Chocolate Mudpies
Found a very simple recipe and decided to try! I tweaked it a lot so it’s nothing like the original now…
Almost 400gm of unsalted butter – I used Emborg, from Europe
300gm of mixed fruits/ raisins/ cranberries
About 250gm of castor sugar (sift through if in chunks)
Cocoa powder – 1 to 1 half tablespoon
Approx. 500-550gm of Digestive cookie crumbs
Paper cups
Chocolate buttons for melting…
The ingredients
I first melted the 400gm of butter in pot over fire but was very careful not to burn it! Had to be diligent in removing from fire to stir from time to time. Once fully melted into this beautiful yellow golden liquid, was time to pour in the castor sugar & cocoa powder and stir thoroughly until all dissolved, away from fire. (Didn’t really need the fire now so I could turn off the stove.)
I next poured in biscuit crumbs slowly and turning it or mixing it with the butter/ sugar liquid. I didn’t pour it all in at once at that will make the stirring really tough. A cupful in at a time helped a bit and I had to ensure I “dug” into the bottom of the pot to fold the mixture over the Digestive crumbs.
The mix
The picture above shows this rich, gooey, brownish texture which is exactly what is supposed to be achieved. My right hand got really tired with all the folding. I do believe that my cookies were not crumbly enough. Next time, I must ensure that none of the pieces are larger than a 5cent coin!
Next, I laid out the paper cups on a tray. I used a big spoon to scoop out chunks with my right hand, and used the left hand to “shape” them before pushing them into the paper cups.
Soon to be filled!
The scent from this was amazing although there was no need to bake it. I felt that it was good as the whole house wouldn’t be filled with the baking smell but yet something awesome could still appear! I think my next one should be a Tiramisu, no need to bake!
After placing it into the paper cup, I patted it down with my left hand (which was very oily by the way as there’s butter in the batter) to make sure it is set as tightly as possible. I ensured I patted it flat, so that it’s easy to put the chocolate mix on top later. After doing all this, I placed the paper cups filled with the batter into the fridge for about 2 hours to let it chill and set.
About 15 mins before the 2 hours is up (actually it’s just an approximate so there’s no need to fret about the timing), you can start making the chocolate melts. For the melted chocolate, I placed buttons in a small bowl on top of a larger, flatter one. I then filled the one outside with some really hot water. Once the heat penetrates through to the inside one, buttons will start to melt. I had to keep on stirring until I got a nice creamy mixture. Word of caution – please use very dry cutlery, utensils for this.
Note: use dark chocolate for the topping as that will balance out the sweetness of the cookie mix with fruits with something that is not too sweet.
dark chocolate melts
The mixture is now ready and so is your batter. I used two spoons for this. A small teaspoon to scoop the mixture out, which is just about right for each mudpie; and another one to “push” it onto the mudpie.
Next, I put it back into the fridge to let it set and harden. I almost couldn’t wait for the husband to come home to surprise him.
Final product!
Here’s a close up!
Enjoy!
Updates on this! I think this was quite a hit with my friends & colleagues! I think I also had some orders for Christmas! 😛
For another “creative” homecooked meal, check out the Sentinel Spaghetti!
Edibles 