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This was an odd one for me because I managed to get most clues pretty quickly but then got held up for ages with the last few.

I'm still not sure how 13a, 1d (partly) and 22a are parsed and I'm not even sure I have the right answer for 10a - there are a few sweets that could fit the letter pattern and, as I haven't parsed it, it could be any of them!

FOI was 1a followed by the unparsed 1d.

If you do get stuck there is at least one long anagram in the acrosses and at least one hidden in the downs.

COD - My mind kept going back to those unparsed clues so I couldn't really focus enough on the others but I'll pick the excellent 3d - let's hope Philistine doesn't get cancelled ... 😂

Thanks to Philistine for a fun and challenging crossword.

Please feel free to leave a comment and, as always, if you get stuck - don't hesitate to ask for a hint.

Stay safe:-)

Hi Brendan,
I found this on the easy side, mainly because the four long perimeter answers came really quickly. But it was an enjoyable puzzle, thanks to Philistine.
LOI 10 was the only clue that really held me up, unfamiliar usage. High confidence in my guess, but confirmed with Google anyway.
FOI 1a, usually an auspicious sign. COD 4 over 3, 2 and 17. 18 and 25 feature smooth surfaces but seem a bit easy. On the minus side of the ledger, clues 19, 21 and 25 are somewhat hackneyed IMO.

Brendan, some cryptic hints (avoiding spoilers early in the thread):
13 is a partial anagram, so to speak (2 words in clue yielding 2 words of answer).
1d is really convoluted, but the 5 outside letters are, say, what you're asking about and I'm trying to explain...
22: "conductor" is the key word, think music.

Hi Brendan.
13a is one of those ones where you have to construct the clue from the answer - look at the first two words.
22a is a bit involved. Definition first word. An orchestral conductor then has an invasion by a letter and is all finished off with the last two words.
Not sure about 1d either and 10a is causing me problems too.

Sorry geeker, we crossed.

Hi Prospero, hi Geeker, hi Mystogre,

Thanks for those parsings. For 10a there is a Asian meal that is eaten at lunchtime that fits but also a variant spelling of a sweet - though it's not chocolate, so I don't know what's going on?

No problem, mystogre, I in turn crossed prospero. Will hold my tongue for a while to avoid repeats. 😳

Thoroughly agree re 3d.

Brendan, I arrived at the same solution for 10 and Google provided "...often coated with a layer of melted chocolate..." for the 2nd half of dd.

Hi Samuipete, agree 3d is a great clue - witty with a great surface, a worthy COD:-)