I have always loved Easter. When I was little, my sister and I would carefully arrange our Easter eggs in our bedroom, each with its beautiful bright wrapping, comparing who had the best loot and which one of us could make their haul last longer. The chocolate-egg trading in our house was a very serious affair, and I often lost out due to the savviness of my older sister. It was never too long until we eventually decided to pool our resources and put our chocolate together to make buns, cakes, cookies and anything else we could think of. Mum was probably delighted to get rid of the slowly melting chocolate, so would let us take over in the kitchen. Below are some recipes for making the most of a surplus of chocolate. The Easter nests are barely even a recipe — just a festive variation on chocolate rice krispie buns, often the first treat that any child creates in the kitchen. The Earl Grey chocolate mousse is a quick, simple little recipe that has a gorgeous flavour from the oil of bergamot (a citrus fruit hybrid of bitter orange and lemon) that Earl Grey tea contains. This mousse works a treat with shortbread biscuits or, once set, sandwiched between meringues. Everyone loves a chocolate truffle and these are divine. I love the flavour combo of white chocolate and cardamom, but if you prefer, omit the sweet spice and use a little ginger or orange zest instead, and use milk chocolate instead of white. And for something sweet and soothing, whip up a creamy hot chocolate with leftover Easter eggs. If the adults fancy it, an added splash of brandy or whiskey wouldn’t go astray... now that’s a good way to use up leftover chocolate. Happy Easter!