Ferrero Raw-chers

Valentine's day is coming, so the world is full of devilishly chocolate cakes and heart shaped boxes of sweets. And there's nothing wrong with that (seriously, take a look at the rest of the blog, chocolate is my bread and butter. As well as actual bread and butter). But since there's plenty of that chocolate indulgence around at the minute, I thought I would do something a little different.

I am obsessed with Ferrero rochers. Over the festive period I was mainlining these things. My record is 8 in a row, and I could have gone on, but the towering pile of empty wrappers was getting a little embarrassing.

New year, new leaf and all that, so I thought I’d fiddle around and make a healthier version. These are pretty delicious and the great thing is you can make a batch, freeze them, and have a treat ready for whenever the sweet tooth hits (which lets face it, is always)!

Now, you know I can’t lie to my blog. They don’t taste quite as good as the original,  BUT they are surprisingly really tasty, super duper easy, take about 5 minutes to make, and are better for you! Probably my favourite "raw" things I've made so far!

Ferrero Rocher Cupcakes

Oh my. Well, it’s January and everyone hates the world because it’s wet and cold and everyone’s attempting to diet.

And along I come with a cheery disposition and an armful of Ferrero Rocher cupcakes! The thing I love about these is that on the surface they look like the most luxurious, nutty chocolatey cupcakes.. And then you take a bite and there is even MORE deliciousness inside. It’s just over the top and vaguely unnecessary, and I love it.

Peek-a-boo!

So, I’ve seen these being bandied around the internet for a while now (interestingly not with recipes, most of them..), and it just felt rude not to make my own. I went with a cupcake mixture that was slightly more akin to a muffin, so that the Rocher wouldn’t sink too much and it would be a slightly firmer cake. Other ways I tried to keep the Rochers as high as possible in the muffin was to dredge in flour before adding, to make them a bit stickier.

For the finish, I just smothered them in a modified version of my chocolate fudge icing and topped the whole lot in a crunchy hazelnut praline.

Decadent, yes,  but utterly delicious. And everything is ok in moderation, so share these around.

Home-made Nutella

In honour of the late, great Mr Ferrero, I present my home made Nutella! Apparently his grandfather was endlessly tweaking the precursors for the Nutella we all know and love today. And well he did! I am completely obsessed. I rarely buy it because when I buy it, somehow the contents of that magical jar just disappear within a week. I don’t know how that happens.

Of course, the best way to eat it is on pancakes, or on a digestive if you’re feeling filthy. Recently, I have put it in traybakes, cheesecakes and porridge. Nutella porridge is the best thing I’ve eaten in ages, it transforms an otherwise boring bowl.

And now you too can make your own amazing hazelnut chocolate dream spread at home! There’s nothing much to it, the hardest bit is peeling the damn hazelnuts, which I accomplished by roasting then rolling in between two teatowels – this serves to break off the outer skin quite elegantly. I’ve adapted this from a “health food blog” and mainly I’ve tweaked quantities and added sugar. Oh well, what else have you come to expect?

  Makes one small jar