Tag: sweet

Berry spoom

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A brilliantly flothy, fluffy, foamy version of sorbet. And possibly the best name of any dessert ever. Feeds 2.

  • 150g berries, any sort you like
  • 90g caster sugar
  • 1 egg white
  1. Put the berries in a pan with 50g of the sugar and 50ml water
  2. Heat gently until the berries pop and release their juice
  3. Pour into a fine sieve and press through to remove the pulp and seeds
  4. Taste to check the sugar levels (adjust with more sugar or a squeeze of lemon juice – bearing in mind there’s more sugar to come) and then chill the fruit puree for at least 20 mins
  5. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg white to soft peaks
  6. Add the remaining sugar 1 tsp at a time until it is a stiff glossy meringue
  7. Fold the fruit puree into the meringue until it’s completely incorporated
  8. Scrape into a freezer-safe container and cover. Freeze for at least 2 hours

Remove from the freezer about 10 mins before you want to serve. Top with a splash of bubbly and a few fresh berries for extra froth and fizz!

Pears poached in sweet wine

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Dessert so light, fresh, cool and fruity – and of course delightfully boozy. A wonderful end to a rich meal.

  • 3 firm conference pears
  • 100g caster sugar
  • 1 litre water
  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • 375ml sweet dessert wine (like a moscatel)
  1. Mix the sugar and water in a medium saucepan
  2. Heat on low until the sugar dissolves, then turn the heat up and bring to the boil
  3. While the syrup heats, peel the pears, then halve them lengthways and scoop out the cores with a little spoon or the tip of a sharp knife
  4. Rub the pears with the cut surfaces of the lemon to stop them from browning
  5. Add the pears, the lemon shells and the lemon juice to the boiling syrup and lower the heat to a simmer
  6. Cook until the pears are tender and looking ever so slightly translucent – this can take up to 25 mins for really unripe ones, just 10 mins if they’re softer to start with
  7. Remove the pears from the syrup and put on one side
  8. Boil the syrup hard until just about 200ml is left and it’s got syrupy
  9. Turn off the heat, stir in the sweet wine and pour over the pears
  10. Chill thoroughly before serving – ideally over night

Serve with a scant scatter of toasted almond flakes and a few tart berries floating in the bowl with the pears – blackberries are beautiful, or red currants

Cornflake crunch

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The ultimate crunchy-munchy, sweet-salty snack. Hugely flexible – feel free to use different nuts, different seeds, different nut butter, anything you’ve got to hand. Highly recommend breaking it into shards of different shapes and sizes so every snack need is covered.

  • 75g cornflakes, roughly crushed
  • 45g unsalted peanuts, nicely toasted in a dry pan and roughly chopped
  • 35g coconut flakes
  • 2 tbsp pumpkin seeds
  • 2 tbsp sunflower seeds
  • 1 tbsp sesame seeds
  • ½ tsp flaky sea salt
  • 130g maple syrup
  • 50g natural smooth peanut butter
  1. Heat the oven to 160C fan (180C)
  2. Line a large baking tray with greaseproof paper, and have a second sheet the same size ready to go
  3. Tip all the dry ingredients into a mixing bowl and stir
  4. In a separate small bowl, whisk the maple syrup and peanut butter
  5. Tip the gooey syrup mixture into the cornflake bowl and mix gently but thoroughly
  6. Scrape onto the lined baking tray, roughly flatten and spread out with a spatula. Then lay the second piece of paper over the top and, using a rolling pin, flatten the mixture so it’s an even thickness of about ½ cm
  7. Remove the top sheet of paper, then bake for 25 mins, turning the tray once halfway through to make sure it bakes evening. It should be golden all over with toasty bits around the edges
  8. Leave on the tray to cool completely for at least ½ an hour, then break into shards. You can eat it straight away (I dare you not to have at least one piece immediately) or store in an airtight container to eat later. Keeps for a couple of weeks.

Banana almond pancakes

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A brilliant use for that one over-ripe banana in the bowl that everyone keeps avoiding. Tender, fluffy, sweet and wholesome. Feeds 2.

  • 150g plain flour
  • 60g ground almonds
  • 40g soft brown sugar
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1 egg
  • 2 heaped tbsp almond butter
  • 200ml milk
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 big brown banana, roughly mashed
  • 2 tbsp veg oil
  1. In a big bowl, mix together the flour, ground almonds, sugar, baking powder and salt
  2. In another bowl, whisk together the egg, milk, almond butter and vanilla. Then stir in the mashed banana
  3. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and scrape in the egg mixture
  4. Combine as briefly as possible with a whisk or a spoon – don’t over-beat, or the pancakes will be stiff and chewy when you’re aiming for light and fluffy
  5. Heat the veg oil in a large non-stick frying pan over a medium heat
  6. Blob heaped spoonfuls of the mixture separately into the hot oil to make small individual pancakes
  7. Cook for 2-3 mins a side until golden brown on the outside and just cooked through

Serve with a pile of blueberries, or crispy streaky bacon. Or both. They’re sweet enough to not need syrup though.

Apple and almond muffins

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Most autumnal of muffins. Delicious and justifiable to eat at literally any time of day. Makes 12.

