Chocolate Meringue Cake

It’s my Birthday today, so I thought I’d celebrate with Chocolate Cake!…

This is one of those cakes that, if you are a lazy cook like me, you look at and think ,‘that looks complicated, it will take far too much energy to cook’ and you dismiss it…But, this cake is in fact quite straight forward to make, admittedly it requires a bit more time in the oven and you have to wait for it to cool properly before you can eat it, but it’s definitely worth the wait! What’s not to like…chocolate and meringue! I found this recipe some years ago in a magazine, it’s a recipe from Donna Hay.

This cake is supposed to look rustic – it will crack and collapse a bit!

240g dark chocolate, roughly chopped (I use Lindt Excellence 70% Cocoa Dark Chocolate)

180g unsalted butter, roughly chopped

2 eggs

4 eggs (extra) separated

90g brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

50g plain flour (use gluten free if required – I use Doves)

½ teaspoon baking powder

40g ground almonds

220g caster sugar

1 teaspoon white vinegar

3 teaspoons cornflour

25g cocoa powder, sifted (plus extra to dust)

1. Lightly grease and line the base of a 24cm round springform cake tin.
2. Place the chocolate and butter in a medium saucepan and melt over a low heat. Allow to cool slightly.
3. Place the 2 eggs and the 4 extra egg yolks, brown sugar and vanilla extract in a bowl and  use an electric whisk to whisk until pale and thick – 3-4 minutes.
4. Add the chocolate mixture, the flour, baking powder and ground almonds and fold gently to combine. Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and cook in a preheated oven, 160’c fan, for 35-40minutes – it will only be partially cooked. Remove and set aside.
5. Increase the oven temperature to 180’c fan.
6. Place the 4 egg whites in a bowl and using an electric whisk, whisk until they form soft peaks. Gradually add the caster sugar, followed by the vinegar. Continue to whisk until the meringue is thick and glossy.
7. Sift the cornflour and cocoa together and add to the meringue, folding through to combine. Spread the meringue over the partially cooked cake .
8. Return to the oven (180’c fan) for 20 -25 minutes until the meringue is crisp and golden.
9. Allow the cake to stand in the tin for 15-20 minutes, before gently running a knife around the edge and removing it from the tin.
10. Refrigerate for 2 hours before serving to allow the flavours to meld together. Dust with cocoa powder to serve. It is best served at room temperature – allow 30 minutes for it to warm up – it will become deliciously ‘fudgy’.

Chocolate Easter Nests

Happy Easter!…Just in case you need an excuse to eat more chocolate over the holidays, I’ve recreated one of my family’s all-time favourites, Chocolate Crispy Cakes, into a special treat for Easter! How can anyone resist, and they literally take 15 minutes to make – although admittedly you will have to wait for them to set in the fridge before eating…

50g unsalted butter

4 tablespoons golden syrup

100g dark chocolate (I use Lindt Excellence 70% Cocoa Dark Chocolate)

75g cornflakes

About 20-30 Mini Eggs

1. Gently melt the butter, syrup and chocolate in a bowl suspended over a pan of barely simmering water (a bain marie).
2. In another bowl, gently crush the cornflakes into smaller pieces – this makes them easier to mold into a nest shape.
3. Add the cornflakes to the chocolate mixture, stirring gently so that they are evenly coated.
4. Spoon the mixture into muffin cases, using the back of the spoon to create a nest shape. Place three or four Mini Eggs into the ‘nest’, and place in the fridge until set.

This week I will not only be celebrating Easter but also my birthday, I was actually born on Easter day. So, naturally, I have an excuse to have two special feasts! Before Covid, because my birthday coincided with the Easter holidays, often we were away on holiday, so over the years, I have been fortunate to celebrate my birthday in some exotic places. Unfortunately, Covid has put a hold on that for the moment. Last year we were under our first lockdown at the time of my birthday, so it was up to the ‘men’ in my life (husband, Nick and son, Felix) to cook for me – it was so memorable that I actually can’t remember what they cooked??! So, this year I think they might need some guidance from Menu Mistress!..

Firstly, this week’s Menu One celebrates Easter Sunday; following the tradition to serve lamb, I’m sharing a favourite recipe for ‘Spring Roast Leg of Lamb with a Redcurrant & Mint Sauce’. The redcurrant sauce is the winning component of this dish, it’s actually an old recipe from Delia Smith which I used to cook a lot and then, as you do, I forgot about for a few years, and when I remembered it again, I wondered why I ever stopped making it! For the actual roast leg of lamb, I like to use a recipe from Diana Henry, which uses a mix of herbs and garlic to marinate the meat, flavouring it to perfection.

