Easter Eggs Food

CHOCOLATE EASTER EGGS

Steps:

• Wrap 12 large egg moulds or eggs tightly with plastic wrap, leaving plastic twisted at one end to make a kind of handle.
• Place chocolate in a small, deep heavy pot over low heat and melt stirring occasionally until liquid. Remove from heat and let cool for 5 minutes or until slightly thickened. Holding plastic handle, dip eggs into chocolate until coated half way up each egg.
• Carefully place eggs (chocolate side up) in a mini muffin pan or egg carton and put in refrigerator for 10 minutes, or until chocolate has set.
• Remove chocolate covered moulds from mini muffin pan or egg carton. Carefully ease plastic and chocolate from moulds. Next peel plastic from the inside of the chocolate to leave a chocolate shell behind. Set shells into mini muffin pans or egg cartons and chill while you make marshmallow fluff.
• Pour ¼ cup (60 mL) cold water in the bowl of a stand mixer, and sprinkle with gelatine. Let stand.
• Combine sugar, corn syrup, salt and remaining ¼ cup (60 mL) water in a pot and heat over medium-high heat, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Turn heat to high and boil syrup until it reaches 240ºF (118ºC) on a sugar thermometer.
• With the mixer on low speed, carefully pour boiling sugar syrup down the side of the mixing bowl into the gelatine mixture. Turn mixer to high and beat for 5 minutes or until mixture is white and shiny. Beat in vanilla.
• Transfer fluff to a large clean piping bag and pipe into prepared chocolate eggshells. If you do not have a piping bag, cut a corner off a baggie, add the marshmallow fluff and pipe it in through the corner. You can also spoon it in but it doesn't look as pretty. Sandwich egg halves together if desired.
• Leave to set at room temperature until firm. Refrigerate until needed. Makes 12-16 filled eggs.

CHEESECAKE-FILLED EASTER EGGS

Steps:

• Carefully separate the Easter egg in half along the seam. (Use a knife dipped into a bowl of hot water to cut through the seam rather than slicing, as it may break the chocolate.)
• Tip the digestive biscuits into a bowl or food bag and bash to crumbs with the end of a rolling pin. Stir in the melted butter until the mixture resembles damp sand. Spoon this into the Easter egg halves and pack down gently using the back of the spoon. Chill until needed.
• Mix the mascarpone, soft cheese, icing sugar and cocoa together in a medium bowl with a wooden spoon until smooth. In a separate bowl, beat the double cream to soft peaks using an electric whisk. Gently fold the whipped cream into the mascarpone mixture, then carefully spoon the cheesecake filling over the chilled biscuit bases in the Easter eggs. Gently level the surfaces with a palette knife or spatula, then chill for at least 2 hrs or overnight until firm and set. You may be left with extra cheesecake filling, depending on the size of your Easter eggs - this can be spooned into glasses over extra digestive crumbs for another treat.
• Scatter the set cheesecake-filled eggs with mini chocolate eggs or other Easter treats, then drizzle with caramel or melted chocolate to serve.