Tag Archives: chocolate

Chocolate Hazelnut Cheesecake

As promised, here is our fabulously delicious Chocolate Hazelnut Cheesecake recipe, courtesy of the wonderful Nigella Lawson. It’s incredibly easy to make and is perfectly indulgent for this time of year, when it’s far too cold and miserable to be worrying about calories!

We love decorating ours with chocolate pieces, fresh berries and edible gold leaf, but you could try making your own hazelnut brittle and scattering a few golden shards across the top – delicious!

Don’t worry about letting the cheescake come to room temperature either – it definitely tastes better when it’s still slightly chilled.

Serves: 8-12

Ingredients
• 250 grams digestive biscuits
• 75 grams soft unsalted butter
• 1 x 400 grams jar nutella (at room temperature)
• 100 grams chopped toasted hazelnuts
• 500 grams cream cheese (at room temperature)
• 60 grams icing sugar (sifted)
Method
1. Break the digestives into the bowl of a processor, add the butter and a 15ml tablespoon of Nutella, and blitz until it starts to clump. Add 25g/3 tablespoons of hazelnuts and keep pulsing until the mixture becomes damp and sand-like.
2. Spoon into a 23cm/9inch round springform tin and press into the base using your fingertips or the back of a spoon. Chill in the fridge for about 20 to 30 minutes.
3. Beat the cream cheese and icing sugar until smooth, add the rest of the Nutella, and keep beating until it’s combined.
4. Remove the springform tin from the fridge and smooth the Nutella and cream cheese mixture over the base. Decorate with berries, chocolate pieces, brittle shards or even some chopped hazelnuts and put the tin back in the fridge for at least four hours or overnight.

A Festive Favourite: Baileys Chocolate Mousse

We absolutely adore Baileys Irish Cream here at Freathy; not only does it taste delicious as a drink (neat or over ice) but also adds a velvety rich whiskey smoothness to so many dessert recipes including cheesecakes, cupcakes, gateaux, ice cream and all manner of sweets and truffles. But our absolute favourite has to be Baileys Chocolate Mousse…….

 

 

Combining the sweet flavour of Baileys with the rich intensity of chocolate to make a deliciously light, fluffy mousse is our idea of heaven and perfect at any time of year, but we think it adds an extra special touch to Christmas festivities.

Try it for yourself with our favourite recipe from Cathy Trochelman, author of our go-to blog for recipe inspiration Lemon Tree Dwelling

PREP TIME
15 mins
TOTAL TIME
15 mins

Serves:6 (1/2 cup) servings

INGREDIENTS
• 2 teaspoons unflavoured gelatin
• 2 tablespoons cold water
• ¼ cup boiling water
• ½ cup sugar
• 3 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 1½ cup double cream, very cold
• ½ cup Bailey’s, very cold
• 1 teaspoon vanilla essence

INSTRUCTIONS
1. Before starting to mix the mousse, prepare the bowl and beaters by placing them in the freezer for 15 minutes to chill.

2. Sprinkle the gelatin over the cold water in a small bowl; stir and let it stand for 1 minute to soften.

3. Add boiling water and stir until the gelatin is completely dissolved. Let stand to cool.

4. Stir together the sugar and cocoa in a small mixing bowl and add the double cream.

5. Beat at a medium speed until stiff peaks form. Gradually pour in the Bailey’s, vanilla and the gelatin mixture, beating continuously at high speed until the mixture is well combinedand soft peaks form.

6. Spoon into serving dishes and put in the fridge to chill. (For a faster setting mousse, chill the dishes before filling them).

7. Chill for 1 hour or until ready to serve.