Custard Creams
Laura's favourites
6 oz plain flour (sifted)
2 oz custard powder (don’t use the instant kind you just add water to)
6 oz butter (room temperature)
2 oz icing sugar (sifted)
Method
Cream together the butter and icing sugar until light and fluffy.
Add in the sifted flour and custard powder.
Roll the mixture into balls (the amount will depend on the size of biscuit you want – I usually go for a rounded teaspoon).
Place on a non-stick baking tray and press lightly with a fork. There is no need to grease the tray as the butter content of the biscuit will prevent it from sticking. Place each biscuit approx. 1-2 inches apart as they do spread out a little during baking.
Pre-heat the oven and bake at 170°C (160°C fan oven) for approx. 25 mins. You may need longer the bigger the biscuit. You know it’s ready when you can easily lift the biscuit off the tray and it’s slightly darker on the underside.
Once cooled, stick 2 halves together with butter icing.
TIP – if the mixture is too soft to roll into balls, let it rest for 10 mins. The mixture will firm up as the flour absorbs the butter.
TIP – a slower bake (lower temperature and longer time) will make the biscuits crumblier.
Butter Icing – use double the quantity of icing sugar to room temperature butter (eg 4 oz butter to 8 oz icing sugar). Make sure you sieve the icing sugar or your icing may not be smooth. Beat the butter well before gradually adding the icing sugar. If mixture is too thick, and a teaspoon of water at a time to loosen it up. You may add a teaspoon of vanilla extract but this is optional. I find some butters need vanilla whilst others don’t. These biscuits are nice if you add a little pink colouring to the butter icing. Biscuits are neater if you add the butter icing using a piping bag (no nozzle is required) – I only do this if I’m making lots of biscuits or if it’s for a rural competition!
Chocolate Cheesecake
(Murray, Becky and Jamie’s favourite)
Digestives 80g / 6oz
Butter 90g / 3oz
Cream Cheese 300g size tub
Caster Sugar 75g / 2½oz
Chocolate 135g / 4½oz
Double Cream 150ml / 1/4 pint
Method
Crush digestives. Melt the butter, combine with the biscuits and press into a loose bottom/springform cake tin. Chill in the fridge until set (usually only takes about 15 mins but you can leave it in for much longer)
Beat together the cream cheese and sugar (this is easier to do if the cream cheese is at room temperature)
Melt the chocolate and fold through the cheese/sugar mixture (the chocolate cool before adding – it should be barely warm – if it’s too warm it could curdle the cheese mixture)
Whisk the cream until just holding its shape (ribbon stage) and fold into the chocolate/cream cheese/sugar mix
Spoon the chocolate mix over the biscuit base and leave until set in the fridge
This is the basic recipe which is very versatile. You can change the flavour by using white, milk or dark chocolate. The chocolate acts as the setting agent and so no need for gelatine, eggs or baking!
Variations that I’ve tried and tested (and taste delicious) are:
Use white chocolate and add a few drops of mint extract/essence and after eight chocolate chopped up and mixed through at the last stage
Milk chocolate with banana – add 2 chopped up ripe bananas at the beat cheese and sugar stage
Milk chocolate with chopped up toblerone (or white chocolate and white toblerone). An alternative to this one is to replace the double cream with a made up packet of butterscotch angel delight! – Milk choc and milk toblerone butterscotch cheesecake – to die for!
Milk chocolate and nutella (swirl most of a small jar of nutella at the last stage after the cream) Decorate with a few Ferero Rocher
White chocolate and caramel – swirl half a tin of ready made caramel at the last stage or make your own caramel by bringing 125ml of double cream to the boil and whisking in 50g butter and 50g of Demerara sugar. Simmer for 4 mins and leave to cool before swirling into the cheesecake mix. I usually prepare this first before I make the biscuit base.
The variations are as endless as your imagination!
TIP: If you use food colouring or flavouring add a few drop
Banana Loaf
One of my favourites
2 ripe bananas (medium to large size – if small bananas use 3)
2 oz baking margarine (soft Stork or supermarket equivalent)
5 oz caster sugar
2 eggs
8oz self raising flour sifted
Pinch salt
Method
1. Pre-heat oven to 170°C (160°C fan oven)
Mash bananas in a bowl.
In a separate bowl cream the margarine and caster sugar until light and fluffy.
Beat in the eggs one at a time to the margarine/sugar mixture. To prevent curdling, add 1 tablespoon of the flour with each egg.
Add in the remaining flour and salt and mix well.
Fold in the mashed banana and mix well.
This makes 2 small (1lb) loaves or 1 large (2lb loaf). If you don’t have a loaf tin use a 7” or 8” square/round tin.
Grease and line tin(s) before pouring in the mixture.
Bake at 170°C (160°C fan oven) for approx 30-40 minutes (this will depend on your oven/size of tin). Check after 30 mins. A skewer inserted into the centre of the loaf should come out clean when fully cooked. If still wet, put back into the oven and check again every 5-10 mins.
TIPS
If you want to buy a loaf tin you can usually pick them up for £1-£2 in Poundland/HomeBargains. No need to purchase expensive ones.
If you use special loaf tin cake liners there’s no need to grease tins first. Again, these can be bought in Poundland, Home Bargains etc – at approx. £1 for 20 liners, it’s much cheaper than Lakeland Plastics.
Poundland /Home Bargains / B&M and similar places have really good baking sections. They have an assortment of basic cake tins and trays that suit most of my recipes. I buy most of my regular tins from Poundland – and they last! Over the next few weeks I will share some of my traybake recipes with you and almost always make them in a shallow oblong tin (7” x 10”) that I buy from Poundland at £1 each.
These shops are also good too for greaseproof paper, paper cases, cake boards and boxes!
Truffles
Alex's favourite
This recipe won me a “Highly Commended” at the SWRI Ayrshire Federation Show many years ago!
1 small tin of condensed milk (it’s hard to get small tins now so I use half a large tin – a large tin is approx. 400g)
7 oz digestive biscuits finely crushed
1 tablespoon of cocoa powder
1 oz melted butter
Chocolate vermicelli to roll
Method
Crush biscuits using a zip lock bag and a rolling pin or use a food processor.
Put crushed biscuits, cocoa powder into a bowl and add melted butter and condensed milk.
Mix together thoroughly.
Roll mixture into balls (as small or as big as you like) and roll in chocolate vermicelli.
If balls have flattened slightly, gently roll them back into shape after 10-15 mins
Leave to firm for a further half hour and store in a plastic or metal tin. Don’t place in the fridge!
TIP – keep back a few tablespoons of biscuit crumbs in case the mixture is too dry. Add some or all of the remaining crumbs if, once everything is mixed, the mixture is very slack and difficult to roll into balls.
TIP – use plastic disposable gloves to roll the mixture – it’s much easier done!
TIP – coconut, Cadbury flakes or cocoa powder makes an alternative to choc vermicelli
Fudge Slice
Murray's favourite
4 oz butter
4 oz chocolate (milk or dark)
4 oz sultanas
1 small tin of condensed milk (it’s hard to get small tins now so I use half a large tin – a large tin is approx. 400g)
8 oz finely crushed digestive biscuits
6 oz chocolate (keep this for the topping – milk or dark)
Method
Line a shallow tin (approx. 7” x 11”) with greaseproof paper.
Melt the butter and 4oz chocolate in a pan.
Remove from the heat.
Add in the sultanas and condensed milk.
Stir in the digestives and mix well.
Press the mixture into the lined tin.
Chill in the fridge for at least an hour.
Melt the remaining 6 oz chocolate and spread out over the set mixture.
Leave the chocolate to set and cut into squares or fingers.
TIP – these are best kept in a plastic tub in the fridge
TIP – when covering a tray bake with chocolate, just before the chocolate sets, use a knife and score the chocolate into the size of squares or fingers you want. Once fully set cut along the marks you have made and there’s less likely of your chocolate topping cracking. IF it does crack, try using a hot knife by pouring hot water over the knife and drying it off before cutting again. Cracks or not it will still taste good!
