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Method

1. First make the homemade chocolate. If using cocoa beans, preheat the oven to 120C/100C Fan/Gas ½. Place the beans on a baking tray and refresh them in the oven for 15 minutes.

2. Bring them out of the oven and allow to cool. Pick out any tiny or twisted beans and discard. Peel off the outer shell of the bean and discard. What you have left is the edible part of the bean and, when crushed, you will have cocoa nibs.

3. If using cocoa nibs there is no need to heat them in the oven, you can move onto the grinding progress.

4. Place some of the shelled cacao beans or cocoa nibs into a mortar and start pounding and grinding using a pestle, adding some heat with a hairdryer or heat gun as you go. Keep going until a gritty paste is formed. Be patient, as this takes time – and some muscle power. The warmth you apply will allow the cocoa butter in the beans to soften and melt, making it easier to grind.

5. Once you have a paste that is pretty fluid, use a spatula to scrape it out into a metal bowl and place the bowl over a pan of hot water, then continue with the rest of the beans.

6. Once all your beans or nibs are crushed and melted into the bowl, add your icing sugar to sweeten and mix.

7. Once set, your chocolate is now ready to make the kisses.

8. To make the kisses, line a baking tray with baking paper.

9. Place half of your homemade chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of hot water and allow to melt. Chop the rest into small pieces. Mix the chopped chocolate into the melted chocolate until everything has melted.

10. Stir in the rest of the ingredients, then use a teaspoon to dollop small portions onto the prepared baking tray.

11. Tap the tray once on the worktop so that each portion becomes slightly spread out, but not too much – it’s a kiss, not a button.

12. Sprinkle the sugar over the chocolates kisses, then put in the fridge for 20 minutes to set. These can be kept in a sealed jar for 6 months.