5 hours ago
8
Much as I love Easter eggs – and I really do, despite being that irritating person still nibbling away at them at Christmas time – these charming, crunchy little nests full of colourful treasure are up there with hot cross buns as my favourite seasonal produce. Top tip: they’re even easier to make if you enlist a small sous chef or two to help stir the pan!
Prep 20 min
Cook 5 min
Chill 2 hr
Makes About 12
80g Shredded Wheat (about 3½ full-sized ones), or other cereal (see step 1)
75g dark chocolate (see step 3)
100g milk chocolate
35g butter, or vegan alternative
50g golden syrup
1 pinch salt
¼ tsp mixed spice (optional)
Finely grated zest of ¼ orange (optional)
36 miniature chocolate eggs (about 115g)
1 A note on the cereal
Shredded Wheat (or another brand of similar cereal) is not the only choice here: you could substitute corn or bran flakes, puffed rice, Weetabix and so on, but it does look the most authentically twig-like. Try to get the big ones, if possible, because it’s all too easy to crush the bite-size variety to dust.
2 Break up the cereal
Break the Shredded Wheat into pieces (leave flaked cereals, puffed rice and so on whole, and crumble Weetabix) in a large bowl – use your hands, the end of a flat rolling pin or glass, or the bottom of a smaller bowl to do this, and aim for a variety of lengths, rather than crushing the cereal to smithereens.
3 A note on the chocolate
Almost any chocolate will work here (this is, in fact, a great use of last year’s Easter eggs or Christmas chocolate, if you still have some left), though be careful with white chocolate, which doesn’t always melt well. I like a mix of dark and milk, but feel free to use just one or the other (or something else).
4 Break up the chocolate
Break, cut or smash the chocolate into pieces – in theory, it’s best to make sure they’re all the same size, so they melt at the same rate, but in reality it’s sometimes most satisfying just to whack a wrapped bar against a hard surface to break it up. The smaller the pieces, the quicker they’ll melt.
5 A note on the butter
Roughly dice the butter; if using salted butter, you may wish to omit the pinch of salt later, though in all honesty I would probably still add a little. To make these plant-based, substitute coconut oil or a vegan baking butter – anything that sets solid at room temperature.
6 Melt the butter and syrup
Pour in the golden syrup and set the pan on a medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the butter and syrup have melted and combined. Add a pinch of salt, the mixed spice and the finely grated orange zest, if using – these are my tribute to the flavours of the hot cross bun, but you might like to use cinnamon, vanilla or even chilli instead.
7 Melt the chocolate and coat the cereal
Once the butter has melted, take the pan off the heat and add the chopped chocolate. Leave to sit for a couple of minutes, then stir vigorously until it’s melted and the mix is very smooth. As soon as it’s ready, tip the chocolate mix on top of the crumbled cereal in the bowl and stir until it’s all well coated, making sure there are no dry bits lurking at the bottom.
8 Shape into nests
You can shape these on a tray or board lined with greaseproof paper (you might find it helpful to draw outlines on the greaseproof paper first, as a guide), or pop them into paper cases. Dollop the mixture in rough circles, then use your thumb or a teaspoon to flatten the centre of each into a nest shape.
9 Fill, then chill
Place three little eggs, or a treat of your choice, in each nest (whole blanched almonds look quite effective, but you might also like to roll your own marzipan or fondant icing eggs, or substitute berries, sweets or dried fruit), then chill for at least two hours, until set. They will keep well in an airtight box for a week or so.
