When the junior Nethertons were "studying" food technology in their early years of secondary education, (don't get me started, we could be here for hours), come the end of the first term, it was time to make the Yule log.
And this meant taking in a chocolate Swiss roll and the ingredients for chocolate buttercream - hardly challenging, was it? Cruel parent that I am, I made them bake their own Swiss rolls, rather than taking in a supermarket one, but at least the "learning experience" was enhanced.
This year we eschewed the traditional log, giving them respite from Swiss roll duties, but as we are all fond of the chocolate and chestnut combination, I created this dessert alternative.
Please note it is VERY rich and this will easily feed 10 people, although it will keep in the fridge for up to 4 days, if you want to make it last!
1 pack/tin unsweetened chestnut purée
100g dark chocolate
170g cream cheese
Icing sugar to taste
1 tablespoon rum or brandy (optional)
2 crumbled meringues (optional)
Melt the chocolate in a bowl, suspended over hot, not boiling, water.
Whisk the cream cheese and chestnut purée together until smooth. Add a tablespoon of icing sugar and taste, gradually add more icing sugar until it suits your palate.
Stir in the chocolate and optional extras, if using.
Line a 1lb loaf tin with baking parchment, leaving a collar overlap. (You could use clingfilm, but we are doing what we can to cut down on single use plastic.)
Spoon the mixture into the tin and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
Lift out of the tin, using the paper collar and invert on to a serving dish. peel off the paper and decorate/embellish however you wish.
On day one, we had a simple scattering of crushed meringues, but on day two, we smothered the leftovers in espresso enhanced Chantilly cream and a few chocolate shavings.
Netherton Foundry Shropshire © 2020
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