Chocolate Mice, Aussie Style

This recipe is a copy-cat of Three Not so Blind Mice by Rita. We can't get the ingredients here in Australia, so I came up with this, but do check her recipe.

• Ready In: 25 mins
• Yields: 12 mice

Ingredients

• 12  marshmallows (or large Glace cherries)
• 5  cm  strap  licorice
• 24  rainbow chocolate chips
• 12  chocolate candy melts (I use Coles farmland brand)
• 200  g baking chocolate
• 50  g Copha
• 24  almonds, flakes (or one ice cream wafer)

Directions

1. Melt the chocolate and the copha together.
2. With a large knife, cut the licorice into 12 long slivers.
3. Line a tray with baking paper and lay the "tails" 2 inches apart.
4. Dip your marshmallows into the chocolate, position each one on a tail.
5. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.
6. Meanwhile, on another sheet of baking paper, arrange your almond flakes into 12 "sets" of ears. OR for nut free, cut and arrange triangles of the ice cream wafer.
7. By now the chocolate will have thickened up a little, so give it a stir, but don't re-melt.
8. Using about 1/4 teaspoon of the chocolate, glue the melts onto the "ears". Make sure the little "drippy" bit of the melt is pointing down.
9. Put in the fridge for about 10 minutes.
10. You may have to warm your chocolate slightly, but don't have it too runny.
11. Put a dab of chocolate onto the back of the mouse "face" and glue to the body.
12. Using tweezers, dip your preferred "eyes" into the chocolate, and position.
13. Wipe the tweezers between uses.
14. With a toothpick, put a tiny dab of chocolate on the eye.