Shortbread
This is Margaret’s recipe. I worked with Margaret from 1984-1987 at Digital in Ayr (where they made the VAXs!). Margaret made this shortbread for my ‘Show of Presents’ back in September 1985 and I’ve used her recipe ever since!
2 oz caster sugar
4 oz butter
4 oz plain flour
2 oz corn flour
Method
Pre-heat oven to 150°C (140°C fan oven)
Cream together the sugar and butter (I use a wooden spoon and not a mixer)
Add in the sifted flours
TIP: At this point I switch to using a palette knife to bring the mixture together. It takes longer than a wooden spoon but doing it this way you end up with a nicer biscuit texture. When your mixture starts to clump together you can switch to using your fingertips to lightly bring the mixture into a ball. Try and not knead the mixture too much – just enough to form a smooth dough.
Lightly roll out to desired thickness and cut into shapes. Prick each biscuit with a fork. My gran always used her palm to flatten out the dough and she used a glass to cut out each biscuit – to this day I don’t recall her ever owning a rolling pin or cookie cutters!
Place biscuits on a baking tray. With the high butter content in the mixture there is no need to grease your baking tray beforehand.
Baking time will vary according to the thickness of your biscuits and whether you like your shortbread pale or slightly darker. Aim for 12-15 mins in the first instance check every 3-4 mins until they can be carefully lifted from the tray or you achieve the colour you like.
Dust with caster sugar as soon as they come out of the oven. Leave a few mins before transferring to a baking rack to cool.
Millionaire Shortbread
Prepare the base using the recipe for shortbread in the following quantities:
2 oz caster sugar
4 oz butter
4 oz plain flour
2 oz corn flour
Caramel:
4 oz sugar
4 oz butter
2 tablespoons golden syrup
a small tin of condensed milk (or half a large tin – a large tin is approx. 400g
Topping:
6 oz chocolate
Method
Lightly roll out the dough and use it to line the bottom of a 7” x 11” shallow tin. It’s best to roll it out shorter than the size of the tin and then use your fingertips to push the dough into the corners and edges.
Prick the base all over with a fork and bake blind until pale golden - 150°C (140°C fan oven) for 20-25 mins.
Let the base cool in the tin and make the caramel.
Melt the sugar/butter/syrup together in a pan and gently bring to the boil.
Add the condensed milk and gently bring back to the boil, stirring constantly for 5-6 mins. The mixture should start to thicken and turn a dark golden colour. It should coat the back of a wooden spoon without running off quickly.
TIP: Don’t worry if the mixture catches a little on the bottom of the pan. Give it a vigorous stir and turn the heat down a little. When set the mixture turns darker and so the little flecks that appear when it gets caught is not really visible!
Pour the cooked caramel over the biscuit base and leave until it’s completely cold and set.
Melt 6 oz of chocolate and pour over the set caramel. Cool and cut into squares or fingers.
Tip: you can melt 1oz of a different colour of chocolate and drizzle on top to create a pretty design!
Tip: use white chocolate to top the caramel and sprinkle with freeze dried raspberries for quite a different taste! You can find freeze dried raspberries in the home baking section in Morrisons or, if you have a packet of red berry cereal – pinch some from there!
Molly's Pastry
(so called because Molly from Monkton SWRI gave me this recipe for Shortcrust Pastry!)
This pastry rarely shrinks and works for any recipe that asks for sweet shortcrust pastry.
1lb plain flour
10 oz butter (or 4 oz butter, 4 oz block/hard margarine, 2 oz lard)
3 oz caster sugar
4 dessert spoons of cold water
Pinch of salt
Method
Sieve the flour and salt into a bowl.
Take the butter/fats straight from the fridge and rub into the flour until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. I grate my fats into the flour as it makes rubbing in much easier. Alternatively you can cut the fats up into small pieces. Try and not work the mixture too much as it does not respond well to warm hands. Keep a light touch and use your fingertips.
Mix sugar and water together and add to the mix. Gently knead the dough until smooth. Again try and not overwork the pastry.
Wrap the dough in cling film and chill in fridge for at least 1 hr before use. It rolls out easier when cold. This mixture freezes well and doesn’t take long to defrost. I always like to have pastry in the freezer so I often make this quantity and divide it into 4 before freezing. This way I only take out what I need.
To make a savoury version omit the sugar, add one teaspoon of salt and 2 extra dessert spoons of cold water.
Baking a blind pastry case
Some recipes ask for a pre-cooked pastry case. To do this, roll out your pastry to the desired thickness. It should be big enough to fit the bottom of your tin and the sides. Carefully press the pastry into the edges of your tin and then trim away any excess pastry. Take a piece of greaseproof or non-stick paper wider than the size of your tin and put it on top of the pastry. Take baking beans and pour on top of the paper. This stops the pastry from bubbling up and gives you an even surface. If you don’t have (ceramic) baking beans, use a cheap packet of dried peas/butterbeans or something similar. Once baked they can’t be eaten but, once cooled, they can be stored in a jar or plastic container and reused multiple times for baking pastry.
Bake your pastry at 170°C. How long it takes will depend on the thickness and size of your pastry case. You can check whether it’s cooked by lifting the paper a little. If it’s a large(ish) case, start at 20 mins and check regularly after that. If making individual small tartlet cases, I’d give it 10 mins before checking. When you think it’s nearly done, remove tin from oven, carefully remove the paper and beans. If the pastry still looks a bit “wet” put it back in the over and check again after 5 mins. Don’t put the paper and beans back on.
Paradise Slice
another of Alex’s favourite
Line a 7” x 11” shallow tin with sweet shortcrust pastry. You will need approx. 8 oz of pastry for this. Bake blind until pastry is fully cooked and a light golden brown. Let the pastry cool.
4 oz soft baking margarine
2 oz caster sugar
2 oz cherries
2 oz currants or sultanas or raisins
2 eggs
2 oz self raising flour
2 oz ground almonds
Approx. 4 tablespoons of raspberry jam
Method
Pre-heat the oven to 170°C.
Cream the margarine and sugar until light and fluffy.
Add eggs one at a time. Beat in a tablespoon of flour with each egg.
Fold in remaining flour and ground almonds then add in the currants and cherries.
Spread the jam over the cooled pastry case covering the whole of the base.
Spoon on the fruit mixture spreading it evenly over the jam.
Bake at 170°C for approx. 25-30 mins or until a golden brown colour. A skewer should come out clean if inserted into the topping.
Remove from oven and sprinkle the top with caster sugar.
Leave in tin until complete cold then remove carefully and cut up into desired size. It’s easier to remove if you put something on top of the tin and turn upside down and then repeat the process to bring the tray bake the right way up!
Tip: if you don’t like cherries, use 4 oz of currants or sultanas or raisins instead.
Tip: if you don’t like or have ground almonds, use 4 oz of self raising flour. The texture is a bit different, as is the taste, but delicious none the less!
Rolo Chocolate Chip Cookies
250g plain flour
125g butter (room temperature)
1 egg
100g caster sugar
5g bicarbonate of soda
100g choc chips
1 bag of mini rolos or 2 tubes of normal sized rolos
Method
Pre-heat the oven at 170°C
Cream the butter and sugar until well combined
Add the egg and mix until well combined
Add in the flour and bicarbonate of soda and mix well
Add in the choc chips and mix until evenly spread
Using a muffin tin, place a scoop of the dough (ice-cream scoop size) into each cup (there is no need to grease each hole beforehand). Use your fingertips to spread the dough as evenly as you can to line the entire cup (sides and bottom). This quantity will make 8 cookie cups.
You then want to place as many rolos as you can into each cup – approx 3 normal rolos or 5 mini rolos into each cup.
