The idea for this recipe came to me quite late in the piece. With only two weeks to go until Easter at the time I knew I would be lucky to get everything I needed in time. But with my ability to buy Easter treats severely limited this year, I felt I really needed to make something. And preferably something I would enjoy eating (which means no milk or dark chocolate!).
I really liked the rocky road I made last year, and felt making it into a more Easter themed shape would be just perfect. I finally found some half Easter egg moulds online, they took ages to arrive hence why this post is only ready two days before Easter!
I also decided to buy marshmallows rather than make my own. I thought making marshmallows right now just felt a little wasteful in terms of ingredients and since one batch makes so many, and I couldn’t really share them as I usually would, I thought buying some would be best. My favourite bought marshmallows are from Grounded Pleasures, so I bought their massive 700g box which will also hopefully get us through a few Wintery isolation hot chocolates too!
Grounded Pleasures Marshmallows
This recipe is mostly an assembly job, and an even easier version of my Rose Rocky Road I posted last year. You can of course use other types of chocolate, and other moulds or cake tins to shape your rocky road. I made a Rocky Road Wreath for Grounded Pleasures at Christmas last year, so there is another idea for how to shape your rocky road.
I prefer to use good quality chocolate, which is why the recipe is long as it needs to be properly tempered. You can use baking chocolate, just follow the instructions on the packet to melt and you shouldn’t need to temper as below.
Tempering chocolate can be tricky, and I would definitely recommend a chocolate thermometer if using good quality chocolate. Don’t worry if it doesn’t turn out perfectly, if your chocolate blooms (if using milk or dark chocolate) it will still taste great and if it has trouble setting just store it in the fridge. I am definitely no expert when it comes to properly tempering chocolate, but it always tastes good regardless! Plus there are plenty of resources available online if you want to know more.
I hope everyone has a clam and quiet Easter/long weekend. Let me know in the comments if you have a go at making some rocky road or what other baking adventures you have been up too.
Rose Rocky Road Easter Eggs
Ingredients:
500g good quality white chocolate
pink colouring (suitable for use with chocolate)
rose flavouring (suitable for use with chocolate)
30g slivered almonds, roasted
160-170g marshmallows
dried edible flowers, for decoration (optional)
1 tsp freeze dried raspberry, for decoration (optional)
cooking spray
Method:
Very lightly spray 6 medium half Easter eggs moulds (approx. 120ml capacity) with the cooking spray. Arrange the moulds on a tray with sides so the moulds aren’t about to move about too much.
Have all the rocky road elements ready to go next to your prepared moulds.
Place a small pot with a little water on the stove and allow to very gently simmer. Using another pot or bowl that will comfortably sit over the top of the water pot, measure out 300g of the white chocolate.
Place this pot over the gently simmering water (ensuring the water does not touch the base of the pot above) and melt the chocolate. Ensure the chocolate is constantly stirred. Once the chocolate reaches 45 degrees Celsius on chocolate thermometer, remove from the heat and continue stirring while gradually adding the remaining 200g of white chocolate. Add a little at a time and allow to melt before adding more.
Continue to check the temperature of the chocolate, once it has fallen to 34 degrees Celsius, the remaining chocolate should have all been added. Continue stirring to allow the chocolate to cool further to 32 degrees Celsius. Sometimes I find not all my chocolate has melted at this point, it can depend on the room temperature and the temperature of the chocolate to start with. I place my chocolate back over the warm water in the pot I used previously, and turn the heat on to very low. I keep stirring the chocolate and check that the temperature doesn’t rise about 34 degrees Celsius again. Once the chocolate has almost completely melted, remove from the heat again and continue to stir and allow the chocolate to return to 32 degrees Celsius.
Add a little pink colouring at this point, and a few drops of the rose flavouring. Start small with both and add more if you think it’s necessary.
Once the chocolate has reached 32 degrees Celsius, it is ready to use.
Spoon in about a tablespoon of the melted chocolate into each mould. and spread it around so the inside of each mould. Place a few marshmallows into each mould (I found I could fit four marshmallows into each mould), and cover with more chocolate (try to distribute the chocolate evenly amongst each mould). I didn’t fill each mould to the brim, leave a gap at the top as this will help you remove the chocolate later. Tap each mould onto the bench gently to encourage the chocolate to evenly distribute and remove any air bubbles.
Sprinkle some almonds over the top of each, and follow with the dried petals and freeze dried raspberries if using.
Leave to set at room temperature if you are in a cool environment, otherwise place in the fridge for about 30 minutes to set.
Once set remove from the moulds and store in an airtight container.
I prefer to keep the rocky road in the fridge. Keeps for about 2-3 weeks.
Makes 6 medium half Easter eggs.
Reference: ‘Bourke Street Bakery All Things Sweet’ by Paul Allam and David McGuinness (Murdoch Books, 2017), pp.104-105 + 119.
