Alan Bird, featured chef at Padstow Christmas Festival, shares his deliciously festive spiced chocolate fondant recipe
Serves 12
Oven temp 190°c / gas 5
For the filling
- Double cream 50ml
- Dark chocolate 70g, buttons or small pieces
- Drambuie 20ml
- Mincemeat 50g
For the spiced chocolate fondant
- Butter 300g, unsalted
- White chocolate 300g, buttons or small pieces
- Baking powder 10g
- Mixed spice 5g
- Ground cinnamon 3g
- Flour 260g
- Eggs 5, separated
- Caster sugar 90g
- Currants and sultanas 200g, soaked in hot water
- For the filling: bring the cream to a boil in a pan. Remove from the heat and stir in the chocolate until melted. Stir in the Drambuie and mincemeat and leave to set in the fridge. When set, mould into 25g balls.
- For the spiced chocolate fondant: line the inside of 12 stainless steel soufflé rings with silicone paper. Cut squares of silicone paper and place them under each of the rings, and place on a baking sheet 6-7cm apart.
- Preheat the oven to 190°c / gas 5.
- Melt the butter and white chocolate in a bowl over a pan of simmering water without letting it get too hot. Meanwhile, sieve together the baking powder, spices and flour into a bowl.
- Mix the egg yolks into the chocolate mixture (at this stage it may look like it’s split, but it will come back when the flour is added) and then gently fold in the sieved flour mixture.
- In a separate clean bowl, whisk the egg whites and sugar until stiff, then mix ¼ of this into the chocolate. When mixed, fold the rest of the whites in.
- Half-fill the moulds with the soufflé mixture then add the ball of filling and top up with the rest of the soufflé.
- Bake the soufflés for 12 minutes. Once baked, remove from the oven and loosen with a knife, then use a spatula to carefully put onto warmed serving plates.
- Serve with pouring cream or clotted cream – or just as they are.
You will need
For the filling
- Double cream 50ml
- Dark chocolate 70g, buttons or small pieces
- Drambuie 20ml
- Mincemeat 50g
For the spiced chocolate fondant
- Butter 300g, unsalted
- White chocolate 300g, buttons or small pieces
- Baking powder 10g
- Mixed spice 5g
- Ground cinnamon 3g
- Flour 260g
- Eggs 5, separated
- Caster sugar 90g
- Currants and sultanas 200g, soaked in hot water
Method
- For the filling: bring the cream to a boil in a pan. Remove from the heat and stir in the chocolate until melted. Stir in the Drambuie and mincemeat and leave to set in the fridge. When set, mould into 25g balls.
- For the spiced chocolate fondant: line the inside of 12 stainless steel soufflé rings with silicone paper. Cut squares of silicone paper and place them under each of the rings, and place on a baking sheet 6-7cm apart.
- Preheat the oven to 190°c / gas 5.
- Melt the butter and white chocolate in a bowl over a pan of simmering water without letting it get too hot. Meanwhile, sieve together the baking powder, spices and flour into a bowl.
- Mix the egg yolks into the chocolate mixture (at this stage it may look like it’s split, but it will come back when the flour is added) and then gently fold in the sieved flour mixture.
- In a separate clean bowl, whisk the egg whites and sugar until stiff, then mix ¼ of this into the chocolate. When mixed, fold the rest of the whites in.
- Half-fill the moulds with the soufflé mixture then add the ball of filling and top up with the rest of the soufflé.
- Bake the soufflés for 12 minutes. Once baked, remove from the oven and loosen with a knife, then use a spatula to carefully put onto warmed serving plates.
- Serve with pouring cream or clotted cream – or just as they are.
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