laugh light heartedly and pretend you find it funny being the butt of the joke when really you want to cry and hide under the stairs and drink some gin), but if you serve raw lamb/burn dinner to a crisp or forget to make gravy on Easter Sunday no one cares a jot. They really don’t. They just shrug and ask what’s for pudding. Perhaps this is the problem with Christmas Day. Everyone knows what’s for pudding and most people don’t even like it.
No turkey curry to ‘get through’. Food should not be an endurance test.
Present buying is cheap as chips, or, well, Easter eggs. No child expects more than an egg at Easter. (Do they? I hope not…)
Present buying is executable in one shopping trip to the local supermarket. Bung one egg per child in the trolley and done.
Present buying is reserved for people under about 15 only. You do not need to buy your husband or wife or mother or father an egg. Even if Hotel Chocolat do very nice novelty grown up Eastery chocolate gifts. Resist. Just eat the eggs of a small child you own or know.
Present buying uses little imagination. All you have to think is ‘Would Charlie watch Star Wars or Scooby Doo if given the choice?’ Once you know the answer you pick the egg. If you don’t know the child well then buy a Buttons one. Or don’t buy one at all. Personally, I feel if you don’t know what TV programmes the kid likes you clearly don’t know them well enough to spend money on them. What a simple rule for life.
Gifting small inexpensive presents mean there’s less chance of being made to teach small people to ride their new bikes/scooters etc. Yes, what a misery I am but really, I like to save these kind of endeavours for the summer. I feel the cold terribly you know.
Easter weather is unpredictable. One year (I think it was 2013) we had snow at Easter in Leicester. Yes, snow! My sons have never forgotten it. They made a snowman and drank marshmallow spiked hot chocolate and made glittery Easter eggs at my pal Anuszka’s house who is altogether more fun than me and also more tolerant of glitter. Unexpected weather brings out the best in Brits. We love it. Christmas is always grey and a bit rainy.
Less present wrapping (ie/ none) means you can use the time better to make an elaborate pudding like this trifle. I dare you to make it. It’s good.
I made this trifle using the Kenwood Chef Sense which is available here. The full video of the recipe is below and can also be viewed here, plus some top tips from me on separating eggs here plus an easy way to make trifle sponges without lining tins here.
Juice the lemons using the Kenwood attachment and pour into a jug. Make the liquid up to 570mls using cold water then remove 100mls to soak the gelatine in. Once soaked for 10 minutes heat the gelatine and water in a small pan on a low heat until the gelatine has dissolved. Then add to the rest of the liquid along with the dried raspberries. Stir and leave for 30 minutes then strain through a sieve to remove the raspberries. Leave to set in the fridge.
To make the cakes:
Preheat the oven to 170C/gas mark 3. Beat together the flour, castor sugar, butter, egg, baking powder, zest of the lemon and milk in the Kenwood using the K beater for about 4 minutes until light and fluffy. Divide between 4 cupcake cases and bake for 15 – 20 minutes until well risen, golden and a toothpick comes out of the centre clean.
Poke holes in the cupcakes. Heat the lemon juice and icing sugar in a small pan until dissolved and then pour over the cupcakes. Leave to cool.
To make the curd:
Place a pan of simmering water over a medium heat and place a heat proof bowl over the top, being careful that the water doesn’t touch the bowl. Place the butter, sugar, lemon zest and juice into the bowl and whisk. Stir until completely dissolved then add the eggs and whisk intermittently for 10 minutes until the curd has thickened. Chill in the fridge.
To make the custard:
Heat the cream and milk in a large pan until the edges are just beginning to bubble. In the meantime whisk together the rest of the ingredients in a bowl. Once the liquid is ready whisk into the thick egg mixture stirring all the time then transfer back to the pan and heat on the hob, stirring with a wooden spoon until the custard has thickened enough to coat the back of the spoon. Chill with the top covered in clingfilm (touching the custard) to stop a skin developing.
