Best Easter bakes

Shredded wheat nests

Ingredients:

200g milk chocolate

85g crushed shredded wheat

Mini eggs

1) Melt the chocolate in a small bowl placed over a pan of barely simmering water. Pour the chocolate over the shredded wheat and stir well to combine.

2) Spoon the chocolate wheat into 12 cupcake cases and press the back of a teaspoon in the centre to create a nest shape. Place 3 mini chocolate eggs on top of each nest. Chill the nests in the fridge for 2 hours until set.

Betty Crocker’s Easter cake pops

Ingredients

1 box Betty Crocker devil's food cake mix

120 ml vegetable oil

3 medium free range eggs

230 ml water

1 tub Betty Crocker chocolate fudge icing

210 g chocolate strands

400 g milk chocolate buttons/bar

270 g sugar coated chocolate eggs

1) Preheat oven to 180°C, 160°C for fan assisted ovens, grease the tin or line with greaseproof paper.

2) Mix eggs, oil, water and devil’s food cake mix gently together and whisk for 2-3 minutes until smooth and creamy.

3) Pour the cake mix evenly into your two greased cake tins.

4) Bake in the centre of the oven for 23- 28 minutes or until a rounded knife inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean, then cool on a wire rack.

5) Once cooled crumble it up into a large bowl. Add a large spoonful of chocolate fudge icing.

6) Roll a piece of the mixture into a ball, slightly smaller than a golf ball size, while melting the milk chocolate.

7) Dip a cake pop stick in the melted chocolate and then stick it into the cake pop 2/3 of the way in. When you have done them all, put them in the fridge to harden for 30 minutes.

8) Re-melt the milk chocolate again and add a small amount of vegetable oil (approximately 1 teaspoon per 150g). Take the cake pops out of the fridge and dip them in the chocolate, turning to ensure they are completely covered. Gently tap the cake pop stick on the side of the jug to let the excess chocolate drip off.

9) Scatter milk chocolate strands over the cake pop, turning as you go. Stick in a polystyrene block.

10) Stick three sugar coated eggs on each cake pop. The melted chocolate will glue them securely. Leave them to set.

11) Tie some pretty Easter ribbon to the top of each cake pop stick for decoration.

Mary Berry’s Easter biscuits

Ingredients:

200g softened butter

150g caster sugar

2 large free-range egg yolk

400g plain flour, plus extra for flouring

1 level teaspoon mixed spice

1 level teaspoon ground cinnamon

2-4 tablespoons milk

100g currants

Caster sugar for sprinkling

1-2 teaspoons lemon juice

250g icing sugar

2 tablespoons cold water

different coloured food colouring

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4. Lightly grease two baking trays lined with baking parchment.

2. Measure the butter and sugar into a bowl and beat together until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg yolk. Sieve in the flour and spices and add enough milk to give a fairly soft dough. Bring together, using your hands, to make a soft dough.

3. Halve the mixture and set half to one side.

4. For the biscuits, add the currants to the remaining half of the mixture and knead it lightly on a lightly floured work surface. Roll out to a thickness of about 5mm. Cut into rounds using a circular cutter. Place on the prepared baking trays. Sprinkle with caster sugar.

5. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes, or until pale golden-brown. Keep a careful eye on the biscuits - it doesn’t matter if you open the oven door to check. Sprinkle with caster sugar and lift onto a wire rack to cool. Store in an airtight container.

6. For the iced biscuits, knead the remaining half of the biscuit dough mixture lightly on a lightly floured work surface. Roll out to a thickness of 5mm. Cut out Easter biscuits using an assortment of shaped cutters, such as bunnies, Easter eggs, chicks, spring flowers.

7. Lightly grease two baking trays lined with baking parchment.

8. Place the biscuit shapes on the prepared baking trays and bake in the preheated oven for 10-15 minutes. Remove from the oven and lift on to a wire rack to cool.

9. To make the icing, pass one teaspoon of lemon juice through a fine sieve, to remove any pips or bits. Mix the icing sugar with the lemon juice, and then add about two tablespoons of water, adding it little by little until you have a relatively stiff but smooth icing. Add a splash more sieved lemon juice if necessary.

10. Divide the icing into separate bowls and mix in food colourings of your choice into the separate bowls of icing, until you achieve the desired shade.

11. Spoon a little icing into a piping bag and pipe your decorations onto the biscuits. For a smooth finish, you can pipe the outline of your design in the firmer icing, then slacken it down a bit by mixing in a little more water, giving the icing more of a runny consistency, and use this to fill in the designs.

BBC good food homemade chocolate Easter eggs

Ingredients

300g dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids) or milk chocolate

Icing for piping Easter eggs

Method

1. Polish the inside of each mould with a piece of paper kitchen towel. Then dampen a piece of kitchen towel with a little sunflower oil and polish the inside of each mould with it. This ensures a highly polished finish to the chocolate and also helps to release the set chocolate from the mould.

2. Temper the chocolate - this is a method of heating and cooling for coating or moulding. You will need a cooking thermometer, a heat-proof bowl and saucepan of hot water. Break the chocolate into small, even pieces and melt gently in a bowl over a saucepan of hot, not boiling, water. Place the thermometer into the chocolate and heat until it reaches 43C/110F. Take off the heat and cool to 35C/95F. Now it is ready to use.

3. Spoon the chocolate into each mould. Swirl around until coated, use the pastry brush if necessary and then remove excess chocolate. Leave to set, flat side down on a large tray, covered in greaseproof paper. Fill each mould in the same way. Repeat the process another two or three times to build up a good layer of chocolate in each mould. Wait for about 20 minutes for the chocolate to set in between layers. Draw the flat edge of a knife across the chocolate to ensure a clean edge every time you add a layer to ensure the two sides of the egg stick together evenly. Leave to chill until set.

4. Carefully un-mould the egg halves and place on a clean surface taking care not to handle the chocolate too much as it will start to melt from the heat of your hands.

5. To stick the two edges of an egg together, heat a baking sheet and then place the edges of two halves on it for a few seconds, then gently push the edges together.

6. To decorate the eggs, sit an egg in a glass or small cup and use as a stand while you pipe your desired message on the egg. You can wrap your eggs in cellophane wrap and label them to give away or place them in a basket and offer them to guests.

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