I have to confess that I think life is far too short to make my own puff pastry.  I use shop bought and always have a couple of blocks in the fridge.  I also have to confess that chocolate spread is a staple in our house, whether it’s a jar of milk chocolate spread or Nutella.  There’s something ridiculously comforting about a slice of toast covered with chocolate!

These little chocolaty, almondy pastries are lovely.  Just right with a cup of coffee or a for a sneaky breakfast chocolate hit!  They don’t keep well so it’s best to eat them on the day they are baked, not that it’s hard to do so!

Chocolate and Almond Whirls

1 x 500g block of Puff Pastry

Chocolate Spread (it’s hard to give precise measurements as it’s down to personal taste but I tend to use about 6 good tbsps)

Ground almonds

Light brown sugar for sprinkling

Preheat oven to 200oC and grease 2 baking trays.

Roll out the pastry in a rectangle to a depth of about 4mm.

Spread the pastry with the chocolate spread right to the edges and sprinkle with the ground almonds until the chocolate is covered.

Roll the pastry up from the long side, so it resembles a Swiss Roll.

Cut into rings of about a width of 1cm and place on the baking trays.

Sprinkle with sugar and bake for approx 20 mins but please keep an eye on them as everyone’s oven is different and you don’t want burnt whirls!

Cool on a wire rack. Can be eaten warm or cold.

You could also use Nutella and chopped, toasted hazelnuts for a slightly different whirl.