Fondant egg brownie torte (pictured above)
Prep 30 min
Chill 1 hr
Cook 20 min
Serves 8
For the eggs
8 hollow, hen-sized chocolate eggs (milk or dark), halved, (or for a shortcut, Creme Eggs)
For the brownie base
50g unsalted butter
125g light muscovado sugar
30g golden syrup
150g dark chocolate (70%-75%), broken or chopped into small pieces
2 medium eggs
35g plain flour
For the truffle layer
400g dark chocolate, broken or chopped into small pieces
50g light muscovado sugar
½ tsp salt
For the vanilla fondant
250g fondant
50g caster sugar
½ tsp vanilla extract
Yellow gel or paste edible food colouring
To decorate
25g dark chocolate
Melt the butter, sugar and syrup in a pan on a medium heat until bubbling. Take off the heat, add the chocolate and mix until melted. Leave to cool, then beat in the eggs one at a time, followed by the flour, and mix well. Line a 22cm round tin, pour in the mix and bake at 170C (150C fan)/335F/gas 3½ for 20 minutes. Leave to cool completely.
For the truffle, melt the chocolate in a glass or metal bowl set over a pan of very hot water, until smooth. In a pan, bring 175ml water, the sugar and salt to a simmer, then add the chocolate and whisk until smooth. Pour on top of the cooled brownie base and tap on a hard surface to smooth. Inlay the hollow egg halves around the torte, pushing each one a third of the way into the torte. Tap again on a hard surface to level then put in the fridge for an hour.
Grate the fondant into a mixing bowl. Bring 50ml water and the sugar to a simmer for a minute, leave to cool until just warm, then add to the fondant with the vanilla. Mix well, until you have a smooth paste.
Put two tablespoons of the fondant in a small bowl, add the yellow colouring and mix well until evenly coloured. It’s best to use the fondant as soon as it’s made, otherwise cover it with clingfilm to avoid crusting – it will dry out in the air.
Fill each egg with white fondant and top with a dab of yellow fondant to create the yolk. Grate the dark chocolate over the torte, avoiding the filled eggs, and serve at room temperature using a hot, wet knife to slice.
Hot cross bun and butter truffles
Prep 15 min
Chill 2 hr+
Cook 35 min
Makes 30
For the ganache
125ml whole milk
50g golden caster sugar
20g butter
1 hot cross bun, crumbled
450g milk chocolate (30% cocoa or above), melted
25g cocoa powder, for rolling
For the coating
3 hot cross buns
250g milk chocolate (35% or above), broken or chopped into small pieces
In a medium saucepan, bring the milk, sugar, butter and crumbled hot cross bun to a gentle simmer for two minutes.
Using a hand blender, puree until smooth. Pour into a bowl with the melted chocolate and whisk until smooth. If it splits, more mixing will bring the ganache back together to a smooth consistency. Leave to cool thoroughly, then transfer to the fridge for two hours.
Once set, roll the ganache into even-sized balls, using a dusting of cocoa powder to prevent them from becoming sticky. Put on a baking tray lined with parchment.
To make the coating, slice the hot cross buns thinly and put on a baking sheet in the oven at 150C (130C fan)/300F/gas 2 for 30 minutes, or until the slices are thoroughly dried out and crisp. Put in a food processor and blitz to crumbs.
Melt the milk chocolate over a pan of hot water at 45C/113F, leave to cool for 15 minutes, then mix well. Coat the truffles with the melted chocolate using your fingers, then roll them in the hot cross bun crumbs until fully coated. Return to the baking sheet and chill in the fridge for 15 minutes to set. These will keep for one week in a cool, dark place.
Easter egg cake
Prep 30 min
Chill 2 hr
Cook 1 hr 30 min
Serves 8
For the chocolate cake
115g butter
185g self-raising flour
70g cocoa powder
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
225g caster sugar
145ml evaporated milk
145ml warm water
2 medium eggs
½ tsp salt
For the buttercream
250g salted butter, at room temperature
50ml evaporated milk
500g icing sugar
100g dark chocolate, melted
To decorate
Easter eggs of varying sizes: one large, five smaller and some Mini Eggs
100g chocolate, melted
Colourful sprinkles of your choice
Put the butter, flour, cocoa powder, bicarbonate of soda and sugar in a mixer and blitz to crumbs. In a bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients, then add the salt. Combine the two mixtures and whisk smooth.
Line the base and sides of a 15cm, loose-bottomed cake tin with baking parchment, pour in the mix until it reaches the top, and bake at 175C (155C fan)/350F/gas 4 for 45-50 minutes, until a skewer put into the middle of the cake comes out clean.
Take the cake out of the tin and transfer to a wire cooling rack. Repeat with the remaining mix and the same tin and parchment. Leave the cakes to cool completely, then refrigerate for two hours.
Put the butter in a mixer with the paddle attachment and whip until smooth. Add the evaporated milk and half the icing sugar, and beat until fluffy – about two to three minutes on a high speed – start on a slow speed to avoid a cloud of icing sugar. Add the rest of the icing sugar, beat again for three minutes, then pour in the melted chocolate and mix until combined.
Slice the top off each cake to level, then slice the tallest cake into three layers, the smaller one into two. Stick a base layer on a plate with buttercream, spread equal amounts of buttercream on top and repeat, saving some buttercream for the sides. Put the cake in the fridge to set for 30 minutes.
When set, spread the remaining buttercream on the sides – don’t worry if it’s not particularly neat. To decorate, melt the chocolate in a small bowl set over a pan of hot water. Set aside to cool for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Paint the top of each chocolate egg with the melted chocolate using downward brush strokes, and decorate with the colourful sprinkles. Leave to set then position the eggs on top of the cake; start with biggest followed by the smaller ones, adding some around the base of the cake. Serve at room temperature.
Vegan dark chocolate praline eggs
Prep 15 min
Cook 10 min
Serves 4
4 dark chocolate Easter eggs (about 12cm high)
For the praline ganache filling
200ml water
50g light muscovado sugar
½ tsp sea salt
100g nut butter of your choice
400g dark chocolate, melted
For nut praline
100g almonds
50g pistachios
50g golden caster sugar
1 pinch sea salt
Cocoa nibs, to decorate
Fill a jug with boiling water. Using a sharp knife heated in the hot water and then dried, slice the chocolate eggs two thirds of the way down at an angle, to create a bowl. Keep the tops.
To make the praline ganache, put the water, sugar, salt and nut butter in a pan, and simmer until the sugar has melted. Pour into a bowl with the melted chocolate and whisk. Leave to cool to room temperature.
Heat the oven to 180C (160C fan)/350F/gas 4, then heat a saucepan briefly over a medium heat, and turn it upside down. Rub the chocolate egg bowls briefly on the pan to flatten the bases, then stick them on to a dessert plate.
Spoon the praline ganache into the four egg bowls, then break the reserved egg tops into shards and put in the ganache.
Warm the nuts in the oven for five minutes. Meanwhile, put the sugar and salt in a frying pan over a medium heat until melted and golden. Tip in the nuts and mix, then pour out on to baking paper to cool, spreading to create clusters. Once cool, break into shards and place in the egg bowls, then sprinkle with cocoa nibs.
Paul A Young is an award-winning chocolatier with shops in London W1, EC3 and N1.
