Chocolate Puddle Biscuits

Baking is one of the best things you can do with a Sunday, or indeed any day. Because Pav and I live alone, a whole batch of biscuits or cakes can be a challenge to eat before they expire. So sometimes my lucky work mates get to experience our culinary experiments.

 This one's not really an experiment as I've made it quite a lot. For me, it's one of the ones that I can make without a trip to the supermarket, as I usually have all the ingredients on hand. That's so long as there is butter. I'm not happy with the way that butter ages so fast in the fridge. It takes on a nasty dark yellow layer around the edge too quickly. Some say it's the crappy wax paper. I'm not sure as I've given up keeping it in the fridge and now we chop it into cubes and free flow freeze it. Not perfect, but better than throwing the butter out cos it's awful.

And we always have chocolate in the house. Dark Ghana from Whittaker's is our chocolate of preference. This recipe was originally passed on by a friend, but I've adapted (of course!):

Preheat oven to 175C and line trays with baking mats or baking paper. Two trays should be about right.

Beat 140g of softened butter and 175g of caster sugar until smooth. Then beat in one egg and half teaspoon of vanilla essence. Then sift in the bowl: 175g self-raising flour and 110g cocoa (yes, lots). Use a fork to work it into a firm dough. Keep going, it will be fine.

Make balls (about 20-24) in your palms.

 Arrange on baking tray (leave room for spreading) and bake for 15 minutes or so.

When you pull them out of the oven, use a teaspoon to make a dent in each biscuit. This is where the chocolate will go, so generosity is rewarded. Leave them to cool.

When the biscuits are cool, melt 85g dark chocolate, 1 tablespoon of golden syrup and 1 tablespoon of butter together. Best to do this in a double boiler – boiling water in a pot with a bowl resting on the rim of the pot. Don't let the bowl touch the water and don't let any steam get in the chocolate mixture. When the chocolate mixture is smooth, carefully drop teaspoons of it in to the dips in the biscuits.  Leave to set.

These can be adapted into the most impressive Afghan biscuits with the addition of a handful of cornflakes in the mixture and walnuts before the chocolate sets.  Over to you!

When I took these to work, even my boss broke his diet temporarily to try one. They're that good!  I hope you impress your friends and work mates too.