Fifteens

Name: Fifteens
Prep time: 15 min
Total time: 15 min
Yield: Makes 12 slices
Ingredients: 15 digestive biscuits; 15 glacé cherries, quartered; 15 marshmallows, quartered; 50g desiccated coconut; 200ml sweetened condensed milk (approximately half a tin)

By: Karyn Booth

Published: 19 Feb 25
Updated: 17 Mar 25

Fifteens is a no-bake 1970s Northern Irish classic named after the main ingredients in its foolproof recipe: 15 marshmallows, 15 glacé cherries and 15 digestive biscuits.

“This is a typical recipe for a time when kitchen scales were a rarity and recipes were more about intuition than precision – a treat that brings back warm, nostalgic memories of childhood and tradition, sprinkled with love,” says food writer Karyn Booth.

After studying catering in Belfast, Karyn fell in love with patisserie and worked in some of London’s best pastry kitchens, including The Ritz. She’s now a renowned food stylist and writer, creating wonders including an edible horse heart for TV show Game Of Thrones and a school desk made entirely of chocolate. Follow her on Instagram @karynstylesfood

Easy
March 2025

Test kitchen approved

Makes 12 slices
Prep time 15 min, plus 4 hours chilling

Fifteens is a no-bake 1970s Northern Irish classic named after the main ingredients in its foolproof recipe: 15 marshmallows, 15 glacé cherries and 15 digestive biscuits.

Nutrition: per serving

Calories: 207kcals
Fat: 31g (20g sugars)
Protein: 2.9g
Carbohydrates: 31g (20g sugars)
Fibre: 1.5g
Salt: 0.3g

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Ingredients

15 digestive biscuits
15 glacé cherries, quartered
15 marshmallows, quartered
50g desiccated coconut
200ml sweetened condensed milk (approximately half a tin)

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Method

Put the biscuits in a large mixing bowl and use a rolling pin to crush them, leaving some smallish chunks for texture. Add the glacé cherries, marshmallows and 1 tbsp of the desiccated coconut, then mix gently.
Pour in the condensed milk, a little at a time, stirring until the mixture becomes a soft, sticky dough.
Sprinkle the remaining coconut onto a sheet of baking paper roughly 30cm long. Spoon the biscuit mixture over the desiccated coconut, then roll it into a log roughly 20cm long, rolling it in the coconut until entirely coated.

Wrap the log tightly in the baking paper, twisting it at the ends to secure it, then transfer to the fridge for around 4 hours to set. Once chilled, slice into 12 rounds and serve.

Recipe from March 2025 Issue

Nutrition

Nutrition: per serving

Calories: 207kcals
Fat: 31g (20g sugars)
Protein: 2.9g
Carbohydrates: 31g (20g sugars)
Fibre: 1.5g
Salt: 0.3g

delicious. tips

The fifteens will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week.

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Recipe By:

Karyn Booth

Published: 19 Feb 25
Updated: 17 Mar 25

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yassine hammi says:

21st Feb 2025 at 8:51 pm

delicious recipe

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1. Phoebe Stone says:
  
  25th Feb 2025 at 11:23 am
  
  Thanks for your feedback!