Looking for something a little more fancy than the usual Easter egg feast this Easter, then try your hand at this easy chef-inspired Chocolate Fondant recipe from Royal Palm Executive Chef, Guy Gorrie. Your waistline may not be a fan, but your taste buds certainly will!

Ingredients

• 50g melted butter, for brushing
• cocoa powder, for dusting
• 200g good-quality dark chocolate, chopped into small pieces
• 200g butter, in small pieces
• 200g golden caster sugar
• 4 eggs and 4 yolks
• 200g plain flour

Method

1. First get your moulds ready. Using upward strokes, heavily brush melted butter (use 50g in total) all over the inside of the pudding mould.
2. Place the mould in the fridge or freezer.
3. Brush more melted butter over the chilled butter, then add a good spoonful of cocoa powder into the mould. Tip the mould so the powder completely coats the butter. Tap any excess cocoa back into the jar, then repeat with the next mould.
4. Place a bowl over a pan of barely simmering water, then slowly melt 200g good-quality dark chocolate and 200g butter, both chopped into small pieces, together.
5. Remove the bowl from the heat and stir until smooth.
6. Leave to cool for about 10 mins.
7. In a separate bowl whisk 4 eggs and 4 egg yolks together with 200g golden caster sugar until thick and pale and the whisk leaves a trail; use an electric whisk if you want.
8. Sift 200g plain flour into the eggs, then beat together.
9. Pour the melted chocolate into the egg mixture in thirds, beating well between each addition, until all the chocolate is added and the mixture is completely combined to a loose cake batter.
10. Tip the fondant batter into a jug, then evenly divide between the moulds.
11. The fondants can now be frozen for up to a month and cooked from frozen.
12. Chill for at least 20 mins or up to the night before.
13. To bake from frozen, simply carry on as stated, adding 5 mins more to the cooking time.
14. Heat oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6.
15. Place the fondants on a baking tray, then cook for 10-12 mins until the tops have formed a crust and they are starting to come away from the sides of their moulds. Remove from the oven, then leave to sit for 1 min before turning out.
16. Loosen the fondants by moving the tops very gently so they come away from the sides, easing them out of the moulds. Tip each fondant slightly onto your hand so you know it has come away, then tip back into the mould ready to plate up.

When plating, add some whipped cream or some strawberries to spruce up the dish. Just a warning though, once you’ve had a mouthful of this decadent Easter treat, you may not want to share the rest with your guests.