Easter Bars

I decided to make a few chocolate cakes to give to Chris for Easter. He is a complete chocoholic and so I wanted to make these bars as chocolaty as possible. I made a basic chocolate sponge mixture and then added some white chocolate that I had chopped into tiny pieces. I decided to bake the cakes in small silicone bar moulds that a friend has lent me. They make great single serving cakes, which are easy to hold and bite into. Plus, it means you are free to experiment with the toppings compared to if you had make one large standard cake. If you do not have bar moulds I am sure that fairy cakes or muffins would work just as well.

After baking the bars, I made two different toppings with which to ice them. One was a chocolate fudge and the other was melted mint chocolate with an icing feather effect. I was really pleased with how the cakes turned out, light and fluffy and very easy to release from the mould thanks to the flexibility of the silicone.

White Choc Chip Chocolate Bars

Ingredients
90g self raising flour
20g cocoa powder
110g caster sugar
110g butter or margarine
2 eggs
1 tsp baking powder
½ tbsp milk
35g white chocolate

Method
Preheat the oven to 165C. Place two silicone bar moulds onto a baking tray and set to one side.
Place all of the ingredients (except the milk and white chocolate) into a mixing bowl and beat with an electric whisk until combined.
Add the milk and beat until light and fluffy.
Chop up the white chocolate into little pieces and gently fold into the cake batter.
Using a teaspoon, drop two spoonfuls of mixture into each cavity of the mould and gently smooth out. You want the mixture to fill just over half of each cavity.
Bake them in the oven for 20 minutes until risen and firm when pressed in the centre.
Allow to cool for 5 minutes before releasing from the moulds and allowing to cool on a cooling wrack.
Decorate with chosen toppings and eat!
Makes 16 cake bars.

Chocolate Fudge Topping
This topping is a thick, sticky chocolaty mixture that is very addictive.
Ingredients
50g dark chocolate
20g butter
1 tbsp milk
2 tbsp icing sugar

Method
Break the chocolate into pieces and place it into a small microwavable bowl along with the butter and milk.
Heat in the microwave until melted and smooth.
Sieve in the icing sugar and beat with a spatula until thick and glossy.
Spread thickly over the cakes whist still warm and allow to set before eating.
Makes enough icing to cover 8-9 cakes.


Mint Chocolate and Feather Effect Topping
The addition of mint to this topping adds an interesting twist to the cakes but is not so strong as to overpower the taste of the chocolate. Adding an icing feather effect on top makes them that little bit more attractive but it is rather fiddly and they would taste just as good without it. I used a few squares of left over lindt mint chocolate that I had in the cupboard but I am sure adding a few drops of peppermint extract to plain chocolate would work just as well.
Ingredients
40g mint chocolate
½ tbsp water
3 tbsp icing sugar

Method
Mix the icing sugar and water together until smooth and fairy thick. You may need to add a little extra water or icing sugar to get the right consistency.
Pour the icing into a piping bag complete with a small round nozzle.
Melt the chocolate in a small microwavable bowl until molten.
Spread the melted chocolate over the cakes and immediately pipe thin lines of icing going horizontally across the cakes.
Using a cocktail stick or thin skewer drag the tip vertically through the chocolate and icing.
Make three drags for each cake, alternating the direction of ‘up’ or ‘down’ to create the feather effect. Leave to dry.Makes enough icing to cover 8 cakes.