You should have some dough remaining. Roll this out to approx 0.5cm and cut discs to place on top. The dough will expand a little so cut your discs slightly shorter than the top of the muffin cup.
Gently press the discs onto the top of each muffin cup.
Tip – I found it easier to cut out 8 discs for the tops first, set aside, then divide the remaining mixture into 8 muffin cups.
Bake for approx. 20-25 mins. Leave to cool for approx. 10 mins before trying to take them out of the tin.
These are best eaten warm (the rolos melt and you have chocolatey/caramel centre). They are equally delicious eaten cold (the centre firms back up again) but you can also give them a quick blast in the microwave to re-soften the centre.
I’ve also made these as normal cookies without the rolos. Take a scoop of the mixture, roll into a ball and place on a baking sheet. Bake at 170°C for approx. 15 mins. Note: - these are not chewy cookies – the texture is more like a coffee bun.
Carrot Cake
4 oz self-raising flour
Pinch salt
1 teaspoon mixed spice
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
6 oz soft brown sugar
2 eggs, beaten
5 tablespoon (90g) sunflower oil
6 oz grated carrots
1 oz chopped walnuts (optional)
Method
This quantity will make a 7” square or 8” round cake. Double the recipe if you are using a 7” x 11” tin. Line your tin with greaseproof paper.
Pre-heat the oven at 170°C
Sieve together the flour, salt, mixed spice, nutmeg and sugar (soft brown sugar is quite moist and tends to clump together. Sieving it along with the flour gives you a better texture to the cake).
Grate the carrots, place in an old tea cloth, and squeeze out as much moisture as you can otherwise the cake becomes too “claggy”.
Mix together the eggs and oil and add to the flour mixture until well combined.
Add the grated carrot (and chopped walnuts), mix and pour into the prepared tin.
Bake for approx. 40-50 mins. Test with a skewer. If it comes out clean (without any mixture stuck to it) the cake is ready. Let the cake cool. The top will be slightly crusty but this will soften when you add the topping.
Topping
You can top this with whatever you like. I prefer buttercream or ganache but you can use the traditional cream cheese topping. If using cream cheese, the cake needs to be kept in the fridge. Buttercream/ganache – cake can be kept in a tin or plastic container.
Buttercream (see Custard Creams – you need approx. 100g butter/200g icing sugar for this size of cake.
Ganache
White chocolate ganache – 100g double cream, 250g white chocolate
Milk chocolate ganache – 100g double cream, 175g milk chocolate
Dark chocolate ganache – 100g double cream, 125g dark chocolate
Heat the cream until hot (but not boiling), pour over chopped chocolate of your choice (mine is white). Mix well. If there are still lumps of chocolate, blast in microwave for 15 seconds at a time, stirring well in between. Once chocolate has melted, let it cool, cover in clingfilm and put in fridge overnight. The mixture will have an unusual/sloppy texture but will firm up as it gets cold. Don’t be tempted to use the ganache before it has firmed up. To use, remove from fridge, let it come to room temperature and beat with a wooden spoon or use an electric mixer to soften it enough to use. The more you beat it, the lighter in texture the ganache becomes. Alternatively, you can give it a blast in the microwave (15 secs at a time) until the mixture softens enough to spread. Mix well before spreading.
Ganache is fresh for as long as the date on the tub of cream. I tend to use Elmlea (because I like the taste) but also because it has a longer date on it. Unused (haha!) ganache can be kept in the fridge or frozen. If kept in the fridge, use by the date on the tub of cream.
Cream cheese frosting – 3 tablespoons of softened butter, 3 tablespoons of cream cheese, 6 oz sifted icing sugar, 1 teaspoon orange juice, grated rind of ½ orange. Mix well together and use.
Peanut Crunchy Balls
6 oz peanut butter (crunchy gives a better texture)
1 oz butter
4 oz icing sugar (sifted)
3 oz sultanas
1¼ oz Rice Krispies
200g of milk chocolate for covering
A few salted peanuts (for (optional) decoration)
Method
1. Melt the peanut butter and butter in the microwave.
Add in icing sugar, sultanas and Rice Krispies and mix well.
Take a spoonful of mixture (as small or large as you want) and roll into balls.
Put in fridge and leave until set and firm to the touch.
Tip – when rolling into balls, you may find it easier if you use disposable gloves. You may also find it easier to squeeze the spoonful of mixture together before trying to roll into balls. The mixture may feel quite dry but it will hold together if you squeeze it first!
Melt your chocolate in a fairly small bowl. You’ll find it easier to dip the balls if you have a deeper pool of chocolate to work with.
Place one ball at a time into the melted chocolate. Use a fork to lift it out. Gently tap the fork on the edge of the bowl to let excess chocolate drip away. Place the covered balls on greaseproof paper and put in the fridge to set. If I’m making these for people outwith my family, I usually put a salted peanut on top of each ball before the chocolate sets to highlight that it contains peanuts.
Tip: put the greaseproof paper on a tray first so you can lift it to the fridge.
Once set, put the chocolate balls in a plastic tub and store in the fridge – they taste much better cold than at room temperature – but that’s my preference!
Empire Biscuits
Becky’s favourite
8oz plain flour
4oz self-raising flour
pinch salt
1 egg
4 oz caster sugar
8oz butter (at room temperature)
Method
1. Cream the sugar, butter and egg until well combined.
Add the flours and salt and mix together to form a dough.
Gently knead the dough into a smooth ball – try and not overwork the dough.
This mixture is fairly soft. It will firm up if you wrap in cling film and chill in fridge for 2-3 hours (or overnight) before use.
Pre-heat the oven to 160°C
Take a ¼ of the dough at a time and roll out into discs or flower shapes. The size and thickness of biscuit will be down to your preference.
Place on a baking tray (no need to grease first). Leave at least 1cm between biscuits.
Prick the discs with a fork (3 times).
Bake for approx. 12-15 mins or until pale golden in colour. The timing will depend on the size and thickness of the biscuit. Check after 10 mins and keep an eye on them every 2-3 mins.
Cool biscuits on a rack. Store any biscuits you’re not going to decorate (see below).
Once cool, sandwich 2 biscuits together with jam (of your preference). Top each biscuit with water icing (mix a few tablespoons of icing sugar with a little water until fairly stiff). Decorate each biscuit with sprinkles or glace cherries or whatever you have – see photos below for creative suggestions!
This quantity will make a considerable batch of biscuits – depending on size of cutter used and how thick you make them. Cooked (undecorated) biscuits will keep fresh for several weeks if stored in an airtight plastic tub. When I make a batch of dough (unless I need a lot of biscuits) I’ll freeze half of it and bake the rest. I usually hold back some undecorated biscuits and keep them for when the kids come over – they love decorating them and taking them home to eat.
Gypsy Creams
Giselle’s favourite
2oz margarine
2oz lard (Trex or supermarket own brand)
3oz caster sugar
1 heaped teaspoon syrup
5oz self-raising flour
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
3 teaspoons of boiling water
3oz porridge oats (don’t use quick oats)
Pinch salt
Filling:
3oz chocolate (plain or milk)
1oz butter
Method
Heat your oven to 170°C
Cream the margarine, lard and sugar until well blended.
Melt the syrup in the boiling water and add to the creamed mixture.
Add the remaining ingredients (flour, bicarb, oats and salt) and mix until well combined.
Roll into small balls (approx. a rounded teaspoonful) and place well apart on greased tins.
Bake for 15-20 mins until evenly brown.
Remove from oven, leave on baking tray for a couple of minutes before transferring to a wired rack to cool.
Once cold, sandwich together with 3oz melted chocolate with 1oz butter beaten into it. I find it easier to do this if I transfer the mixture into a piping bag (you could use a plastic bag by tipping the contents to one corner). Snip off the end of the bag (you don’t need a nozzle) and squeeze some of the chocolate mixture into the centre of one biscuit and place another biscuit on top. No need to press down on the top biscuit as the filling is soft and the weight of the biscuit will spread the mixture out.
