Chocolate shortbread

Ingredients

225 g (8 oz) unsalted butter
6 tbsp SPLENDA Granulated Sweetener
60 g (2 ½ oz) caster sugar
½ tsp vanilla extract
6 tbsp cocoa powder
250 g (9 oz) plain flour
Preheat oven to 190 C, 375 F or gas mark 5. Line two baking trays with baking parchment. 

Place butter, SPLENDA, sugar and vanilla in a large bowl and use an electric whisk to beat together until smooth and beginning to lighten in colour. Sift in cocoa and flour and beat until well combined. Divide dough into two balls and flatten with your hands to create two rounds, each approximately 15 cm (6 in) in diameter. Prick all over and make a fluted pattern around edges with a fork. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until beginning to brown. 

Remove from oven and cut each round into wedges. Leave to cool on trays before transferring to an airtight container.

Chocolate, nut and raisin loaf 

Ingredients

For dough:
375 g (13 oz) strong white bread flour
60 g (2 ½ oz) caster sugar
1 x 7 g sachet fast action dried yeast
200 ml (7 fl oz) Gold Top milk
60 g (2 ½ oz) unsalted butter, melted
1 egg, beaten

For filling:
25 g (1 oz) unsalted butter, melted
4 tbsp raisins 
4 tbsp pecan nuts, toasted and chopped roughly
150 g (5 oz) dark chocolate chips
6 tbsp caster sugar

Grease and line the base of a 20 cm (8 in) cake tin with baking parchment.

To make dough, sift all but 1 rounded tbsp of flour into the bowl of an electric mixer. Add 1 / 2 tsp salt with sugar and yeast. Heat milk until it feels just warm (around blood heat) and pour into bowl with melted butter and egg. Fit a dough hook to mixer and use to form a dough. If mix is too wet, add enough of reserved flour to make a soft, elastic dough. Allow mixer to knead dough for 4 minutes. Place dough in a lightly oiled bowl and cover with oiled cling film. Leave to rise for 1 to 2 hours, or until doubled in size. Knead dough lightly again and roll out to form a rectangle around 60 cm x 18 cm (24 in x 7 in). 

Make filling by brushing dough on one side with melted butter. Sprinkle on raisins, nuts, chocolate chips and 2 tbsp of sugar, covering dough almost to the edges. Roll up tightly lengthways to make a sausage shape, then coil this into the cake tin. Cover and leave for 30 to 40 minutes, or until doubled in size. 

Preheat oven to 180 C, 350 F or gas mark 4. 

Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until golden. Meanwhile, place remaining sugar in a small pan with 4 tbsp water and heat until sugar dissolves. Bring to boil and bubble for 2 minutes to make a glaze. Brush glaze over loaf as soon as it comes out of the oven. Cool in tin for 10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

Chocolate fridge cake 

Ingredients

250 g (9 oz) Total 2 % Greek Yoghurt
250 ml (9 fl oz) double cream, whipped lightly
75 ml (3 fl oz) strong black coffee
75 ml (3 fl oz) Tia Maria
5 tbsp glucose syrup
500 g (1 lb 2 oz) dark chocolate, melted
200 g (7 oz) mixed chopped nuts dried fruit and broken biscuits

Fold yoghurt into whipped cream and chill.

Pour coffee and Tia Maria into a pan and warm gently. Add glucose syrup and heat until dissolved. Pour into melted chocolate. Add nuts, fruit and biscuits and stir together. Fold cream and yoghurt into chocolate mix.

Pour into a 25 cm (10 in) round cake tin. Chill for 12 hours before cutting into portions.

Chocolate banoffee pie 

Ingredients

For base:
2 tbsp cocoa powder
1 tsp mixed spice
100 g (4 oz) butter, melted
250 g (9 oz) digestive biscuits, crushed finely

For topping:
100 g (4 oz) butter
50 g (2 oz) caster sugar 
50 g (2 oz) dark brown soft sugar
1 x 397 g can Carnation Condensed Milk
1 tbsp treacle
75 g (3 oz) dark chocolate, melted
4 bananas
1 x 284 ml carton double cream, whipped

Mix cocoa powder with spice, melted butter and biscuit crumbs. Press mix into base and part of the way up the sides of a 20 cm (8 in) cake tin. Chill.

To make topping, place butter and sugars in a pan and heat gently, stirring, until butter has melted and sugar dissolved. Add condensed milk and gently bring to the boil, stirring. As soon as mix comes to boil, remove from heat, add treacle and melted chocolate and mix well.

Spread chocolate mix over biscuit base and chill for an hour. Slice bananas and fold half into whipped cream and spoon over chocolate topping. Decorate with remaining bananas and dust with cocoa powder, if liked.

Macadamia rocky road

Ingredients

75 g (3 oz) macadamia nuts
200 g (7 oz) marshmallows
75 g (3 oz) glacé cherries chopped
25 g (1 oz) desiccated coconut (optional)
500 g (1 lb 2 oz) milk chocolate, melted

Line a 24 cm (9 in) square tin with baking parchment.

Toss nuts, marshmallows, cherries and coconut, if using, together in a bowl. Scatter over base of tin. Pour over melted chocolate and allow to set. Heat a sharp knife (dip into hot water then dry) and use to cut rocky road into pieces.

Cookie crumble cheesecake 

Ingredients

275 g (10 oz) Galaxy Cookie Crumble chocolate
175 g (6 oz) digestive biscuits, crushed
300 g (11 oz) cream cheese
200 g (7 oz) double cream
2 tsp lime juice
50 g (2 oz) caster sugar
Chocolate shavings, to serve

Lightly grease a 20 cm (8 in) flan or tart tin.

Melt 150 g (5 oz) of chocolate and pour over biscuit crumbs. Stir until crumbs are well coated, then press into base of tin. Chill for 30 minutes.

Melt remaining chocolate.

Meanwhile, beat cream cheese, cream, lime juice and sugar together. Add melted chocolate and stir very lightly (do not mix in thoroughly). Spoon onto biscuit base and top with chocolate shavings. Chill for at least 15 minutes before serving.