  • 1 egg
  • 60g soft light brown sugar
  • 80g plain flour
  • 50g ground almonds
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • Couple of gratings nutmeg
  • ¼ tsp ground cloves
  • ¼ tsp almond extract
  • 50ml sunflower oil
  • 2 apples, peeled and cored and diced
  • 3 tbsp milk
  • Handful of sultanas
  • Flaked almonds
  1. Pre-heat the oven to 170C fan (190C) and line muffin cases
  2. Whisk together the sugar and egg until well combined and thickened
  3. Add the milk and oil and beat in
  4. Then add the flour, ground almonds, baking powder, salt and spices
  5. Mix together thoroughly with a spoon or spatula, then add the apple and sultanas
  6. Stir them in and then spoon the batter into the muffin cases
  7. Sprinkle over a light scatter of flaked almonds
  8. Bake for 25-30 mins until golden and then cool on a wire rack
  9. Eat immediately or store in an airtight container at room temperature

These freeze really well if you can’t get through all of them before they go stale

Sachertorte

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Another traditional family recipe, my dad’s birthday cake of choice. Deeply, richly chocolatey. Make it the day before for best results.

For the cake:

  • 175g dark chocolate (60% cocoa)
  • 110g unsalted butter, softened
  • 110g golden caster sugar
  • 4 eggs, separated
  • 1 egg white
  • ½ tsp vanilla extract
  • 110g plain flour
  • ½ tsp baking powder

For the icing:

  • 175g dark chocolate
  • 150ml double cream
  • 2 tsp glycerin
  • 2 tsp smooth apricot jam
  1. Pre-heat oven to 130C fan (150C)
  2. Grease and line 20cm springform cake tin
  3. First melt the chocolate for the cake, then put to one side to cool slightly
  4. Beat the 5 egg whites in a large, clean bowl to stiff peaks
  5. In a separate bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy
  6. Into this pale yellow puff, beat in the 4 egg yolks one at a time, whisking well after each addition
  7. Whisk the melted chocolate and vanilla into the creamed butter mixture
  8. Sift over the flour and baking powder, gently folding in with a metal spoon
  9. Then add the egg whites, a quarter at a time, folding carefully into the cake batter until no white streaks remain
  10. Pour and scrape the mixture into the prepared cake tin and bake for 50 mins to 1 hour, until firm and well risen
  11. Once cooked, allow the cake to cool in the tin for 10 mins before turning out onto a rack. Cool completely before icing
  1. Make the icing by melting together the chocolate and cream
  2. Once melted, remove from the heat and stir in the glycerin
  3. Gently warm the jam to make it easier to spread evenly
  4. Brush the cake with jam all over
  5. Stand the cake on its rack on a tray or large plate
  6. Pour the icing over the cake to cover the top and the sides completely
  7. Leave to set, which will take 2-3 hours

Cherries poached in red wine

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Garnet and ruby tones of summer delight with a hint of booze. Amazing on top of vanilla ice cream or plain coconut yoghurt.

  • 400g cherries, pitted and halved
  • 100g caster sugar
  • 200ml red wine
  • ½ tsp cornflour stirred into 1 tsp cold water
  1. Put all the ingredients in a saucepan
  2. Bring to a bubble, stirring occasionally
  3. Simmer for 8-10 mins until glossy but not collapsing
  4. Drizzle in the cornflour slurry, stirring all the time until it goes thicker and beautifully shiny
  5. Remove from the heat and leave to cool a little bit before serving

Apple sauce

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I love eating this on its own. My husband likes to eat it with cornflakes (weird). And it’s a great shortcut for a crumble or accompaniment to roast pork. Makes a 1 litre jar.

  • 6 large bramley apples, peeled and cored
  • 100g sugar
  • 100ml water
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  1. Slice the apple into rough slices
  2. Dump the apple pieces into a large saucepan
  3. Sprinkle over the sugar and cinnamon, and add the water
  4. Cook over a low heat, stirring occasionally, until the apple collapses. It won’t take long
  5. If you want to keep it for later, decant while hot into a sterilised glass jar. Tap on the work surface to dislodge any air bubbles and seal. Leave to cool and then store in the fridge.

Roast plums with bay and honey

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A delightfully autumnal sort of pudding, tart and sweet and fragrant with bay, cinnamon and honey. It’s the perfect way to use up a garden glut of plums and dig into that fancy honey that someone gave you as a random gift. Vanilla ice cream is a must as an accompaniment.

  • 400g plums, halved and stones removed
  • 4 bay leaves, scrumpled up gently
  • 1 cinnamon stick, snapped in half
  • 2 scoopy, generous tbsp honey (the fancier the better!)
  • 150g walnut pieces
  1. Pre-heat oven to 170C fan (190C)
  2. Tumble the plums into a baking dish, ideally in roughly a single layer
  3. Drizzle over the honey and mix in well so the plums are coated
  4. Tuck the bay leaves and cinnamon among the plums
  5. Bake for 20-30 mins until sticky and juicy
  6. Put the walnuts on a little baking tray and bake them next to the plums for 10-15 mins until golden and toasty
  7. When the plums are done, take them out of the oven and scatter over the toasted walnuts
  8. Serve hot with lashings of vanilla ice cream

Ricotta lemon cake

~ Sophie ~ Leave a comment

Beautifully moist sunshine cake. Not at all fancy, but all the better for that. Serve with tart poached fruit. Cherries are AMAZING. Also try plums, apricots, gooseberries, raspberries, greengages, blueberries….

  • 1 egg
  • 2 egg yolks
  • 180g caster sugar
  • 100g ricotta
  • Zest of 1 lemon
  • 65g unsalted butter, melted and cooled
  • 130g plain flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • Pinch of salt
  1. Pre-heat the oven to 160C fan (180C)
  2. Grease and line a 20cm cake tin
  3. Beat the egg, yolks and sugar together until pale and fluffy
  4. Drizzle in the cooled melted butter, whisking while you do it
  5. Then whisk in the ricotta and the lemon zest
  6. Gently fold in the flour, baking powder and salt
  7. Spoon the mixture into the tin and smooth it out on top
  8. Bake for 20-25 mins until golden (and until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean)
  9. Cool in the tin and then serve with poached fruit