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Easter Baking
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DIY Easter Baking Projects to Keep the Kids Happy and Busy

There is no better way to make fun memories than tackling a recipe together and letting the little ones get really involved in making something scrumptious. Baking with the kids however, shouldn’t be a spectator sport and they’ll be keen to get their hands (and clothes, and faces…) dirty.

Experts in the fields of food and science, Louise Lennox and Aisling Larkin, have created a platform called Foodoppi, which aims to allow you to “spend exciting, quality time with your kids with fun, easy recipes and experiments.” Each recipe is designed to actively engage your little ones’ creative side, with fun and deliciousness guaranteed.

To ensure you never hear the dreaded phrase “I’m bored!” over the Easter break, we have Foodoppi baking projects to keep them happy and busy for the holidays.

Easter Egg Cakes

No need for fancy tins as these chocolate cakes are cooked inside the egg shell!

Prep time 40 minutes | Bake time 30 minutes | Serves 6

Ingredients:

For the cake
– 75g caster sugar
– 75g butter – very soft
– 75g self-raising flour
– 1 large egg
– 2 tbsp milk
– 2 tbsp cocoa powder
– 2 tbsp melted margarine
– 6 empty, clean and dry egg shells

To decorate
– 150g white chocolate or milk chocolate
– 100g desiccated coconut
– Food colouring – optional

What you’ll need:

– Thumb tack, pin, corkscrew
– Small scissors
– Bowls
– Electric mixer
– Baking tray
– Cupcake tin – optional
– Freezer bag
– Bamboo stick
– Spoons
– Fork

Method:

To Prepare the Egg Shells
1. Do these the day before if possible
2. Very carefully make a small hole at the very top of the egg. You can use a thumb tack, pin, corkscrew or a small scissors. Then cut a small hole about the size of a small coin. Over a bowl turn the egg upside down and start to shake it until all the egg white and egg yolk comes out.Then repeat this step for the remaining 5 eggs. The left over eggs can stored in an air tight container in the fridge.
3. Fill a large bowl with warm water and a teaspoon of salt. Place the egg shells into the water and leave for a few minutes. Then rinse under cold water. Place the eggs hole side down on a tea towel or a few sheets of kitchen paper to dry out.
4. Place a skewer or bamboo stick inside the egg shell and gently pierce the bottom. This is to remove the air pocket at the bottom. Melt the margarine until it is completely runny and pour inside the egg shells one at a time. 5. Cover the hole at the top of the egg with your thumb and shake it a few times. Then pour out an excess margarine.
6. Put the egg shells into the cardboard egg box but don’t use a plastic egg box. Make sure the hole is at the top. It can be baked in an electric oven in the cardboard egg box. If you’re baking in a gas oven place the egg shells into a cupcake tray instead. Get a cupcake tray and place a scrunched up piece of tinfoil into six holes then put the greased egg shells in the middle of the tinfoil.

To Make the Cake Mixture
1. Preheat oven 180oC / 160oC fan/ gas 4.
2. In a large bowl put the caster sugar, butter, egg, self raising flour and cocoa powder or lemon zest and lemon oil. Use an electric mixer and whisk the mixture for 1 minutes until all the mixture is smooth and fluffy.
3. Fill a zip lock plastic freezer bag with the cake mixture. Push it down into one corner. Cut the end of the corner with a scissors and fill each egg ¾ way up with cake mixture.
4. Place the egg box or cupcake tin onto a baking tray. Then bake in a preheated oven for about 30 minutes. Some of the cake mixture will explode out of the egg shell. Don’t worry this is perfectly normal.
5. To check the cakes are fully cooked, stick a bamboo stick into the cake inside the egg shell. If it comes out clean the cakes are ready.
6. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely. Then carefully peel away the egg shell to reveal an egg shaped cake.

To Decorate
1. Put the Easter egg cakes into the freezer for 30 minutes. Put the desiccated coconut into a bowl. Add a few drops of food colouring and rub together until the coconut has changed colour.
2. Break the chocolate into small pieces. Place into a heat proof glass bowl and melt the chocolate slowly over a saucepan of warm water. The chocolate can also be melted in the microwave. Place it in a microwavable plastic bowl and melt in on the lowest setting for 1 minute. Stir and repeat that step until the chocolate is completely melted.
3. Remove the cake from the freezer, stick a fork into the cake and spoon the melted chocolate over it. Allow the excess chocolate to drip off then roll it into the coconut.

Chocolate Biscuit Pizza Cake

This fantastically fun recipe is the perfect way to use up your leftover Easter egg chocolate and create something fabulous for the whole family to enjoy. This chocolate pizza recipe is like a chocolate biscuit cake meets rocky road slice of heaven!

Ingredients:

For pizza base
– 500g chocolate – leftover Easter eggs
– 1 tin (397g) condensed milk
– 225g unsalted butter, melted
– 400g digestive biscuits
– 250g rich tea biscuits

For pizza topping
– 200g marshmallows
– 4 tbsp milk
– Red food colouring, a few drops
– 200g white chocolate
– Sweets to decorate the top

Method:

1. Break the chocolate into small pieces, place in a heat proof bowl and melt over a saucepan of warm water. Stir until melted.
2. Put the biscuits into a freezer bag, or between two pieces of cling film and using rolling pin roughly crushed, then pour the crumbs into a large bowl.
3. Stir in melted butter and then the condensed milk, followed by the melted chocolate and give it a good mix.
4. Line a 12 inch tart tin with baking parchment, and put tin foil around the edge inside the tin.
5. Spoon the biscuit mixture into the tin and flatten with the back of a spoon.
6. Place the cake in the fridge until hard.

To Decorate
1. Place the marshmallows and milk into heat proof bowl and melt over a saucepan of warm water. Stir until melted and then add a few drops of red food colouring.
2. Spread the marshmallow mixture over the biscuit base, then grate the white chocolate over it.
3. Decorate with sweets to look like pizza toppings.

RECIPES BY FOODOPPI

Foodoppi is a creative fun online food network for children set up by Louise Lennox and Aisling Larkin. As Ireland’s children’s food experts and busy mums they understand the daily struggles of parents and the importance of reconnecting our future generations with food in a positive way. They are training children to try new foods, appreciate tastes and develop an appetite for real, good food.

Louise Lennox is best known as the bubbly chef on our TV screens. She has hosted and worked on food shows for children’s television. She runs her own children’s cookery school and has been visiting schools throughout the country; working with teachers and pupils for many years since completing her studies in diet, health and nutrition in DIT Kevin Street.

Aisling Larkin has a B. Ed in Home Economics from Trinity and M.Sc in Food Product Development & Culinary Innovation from DIT. She founded The Academy for Junior Chefs, Ireland’s premier children’s cookery school over 4 years ago and has hosted children’s cookery events at The Taste of Dublin and Electric Picnic. Aisling has a natural flair for recipe creation & food styling for children.
Louise and Aisling have over 20 years’ experience between them, developing and devising new recipes that children can cook, will eat and enjoy.

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