Leave filling to firm up before storing in an airtight container.
Marshmallow Roll
Becky’s favourite
120g butter (room temperature)
a small tin of condensed milk (or half a large tin – a large tin is approx. 400g)
250g digestive biscuits
180g mini marshmallows
*12 cherries or 8-12 dried apricots or half a packet of mini fudge chunks (that you get in the baking aisle)
Coconut to roll
*you don’t have to put any of these in but it adds to the texture and flavour
Method
Roughly crush the digestives – you don’t want this to be too fine.
Half each of the cherries/cut each apricot into 8-10 small pieces.
Cube the butter and add to the condensed milk. Gently melt together (in a pan or microwave). Let mixture cool down slightly (you should be able to put your finger in it and it feels warm but not hot).
Add the crushed digestives to the butter/milk mixture and stir.
Add in the marshmallows and cherries/apricots/fudge pieces and stir.
I usually split this mixture into 2 (larger biscuits for normal eating) or into 3 or 4 smaller rolls (if I’m making it for a party or baking multiple things).
Put a portion of the mixture onto the middle of a sheet of clingfilm. Roughly shape the mixture into a log. Tightly wrap the mixture whilst finishing shaping it into the length you want. Put them in the fridge for about 30-45 mins to set a bit. Unwrap and then roll in coconut. Wrap in fresh sheets of clingfilm and leave in fridge for 1-2 hrs until really firm. Slice each roll (to whatever thickness you want), put into a plastic tub and keep in fridge. I think it tastes nicer when it’s cold and it helps keep the texture firm. You can keep it in the cupboard if you want a softer biscuit.
Viennese Fingers or Viennese Whirls
Jamie and Jane’s favourite
8 oz butter (room temperature – very soft)
2 oz icing sugar, sifted
8 oz plain flour, sifted
½ teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)
Filling: butter icing
Decoration: chocolate or glace cherries or icing sugar
Method
Pre-heat the oven to 150°C
Beat the butter and icing sugar until soft.
Add in the flour and vanilla essence and mix well.
Put the mixture into a piping bag fitted with a large star nozzle (the biscuits shown in the picture were made using a Wilton 4B tip). You could make these biscuits without a nozzle and have them as smooth biscuits.
Pipe the mixture into lengths or into rounds onto lightly greased baking sheets.
Bake for 10-15 mins taking care not to brown too much. They should be pale in colour.
Remove from oven and allow to cool for a couple of minutes before transferring to a cooling tray.
Once cold, sandwich 2 biscuits together with butter icing. You will find this easier to do using a piping bag.
To make Viennese Fingers, dip each end into melted chocolate and leave to set on a sheet of greaseproof paper.
To make Viennese Whirls, lightly dust the round with a little icing sugar.
To make a plain biscuit, add a small piece of glace cherry to the centre of each round before baking. Once cool these are ready to eat.
These biscuits can be made in advance. Once cold, and before they are decorated with buttercream and chocolate, store in an airtight container for 2-3 weeks. Once decorated, they’ll keep for a week in an airtight container.
Cappuccino Cake
One of my favourites
6 oz margarine (Stork or supermarket own)
6 oz self-raising flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cocoa powder
6 oz caster sugar
3 medium eggs
2¼ tablespoons instant coffee powder dissolved in 1½ tablespoons of hot water
Topping: white chocolate ganache (see recipe on page 13 - use 75g double cream, 200g white chocolate)
Cocoa powder or grated chocolate
Method
For this recipe it’s best that you prepare the ganache in advance – either some that you already have in the fridge or freezer, or, if you have to make it fresh, make it a few hours before – or better still, the night before.
Preheat oven to 170°C.
Dissolve the coffee into the hot water (it’s best that you do this at this stage to allow time for it to cool)
Line a 7” x 11” tin with greaseproof paper.
Sift the flour, baking powder, cocoa powder into a bowl.
In a separate bowl, using an electric mixer (or plenty of elbow grease) cream the margarine and caster sugar until light and fluffy.
Add one egg at a time along with one tablespoon of the flour mix. Beat each egg in making sure it’s all incorporated before adding the next one.
Once all the eggs have been added, fold in the remaining flour mix (with a wooden spoon or spatula).
Fold through the dissolved coffee until well incorporated.
Pour mixture into prepared tin and smooth out the top.
Bake for 35-40 mins until risen and firm, and a skewer comes out clean (ie no mixture sticking to it).
Once baked, remove from oven and leave in tin for 5 mins before turning out on to a wire rack. Remove the greaseproof paper and let it cool completely.
Once cold, spread the ganache on top and then sprinkle with a light dusting of cocoa powder or grated chocolate. Store in an airtight container.
Chocolate éclairs or Profiteroles
One of Eilidh’s favourites
For the choux pastry:
2 ½ oz plain flour
Pinch salt
2 oz butter
4 fl oz water
2 well beaten eggs
Topping: 3 tablespoons icing sugar, 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
Filling: whipped cream (or double cream whipped), a spoon of icing sugar (to taste)
Method
1. Sift the flour and salt on to a piece of paper or into a bowl/onto a plate.
Cut the butter up into small pieces and place in a saucepan together with the water.
Bring the water and butter to a boil then shoot the flour into the boiling mixture.
REMOVE FROM THE HEAT and beat the flour into the water. Return to the heat for a minute whilst continuing to stir. Remove from the heat. Continue the rest of the process away from any heat. At this point the mixture will look like Eclair Photo 1:
5. Spread the mixture out a little to allow it to cool slightly as in Eclair Photo 2:
6. Gradually add the beaten egg, approx. ¼ at a time. Beat well as you add each ¼. The mixture will be very sloppy but keep beating as it will eventually come together into a smooth ball as in Eclair Photo 3. Leave to cool before moving on to the next step. Some recipes tell you to pipe it straight away. I find it works better if you leave it to go cold (a tip I picked up from Fanny Cradock – showing my age here)!
7. Once cold, pipe onto sheets of greaseproof paper - Eclair Photo 4.You don’t need a nozzle for this but a piping bag is essential to make éclairs. If making profiteroles you can use a teaspoon to make small smooth balls of the pastry. When piping try and keep an even pressure to keep them an even(ish) size.
8. Bake at 180°C in a pre-heated oven for 20-30 mins until your pastries are golden brown. Before putting in the oven sprinkle the trays with cold water. This will generate some steam in the oven and help them to puff up.
9.Remove from oven and create 2 holes on the top of each (I used the plastic top of a clean pen). This will let steam out and keep your pastries firm - Eclair Photo 5. Once cold, use a piping bag with a small nozzle, filled with whipped cream and fill each pastry through the holes you have created. If you don’t have a nozzle you can slit the pastries in half and spoon in the cream (It’s slightly messier to eat but doesn’t change the taste).
10. Finally, mix the icing sugar and cocoa powder with a little water to make a thick paste. Spoon or pipe the icing on top of each pastry (covering the holes you’ve made). Let the icing set and eat!
Coffee Buns
One of my favourites!
So called because they taste delicious whilst eaten with coffee – these biscuits are not coffee flavoured!
8 oz self-raising flour
4 oz soft margarine (stork or supermarket brand)
4 oz soft brown sugar
1 beaten egg (keep a little aside for glazing)
3 oz sultanas
Method
Pre-heat oven to 170°C.
Grease 2 baking sheets.
Cream the margarine and sugar together.
Add most of the beaten egg and mix well.
Add the flour and mix well.
Add the sultanas and mix well.
Take spoonfuls of the mixture and roll into balls – you can vary the size of these biscuits but I usually make mine slightly bigger than a walnut and slightly smaller than a golf ball.
Place the balls spaced apart on the baking sheet. They will spread during the baking process.
