During Christmas we all love to make lovely little snacks and sweets that are both fun and delicious, beautiful to look at and good to taste, capable of entertaining young children, and giving the home a warm atmosphere when used, for example, as a table centrepiece. Some examples might be edible wreaths, fruit centrepieces, stuffed panettone, decorations for the tree, and so on and so forth. Today’s idea is for some small chocolate Xmas trees, glazed with a green icing and decorated with sprinkles, either as treats for the children or to use as a nice centrepiece during Christmas lunch. Or you might wish to use this recipe to make one large tree to serve as a true Christmas dessert.

Beat the eggs with the sugar until frothy. Add the milk and melted butter. Beat the mixture again, then add the flour and baking powder. Also add the cocoa and cinnamon. Work everything together for a few minutes, then pour the mixture into your tree-shaped moulds. Bake at 180°C for 40 minutes, then remove from the oven and leave to cool. Meanwhile thoroughly beat together the icing sugar and the egg whites. Add a pinch of lemon zest and green dye. Adjust the quantity of dye according to how green you want your glaze to be. Decorate the surface of your trees with glaze, then add the coloured sprinkles.