This is a very simple ‘tiffin’, or chocolate ‘refrigerator cake’. It’s one of the easiest chocolate treats you can make and endlessly adaptable. A generous chunk is lovely in a lunchbox or picnic hamper, while smaller squares make good petits fours.
Makes 12 pieces
200g dark chocolate, broken into pieces
100g unsalted butter, cubed
1 tablespoon golden syrup or honey
75g crystallised ginger
150g digestive biscuits
Line a loaf tin, about 20 x 10cm, with baking parchment.
Put the chocolate, butter and syrup or honey into a heatproof bowl. Stand this over a pan of just-simmering water and leave, stirring occasionally, until melted and smooth. Keep the heat low and don’t let the water in the pan touch the bowl.
Meanwhile, roughly chop the ginger and crush the biscuits to very coarse crumbs – you want some nice chunky bits still in the mix. Combine the ginger and biscuits in a large bowl.
Pour the melted chocolate into the ginger and biscuits and mix thoroughly. Tip this chocolatey mix into the prepared loaf tin and smooth it out. Leave to cool, then transfer to the fridge for several hours to allow it to set completely.
Lift the ‘tiffin’ out of the loaf tin in its parchment, then carefully peel the paper away. Use a sharp, heavy knife to cut the cake into 12 pieces, or smaller bites if you prefer. Put them into an airtight container and store in the fridge until needed.
PLUS ONE/SWAPS The sky’s the limit on this one. If you don’t like ginger, try chopped candied peel or chopped marshmallows in the mix. If you do like ginger, you could use gingernuts in place of the digestives. In fact, any decent biscuit, including a nice oaty one or even shortbread, can form the sweet, biscuity element. This kind of refrigerator cake is excellent with dried fruit added too – anything from raisins to dried cranberries or chopped dried apricots. And of course nuts can be a delicious extra element… hazelnuts are my favourite.