The Best Tiffin Ever: Sour Cherry Chocolate Biscuit Cake
The best tiffin ever may sound like a bit of a tall claim, but I consider myself somewhat of an expert. This sour cherry and almond chocolate biscuit cake really is a force to be reckoned with. Think crunchy biscuits combined with roasted almonds and sour cherries covered in dark milk chocolate mixed with amaretto, butter and a little syrup. There, I’ve given the game away already.
What is Tiffin?
Tiffin is an Indian word for snack, although these days it generally refers to lunch in India. In the UK, it’s a mix of biscuit and chocolate ganache with a variety of optional extras thrown in. Simple as it is, it’s one of my favourite sweet things to eat – ever.
This classic no-bake treat, otherwise known as fridge cake or chocolate biscuit cake has been around a long time. It’s said to have been invented in Scotland in the early 1900s. Scotland has a lot to answer for when it comes to biscuit temptation.
The UK’s top dessert is a chocolate brownie and unusually for me, I conform to the trend; a good chocolate brownie does it for me. However, tiffin is a strong contender as one of my favourite chocolate treats. It’s simple to prepare, no baking is required and you can make it as child-friendly or as sophisticated as you like.
When it comes to writing up the monthly #WeShouldCocoa entries, it’s almost inevitable I end up with chocolate cravings. Last month, it was a photo of tiffin that made me cave in.
The Best Tiffin Ever
A mix of 38% milk chocolate with a little dark chocolate thrown in makes for something slightly more sophisticated than your average child’s overly sweet fridge cake. The addition of Amaretto makes it even more so.
Golden syrup, on the other hand, helps the mixture hang together; I only added a touch to the mix as I don’t like my tiffin to be too sickly. A soupçon of butter helps to create a rich unctuous creation with a silky mouth feel, so that has to go in too.
I’ve tried various biscuits in my time when making this delicious no-bake chocolate treat, but I think the traditional digestives work the best. They are crunchy, easy to break up and are not overly sweet.
Raisins are the traditional dried fruit to throw into a tiffin mix, but I wanted something that would offset the sweetness of the chocolate, syrup and digestives. Sour cherries fit this bill handsomely. It’s really important to make sure the cherries are sour ones as it’s the contrast between sweet and sour that makes this the best tiffin ever. As it happened I had some sour cherry chocolates left over from Christmas, so I used these instead of the dried fruit I would normally add.
Green & Black’s used to do a gorgeous sour cherry chocolate bar. I don’t know why they stopped making it, but I miss it sorely.
For added crunchiness and to complement the cherries and amaretto, I reckoned toasted almonds were a must. I was absolutely right and my sour cherry and almond concoction really is the best tiffin ever.
I used a large silicone mould to set my tiffin in as I wanted thinnish pieces which I thought would be fun to break up by hand into various sized pieces. However, it would work just as well in a smaller sized pan and then cut into squares or rectangles when set.
Other Tiffin Recipes You Might Like
- Bounty full chocolate biscuit birthday cake
- Chocolate amaretto biscuit cake
- Christmas tiffin
- Easy Easter tiffin
- Lemon sherbert tiffin (gluten-free)
- Pecan and maple ginger tiffin
Keep in Touch
Thanks for visiting Tin and Thyme. If you make this sour cherry and almond chocolate biscuit cake, I’d love to hear about it in the comments below. And do please rate the recipe. Have you any top tips?Do share a photo on social media too and use the hashtag #tinandthyme, so I can spot it.
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Choclette x
The Best Ever Tiffin. PIN IT.
The Best Tiffin Ever
Ingredients
- 75 g unsalted butter
- 2 tbsp golden syrup
- 1 tbsp Amaretto liqueur
- 200 g milk chocolate 32% or higher
- 50 g dark chocolate 70% or higher
- 200 g digestive biscuits
- 25 g flaked almonds toasted
- 50 g dried sour cherries or 100g sour cherry dark chocolates
Instructions
- Place the butter, syrup and Amaretto into a pan over a low heat until the butter has melted.75 g unsalted butter, 2 tbsp golden syrup, 1 tbsp Amaretto liqueur
- Break up the chocolate and add to the pan. Turn off the heat. Leave for a few minutes to melt, then stir until completely combined.200 g milk chocolate, 50 g dark chocolate
- Place the biscuits in a large bowl and bash with the end of a rolling pin until they are in various sized pieces with a few crumbs. Alternatively, you could use a plastic bag, but I prefer not to use plastic when I can get away with it.200 g digestive biscuits
- Toast the almonds in a dry frying pan until golden, if you haven’t done so already, and stir into the biscuits along with the sour cherries or sour cherry chocolates, if using.25 g flaked almonds, 50 g dried sour cherries
- Pour the melted chocolate mixture over the biscuits and stir until everything is well coated.
