Beat the January Blues with these No-Bake Cakes

Have the January blues hit yet? A sizeable majority of us seem to suffer at this time of year post Christmas, pre Spring and with a long wait until pay day. If you’ve embraced dry January or started one of the many diets out there I applaud you. I, however, can only get through the next couple of months with a few little indulgences.

When the mornings are dark, cold and wet, school and work beckon with reluctant children and even more recalcitrant adults, my go to is chocolate.

Make yourself feel a whole lot better by opting for the 70 per cent cocoa solids full of polyphenols which are powerful antioxidants helping to improve our health. If the finances don’t run to it, just go for the equally good blocks of supermarket chocolate, milk, dark or white or all three!

And what’s not to like about chocolate fridge cake recipes as the kids will enjoy making easy choccie treats as much as the adults.

These are two of my favourites from celebrity chefs – but there are so many recipes for no-bake cakes out there – they’re a crowd pleaser in every way as they are great fun to make, you can add your favourite ingredients or whatever you have in the store cupboard, and best of all can be enjoying them within minutes of making them !

Jamie Oliver’s Chocolate Fridge cake with Pecans and Meringues

Jamie suggests customising the recipe and having a bit of fun by swapping in popcorn, stem ginger, marshmallows or coconut.

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 0 minutes
Cool Time: Varies

Ingredients

• 200 g digestive biscuits
• 100 g pecans
• 110 g shelled pistachio nuts
• 10 glacé cherries
• 2 free-range meringue nests
• 200 g quality dark chocolate (70%)
• 150 g unsalted butter
• 1 tablespoon golden syrup

Instructions

1. Snap the biscuits into small pieces and roughly chop the pecans, then place in a large bowl.
2. Add the pistachios, tear in the cherries, then smash up and add the meringue.
3. Snap the chocolate into a heatproof bowl, roughly chop and add the butter, and drizzle in the golden syrup, then either melt over a pan of gently simmering water or in a microwave, stirring regularly.
4. Mix the contents of both bowls together, stirring well to combine.
5. Get yourself a container that will act as a mould, and line it with clingfilm, leaving plenty of extra at the edges to fold over the top.
6. Spoon the mixture into the container, then place in the fridge to firm up.
7. Once firm, use the clingfilm to help you turn it out, then cut into chunky slices – this will keep for up to 5 days in an airtight container (if you can resist it for that long!).

Mary Berry’s Super Simple Rocky Road

Mary says Rocky Road is a real crowd pleaser for kids, but also lovely for grown-ups served with a cup of coffee as a relaxed desert after a meal.

Prep Time: Minutes
Cook Time: 0 minutes
Cool Time: 2 Hours

Ingredients

• 400 g milk chocolate broken into pieces
• 225g butter cubed plus extra for greasing
• 6 tablespoons of golden syrup
• 75 g dark chocolate broken into pieces
• 500g crushed digestive biscuits
• 4 x 32 g chocolate coated honeycomb bars broken into bite size pieces

Instructions

1. Grease and line a 30x23cm/12x9in traybake tin with baking paper.
2. Place the milk chocolate in a large heatproof bowl and add the butter and syrup. Place the bowl over a pan of simmering water and heat gently, stirring until melted.
3. Place the dark chocolate in a small heatproof bowl. Place the bowl of a pan of simmering water until the chocolate is melted.
4. Add the biscuits to the milk chocolate mixture and fold together until well coated. Spoon into the prepared tin. Sprinkle over the honeycomb bar pieces and press down firmly. Drizzle with the melted dark chocolate in a zig zag pattern. Chill in the fridge for 2 hours until firm. Slice into 24 squares to serve.

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