Rocky road is my favourite all time sweet treat. Kind of like eating Toblerone (which would be one of my favourite chocolates), there is nothing more satisfying than having a huge chunk of dense sweetness to sink my teeth into! It fills a hole in my world that is not quite met by a humble chocolate bar and is also not quite as excessive as something like lemon meringue pie, my favourite dessert. Rocky road is great because you can tweak the recipe to suit tastes and budgets (rocky road can be admittedly verrrry expensive to make) making it a great option for those last minute guests. Below are two recipes for rocky road, one is a recipe I quite often make at Christmas time because it’s festive pistachio and cranberries included) and the second is a white chocolate variation, with less expensive ingredients.

Christmas Rocky Road
Collect

• 2 cups good quality dark chocolate
• 1 c good quality milk chocolate
• 1/2 c roasted macadamias (plus extra to decorate)
• 1/2 c Turkish delight (plus extra to decorate)
• 1 c marshmallows
• 1/2 c pistachios (plus extra to decorate)
• 1/4 c dried cranberries (plus extra to decorate)

Create

1. Line an 8-inch tray with baking paper, ensuring there is overhang at each end.
2. Melt the chocolate, either in short bursts in the microwave or on the stove. Stir regularly to avoid burning and avoid contact with water.
3. Roughly chop the macadamia nuts, marshmallows and the Turkish delight. Add to the chocolate, along with the pistachios and cranberries. Stir until everything is coated in chocolate.
4. Pour the mixture into the lined baking dish and use a knife or a spatula to flatten the mixture into an even layer. Decorate the top with extra nuts, cranberries and Turkish delight while the chocolate is still wet.
5. Refrigerate for at least one hour or until set. Cut into squares to serve.

Hot takes

• Keep the rocky road in an airtight container in the fridge where it will last about a week. On the rare occasion when I haven’t eaten it all, I have found that it freezes well – just make sure you take it out of the freezer 20 minutes or so before you want to eat it.
• Make it nut free by omitting the nuts and adding extra Turkish delight or marshmallows instead. It also works to crush up wine biscuits and add (as you’ll see in the recipe below) but they don’t quite have the same longevity (still usually fine to last a few days though).

White Chocolate Variation
Collect

• 350g Whittaker’s Blondie Chocolate (for that caramelised flavour)
• 180g marshmallows, roughly chopped
• 1/3 c roasted unsalted almonds, roughly chopped
• 1/3 c plain vanilla biscuit, roughly chopped
• 1/3 c raspberry liquorice (or Turkish delight), roughly chopped

Create

1. Line an 8-inch tray with baking paper, ensuring there is overhang at each end.
2. Melt the chocolate, either in short bursts in the microwave or on the stove. Stir regularly to avoid burning and avoid contact with water.
3. Add the chopped marshmallows, almonds, biscuit and liquorice to the chocolate. Stir until everything is coated in chocolate.
4. Pour the mixture into the lined baking dish and use a knife or a spatula to flatten the mixture into an even layer.
5. Refrigerate for at least one hour or until set. Cut into squares to serve.