Indulge your sweet tooth with chocolate drinks, truffles

Bring the sugar, cream and salt to a simmer. Pour over the chocolate in a heatproof bowl and whisk well until emulsified and glossy. Let the ganache cool, then refrigerate.

When you are ready to roll the truffles, mix the cocoa powder and sugar together well until fully combined. Now, take a generous amount of the ganache and having dipped your hands into the dry mixture, form your desired sphere — or feel free to give the truffles a rustic shape.

Once shaped, re-roll the truffles through the dry powder to coat them. Store in an airtight container in the fridge — or even the freezer if you want a constant supply of emergency truffles. But be sure to let them come to room temperature before eating.

*Added ingredients: Chili, (any) mustard, wasabi, blue cheese, pretzels, toasted cake crumbs, salt and pepper, (any) herbs, spices like cumin, coriander and fennel seeds

First, make the chocolate liqueur. Put 1/2 cup water in a saucepan along with the sugar and bring to a simmer. Let rest for 2 minutes, then pour over the chocolate pieces in a heatproof bowl. Whisk well and let cool thoroughly. Meanwhile, chill 2 martini glasses in the freezer for at least 30 minutes to get the frosted effect. In a cocktail shaker or pitcher, place gin, the lemon juice, Creme de Mures and 6 of the blackberries. Muddle and mix well until the blackberries burst slightly.

Place a pyramid of crushed ice into each glass and pour over the blackberry mixture. Now top up each glass with the chocolate liqueur, then place a blackberry and a piece of dark chocolate on top of each ice pyramid.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place the flour cocoa, salt and butter in a large mixing bowl. Rub between your fingers until the mixture has the consistency of breadcrumbs. Add the sugar and mix well. Whisk 6 tablespoons water with the cream and eggs. Pour into the dry mixture. Mix until smooth.

For the cupcakes, you can either use shop-bought paper cases or, for a more contemporary style, make them yourself using nonstick paper parchment; cut 6-inch squares of parchment paper, scrunch them up tight in your hand, then open them out just enough to fit into the muffin cups.

Fill each case three-quarters full with cake batter and sprinkle each with plenty of cacao nibs. Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until springy to the touch. Remove from the muffin pan and place on a wire rack to cool. To make the sugar syrup, bring 2/3 cup water, the sugar and all the spices to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and infuse for 15 minutes. Strain through a sieve into a liquid measuring cup.

While the cupcakes are still warm, slowly and gradually moisten each one with an even amount of syrup until glossy, allowing the syrup to soak fully into the cakes. If serving as a plated desert, reserve some syrup to drizzle over and around each cake.