- Pour into a 20 or 22cm buttered square pan and leave in a cool place for a couple of hours to set.
- Cut into whatever sized slices you like or break haphazardly with your hands.
Notes
Nutrition Estimate
Linkies
The best tiffin ever is my entry to this month’s #WeShouldCocoa. If you’re making anything with chocolate in March, do join in.
This sour cherry & almond chocolate biscuit cake also goes to #CookBlogShare with Easy Peasy Foodie.
Hi, just wondering when you add the amaretto ? Or do you soak the cherries in it?Am making it for Easter now .
Hi Niamh. I’m so sorry I omitted that bit of the recipe. You add it to the butter mixture just after the chocolate is melted. Although I expect soaking the cherries in it would be pretty good too. Happy Easter and I hope it turns out well for you.
This sounds swoonworthy – I love tiffin (well actually I love hedgehog a very close cousin). I never know it was a scottish creation but am not surprised. The sour cherries and toasted almonds sound fantastic.
Well I’m not sure what the difference is between tiffin and hedgehog, but I reckon I’d be up for that too 🙂
Chocolate and Cherries? No brainer! One of the best combos ever.
Thanks so much for linking my Creme Egg Biscuit Cake too xxx
If only I’d used cream instead of butter, I could have called it a Black Forest tiffin – now there’s an idea.
This look really tasty, I love the flavour combination!
Thanks Kat. It was delicious and I just wish I still had some to nibble on – or did I mean scoff?
You have inspired me! I am making one today, with ginger though, like the FB comment suggested. xx
Well ginger is fantastic in tiffin. More often than not I add crystallised ginger.
That looks amazing! I have to disagree about the digestives though – petit beurre biscuits all the way! The sour cherry and almond flavour sounds terrific 🙂
Hahaha. I’ve never actually tried petit beurre tiffin. I think the biscuits are sweeter than digestives, but definitely worth a go.
Oooh I love tiffin and I love the combos you’ve got going on here – delicious!! Thanks for linking up to #CookBlogShare. Eb x
Thanks Eb. The sour cherries really take the edge off any sweetness so the combination works particularly well.
I thought I tasted the best tiffin ever last week when a colleague brought some into work but it didn’t have toasted almonds in it and it definitely didn’t have amaretto in it! What a fantastic recipe. A must try I feel!
Hahaha Anna. I think you’re going to have to try it so you can judge for yourself which is the best tiffin ever 😉
I am making this for my lovely mother in law Ann for Mother’s Day. She never makes or buts treats for herself so I know she will appreciate this gorgeous sounding nibble. Thanks for sharing it
Oh yes Kellie. What a lovely idea. They’d make a fabulous Mother’s Day treat. A bit less sweet and more sophisticated than your average tiffin.
This definitely sounds like my kind of tiffin. Love sour cherries and anything with almonds and amaretti. What a good idea. I also make your whiskey truffles regularly and they are great!
Aw thanks Laura. It’s good to hear you like my whisky truffles 🙂 I can’t help it, I’m a confirmed chocoholic.
Of course, all the best sweet treats come from Scotland! However, I do believe you must be an honorary Scot because you have invented a wonderful combination of ingredients, cherries, almonds and chocolate, then to top it all, amaretto, I’m drooling here as I love them all. Thanks for including my chocolate tiffin recipe too.
Thank you Janice. Very happy to be an honorary Scot. Love Scotland, love the people.
Bet you can’t walk away just eating one or two. I love the combo of sour cherries and chocolate.
You’re quite right Angie. I ate rather more than was good for me. But I don’t regret it 🙂
Oh, you can’t go wrong with a tiffin. I bet it’s lovely with the addition of sour cherries too. Yum!
Well I have had some horridly sickly tiffin in my time and sometimes I’ve had them when they are obviously made with margarine – not at all pleasant. But I know what you mean.
I just love the sound of this with the sour cherries and Amaretto. I think I’d want to keep it all to myself!
I thought I ought to let CT in on the act, but I have to confess it didn’t last as long as I was hoping.
I absolutely love tiffin and this recipe sounds divine! Thanks for linking to my chocolate orange tiffin.
Thank you Mandy. It’s really quite irresistible and your chocolate orange tiffin sounds delightful too.
Oh my, this looks just amazing! Cherries and amaretto are my idea of total heaven, so I’ve bookmarked the recipe and will definitely be trying it. Thank you for sharing it!
Thanks Nickki. I really am struggling to think of many things more delicious than this. Let me know what you think if you do make it.
What a glorious tiffin! Love the combination of soured cherries, chocolate and almonds. Simply wonderful. Thank you for mentioning my recipe! 🙂
My pleasure Galina. Yes, it’s a lovely combination and has the added bonus of being easy to make.