Satisfy a sweet craving by having these simple-tomake bars to hand

CHEWY ALMOND CHOCOLATE BARS

Chocolate shortbread is baked with a chewy almond, pistachio and pecan topping, then sprinkled with pieces of Forever Cacao chocolate.

Preparation 20 minutes Cooking 40 minutes Makes 16

250G PLAIN FLOUR

2 TBSP COCOA POWDER

75G CASTER SUGAR

½ TSP BAKING POWDER

100G BUTTER, CUT INTO PIECES

2 MEDIUM EGGS, BEATEN

FOR THE TOPPING

150G BUTTER

75G GRANULATED SUGAR

75G LIGHT MUSCOVADO SUGAR

3 TBSP GOLDEN SYRUP

4 TBSP DOUBLE CREAM

200G BLANCHED ALMONDS, CUT IN HALF 100G PISTACHIOS, HALVED

100G PECANS, SHELLED

75G FOREVER CACAO CHOCOLATE, CHOPPED (ANY FLAVOUR)

1 Line the base and sides of a 30cm x 23cm traybake tin or roasting tin with baking parchment.

2 For the shortbread base, put the flour, cocoa, sugar and baking powder into a large bowl. Rub in the butter until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs. This can be done in a food processor if you prefer. Stir in the eggs and mix to a soft dough. Press into the tin and level. Chill.

3 Preheat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan oven) gas mark 4. For the topping, melt the butter in a small pan. Stir in the sugars and syrup. Heat gently until dissolved, then bring to the boil. Add the cream and boil for 1 minute, stirring continuously. Remove from the heat and stir in the nuts.

4 Spread the nut mixture evenly over the base, then bake for 25-30 minutes until the mixture is gently bubbling. Remove from the oven, then scatter the chocolate on top. Leave in the tin to set until cold, then turn out and cut into 16 bars.