Figos cheios

Step 1: Heat the oven to 350°F (325°F fan). Spread 3 ½ oz whole almonds on a tray and toast for 8–10 minutes, until they smell nutty and are light brown inside when you cut one open. Set aside 24 for the tops and let the rest cool.

Step 2: Grind the remaining almonds with 1 ⅜ oz sugar, 1 tbsp cocoa powder, ½ tsp ground cinnamon and 1 tsp lemon zest in a food processor until it looks like damp sand. Add 1 tbsp water and pulse until the mixture just holds together when pinched.

Step 3: Snip the hard stalk off each of 24 dried figs and cut down from the top, without going right through, so each fig opens like a book.

Step 4: Press a teaspoon of the almond paste into each fig and a whole toasted almond on top. Press two figs together, cut sides facing, to make a little parcel, or leave them open in a star if you prefer.

Step 5: Lay them on a lined tray and bake for 5 minutes, just until the figs glisten and the filling sets. A common mistake is baking them longer: the sugars in dried figs burn fast and turn bitter.

Step 6: Cool completely, then store in an airtight tin between sheets of baking paper for up to 3 weeks.