Chocolate Caramel Crispy Cakes Recipe for I Heart Cooking Clubs

Oh these are cruel - altogether too easy to make (in fact so easy it almost seems a stretch to call it a recipe) and even easier to eat.  Children will love them, and so will the big kid that lives on in you - these remind me of the chocolate rice bubble crackles Mum used to make for our birthday parties when we were growing up only, dare I say it, better.

Those of you who follow my blog regularly will know that you don't normally see things like this pop here - but it is Easter after all, and a little indulgence never hurt anybody.

Actually, I have just joined the I Heart Cooking Clubs group, a group which has spent the last six months cooking and blogging about recipes from Nigella Lawson.  It's fair to say that I've always been a bit of a late bloomer, and in my typical fashion I showed up in time for the last week of the "Nigella-fest" (next week we move on to Mark Bittman), the theme for the week being Easter Basket.

Well, as far as I'm concerned, that can only mean one thing (and I'm pretty sure Nigella would back me up here) and that's chocolate.  Having promised myself a very lazy and leisurely Easter weekend, I didn't want to spend a lot of time with anything too fussy - no baking cakes or elaborate desserts - it needed to be something quick, simple, and something that would make a "scrummy" little alternative to Easter eggs.  These Chocolate Caramel Crispy Cakes fit the bill perfectly - they are literally nothing more than melted down Mars Bars and cornflakes - but once you've tried this combination of chewy nougat and caramel, creamy chocolate, and crispy flakes you won't be able to leave them alone.  I think also the inclusion of the cornflakes takes them away from being too ridiculously sweet, which is perhaps a little dangerous.  Another time I think these would be great made with Snickers Bars, as I think the peanuts would be a really nice addition to these.

Nigella suggests making these in mini-muffin papers, and that you should end up with 40.  I only had regular size cupcake papers and I ended up with 12 - hers must have been very mini!  I would definitely make this again and I think that perhaps I would press it into a parchment lined tin and then cut into little squares to serve - I think that would make it seem a bit more grown up and elegant, but for now I am happy just being a big kid!

Happy Easter everyone.

Chocolate Caramel Crispy Cakes Recipe

Adapted from a recipe by Nigella Lawson

Makes 12

4 Mars Bars

55g butter

2-1/2 cups cornflakes

Cut the Mars Bars into pieces, and put into a saucepan, along with the butter.  Melt over low heat, stirring regularly.  The nougat will take the longest to melt.

Once everything has melted, add the cornflakes and stir them round in the chocolate mixture until everything is well coated.

Put spoonfuls into paper cases, and put into the fridge to firm up.

Once they have chilled down, I found that I preferred keeping them out of the fridge - more chewy rather than cold and hard.