Apple rocky road

This apple rocky road has all the loveliness of a rocky road, but with a difference: Squidgy marshmallow, sweet white chocolate, tart dried apples and fruity sultanas. A little bit goes a long way.

Apple rocky road. Credit: Nadiya's Family Favourites

• makes

  18

• prep

  20 minutes

• cook

  5 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 200 g white chocolate (or chocolate chips)
• 1½ tbsp (30 ml) golden syrup
• 130 g unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing
• pinch of salt
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• 200 g cinnamon biscuits (or digestives)
• 100 g white mini marshmallows (or chopped large marshmallows, see Note)
• 100 g dried apples, chopped into small pieces
• 50 g raisins
• 1 tbsp icing sugar, for dusting

Cooling time: 10 minutes. Setting time: at least 1 hour.

Instructions

1. Lightly grease the inside of a 23 cm square baking tin. You can be very light-handed. This is just to keep the paper in place. Then line the base and sides of the tin.
2. Put about 2.5 cm of water into a medium saucepan. Find a heatproof bowl that will fit the top of the pan snugly. Make sure the base of the bowl doesn’t touch the water, because this can scald the chocolate. Put the pan on the stove and turn it up to a high heat. As soon as the water is boiling, turn it down low.
3. Meanwhile, chop the chocolate, or alternatively use chocolate chips. Put the chocolate into the bowl along with the golden syrup and butter.
4. Stir occasionally, making sure to agitate the chocolate, as this will encourage the mixture to come together.
5. As soon as the mixture is smooth and liquid and runny, take off the heat and allow to cool for about 10 minutes. If it’s too hot when the marshmallows are added, there will be a sticky mess.
6. Add the salt and cinnamon and mix through.
7. Crush the biscuits very roughly, by putting them into a freezer bag and crushing them here and there with a rolling pin. Empty the contents of the bag into the chocolate mix. Give it a stir.
8. Now add the marshmallows, apples and raisins and stir, making sure everything is well coated.
9. Pour the mixture into the prepared tin, then, using the back of a spoon, really go to work to flatten it and press it into the corners. Put the tin into the fridge for at least 1 hour, or until it has set.
10. Take out of the tin and unwrap. Dust with the icing sugar and slice into 18 bars, or choose your own size according to your sweet tooth.

Note

• Rocky road was one of the first things I ever made with my children, minus the marshmallows. Twelve years ago, finding halal or even vegetarian marshmallows was tricky, making even simple recipes like this feel like quite a challenge. But now alternative ingredients are much more widely available, and I can find halal and veggie marshmallows in most big brand supermarkets.
• If you can only find big marshmallows, use scissors to chop them into small pieces.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.