Cherry and chocolate roly poly recipe

Our cherry and chocolate roly poly is a sophisticated twist on a childhood classic. Tart cherries and smooth chocolate give this classic British pudding a flavour makeover, whilst staying true to the idea of the much-loved classic. Using good quality dark chocolate chips makes a real difference here! This cherry and chocolate roly poly is the perfect nostalgic dessert to serve after a Sunday roast or to bake up for a tea-time treat. It’s much easier to make than you’d think, and tastes better than any shop bought roly poly.

Ingredients

• butter, for greasing
• 150g self-raising flour, plus extra for dusting
• 50g caster sugar
• 75g vegetable suet
• zest of 1⁄2 lemon
• 75-100ml milk, plus extra for brushing
• 100g cherries marinated in kirsch, drained and roughly chopped (reserve some of the juice for serving)
• 1tbsp jam
• 50g dark chocolate chips
• 40g flaked almonds
• custard, to serve

Method

1. Heat the oven to 190C, and butter a large sheet of baking parchment. Mix the four, sugar, suet and lemon zest in a bowl, then gradually add 75ml of milk, stirring with a knife until it comes together to form a soft dough. Add the remaining milk if the mixture is too dry.
2. Roll out the dough on a floured surface to 30 x 20cm. Mix the cherries and jam together, then spread this over the dough, leaving a 2cm border, then sprinkle with chocolate chips and almonds. Brush the edges with a little milk and roll up from the short edge. Pinch the ends to prevent the filling oozing out.
3. Put the roly poly on the parchment, seam side down. Wrap up lightly, twisting the ends to seal. Bake for 25-35 mins until golden. Leave for 5 mins before opening and put on a plate. Cut into slices and serve with custard and leftover cherry juice. For a classic jam role poly, check out our traditional jam role poly recipe (opens in new tab), with custard.