To assemble:
Slice the cakes and layer in a 2.2 litre trifle dish. Pour the Limoncello over the top and then cover with the lemon curd. Add a layer of fresh raspberries then add the almost set jelly. Leave to set in the fridge. Then add the cold custard. Lastly whip the cream to soft peaks with lemon zest using the whisk attachment of the Kenwood and spoon over the custard. Sprinkle freeze dried raspberries to decorate.
Can I moan a little first? This Easter is yet another holiday that has been ruined by illness. So far the boys have had ear infections, viral infections and now one has chicken pox. Seriously, I for one have had enough of this nonsense, let alone them poor little mites. I know this is not in any way related to this Easter recipe but I need someone to listen. Even if it’s virtual. I’ve been in confinement with illness and bugs for too long… so my dear parents came over today and I made these. Sanity restored.
Enough whinging. So here she is, my grand dame of Easter recipes. I give you my white chocolate and cranberry hot cross buns. Well worth the wait and various stages.
All comments gratefully received. Here are some other Eastery recipes you might like too:
Egg wash made from an egg with a pinch of salt stirred in
‘Cross’ paste made from 70g strong white flour mixed to a pipeable but stiff paste with cold water
Glaze made from boiling 60mls water with 50g caster sugar
Okay. Here we go. Mix together the flour, yeast, salt, olive oil and caster sugar until everything is evenly distributed. Then add the warm milk and mix again. Then add the egg, beaten and mix again. Now you need to knead until shiny and elastic – probably about 10 minutes by hand or about 4 in a mixer. I used my Kitchen Aid stand mixer as this is a VERY sticky dough – it’s enriched with milk and eggs which mean it’s hard work by hand. It isn’t impossible but I am just warning you. A dough scraper might be useful if you do do this by hand. And remove all rings.
Once shiny and elastic (but still sticky) cover in clingfilm and leave to double in size. Once doubled add the clove, nutmeg, cinnamon, chocolate chips and dried cranberries. Mix well whilst knocking back the dough then scrape onto a floured work surface and divide the dough into as many pieces as you wish to make buns. I managed 11 oddly.
Flour a baking tray lightly and then take your piece of dough, dip it in a little of the flour on the work surface so it doesn’t stick to your hands – then squash it in your hand and pull the edges into the middle, like you’re folding something exciting into the centre. Pinch these edges together and then place the bun pinched side down on the tray. Continue until all the dough is used and leave about a 1cm space between each bun. Cover loosely in clingfilm and leave to proof until double the size.
Preheat the oven to 200C/Gas 6. Make the flour paste for the crosses by mixing 70g strong white flour with a little water until you have a stiff paste. It needs to be pipeable but not too thin that it drips down the buns. Once the buns are double the size brush them in egg wash then pipe a cross onto each bun. The buns will be touching by now through the proofing process so it’s actually easier to pipe along all the buns in one direction and then turn the tray and do the same – rather than pipe each cross individually. Pop into the preheated oven and bake for about 15 minutes but keep an eye on them as enriched doughs, especially ones with sugar in, have a tendency to burn easily. Also your buns might be bigger or smaller than mine so will likely have a different baking time. They’re done when browned and risen.
Whilst they’re baking make the glaze by boiling 60g water with 50g caster sugar. Had I thought about it at the time I might have added a little orange water or even lemon juice to this mixture but I didn’t. When the buns are ready grab them from the oven and brush with the still warm glaze. Beware using too much as it makes for soggy bun bottoms by dripping under the buns and pooling on the baking tray. When cool enough to touch pull the buns apart and transfer to a rack. Eat slightly warm with chocolate spread or toasted with salted butter. Or in bread and butter pudding.
You can totally substitute different chocolates/dried fruits/spices etc – let me know if you do and how it turned out? Happy Easter! x
I’m a mum of 3 boys, a cookbook writer and also a finalist on the 2011 Great British Bake Off.
I’ve decided to record the recipes I use, partly to save them somewhere and partly in case someone else might like to use them...
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Holly Bell 