Create a Chocolate Jungle in a Jam Jar

This summer let your child's imagination run wild. Underneath a layer of coconut grass, jelly snakes and chocolate trees they'll find a squidgy chocolate pudding.

Ingredients:

• 150g butter, cubed
• 200g bar milk chocolate
• 50g white chocolate
• 3 large eggs
• 150g golden caster sugar
• 75g plain flour
• 25g cocoa powder
• 75g desiccated coconut
• 1 tsp green food colouring
• 250g pack green ready-to-roll icing
• 75g pack milk chocolate sticks (we used Mikado)
• 200g pack jelly snakes (we used Natural Confectionery Co.)

Method

1. Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Break up 150g of the milk chocolate and put it in a bowl with the butter. Sit the bowl over a pan of gently simmering water and allow to melt, stirring occasionally, until smooth. Set aside to cool.
2. Grate the remaining milk chocolate and set aside. Now chop the white chocolate into small pieces.
3. Put the eggs and sugar in a bowl and, using an electric hand whisk, beat for 4-5 mins until pale and thickened.
4. Pour the melted butter and chocolate into the egg mixture and stir. Sieve the flour and cocoa powder and fold into the mixture. Stir in the white chocolate.
5. Divide the mixture between the jam jars. Sit the jam jars in a roasting tin and pour boiling water into the bottom of the tin, so that the water rises a quarter of the way up the sides of the jars. Bake for 15-20 mins until the top of the chocolate pudding is set but the middle is still squidgy.
6. Remove from the oven and, while still hot, sprinkle the remaining grated chocolate over the tops of each pudding. Leave to cool slightly, then carefully remove the jars from the tin and allow to cool completely.
7. To create your jungle scene, place the desiccated coconut in a bowl and add green food colouring – this will be your grass layer of the jungle. Now sprinkle a layer over the top of the pudding.
8. Roll out a piece of green icing to make a thin ‘worm’ measuring 18cm. Coil this around one of the chocolate sticks to create a creeping plant growing up the tree. Skewer this into the pudding and repeat with 2 more.
9. Add a few jelly snakes to your jungle, coiling in and around the trees to set the scene. Repeat with the other jars.
10. Using another piece of green icing, cut out 3 leaves to attach to the top of the chocolate sticks. Allow the icing to firm up for about 20 mins, then sit the leaves on top of the rim of the jar.