CHOCOLATE TEA CAKES

As a kid I loved Tunnock’s Tea Cakes and I’m still partial to them now. There’s that great moment when you bite through the crispy shell, hit the marshmallow and then the biscuit underneath. These are fun to make, too.

Makes 12

For the biscuit bases

200g (7oz) plain flour, plus extra for dusting

½tsp baking powder

A pinch of fine salt

50g (1¾oz) cold unsalted butter, cut into small dice

50g (1¾oz) caster sugar

2-3tbsp milk

For the filling

3 large egg whites

150g (5½oz) caster sugar 2tbsp glucose syrup

For the topping

300g (10½oz) dark chocolate (I use chocolate with 40% cocoa solids, like Bournville), cut into small pieces

For the biscuit bases, line 2 baking trays with baking parchment. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt together into a bowl. Add the butter and rub in using your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Stir in the sugar. Incorporate enough milk to bring the mixture together to form a ball. On a lightly floured surface roll out the dough to a 5mm thickness and stamp out 12 discs using a 7cm plain cutter. Place on the prepared trays. Chill for at least 30 minutes. Heat your oven to 170°C/fan 150°C/gas 3½. Bake the chilled dough discs for 12-15 minutes until lightly browned. Transfer the biscuits to a wire rack to cool and firm up.

For the filling, put all the ingredients into a large heatproof bowl set over a pan of hot (but not boiling) water, making sure the bottom of the bowl doesn’t touch the water. Using a hand-held electric whisk, beat for 8 minutes until you have a stiff, smooth and silky meringue mixture (the aim is to gently melt the sugar as you whisk). Spoon the mixture into a piping bag fitted with a medium plain nozzle and pipe a mound onto each cooled biscuit base, leaving a small margin around the edge. Place all the biscuits on a wire rack over a sheet of baking parchment.

For the topping, melt 200g chocolate in a bowl over a pan of hot water, making sure the bowl isn’t touching the water. Remove from the heat and add the rest of the chocolate so that it melts.

Leave to cool slightly; it must not be too hot or it will melt the meringue. Spoon the chocolate onto the tea cakes to coat completely, allowing the excess to fall onto the parchment below, and smooth with a palette knife. If the chocolate gets too cool, put the bowl back over the pan of hot water briefly. You can also re-melt the chocolate that has fallen onto the parchment. Allow the chocolate to set before serving.