Tiffin

As I've said before, I hate baking, as it usually turns out disastrously...  Tiffin frees me from that, as there's no baking involved!  It's a crunchy, super-sweet indulgence of chocolate and tasty morsels and really easy to make, but it's very rich, and can only be consumed in small quantities.  This is one for sharing - I make it for my annual Eurovision party, or to take in to work for a colleague treat.

Ingredients

400g Chocolate (I usually go for dark chocolate, but any will do)
150g Digestive Biscuits
150g Maltesers
75g Raisins
150g Butter, plus a little extra for greasing
4 tbsp Golden Syrup (actually, this time I used Vanilla Syrup from theskinnyfoodco.com which worked just as well - it's there to soften the set chocolate a bit)

Method

1.  Place the biscuits in a plastic bag and smash them with something solid until they are in crumbs.  Do the same with the Maltesers.  It's nicer if there are still some small chunks, and they're not completely crushed to a powder.

2.  Break up 200g of the chocolate into a bowl and add 100g of the butter, along with 2 tbsp of the syrup.

3.  Melt and stir the mixture together.  You can do this in a microwave by heating on a medium power for 30 seconds at a time, and stirring in between, as long as you take care not to get the mixture too hot (it goes thick and lumpy if overheated).  Or you can use the classic method of stirring over a pan of simmering water until the ingredients combine.

4.  Once the mixture is just combined, add the raisins, crushed biscuits and Maltesers and stir together until distributed evenly.

5.  Line a container with baking paper, and rub a little butter all over the paper to stop the tiffin from sticking.  Pour the chocolate mixture into the container and smooth out to a layer around 1-2cm thick.  Leave this in the fridge to set for 1-2 hours.

6.  Melt the remaining 200g of chocolate, 50g of butter and 2 tbsp of syrup in the same way as before.  Pour over the set mixture to form a thin topping layer and smooth out where you can - it doesn't need to be perfect at all.  Place back in the fridge for another 1-2 hours.

7.  Once set, remove from the container and cut into small squares to serve (seriously, it's really rich, so very small mini-bites are best!).  Store the tiffin in the fridge - it will last at least a week if need be, probably even longer.

Alternative Options

I personally use Maltesers and Raisins in my tiffin, but you can use whatever you find tasty - as long as there's enough crushed biscuits to stop it going rock hard, the world is your oyster.  Chopped dried apricots or cranberries would be good.  I'm not a nut person, but if you are, you could try chopped almonds, peanuts or walnuts in the mix.  Or go crazy and add some popping candy, Crunchie bars, Rice Krispies or mini marshmallows.  Maybe try using a chocolate orange as the base, or ginger nuts as the biscuits.  Add some peppermint essence or chilli powder to the recipe if you like.  It's really up to you - the possibilities are endless.