Brush the remaining egg over each biscuit before baking. This will give them a nice shine.
Bake for approx 15-20 mins. When ready you should see the base of the biscuit starting to come away slightly from the tray.
Remove from oven and rest for a few minutes before transferring the biscuits to a cooling tray.
Biscuits should be kept in an airtight container.
Rich Traditional Fruit Cake
This is my recipe for Christmas and Wedding Cakes
The quantity below will make a 7” square or an 8” round cake. Your tin should be at least 2” deep.
Ideally, this cake should be made 6-12 months before you need it. I tend to make my Christmas cakes every 2 years – round about now – using one for this Christmas and keeping the other for next. This will be the 2nd time I’ve kept a cake for over 16 months and the flavour and texture improves over time. Guidance on storage is further down this recipe.
Method
There are several stages to this recipe:
Stage 1:
8oz currants
8oz raisins
8oz sultanas
4oz cherries
(or a combination of 28oz dried fruits of your choice – you can omit cherries/add peel/omit currants etc as long as what you’re left with weights 28 oz)
½ pint of sherry (cream sherry - something like QC or Harvey’s Bristol Cream or supermarket equivalent)
Place all fruits in a bowl and add ½ pint of sherry. Give it a good stir and cover tightly with cling film. Leave for 2-3 days giving the bowl a good shake at least twice a day.
Stage 2:
Prepare your tin by greasing and then lining your cake tin with a double layer of greaseproof paper (sides and bottom). Your paper should stick up at least an inch above the top of the tin.
As this will be a long bake, you need to protect the sides of your cake. I do this by take a sheet of tin foil that will go all the way around the outside of the tin, making sure it’s 4-5 inches longer than the circumference. Fold the length of the tin foil into 3 making it ripple layered. Wrap the tin foil securely around the outside of the tin. I use a bulldog clip where the ends meet to keep the foil in place. If you have strong brown paper, you can use that instead of tin foil.
Stage 3:
Pre-heat the oven to 160°C (150°C for a fan oven).
6oz butter (softened and at room temperature)
6oz caster sugar
4oz plain flour (sifted)
4oz self-raising flour (sifted)
1oz ground almonds
½ teaspoon ground mixed spice
4 eggs
In a very large bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
Add eggs one at a time together with one tablespoon of flour. Mix well between the addition of each egg.
Fold in the remaining flour, almonds and mixed spice. Mix well.
Add in the soaked fruit and mix well. (The smell when you take the cling film off is amazing and I can’t help but “sample” the fruit just to make sure it hasn’t gone off!!!)
Pour the mixture into the lined tin and smooth the top. Gently drop the tin onto the worktop a few times to remove any trapped bubbles – you don’t want any holes in your cake!
Bake for one hour then reduce the heat to 150°C (140°C for a fan oven)
Very loosely cover the cake with a piece of tin foil and bake for a further 1½ hours.
At this point you should test the cake by inserting a skewer down the centre. If fully cooked it should come out clean. If not, bake a little longer checking again every 15 mins.
Once cooked, turn off the heat and leave the cake in the oven until it’s cold. I usually bake in the evening and leave overnight so my oven is not out of action for the day). Do not remove the cake from the tin.
Stage 4:
Once your cake is cold you want to feed it some brandy. It’s easier to leave your cake in the tin whilst you do this. Drizzle a tablespoon of brandy over the top of the cake 3-4 times a day for 2 days before moving on to the wrapping stage.
Stage 5:
Remove the cake from the tin but keep the greaseproof paper on. Take a long, fresh sheet of greaseproof paper and wrap it as tight as you can get it around the cake. You may find it easier to use 2 shorter pieces but you need to make sure the entire cake is wrapped. I’d like to say use cellotape to secure it in place but it doesn’t stick easily to some types of greaseproof paper. Persevere and use lots of tape as you need to keep the cake wrapped. Finally take a long piece of tin foil and wrap it tightly around the cake. If there is any air trapped between the greaseproof paper it will be squeezed out by the time you’ve finished with the foil. Wrap a few layers of cellotape around the tin foil to make sure it doesn’t unravel. Leave the cake in a cool dry place until you need it. I store mine either on top or bottom of a wardrobe. With all the layers of paper and foil no smell comes from the cake so it won’t taint anything nearby.
Stage 6:
Marzipan and Icing
Unwrap your cake and place top down on to a cake board as the bottom of the cake will be flat and easier to decorate.
Use “no bits” apricot or marmalade to stick marzipan to your cake. If decorating the whole of your cake you will need approx. 500-750g of marzipan – depending on how thick you like it. If only the top, 250 will do. You can use either natural or golden marzipan. There’s no difference in taste – only colour.
Brush a thin layer of the marmalade on to each edge of your cake (if square or the whole edge if round). Don’t do the top at this stage. Roll out the marzipan to desired thickness and length and place against each side. Trim top and bottom so it’s level with cake. Brush top with marmalade and add marzipan again trimming so it’s level with the sides.
Use straight vodka/gin/Bacardi to stick icing to the marzipan (you can use cooled boiled water but with the amount of alcohol already in this cake ……….
Roll out fondant icing (500g-1000g for a whole cake, 500g for the top only) until it’s large enough to cover the whole/top of cake. Brush the marzipan all over with the alcohol. Lift the fondant and place on top of the marzipan. Smooth out the fondant (you can use the palm of your hand but you can pick up a fondant icing smoother for a couple of pounds in most supermarkets/poundland). Trim away any excess icing. You can use the trimmings for decoration.
Decorate it any way you want to!
Dark Bun/Boiled Fruit Loaf
This is a moist fruit loaf that keeps very well, freezes well and easy to make. This is my Gran Barrie’s recipe.
2 cups mixed fruit (or any dried fruit)
1 cup of water
4oz soft margarine (stork or supermarket own)
1 cup of sugar (granulated or caster)
When measuring this recipe out use the same size of cup. I use a small mug – roughly 2/3rds the size of a can of coke.
Method
he following quantities will make 2 x 1lb loaves or 1 x 2lb loaf
Prepare the tin(s) by greasing and lining with greaseproof paper or use loaf tin liners (no need to grease tins first if you use these)
Put all of the above ingredients into a bowl and microwave for 5 mins or until the margarine and sugar have melted. Stir well and leave to go completely cold.
Pre-heat the oven to 180°C (170°C for a fan oven).
In a separate bowl sift in the following dry ingredients:
2 cups self-raising flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground mixed spice
1 teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon bicarbonate soda
Stir the cooled fruit mixture before adding to the dry ingredients. Mix well.
Add in 2 well beaten eggs together with a measure of whisky (approx. 30-40ml) (the whisky is optional but that’s how my gran made it and it does add a nice flavour to the cake. My gran would take a wee swig from the bottle before adding to the mixture – I used to think she was checking in case the whisky was off!). Mix well.
Pour mixture into the prepared tin(s) and bake in the centre of the oven for approx. 30-45 mins. Check 1lb tins after 30 mins and 2lb loaf after 45 mins. Once cooked a skewer inserted into the middle of the loaf should come out clean with no mixture on it. If not clean return to oven for another 10 mins and test again. Repeat if necessary.
Victoria Sponge
This is essentially my basic white sponge cake that I use for general eating or celebration cakes. This recipe also works well for cupcakes. I personally don’t like using butter for this recipe as I don’t like the buttery taste and think it makes it too heavy and oily.
1 medium sized egg
2oz caster sugar
2oz soft margarine (stork or supermarket own)
2 oz self-raising flour (sifted)
Method
This quantity will give you 6 cupcakes or one layer of cake baked in a 6-7” sized tin. Multiply up the ingredients as you need it. I often bake a sponge cake in a tray bake tin (a 7” x 11” tin – as per the cappuccino cake recipe). For this sized tin I use 3 egg/6oz/6oz/6oz.
