Rocky Road Cakes are fun and easy to make! With only 4 simple ingredients and the touch of a few buttons these no bake rocky road muffins come together in no time.
Recipes like my Malteser Rocky Road, Mars Bar Cakes and Dark Chocolate Rocky Road are simple and the kids can help!
My Christmas Rocky Road, Nutella Puff Pastry Pinwheels and Microwave Marshmallow Fudge use similar ingredients with different themes.
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Recipe Highlights
I think you are going to love a number of things about this recipe! I have summarised the top reasons below:
- Only 4 ingredients needed
- Modern twist on a traditional favourite
- No baking or oven required
- Popular across age levels and cultures
- Easy recipe that has great taste and texture
- Suitable for gift giving, bake sales and morning teas
- Plenty of variations delivering different taste and textures
- Kid friendly, freezer friendly and family friendly recipe
- Individual cakes (or muffins) that are portion sizes
- Steps only take 15 minutes with 1 hour set time
Ingredients
The ingredients needed for the recipe are shown in the photo below. Scroll to the recipe card for detailed measurements and full instructions.
- Milk Chocolate: my favourite are milk chocolate melts. You can use a block, bits or melts to the equivalent amount. Cooking chocolate, not regular chocolate is best.
- Marshmallows: I recommend using mini marshmallows. They are so easy to work with and require no preparation. You can also use regular sized marshmallows and if so it is best to chop them into a couple of pieces.
- Peanuts: go for the roasted, unsalted version. If you prefer a different type, pistachios work well in rocky road as they also bring a bit more colour to the recipe.
- Glace cherries: these are a great addition to rocky road and are much less chewy than some hard candies. I recommend roughly chopping them before adding them to the mix.
Top Tip 1: You can use milk, white or dark chocolate to the equivalent amount for the recipe!
Instructions
Here are the step by step instructions to make the recipe. We start by lining a 12 hole muffin tin with patty or cup cake liners.
- Line a 12 hole muffin tin with cup cake liners (Photo 1)
- Combine peanuts, marshmallows and chopped cherries (Photo 2)
- Microwave chocolate for 3 mins (Photo 3)
- Pour melted chocolate over nut mix and stir to combine (Photo 4)
Top Tip 2: I recommend microwaving the chocolate for 2 mins, then remove and stir, then microwave for a final minute.
How to Make Rocky Road Cakes
- Pour melted chocolate over nut mixture (Photo 5)
- Stir to combine chocolate and nut mixture (Photo 6)
- Portion wet mix across the 12 muffin cups (Photo 7)
- Place the rocky road cakes into the fridge to set (Photo 8)
The easiest method to fill the muffin tin is to spoon one amount in and then a 2nd amount. It gets a bit messy if you try and do 1 ginormous scoop all at once.
Top Tip 3: Rocky road sets very quickly. So once you have combined the ingredients and are portioning into the muffin tin, work reasonably quickly so that the mix doesn't firm up too much in the mixing bowl.
If there any better combination of yum than crunchy nuts, soft pillows of marshmallows, sticky cherries and smooth melted chocolate in individual cake form? Nope, it simply doesn't get better than this!
Serving Suggestions
You, me and rocky road, how about it! Haha you don't need a lot of accompaniments when you are chowing down on your favourite chocolate!
If gift giving and baking is your favourite thing to do then you could make an assortment of rocky road versions for variety.
Try my Malteser Rocky Road, Dark Chocolate Rocky Road and Christmas Rocky Road for similar ingredient combinations with different flavours.
Substitutions and Variations
There is barely a limit when it comes to the combinations of rocky road and all of their possibilities!
A few varieties that you might like to try are:
- Adding pistachios instead of peanuts
- Adding in some desiccated or shredded coconut
- Using Maltesers (American Whoppers)
- Add spearmint or peppermint leaves
- Add Turkish delight pieces roughly chopped
- Use granulated instead of whole peanuts
- Try adding some popcorn to the mix
- Add raspberry lollies
- Try using brazil nuts
- Add chopped biscuits or shortbread pieces
- Using white or dark chocolate instead of milk
How to Guide
How to Store
This recipe is best stored in the fridge, in a sealed, air tight container.
How to Freeze
You can freeze rocky road for up to 3 months.
It is advisable to let the rocky road thaw in the fridge prior to consumption.
How to Reheat
This recipe uses the microwave (or stove) to melt the chocolate. There is no baking or reheating required. The cakes are best served at room temperature or from the fridge.
Expert Tips
Here are my top tips and tricks for you so that you can master the recipe each and every time!
