Serves 4

Ingredients
125 gm cashewnuts
125 gm almonds
180 gm castor sugar
80 gm white Grenada chocolate wafers
80 gm dark Grenada chocolate wafers
5-10 gm dark chocolate (optional)
1 drop almond essence
1 drop vanilla essence (optional)

Method
Set a saucepan with water on the stove and bring the water to a boil.

Add the almonds to the hot water and boil for two minutes.

Strain the blanched almonds from the water, wrap in a clean kitchen towel and rub carefully to loosen the skin. Remove the remaining skin by hand.

Now, simmer cashewnuts and almonds for approximately 20 minutes in water, then set aside. Let the dry fruits cool in the water.

Once the almonds and cashewnuts are cold, strain the water and dry them by wrapping in a kitchen towel.

Grind into a fine paste, without separating the oil from the paste.

Add the sugar and almond essence. Grind some more.

Place the mixture in a kadhai and simmer over slow heat. Continuously stir the paste, until the sugar has completely dissolved and the paste has reached a thick, smooth consistency.

Set the paste aside. Cover it with a kitchen towel and wait until it cools.

(Optional) Then split the paste into two parts.

(Optional) Add a drop of vanilla flavour to the portion of the paste you will use for the white figures.

(Optional) For the dark figures, mix some dark chocolate powder into the paste

Dust a clean working table (marble is ideal) with icing sugar and form the almond paste into artistic figures by hand.

Prepare a chess board with the white & dark Grenada chocolate wafers.

Place the chess board on a platter and place the figures decorate the platter according to your taste and creativity,