Grease and line baking tins/put cupcake liners in tin
Pre-heat the oven to 180°C (170°C for a fan oven)
Cream margarine and sugar until light and fluffy
Add an egg, one at a time, along with a tablespoon of flour.
Mix between each addition.
Fold in the remaining flour and divide into tins/cupcake cases (cupcake cases should be 2/3rd full).
Bake until skewer comes out clean. The tops of the cakes should be golden brown and springy to touch.
Baking times are a guide as this will depend on size of cake and type of oven.
Cupcakes – 12-15 mins
3 eggs split between 2 x 8” round tins – 25-20 mins
3 eggs in a 7” x 11” tin – 30-35 mins
Fill with buttercream and top with water icing or more buttercream for a simple decoration.
For something more elaborate but still simple:
The cake below was made with 6 eggs split across 3 tins and buttercream made with 250g of butter and 500g icing sugar. A layer of buttercream between each layer of cake. The cake was then coated with buttercream and left to firm up. From a 1kg pack of ready to roll icing, I used approx 750g to roll out and use to cover the cake. The rest I used to cover a 12” cake board that I purchased from Home Bargains (board and box was £1.99). I purchased a 6” personalised edible cake topper (on an icing sheet), another personalised glittery cake topper, and some Fireman Sam ribbon – all from ebay – prices vary depending on what you’re looking for) for the decoration. I used a small cutter that I had to cut out star shapes from left over icing (you can get a pack of 3 different cutter sizes for approx. £1 from Poundland or Home Bargains). I used some fake diamanté ribbon (£1 a roll from Poundland) cut down to size to fit the edge of the board. I stuck it down with glue dots (also from Poundland or Home Bargains- approx. £1 for a pack of 50+).
Madeira Cake
This is denser than a normal sponge cake/Victoria Sponge. Traditionally eaten at new year but good at any time of the year! It has a slightly dry texture so most people spread butter on it. I don’t like butter on cake but find it a lovely cake to eat with a cup of tea (and I have been known to dunk it into my tea!)
6 oz butter or a block/firm margarine (the type that looks like a block of butter and doesn’t come in a tub) – room temperature
6 oz caster sugar
3 eggs
5 oz self-raising flour
4 oz plain flour
Method
Madeira cake is traditionally made as a loaf but can be put into a normal round or square tin. The following recipe will make 1 x 2lb loaf or 2 x 1lb loaves. Alternatively use a deep 7” square/6” round tin.
Pre-heat the oven to 170°C (160°C for a fan oven)
Grease and line your tin with greaseproof paper (or use a loaf tin liner)
Sieve together the flours
In a separate bowl, beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy
Add in one egg with one tablespoon of flour. Beat well and repeat for the other 2 eggs.
Fold in the remaining flour
Pour into prepared tin and bake for 30-45 mins (length of time will depend on size of tin used. A skewer inserted into the centre should come out clean and the top should be firm.
Once cooked remove from tin and leave to cool on a rack.
Store in an airtight tin.
Sticky Toffee Pudding
Many years ago the Catering Department at (the then) Kilmarnock College was part of my remit. I was always keen to show my support to our students and so lunch in the training restaurant every now and then was a must. Sticky Toffee Pudding was often on the menu and this is the recipe our students used (with a few tips of my own added!
Ingredients (for the sponge)
150g Medjool dates (stoned and chopped)
250ml cold water
1 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda
50g unsalted butter (room temperature) or margarine
150g caster sugar
2 medium eggs
150g self-raising flour (sifted)
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
Ingredients (for the sauce)
125ml double cream
50g butter (cut up into small cubes)
50g demerara/soft light brown/soft dark brown sugar (one of these or any combination will do – the darker the sugar, the darker the sauce)
Method
Grease and line a 10” x 6” (approximately) baking tin. It must be at least 1” in height.
Soak the stoned and chopped dates in the water for at least a couple of hours. (I often do this in the morning and leave them in the water until I’m ready to make the cake later in the afternoon. You don’t really need to soak in the water but I find it helps break down the dates better.)
When you are ready to bake the cake, boil the dates in the water for approximately 5 mins until soft. Add the bicarbonate of soda and mix through. Switch off the heat. The mixture will froth up at this point. Set aside to cool a little.
Pre-heat the oven to 180°C (170°C for a fan oven)
Cream the butter and caster sugar together until light and fluffy (this may take a little while as there’s a relatively small amount of butter to the quantity of sugar).
Add in the eggs one at a time together with a tablespoon of flour. Mix well between each egg.
Fold in the remaining flour and vanilla extract and mix well
Fold in the date mixture (it should still feel warm) and mix well. The mixture will become very loose and sloppy. Pour into prepared tin.
Bake in oven for approximately 30-40 mins. Check after 30 mins. Once cooked the cake should be firm to the touch and a skewer will come out clean when inserted into the centre. When cooked the cake will have risen considerably and be light and fluffy. Can be eaten warm or cold (or reheated in microwave)
To make the sauce:
Put cream, butter and sugar into a small pan and gently heat through until the butter and sugar has melted. Keep stirring to achieve a smooth sauce. Once melted, simmer gently for 3-5 mins. It’s then ready to pour over the sponge. I sometimes make the sauce ahead of time and just heat through for a few minutes when I need it.
NOTES: Medjool dates can be pretty expensive but they are soft and break down well so ideal for this recipe. You can use other dates that are drier in texture. If using these dates then I’d strongly advise chopping them up as small as you can before soaking them in the water for a few hours. Ready chopped dates are not ideal for this recipe as they tend to have a coating on them to prevent them from sticking together but if that’s all you have then they’ll do. For a really smooth cake texture, use a hand blender to blend the date/water mixture before cooking. You can also do it after cooking but immediately before you add the bicarbonate of soda. Be careful as the mixture will be hot. Don’t be tempted to blend after adding the soda.
Serve any way you want to – my lot usually have the sponge warm with sauce and vanilla ice-cream with a garnish of strawberry! The sauce in this picture was made with 25g light soft brown and 25g dark soft brown sugar.
Chocolate Cake
My chocolate cake follows the Hummingbird Bakery recipe for the ingredients. Their method makes the cake quite heavy so I’ve adapted it slightly so that it has a lighter texture. For once I actually use butter for this recipe!
100g plain flour
20g cocoa powder (not drinking chocolate)
140g caster sugar
1 ½ teaspoons of baking powder
Pinch of salt
40g unsalted butter, room temperature, cut into small cubes
120ml whole milk
1 egg
¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
The following quantity will make one layer of a 7-8” round cake. Multiply the quantities if you’re making a multi-layer cake. Double the quantity if you want to bake it in a 7” x 11” tin.
Pre-heat the oven to 170°C (160°C for a fan oven)
Grease and line your baking tin(s)
Sieve together all of the dry ingredients into a large bowl (flour, cocoa, sugar, baking powder and salt)
Add in the soft, cubed butter and, with a mixer, blend in the butter until it resembles fine gravel.
Whisk together the milk, eggs and vanilla.
Pour 2/3rds of the milk mixture to the dry ingredients and slowly mix until combined then increase speed and mix well for a couple of minutes.
Reduce speed and add remaining milk mixture until combined.
Use a spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl (make sure you scrape the bottom too) to make sure all of the mixture is an even colour.
Pour mixture into tin(s)
Bake for approx. 20-30 mins until the top is springy to the touch and an inserted skewer comes out clean.
Once cooked remove from oven, rest for a couple of minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool.
Sandwich together with butter icing (you can add some cocoa powder to your basic buttercream to make chocolate buttercream) or ganache.
Granny’s Clootie Dumpling
This is my mother-on-law Helen’s recipe that she makes for high days and birthdays. It was a firm favourite of my late father-in-law Bobby, and is still a firm favourite of Alex and Murray.
