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Cheats Pain au Chocolat
Nothing beats warm pastries, and these are so cheap, quick and simple!
Ingredients
Ready rolled puff pastry pack (around 400g)
Nutella or equivalent
1 beaten egg for basting
Method
Line a baking tray with parchment paper and preheat the oven to 200°C / Fan 180°C / Gas 6.
Unroll the puff pastry sheet and cut it into 10/12 equal rectangles, depending on how large you want them to be. Use a knife to spread each rectangle with the chocolate spread, leaving a 5-10mm gap around the edge free from chocolate.
Use your finger to dab water onto the chocolate-free edges to help them to stick. Roll each rectangle tightly from the shorter side, put onto the tray and baste with egg. Remember to leave space around each one as they will grow considerably – if in doubt, spread over two trays. Bake for around 20 minutes or until golden.
Leave the pain au chocolat to cool on the tray for at least 5 minutes before eating; allowing the pastry to harden a little and the chocolate to cool. Then, sprinkle with icing sugar if you fancy it, and enjoy!
Simple Cupcakes
This is the easiest recipe ever and super scrummy! Great for an afternoon at home, to keep the kiddies occupied with the decorating too!
Ingredients
4oz caster sugar
4oz soft butter
4oz self-raising flour
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
½ tsp baking powder
Optional – flavourings / icing / additional fillings
Method
Preheat the oven to 190°C / Fan 170°C / Gas 5.
Line a cupcake tray with cases before you start – you’ll probably need about 12. I like speedy baking; feel free to mix the ingredients in the traditional ways and orders if you so choose, but I literally throw all of the ingredients into my mixer in one go!
Whizz it up, share into cupcake cases and bake in the oven for about 15 minutes. Keep an eye and remove when golden brown, if you’re unsure if they are cooked through, test with a fork. If the fork comes out clean they are ready – it’s as easy as that!
No Cook Chocolate Fridge Cake
This recipe is so delicious!! It can be prepped in just a few minutes and involves no actual cooking, so the kids can do it all.
Ingredients
200g digestive biscuits
70g rice crispies
150g milk chocolate
150g dark chocolate
100g unsalted butter
150g golden syrup
100g raisins
100g marshmallows
Method
Line a 20cm shallow square-shaped tin using clingfilm or baking parchment, with extra hanging over the sides. Put the biscuit into a large mixing bowl and bash with the end of a rolling pin until it resembles breadcrumbs.
In another bowl, melt the chocolate, butter and golden syrup in the microwave – stop and stir as needed.
Pour the melted mixture into the biscuit bowl and add the rice crispies, raisins and marshmallows. Mix well, then spoon into the prepared tin and push it down tightly and firmly.
Leave it to cool in the fridge for 1-2 hours to set, then turn it out of the tin, peel off the clingfilm and slice into 12 squares.
Easy Biscuits
This recipe is quick and simple. It’s a great one to make with the kiddies and decorate with icing and sweeties on top!
Ingredients
250g butter
200g caster sugar
280g self-raising flour
2 eggs
Method
Simply mix the sugar with the butter until smooth (my two like to do this with their hands!), then throw in the flour and the eggs and mix well again. Add vanilla essence/other colouring/flavouring/chocolate chips etc at this point if you wish.
Line a baking tray with a baking sheet and blob the mixture in small balls onto the baking sheet. Make sure you leave ample space around each one as they will spread as they cook.
Pop into the over for 12-15 mins at 200°C / Fan 180°C / Gas 6. Once cooked, cool on the tray for a good 15 minutes before you transfer them onto a cooling rack. Then, once completely cooled, let the kids loose with icing and sweets for an afternoon of fun!
5 Minute Brownies
These chocolate brownies are always a winner in our house, and taste really delicious with a dollop of ice-cream! I make these when we need an emergency chocolate fix – it’s so simple and you only need 3 store-cupboard ingredients!
Ingredients
300g Nutella or equivalent
2 eggs
60g self-raising flour
Method
Simply mix all of the ingredients in a mixing bowl until smooth. Spoon into a greased baking tin (20cm square). Sprinkle some chocolate chips or chopped hazelnuts on top if you like.
Then, bake in the oven at 200°C / Fan 180°C / Gas 6 for about 30 mins, use a clean fork or knife to see when it is ready – this should come out clean, but they should be nicely sticky in the middle.