Chocolate experiments !

Tiffin - food waste super saver

I am a self confessed Chocaholic. I had some friends round on Friday afternoon and when testing the biscuits in preparation (essential) for their arrival, found they were soft :(
I think the seal has gone on my biscuit barrel. I wasn't going to chuck them though, not just yet, but I did need a tasty treat to go with our cups of tea.

Never fear! I had a lovely recipe for Chocolate fridge cake, that I've been recommending left, right and centre, from http://www.lovefoodhatewaste.com/

But I couldn't find the recipe card at home, or online, despite hunting high and low! So, instead I got all experimental (and checked out a recipe from Jamie Oliver online instead!).

I've also included my next three Top Kitchen waste saver tools in this post: weighing scales, spatula and reusable baking sheet.

So here's my experimental tiffin recipe, with some tribute to that nice Jamie Oliver:

1 tablespoon Golden syrup

200g Plain Chocolate

150g butter or margarine

200g digestive biscuits (I didn't have enough around the house, but did find some neglected cranberry biscuits left from Christmas to make up the total)

1 handful of sultanas

1 handful raisins

3 crushed meringue nests (I'd made some earlier in the week, and they were already half squished! Jamie's suggestion)

If you don't have some of the fillings other substitutions to bulk it out could be : nuts (any kind), pieces of fudge, chocolate chips, dried fruits, dried peel, cherries... let your imagination run!




Scales are my number 4 top tool in the kitchen





1. Line a shallow tin (approx 25cmx15cm) with a reusable baking sheet (if you have one) or greaseproof paper.

2.Weigh out the ingredients.

3. Lightly crush the meringue nests and biscuits, mix in other dry ingredients.

4. Melt the chocolate, butter and golden syrup gently. You could zap it in the microwave, but I chose to make a bain marie, a pan of boiling water on the stove with a bowl resting on the top (not plastic though!)

 5. Add the dry ingredient mix to the chocolate mixture and stir well. Remove from heat.

Plastic spatula is my number 5 top tool in the kitchen.

It makes a big difference to cleaning out bowls 

and getting the maximum of mixture into the tin

6. Empty mixture into the tin and smooth into the corners using the back of a metal spoon. It's best if the mixture is 1 -2 cms deep.

7. Place in a fridge to set for 1-2 hours. Cut into small squares to serve.



Reusable / washable baking sheet is my number 6 top tool in the kitchen.
A bit fiddly to wash a dry, but lasts a long while and saves on waste.

 Let me know how your experiments turn out and what you add in!