- Definitely use liners and not try and oil the muffin tin. The paper is what ensures the rocky road recipe doesn't stick to the pan.
- You can use milk, dark or white chocolate. Go for your favourite or a combination of both!
- Rocky Road is all about the stuff hidden inside, don't decorate it!!
- Use a heatproof jug for melting the chocolate. It will get very hot, so use an oven mit or tea towel when removing so that you don't burn your hand.
- Use either a mini whisk or chopstick to stir the chocolate to ensure that all bits (pieces/melts) have melted.
- I never recommend using butter or salted butter to make rocky road
- Don't worry if it looks like the 1st scoop is beginning to set before you have added the 2nd. It will form one cake and stick together in the muffin hole.
- Refrigerate the cakes for a minimum of 1 hour to ensure that they have set.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between Tiffin and rocky road?
Chocolate Tiffin uses more ingredients in the chocolate mix than rocky road. It is common in chocolate tiffin for their to be condensed milk, cocoa power and chocolate.
Whereas rocky road uses melted chocolate.
What is rocky road cake made of?
This depends on your definition of a cake, muffin, cupcake, mini muffins and mini cupcakes.
Traditionally cake is used to describe a soft sponge like cake. However over time and with the development of various recipes, cake can be used to describe no baked goods and an assortment of mud cakes etc.
These rocky road cakes or muffins are made in the shape of individual cup cakes or muffins.
What is traditionally in rocky road?
The traditional ingredients for rocky road are chocolate, nuts and marshmallows.
Is rocky road a cake or biscuit?
Rocky road is a no bake slice. Traditionally using chocolate, marshmallows, lollies and nuts.
Recipe variations can include topping cupcakes with rocky road, adding biscuit pieces to the rocky road and using alternative candy such as Maltesers or clinkers.
How do you cut rocky road?
To cut rocky road, it is recommend to use a sharp knife and hold it under hot water prior to cutting. This will achieve straight smooth edges.
A benefit of these individual rocky road cakes is that they are made in the muffin tin, so there is no cutting of a block of rocky road involved.
Simply portion 1 rocky road cup per person.
More No Bake Recipes
If you love easy no bake recipes (hey, me too!), then you should set out to try each of these:
- Coco Pop Crackles (Coco Pop Cakes)
- Cherry Ripe Balls
- Baileys Cheesecake Balls
- Candy Cane Bark
- Microwave Chocolate Fudge
- Lemon Cheesecake Bliss Balls
- Snickers Fudge
- Mint Aero Fudge
Adrianne xx
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📖 Recipe
Rocky Road Cakes
Equipment
- 1 Muffin tin
- 12 Muffin Papers (Cupcake Liners)
- 1 Wooden spoon
- 1 Medium sized mixing bowl
- 1 Heatproof jug
- 1 Mini Whisk or Chop sticks to stir the melted chocolate
Ingredients
- 700 grams milk chocolate Note 1
- 100 grams mini marshmallows Note 2
- `1 cup peanuts roasted, unsalted
- 200 grams glace cherries roughly chopped
Instructions
- Line a 12 hole muffin tin with cup cake liners.
- In a medium size mixing bowl combine marshmallows, peanuts and chopped cherries. Stir till consistently mixed.
- Add milk chocolate to heat proof jug and microwave for 2 mins, remove, stir and then microwave for a further minute, stir again till all chocolate is melted. Note 3
- Pour melted chocolate over combined peanut mixture. Stir till mixture is covered by the chocolate.
- Using 2 desert spoons, portion the mix out evenly across the 12 muffin holes (work rather quickly). Note 4
- Place the muffin tin into the fridge and allow rocky road cakes to set for a minimum of 1 hour.
Notes
- Note 1: You can use milk, dark or white chocolate. You can use chocolate melts, bits or a block broken into pieces. I recommend always using cooking chocolate (not regular eating chocolate) for best results.
- Note 2: If you want to use regular size marshmallows, you can. I recommend using kitchen scissors and chopping them into 2-4 pieces 1st. It gets a bit sticky doing this, however, it is better than using the full size marshmallow, uncut.
- Note 3: The handle of the jug will be HOT so use an oven mit or tea towel around the handle when removing it.
- Note 4: Rocky Road is one of those recipes where the chocolate will begin to set again after it has initially been melted. So when portioning, work at a quicker rather than slower pace to ensure that all of the mix is in the muffin tin before it starts to set. I find doing an initial big scoop followed by a top up is the cleanest method as opposed to trying to fit too much in at the start, with bits of it dropping out left, eight and centre.
Elizabeth Howar says
My daughter made these for us for desert, so good!!