16oz self-raising four
16oz raisins
8oz suet (Helen always uses beef suet but can be substituted with vege suet)
3 teaspoon mixed spice
8oz granulate sugar
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
½ teaspoon salt
3 tablespoon treacle
1 grated apple (optional)
Milk
Large muslin cloth (approx. 70cm x 70cm)
Method
Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl adding enough milk to make a stiff dough.
Dip the cloth in boiling water and use it to line a clean bowl – the bowl is what will give your dumpling it’s shape.
Dredge the cloth with flour and spoon in the dough mixture.
Tie the top of the cloth with string leaving enough room for the pudding to swell.
Place the bowl in a large pan and cover with water.
Bring to the boil and simmer for 3 hours
Remove from pan and carefully unwrap the pudding. Turn the pudding onto a serving plate. The surface should have formed a skin (I hate that part but apparently it’s the best bit of the pudding!). If patches of the skin are still wet, place inside a warm (not hot) oven for a few minutes.
Can be eaten hot or cold – my father-in-law liked a leftover bit fried with his breakfast.
When my children were small, Helen used to wrap coins in greaseproof paper and placed them inside the dough before it was cooked. Needless to say they looked forward to a dumpling at their gran’s!
Pancakes
This is a traditional Scottish recipe that was included in a Daily Record Scottish Recipe booklet many, many years ago!
8oz self-raising flour
3 ½ oz caster sugar
2 fl oz of vegetable or sunflower oil
2 medium eggs
Approx. ¼ pint milk
Method
Put all ingredients in a bowl and mix well. You may need to add more or less milk depending on how thick you like your pancakes. The mixture is best left to stand for 10-20 mins before using. The mixture will thicken up during this time so you may need to add a drop more milk if it’s too thick.
Pancakes are best cooked on a heavy based frying pan or a pancake griddle. I bought a griddle in 1985 and retired it a few years ago when I purchased a pancake/crepe maker. I find it easier to control the temperature with my electric machine!
Pre-heat your frying pan or pancake maker to a medium heat. As long as your surface is non-stick there is no need to grease the cooking surface.
I usually cook 4 pancakes at a time using a tablespoon of mixture for each pancake.
When the pancakes start cooking, bubbles will form on the surface. When you have a lots of bubbles it’s time to flip over to the other side. Cook for another minute or so until they are nicely brown on the bottom.
Cool on a clean tea towel or on a sheet of greaseproof paper (or eat straight away drizzled in syrup – one of the perks of being the cook!).
Pancakes
This is a recipe for American style pancakes – these are less sweet than the Scottish ones but look the same!
9 ½ oz self-raising flour
2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoon caster sugar
Sieve all the dry ingredients into a bowl
Whisk together:
9 fl ox milk
2 large eggs
3 oz melted butter
Method
Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix well. Leave the batter to stand for 10-20 mins before cooking.
In case you didn’t read the recipe for Scottish pancakes:
Pancakes are best cooked on a heavy based frying pan or a pancake griddle or electric pancake maker.
Pre-heat your frying pan or pancake maker to a medium heat. As long as your surface is non-stick there is no need to grease the cooking surface.
I usually cook 4 pancakes at a time using a tablespoon of mixture for each pancake.
When the pancakes start cooking, bubbles will form on the surface. When you have a lots of bubbles it’s time to flip over to the other side. Cook for another minute or so until they are nicely brown on the bottom.
Cool on a clean tea towel or on a sheet of greaseproof paper (or eat straight away drizzled in syrup – one of the perks of being the cook!).
These are a bit darker than I’d normal make them but by the time I remembered to take a photo most of the batch had been eaten …..
Crepes
This recipe was given to me by a French student a few years ago (she was French studying English!)
250g plain flour
1 pinch of salt
3 medium eggs
½ litre milk
50g melted butter
50g sugar
Method
Mix together the flour and salt
Make a well in the flour and crack in the eggs
Starting whisking the flour and eggs together whilst adding the milk
Very slowly add the melted butter so that the eggs don’t start to cook
Add the sugar in at the end and mix well
Let the batter rest for at least 30 mins before using
Pre-heat your frying pan or pancake/crêpe maker to a medium heat. As long as your surface is non-stick there is no need to grease the cooking surface.
Pour one ladleful of the batter onto the centre and quickly spread it evenly across the cooking surface. My pancake/crêpe maker came with a T shaped tool which makes this task really easy. If you don’t have one you could use the back of the ladle to do this. Cook for a couple of minutes on each side until the crêpe is cooked.
You can fill your crêpe with whatever you want.
Our favourites are
nutella and banana (best to warm the nutella up in the microwave first – it spreads better)
freshly squeezed lemon juice and sugar
freshly squeezed orange juice and sugar
a drizzle of Cointreau and sugar (my favourite!)
Macrons
After a few dodgy attempts I found this recipe and method on You Tube that works!
For every 1 Egg white (medium egg at room temperature) use:
20g Caster Sugar
70g Icing Sugar
40g Ground Almonds
Pinch of salt
Method
Whisk the egg white(s) with a pinch of salt until it peaks and the peaks hold.
Stir in the sieved sugars and almonds.
At this stage add in any food colouring – it’s best that you use gel colours to avoid the mixture getting too wet.
Mix together until you can make a figure of 8 without the mixture breaking.
When it reaches this stage stop mixing
Place parchment/greaseproof paper onto baking sheets. A small dab of the mixture at each corner will help keep the paper in place.
Pipe the mixture onto parchment/greaseproof paper – whatever size you like. The creators of this recipe advises not to use a silicone mat as parchment paper gives better results. I’ve tried both and they’re right!
Once you have piped the mixture onto the trays you need to bang or drop the tray onto your worktop 4 times, turning the tray ¼ round each time.
Leave the macarons for 30-60 mins until a skin forms on top.
Pre-heat oven at 160°C (150°C for a fan oven) and then bake for 17 mins
Remove from oven.
If the macarons are still firmly stuck to the parchment, bake for a few mins more.
Once cooked, leave the macarons on the tray for 15-20 mins before transferring onto a wire rack. At this stage the macarons should have a flat bottom.
I fill mine with either buttercream or ganache flavoured any way you want. You can use pureed fruit or use some of the flavour extracts you can find in supermarkets – my favourites are the Sicilian Lemon, Valencia Orange and Madagascan Vanilla!
I made these for Becky’s 30th birthday party – lemon and strawberry flavour.
Fruit Trifle
This recipe was given to me by Audrey – another lovely lady who I worked beside during my time at Digital back in the 1980s.
I always make my trifle in the same glass bowl that was given to me as an engagement present back in 1983. It’s this bowl that’s in the photograph at the bottom!
1 packet of table jelly – flavour of your choice
1 tin of fruit – a type that will complement the flavour of your table jelly
4 or 5 chocolate mini rolls or approx. half a normal swiss roll (any flavour)
I tin/carton of custard or fresh custard. If making my own, I use 1 pint of milk
1 medium carton of double cream (I use Elmlea)
Method
The first layer of my trifle is jelly and fruit. I tend to use orange jelly and mandarins; raspberry jelly and pears; peach jelly and peaches; raspberry jelly and fresh raspberries – but use whatever you like. If using peaches and pears I tend to slice them into slithers so it disperses more evenly in the jelly.
In a jug, dissolve the jelly in ½ pint of hot water. Stir until melted (or melt in microwave).
Slice up the fruit (if necessary) and add both the fruit and the juice from the tin to the jelly. At this point the jelly and fruit combo should be just over a pint. If not, top it up with a little cold water. If you use fresh fruit, make up the jelly with one pint of water and then add the fresh fruit. Pour the jelly and fruit into a serving bowl and put in the fridge to set.
If you are making your own custard (I’ve started to do this as I find the tinned or fresh custard a little bit thin – even though I’ve used them for years!) make this whilst the jelly is setting. You want to use cold custard in this recipe.
