Drinks – fabrefaction

In England we tend to leave Santa a sherry or a brandy and a mince pie. I’ve heard that in some Scandinavian countries he gets ‘treated’ to porridge…lucky guy. Well this post is a nod to our North American friends from whom Santa receives milk and cookies. I decided to jazz up the traditional a little, after all, you hard working parents deserve a little more than a glass of milk on the 24th.

I should start off by saying that the recipe leans more towards a sort of whoopie pie consistency than a cookie, a whookie if you’d like. Perhaps if you wanted to commit to whoopie pies you could sandwich them with the salted caramel buttercream I made a couple of months back.

Without further ado here’s an easy Bailey’s (Irish cream) cocktail (which is more like a pudding really) and triple chocolate Mars Bar whookies.

You will need

260g/9 oz Plain flour

150g/5.5 oz Soft dark brown sugar

100g/3.5 oz Unsalted butted

100g/3.5 oz White chocolate chips

40g/1.5 oz Cocoa powder

50-100g/2-3.5 oz Dark chocolate

3 Eggs

3 Mars Bars

1.5 tsp Baking powder

1 tbsp Full fat milk

For the Bailey’s cocktail

Bailey’s Irish Cream

Chocolate milk

50g/2 oz Dark chocolate

Rum/Brandy if you have some (I went without)

A sprinkle of cinnamon and nutmeg

Step one

Chop the Mars bars into small chunks.

If you, like me, can’t control yourself around chocolate, you might want to add an extra one to the mix. There’s just something about chopped up Mars bar that is excessively moorish.

Step two

Combine all the dry ingredients (minus the chocolate) in a large bowl.

Step three

Make a well in the middle and add the eggs, milk and butter. Stir to combine. Ideally your butter will be room temperature, otherwise you’ll be mixing for a while.

Step four

Add the white chocolate and Mars bar and mix again until the chips and chunks are evenly distributed.

Step five

Drop dessert spoonfuls of the mixture onto baking trays lined with greaseproof paper. They won’t spread too much so flatten down a bit.

Step six

Bake on 180C/gas mark 4/350 F for about 15-20 minutes.

Step seven

Leave to cool and then melt the dark chocolate and drizzle over the top.

Step eight

Melt the remaining dark chocolate in a small bowl and dip your glasses in to coat the rim.

Step nine

Add a shot of Baileys (and a dash of rum if you have it). A sprinkle of both cinnamon and nutmeg. Top up with approx 150ml of chocolate milk.

As you can probably tell, I didn’t exactly measure this one out, so go with your taste as a measure.

Step ten

Leave out for Santa.

It feels wonderful to be tucked up under a blanket when the wind is wailing and the rain is smashing against the window. But if you don’t have one of these in your hands, you’re missing a trick. Calorie counters, you might as well close your browser window…you are not welcome here.

Prepare your stomachs, this is for people who are serious about chocolate. A perfect treat for little elves to take a break from all the Christmas busy.

Things you need:

(Makes two large or three small cups)

300ml Double cream

350ml Full fat milk (2%)

70g Dark chocolate

50g Milk chocolate

Peppermint extract

Candy cane/mini marshmallows/sprinkles to decorate

Step one:

Chop chocolate finely. I find a bread knife works really well for this, as the serrated edge somehow stops chunks flying all over the place. Put aside in heatproof bowl.

Feel free to adjust the chocolate quantities to your taste. I am not only a chocolate addict but a huge sweet tooth, so I very much orientated the recipe to junkie level.

Step two and a bit:

Put 200ml of the cream, all of the milk, and the peppermint extract in a pan on the lowest heat. About 1/2 a teaspoon of peppermint extract will suffice, anyone particularly keen on mint can also whip some into the topping.

Speaking of topping, a little tip…my pot of cream was 300ml and also had a handy measuring gauge on the side. So I split 200ml into the pan, 100ml in a bowl and then used the pot to measure out the milk, simples. I got mine from Sainsbo’s, not sure if the other supermarkets do the same, but they should. Even if you don’t have this marker, just do it by sight, one third to two thirds. Use same principle for measuring the chocolate, this should be easy, no scales/measuring jugs allowed.

While the cream and milk are slowly heating, use a whisk (preferably electric – don’t burn and unnecessary calories now) to whip the remaining 100ml of cream until it thickens to a ‘dollop-on-top-of-a-hot-chocolate’ consistency.

Now, I didn’t get a photo of this but you need to heat the mixture until little bubbles cover the surface, and the steam sort of dances over it. You’ll know when you get there – I’m not mental. Make sure you stir regularly and try not to let it boil or burn. Be patient, it will pay off.

Step three:

Pour the hot crilk (cream+milk=crilk) onto the chopped chocolate. Stir quickly with hand whisk until all the chocolate is melted. Ladle into mugs.

The mixture should be hot enough, but if you have asbestos mouth, then you might want to pop in the microwave for 20 seconds, or preheat the mugs with boiling water first.

Step four:

It already looks (and tastes) super yummy at this stage, and personally I’m not usually one for whipped cream on my hot chocolate. BUT IT’S CHRISTMAS.

Divide the cream you whipped earlier onto your cocoa, and cover with mini marshmallows and sprinkles (mine were another Sainsbury’s buy), stick in a candy cane stirrer and prepare to enjoy.

(you’re welcome)

Category: Drinks

Grown up milk and cookies

Mrs Claus’ cocoa