The 26th of January is Australia Day - the somewhat contentious holiday commemorating white settlement in Australia. It has become an excuse for unpleasant nationalism and racism, and I am pretty glad I don't live in Australia any more when I see some of the things that are said and done in the name of Australian "pride".However, this year I decided that I would take something to work to show my colleagues the triumphs of Australian cuisine. I was tempted to introduce them to lamingtons - but I couldn't handle the thought of the mess. Chocolate crackles need Copha, and I don't know what the British substitute would be. Pavlova is really from New Zealand. Melting moments are too fragile too survive the London underground. So I settled on the Mars Bar Slice because it is sweet, requires no baking, is robust, doesn't need refrigeration under normal winter weather conditions and needs no expensive or exotic ingredients. And then my friend HH suggested doing them as cupcakes, which I thought was brilliant.
I followed this recipe, substituting good dark chocolate for the milk chocolate in the icing (it's sweet enough), squashing spoonfuls into paper cupcake cases, dolloping on the icing and then pressing a slice of mars bar onto the top for a garnish. Doing it this way you end up with quite a lot more icing than you need - I'd probably make 2/3 quantity to do it again. It made 14 generously-sized cupcakes, but could be very cute in tiny cases as a petit four. They were very popular in the office!
17 comments:
Oh wow--do these look decadent and so good! I have not had a Mars Bar in ages and making cupcakes is brilliant.
My goodness! Do you think they need the icing? I find mars bars slice so rich (but I am sorely tempted to make them soon after seeing them - YUM!)
About copha - my scottish relative who loves Copha recipes has tried just about every product she can to substitute for copha - without success. They do have copha in some of the Australian themed shops over there now.
Deb - glad you like them!
Jacki - my nearest Australian shop doesn't have perishables, unfortunately. They don't NEED the icing, but it just makes them prettier and you might as well be hanged for a sheep as a lamb!
Hooray - cakes for a happier world!
Yum yum! I love learning about different cuisines and Foodycat is all about that.
Alex - they do make the world a better place!
Rachel - it is the best bit about blogging!
wow, does that look like a sweet treat
Your colleagues are lucky lucky people, these look really good!
Excellent idea. They look decadent.
My daughter has been buying me Mars bars for special occasions since she was little. In the beginning it was all she had money for - now it is tradition!
I love that you made a baked dessert out of them - so creative!
ohhh yum. candy bars in dessert?! i'm in heaven!
Kat - it certainly satisfies the sweet tooth.
Sam - they enjoyed them. I should make stuff for work more often.
Donna - you should try them.
Natashya - that is so cute! These are actually a dessert you make from a very young age in Australia, because there are no sharp knives or baking involved, just a bit of stirring.
Heather - I think you would like this!
OMG. I'm going to have to pretend I didn't see this. We've been eating our way through Queensland and have turned into porkers!
I couldn't get reservations at the Spirit House, which my husband's aunt agrees is fabulous. And Eli was acting up so we didn't dare attempt Pilu. Sigh. Next time, I suppose.
Oh wow. That's all I can say. I've never heard of Australia day. Weren't the first whites in Australia actually outcast prisoners from Britain? Is there pride in that?
These bites look fantastic!
Oh my word....this look and sound wonderful. The Mars bars were perfect!
Dee - you went to Freestyle, you don't need these!
Joie - hell yes there is! It is very fashionable to be able to trace your family to a First Fleet transported convict.
Esi - thanks!
Leslie - thanks! I used a pack of snack-size mars bars, so the leftover one that I used for garnish was small enough to be cute.
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