If making your own custard, as soon as it’s cooked remove it from the heat and cover the entire surface with cling film. The cling film should touch the custard. This prevents the custard forming a skin (which you really don’t want in a trifle).
Once the jelly has set and the custard is cold, move on to the 2nd layer.
The 2nd layer of the trifle is chocolate mini rolls. Slice up each of the mini rolls into thin slices and then arrange them over the top of the jelly. Scrape up any broken off chocolate and add to the bowl. You can really use any type of swiss roll thinly sliced but the chocolate adds a lovely texture when eating the trifle especially if you get the chocolate that’s at the end part of the mini roll.
The 3rd layer is the custard. Carefully spoon this on top of the swiss roll and level it off.
The 4th layer is the cream. Lightly whip your cream with one tablespoon of caster or icing sugar. The cream should just hold its shape. Spoon the cream on top of the custard.
Decorate the top of your trifle as you wish. I sometimes use chocolate dipped strawberries, raspberries, Cape Gooseberry (physalis) – these are great dipped in chocolate or just a sprinkle of grated chocolate.
This is a very versatile recipe. You can use packets and tins to make the entire recipe or make your own jelly, cake and custard. You can opt for sugar-free jelly, fresh fruit, fruit in juice, fruit in syrup, any type of swiss roll and even half-fat double cream (Elmlea do one!).
Enjoy!
Perkins
This is another of my Gran Barrie’s recipes and a favourite of my brother Hugh.
115g plain flour
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
½ teaspoon of ground ginger
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon mixed spice
60g butter (room temperature)
85g caster sugar
115g rolled oats
100g golden syrup
Method
Preheat oven at 170°C (160°C for a fan oven)
Line 2 baking trays with greaseproof paper or grease trays thoroughly
Sieve flour, bicarb, ginger, cinnamon and mixed spice into a bowl
Add the butter to the dry ingredients and rub until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs
Add the sugar and oats and mix to combine
Warm the golden syrup until it’s of pouring consistency
Add the syrup to the bowl and mix to form a stiff dough. At this point it may look as though the mixture will never come together but once you have the syrup thoroughly mixed in it should start to form clumps. You can stop mixing at this stage.
Take a heaped teaspoon of the mixture and toll into a ball. You will find it easier if you squeeze the mixture together first so it sticks, then roll.
Place the balls on a prepared baking sheet leaving approx. 1 inch between (as they will spread a little)
Press the tops with a fork
Bake in over for approx. 15 mins. If you are making larger biscuits you may need to leave them a few mins longer.
Remove from oven and leave for a couple of minutes before transferring on to a rack to cool down. Store in an airtight container.
Coburg Cakes
This is another of my Gran Barrie’s recipes and it was one of my favourites as a child (and still is!)
The quantities below yield approx. 9 muffin sized cakes
5oz self-raising flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
2 ½ oz caster sugar
2 level teaspoon cinnamon
2 oz butter
1 teaspoon treacle
1 teaspoon golden syrup
1 egg
A few tablespoon milk
Approx. 9 whole almonds/walnut halves/pecan halves (the traditional recipe uses almonds but my gran always used walnuts - I’m partial to a pecan)
Method
Preheat oven at 180°C (170°C for a fan oven)
Line muffin tray with paper cases
Sieve flour, baking powder, cinnamon and caster sugar into a bowl and give it a stir.
Gently heat the butter with the treacle and golden syrup until melted. Add to the dry ingredients.
Whisk the egg with a 3 tablespoons of milk and add to the mixture.
Mix well.
Place a whole almond/walnut/pecan in the bottom of the paper case and spoon in the mixture – half fill each case. Although the traditional recipe has the nut at the bottom, you can place the nut on top of the mixture so that people eating it are aware the cake contains nuts – or place one on the bottom and one on the top!).
Bake in oven for approx. 15-20 mins until a skewer come out clean.
Remove from oven and transfer on to a rack to cool down. Store in an airtight container.
Fruit Scones
Over the years I’ve really struggled with making scones. Shortly after lockdown Susan (in Admissions) shared this recipe with me. It’s the first time I’ve ever made decent scones. Thanks Susan!
Using a 7cm cutter, this quantity will yield 8 scones
250g plain flour
20g baking powder
30g caster sugar
55g unsalted butter (cold – straight out of the fridge)
100g sultanas
120mls milk
Egg or milk for brushing on top
Method
Preheat oven at 190°C (180°C for a fan oven)
Line a baking sheet with greaseproof paper (or one of those reusable sheets you can pick up for £1 in Poundland)
Put flour, baking powder and caster sugar in a bowl and mix well.
Cut your butter into small cubes (or grate the butter) and rub this into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.
Stir in the sultanas
Make a small well in the middle and add in the milk.
Using a palette knife gently bring the mixture together to form a dough. Don’t overwork the dough as this will make your scones dense.
Lightly flour your worktop. Tip the contents of the bowl on to the worktop.
Using your hands, gently work the dough into a circle, flattening the top until it’s approx. 1.5cm thick. There is no need to use a rolling pin.
Using a cutter (I used a 7cm cutter but you can make these smaller or larger) dip it in a little flour before pressing it firmly down into the dough and lifting it straight back up. Don’t twist the cutter as this may result in a flatter scone or one that’s lopsided.
Cut out as many scones as you can then gently bring the dough back together again and cut out more scones. You may need to do this one more time before all the dough is used up.
Place your scones on the lined baking sheet. Brush the top of each scone with beaten egg or milk (I prefer to use milk as I don’t like a shiny top to my scone but the egg does give it a more golden look making them prettier to look at).
Put your scones on the top shelf of your oven and bake for approx. 12-15 mins. You may need a few more mins if your scones are larger in size.
Cool slightly on a rack before eating!
Mince Pies
I have to be honest here and say that I usually buy my mincemeat for my mince pies in January when they’re reduced down to 30p or so and still have a ‘best before’ date of at least 18-24 months! For the last few years I’ve also made a jar of homemade mincemeat as my daughter-in-law Jane doesn’t like peel (and I can’t find any shop bought stuff without peel!). This recipe for mincemeat is adapted from a Mary Berry one.
240g of dried fruit – this can be any combination you like or all of one fruit (currants, raisins, sultanas, dried cranberries, mixed peel)
10g whole blanched almonds, roughly chopped (optional)
Half an apple (I use whatever I have in the house but the recipe suggests using half a small cooking apple)
40g butter
70g brown sugar
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon mixed spice
1/3 lemon – rind and juice
50ml brandy, dark or spiced rum or sherry
Method
The following quantity will fill one standard jam jar.
This recipe has butter but you can use suet instead. The butter makes the mincemeat look slightly cloudy in the jar but this disappears once it’s cooked in mince pies.
Measure all of the ingredients except the alcohol into a pan. Heat gently, allowing the butter to melt, then simmer very gently, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes.
Allow the mixture to cool completely then stir in the alcohol.
Spoon the mincemeat into a sterilised jam jar (I reuse a shop bought jar of mincemeat or jam - put a clean jar and lid into the oven at 180°C for about 15 mins and then let it cool until I can handle it).
Screw the lid on (there’s no need to put a waxed disc on top), label and store in a cool place. This will keep for 6 months.
To make the mince pies:
Preheat oven at 180°C (170°C for a fan oven)
Line a patty/fairy cake tin with discs of shortcrust pastry (see recipe for Molly’s pastry), place a large teaspoon of the mincemeat in the centre and top with a small disc of pastry.
Make 2 small slits on the top of each pie to let the steam out.
Gently press the edges of the bottom and top discs of pastry together to prevent the filling coming out. Some of the liquid may still escape but I think it gives it another texture to enjoy!
Bake for approx. 20-30 mins depending on how pale/dark you like your pies.
Once cooked, remove from oven and leave in the tray for 5 mins before transferring to a wire rack to cool.
I like to lightly dust mine with a little caster sugar but you don’t have to.