Easter Lebkuchen

Ingredients:

115g butter, softened

115g brown sugar

1 egg, beaten

1/3 cup treacle

400g self-raising flour

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon chilli powder

100g dark chocolate, melted

50g milk chocolate, melted

To make the Lebkuchen:

1. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

2. Beat in egg and treacle.

3. Sift flour, ginger, cloves and chilli powder into mixture.

4. Mix together with a wooden spoon until mixture forms a dough.

5. Knead dough lightly until smooth.

6. Chill dough for 30 minutes.

7. Preheat oven to 180 degrees C.

8. Roll out Lebkuchen dough on lightly floured surface until 3mm thick.

9. Cut out shapes using Easter egg shaped cookie cutters.

10. Space Lebkuchen 3cm apart on trays lined with baking paper.

11. Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until Lebkuchen are pale golden.

12. Cool on wire racks.

To decorate:

1. Dip cooled Lebkuchen face down into melted dark chocolate and place on wire racks to set.

2. Using a piping bag, drizzle melted milk chocolate over the dark chocolate.

Pfeffernüsse

Ingredients:
250g plain flour
200g brown sugar
60g butter, softened
1/4 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
pinch of white pepper
1 egg, beaten
1 egg, beaten (extra)
150g dark chocolate
silver cachous

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 190 degrees and line two baking trays with non-stick paper.
2. Combine all ingredients and blend until well blended (mixture will appear crumbly).
3. Add half of extra beaten egg, then knead the mixture with your hands until it holds together (use more beaten egg if necessary).
4. Shape dough into a ball.
5. Roll teaspoons of mixture into balls and place on baking trays (approx. 2.5 cm apart).
6. Bake for 7 minutes, or until cracks appear on the surface and tops are pale brown.
7. Cool on wire racks.
8. Melt dark chocolate in a bowl over a saucepan of simmering water.
9. Dip pfeffernüsse into melted chocolate and place on baking paper to set. Decorate will silver cachous, if desired.

Cherry Choc-Chip Biscuits

Follow the Choc-Chip Biscuits recipe, omitting the vanilla and substituting 1/4 cup of the chopped dark chocolate with a 55g Cherry Ripe bar, finely chopped.

Choc-Chip Biscuits

Ingredients:
125g butter, softened
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup caster sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence
1 egg
1 1/2 cups self-raising flour, sifted
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup dark chocolate, chopped*

*For Orange Choc-Chip or Caramel Choc-Chip Biscuits, omit the vanilla and use "Intense Orange" or "Crunchy Caramel" Lindt Excellence chocolate instead of plain chocolate.

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 160 degrees and line 2 baking trays with non-stick paper.
2. Cream the butter, brown sugar and caster sugar until creamy; add vanilla essence.
3. Beat in the egg until well combined.
4. Mix in the flour and salt until the mixture forms a dough.
5. Add the chocolate, a little at a time, until it is evenly spread throughout the dough.
6. Place tablespoons of the dough on to baking trays, 2cm apart.
7. Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until slightly brown; cool on wire racks.

Adapted from "Chocolate Chip Cookies" in Gabriel Gate. (2006). The chocolate lovers: a children's story and cookbook. Crows Nest, N.S.W.: Allen & Unwin.

M&M Mini Cupcakes

I made these cupcakes for my 30th Birthday party.

Ingredients:
125g butter, softened
3/4 cup caster sugar
2 eggs
1 1/4 cups plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1/2 cup milk
100g dark chocolate, melted
3/4 cup cream
170g dark chocolate, chopped (extra)
M&Ms

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 160 degrees and line a 24 mini cupcake tin with patty cases.
2. Beat the butter and sugar until light and creamy.
3. Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat well.
4. Sift the flour, baking powder and cocoa powder over the mixture, then fold through until combined.
5. Spoon the mixture into the patty cases so that each case is 2/3 full.
6. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean. Cool on wire racks.
7. Place cream in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Remove from heat then stir in the chopped dark chocolate. Leave to cool, then spread over each mini cupcake. Place an M&M in the centre of each cupcake to finish.

Adapted from "Double chocolate cupcakes" in Donna Hay. (2007). Simple essentials: chocolate. Pymble, N.S.W.: Harper Collins Publishers Australia.

Easter Chocolate Biscuits

Ingredients:
110g butter, softened
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup plain flour, sifted
1/4 cup cocoa powder, sifted
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
125g dark chocolate, melted
250g dark chocolate, chopped
1 packet speckled solid milk chocolate easter eggs
50g dark chocolate, melted (extra)

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 160 degrees and line 2 baking trays with non-stick paper.
2. Beat the butter and sugar until very pale and creamy.
3. Add the egg and vanilla and beat for another 2-3 minutes.
4. Stir the sifted flour, cocoa powder and melted chocolate through the mixture.
5. Stir in the chopped chocolate.
6. Shape the mixture into balls (about the size of 1 tablespoon) and place on baking trays.
7. Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until cracks begin to appear on the surface.
8. Cool on wire racks.
9. When cool, dip easter eggs into the extra melted chocolate and place one on top of each biscuit.

Adapted from "Double chocolate cookies" in Donna Hay. (2007). Simple essentials: chocolate. Pymble, N.S.W.: Harper Collins Publishers Australia.

Marble Chocolates

Ingredients:
250g white chocolate, chopped
250g dark chocolate, chopped
1/4 cup smooth peanut butter




Method:
1. Line a 16cm x 25cm slice pan with baking paper.
2. Melt the white chocolate in a bowl over a saucepan of simmering water, making sure that the water doesn't touch the bottom of the bowl. Cool for 5 minutes, then stir in the peanut butter until smooth.
3. Melt the dark chocolate as above, then cool slightly.
4. Drop alternate spoonfuls of the white chocolate mixture and dark chocolate into the pan. Tilt the pan slightly from left to right so that the chocolate spreads evenly across the pan.
5. Create a marble effect by moving a skewer or cake tester through the pan in small, figure 8 motions.
6. Cool in the pan until firm (at least 2 hours, preferably overnight), then turn out on to a chopping board and slice into squares.
Note: Do NOT refrigerate - this will result in white specks forming on the white chocolate mixture.

Adapted from "Chocolate and peanut butter swirl" in The Australian Women's Weekly. (2002). Wicked: sweet indulgences. Sydney: ACP Publishing, 2002.

Cappucino Crinkles

Ingredients:
1/3 cup butter, softened
1 cup packed brown sugar
2/3 cup cocoa powder
1 tablespoon instant coffee
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 egg whites
1/3 cup vanilla yoghurt
1 1/2 cups plain flour, sifted
1/4 cup white sugar

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees and line 2 baking trays with non-stick paper.
2. Cream butter in a large mixing bowl.
3. Beat in the brown sugar, cocoa powder, coffee, baking soda and cinnamon until combined.
4. Beat in the egg whites and yoghurt until combined.
5. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer; stir in the remaining flour with a wooden spoon.
6. Place the sugar in a small bowl. Drop teaspoons of the mixture into the sugar and roll into balls; roll again in sugar.
7. Place the balls 2 inches apart on baking trays; bake 8-10 minutes or until edges are firm.
8. Cool on wire racks.