Christmas Rocky Road
by Nigella. Featured in NIGELLA CHRISTMASIntroduction
It’s not that I felt my usual Rocky Road Crunch Bars needed any improvement (though fiddling with recipes is one of life’s pleasures) but I thought they would benefit from some seasonal adjustment.
So, out go the Rich Tea biscuits and in come amaretti and — in the seasonal spirit — I’ve crammed in some Brazil nuts and glacé cherries (as red as Rudolph’s nose), along with snowy mini marshmallows. The fresh snowfall of icing sugar on top might seem seasonal enough, but not for me. So I add some edible glitter in Disco Hologram White.
For US cup measures, use the toggle at the top of the ingredients list.
It’s not that I felt my usual Rocky Road Crunch Bars needed any improvement (though fiddling with recipes is one of life’s pleasures) but I thought they would benefit from some seasonal adjustment.
So, out go the Rich Tea biscuits and in come amaretti and — in the seasonal spirit — I’ve crammed in some Brazil nuts and glacé cherries (as red as Rudolph’s nose), along with snowy mini marshmallows. The fresh snowfall of icing sugar on top might seem seasonal enough, but not for me. So I add some edible glitter in Disco Hologram White.
For US cup measures, use the toggle at the top of the ingredients list.
Ingredients
Makes: 24 bars
- 250 grams dark chocolate
- 150 grams milk chocolate
- 175 grams soft butter
- 4 tablespoons golden syrup
- 200 grams amaretti biscuits
- 150 grams brazil nuts (shelled)
- 150 grams red glace cherries
- 125 grams mini marshmallows
- 1 tablespoon icing sugar
- edible glitter
- 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate
- 6 ounces milk chocolate
- 1½ sticks soft butter
- ¼ cup golden syrup or light corn syrup
- 7 ounces amaretti cookies
- 1 cup brazil nuts (shelled)
- ⅔ cup red candied cherries
- 2½ cups mini marshmallows
- 1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar
- edible glitter
Method
- Chop both sorts of chocolate small, or use chocolate buttons made for melting, and then put into a heavy-based pan to melt with the butter and syrup over a gentle heat.
- Put the biscuits into a freezer bag and bash them with a rolling pin to get big- and little-sized crumbs; you want some pieces to crunch and some sandy rubble.
- Put the Brazil nuts into another freezer bag and also bash them so you get different-sized nut rubble.
- Take the pan off the heat, and add the crushed biscuits and nuts, whole glacé cherries and mini-marshmallows. Turn carefully to coat everything with syrupy chocolate.
- Tip into a foil tray (I use one 236mm x 296mm / 9¼ x 12 inches), smoothing the top as best you can, although it will look bumpy.
- Refrigerate until firm enough to cut, which will take about 1½–2 hours. Then take the set block of rocky road out of the foil tray ready to cut.
- Push the icing sugar through a small sieve to dust the top of the Rocky Road. Then, if you like, add a sprinkling of edible glitter for some festive sparkle.
- With the long side in front of you, cut into it 6 slices down and 4 across, so that you have 24 almost-squares.
- Chop both sorts of chocolate small, or use chocolate buttons made for melting, and then put into a heavy-based pan to melt with the butter and syrup over a gentle heat.
- Put the biscuits into a freezer bag and bash them with a rolling pin to get big- and little-sized crumbs; you want some pieces to crunch and some sandy rubble.
- Put the Brazil nuts into another freezer bag and also bash them so you get different-sized nut rubble.
- Take the pan off the heat, and add the crushed biscuits and nuts, whole glacé cherries and mini-marshmallows. Turn carefully to coat everything with syrupy chocolate.
- Tip into a foil tray (I use one 236mm x 296mm / 9¼ x 12 inches), smoothing the top as best you can, although it will look bumpy.
- Refrigerate until firm enough to cut, which will take about 1½–2 hours. Then take the set block of rocky road out of the foil tray ready to cut.
- Push the confectioners' sugar through a small sieve to dust the top of the Rocky Road. Then, if you like, add a sprinkling of edible glitter for some festive sparkle.
- With the long side in front of you, cut into it 6 slices down and 4 across, so that you have 24 almost-squares.
Additional Information
MAKE AHEAD:
Make the Rocky Road and refrigerate to set. Don’t add the icing sugar yet, but cut into bars, then store in an airtight container in a cool place for up to 1 week. Decorate with icing sugar and edible glitter about 1–2 hours before serving.
FREEZE AHEAD:
Make the Rocky Road as above and freeze for up to 1 month. Thaw overnight in a cool place. Decorate as above.
MAKE AHEAD:
Make the Rocky Road and refrigerate to set. Don’t add the icing sugar yet, but cut into bars, then store in an airtight container in a cool place for up to 1 week. Decorate with icing sugar and edible glitter about 1–2 hours before serving.
FREEZE AHEAD:
Make the Rocky Road as above and freeze for up to 1 month. Thaw overnight in a cool place. Decorate as above.
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Show more commentsI have been making these every year for a long while now, exactly as written. My family loves it.
I'm making this recipe for the first time. My friend runs a busy cafe so to say thank you, I'm using orange-flavoured ingredients, including Turkish delight and glace slices of the fruit.
Mine is made and cooling in the fridge. I used crushed pretzels instead of amaretti biscuits (couldn’t find at supermarket). I sprinkled chopped Christmas M&M’s on top with gold dust. Looks amazing!
I have made these for the last 4 or 5 Christmases but as family members are allergic to nuts I have used, wait for it,.....Maltesers! I also use dried cranberries instead of the cherries and buy the amaretti biscuits made from apricot kernals instead of almonds. Absolutely yummy and strictly calorie free!!
These are fabulous. I used mini veggie marshmallows and a mixture of biscuits. I couldn’t bring myself to use 200g of amaretti so mixed in 100g of some left over home made fork biscuits and actually some rather stale digestives and it tasted great! Very chocolatey, could even add more fruit, like dried cranberries and it would still mix in well.
These bars look so good and with the marshmallow inside I bet that they taste amazing. Going to make these during Christmas week for sure. All Nigella's Christmas recipes sound absolutely delicious, so difficult to choose what to make.
My now Christmas Tradition for around the last 10 years! Everybody who knows me expects to bring these little treasures and I adore them! Introducing my 4 year old son to the recipe tonight. Thank you Nigella
A must in this is shards of oozing stem ginger and some peel even cranberries balance sweetness just a small nudge towards daily 5 but awesomeness in a nibble
Dear Nigella, I added "drunk" cherries instead of marshmallows (cherries soaked overnight in sherry). I think I may have died and gone to heaven. It is divine. Thank you.
I make these every year. I like to make early and freeze and take out when needed. Everyone loves them. They have become a Christmas tradition!
Dear Nigella , I made this Rocky Road for some friends at the weekend. When I made it home after buying all the ingredients I realised I'd forgot to get the Amaretti biscuits!!! I used the kids' breakfast biscuits and some chocolate popping candy, they went down a treat. Lots of Love Suzanne xx
I started making these every Christmas to have in fridge for when guests pop around for tea or coffee. They are absolutely delicious and so easy to make. I discovered this recipe while watching Nigella Christmas on DVD few years back. Thank you Nigella for your beautiful recipes. Merry Christmas to you and your children.