Moving on to my birthday celebration, I have chosen ‘Cod with Spring Greens and Creamy Mash’ which is a super easy dish that I know Nick and Felix will be completely capable of cooking! It is the type of dish which would make an easy midweek meal, yet is also special enough to serve for an ‘occasion’ dinner. The cod is served on a bed of spring greens, flavoured with pancetta and garlic, and served with a creamy sauce on a bed of mashed potato – heaven! Admittedly, it is quite an indulgent dish, made with butter and cream, but hey, once in a while, we must live! If you are feeling virtuous you could leave the cream out of the sauce so that it is more of a broth, it will still be delicious, however, you must serve it with the creamy mash!

For my vegetarian birthday treat – I have chosen to share one of my favourite vegetarian pasta dishes – Rigatoni with Sweet Tomatoes, Aubergine and Mozzarella – a Jamie Oliver recipe from one of his older books, ‘Jamie’s Dinners’, it is his take on the classic Italian dish of ‘Pasta alla Norma’. The wonderful combination of aubergines and tomatoes are enriched by the addition of mozzarella cheese – as it melts, the cheese becomes deliciously ‘stringy’!

Of course, to celebrate my birthday properly I’ve been thinking about cocktails, as a birthday treat I’ve opted for a very sophisticated Classic Champagne Cocktail, naturally, I’m sharing this recipe so that you too can raise a glass! And, to enjoy this cocktail (and perhaps a couple of others) I’ve made my perfect ‘cocktail hour playlist’, a great mix of jazz and swing to complement my celebratory mood – it’s just a shame I can’t enjoy it out in a bar or a restaurant….here’s to next year’s birthday celebration!…(Check out ‘Cocktail Music to Cook to…Menu Music Ten’ here)

Menu One

Roast Leg of Lamb with Redcurrant & Mint Sauce

(Serves 6)

I have combined two recipes for this Roast Leg of Lamb dish. The redcurrant sauce is from Delia Smith’s ‘Summer Collection’ cookbook, whilst the lamb is from Diana Henry’s ‘How to Eat a Peach’. The lamb is stuffed with herbs and lemon zest, the flavours are wonderful, particularly in the spring, and I find that Diana Henry’s cooking times result in a perfectly cooked, pink, meat (Delia’s recipe for the lamb leg is a little more dated, the meat is cooked too well done for my taste). The redcurrant & mint in the sauce is a match made in heaven and it perfectly complements the lamb. This leg of lamb is delicious served with ‘Fine Green Beans with Almonds’ and potatoes of your choice – I am rather partial to serving ‘Concetta’s Potatoes’ with this dish (recipes below).

For the Lamb:

1.8 -2kg leg of lamb

10g parsley leaves, roughly chopped

10 thyme sprigs, leaves picked

2 rosemary sprigs, needles chopped

4 cloves garlic, chopped plus another 6 cloves peeled and left whole

6 tablespoons olive oil

Finely grated zest of 1 lemon

Sea salt and black pepper

1. The day before you are going to cook the lamb, put the herbs, 4 chopped garlic cloves, sea salt and black pepper into a mortar and grind to a paste, gradually adding the olive oil and lemon zest. With a sharp knife make incisions all over the lamb and loosen the meat round the protruding bone (at tapered end of the joint) to about one-third of the way into the joint. Cut the remaining 6 cloves of garlic into slivers and tuck these into the incisions you have made. Rub the herb paste all over the lamb, pushing it down inside the incisions and around the bone. Cover loosely with cling film or foil and refrigerate for up to 24 hours, bringing it to room temperature before cooking – this will take around 2 hours.
2. When you are ready to cook the lamb, put it in a roasting tin in a preheated oven, 220’c fan, and cook for 15 minutes.
3. Then, reduce the oven to 180’c fan, and continue to roast the lamb for another 45 minutes (allow a few minutes longer if the lamb leg is larger).
4. Remove from the oven and cover well with foil and allow to rest for 15 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, if there are any juices left in the tin, reheat them to serve alongside the meat – this is not supposed to be a ‘gravy’, just a light jus.
6. Serve the lamb with ‘Redcurrant & Mint Sauce’. This is also good with ‘Fine Green Beans with Almonds’ and ‘Concetta’s Potatoes’ (all recipes below).

For the Redcurrant & Mint Sauce:

3 tablespoons redcurrant jelly

3 tablespoons red wine vinegar

4 tablespoons mint, chopped

Sea salt and black pepper

1. Put the redcurrant jelly and the vinegar in a small saucepan, whisk over a gentle heat until the jelly has melted into the vinegar.
2. Add the chopped mint, seasoning with salt and pepper. Serve warm or at room temperature.

A Staple Side Dish – Fine Green Beans with Almonds (Serves 4)

A great classic combination – and super easy to serve up!

250g fine green beans

10g butter

15g flaked almonds

Sea salt and black pepper

1. Top the green beans, place in a saucepan of salted boiling water and cook for about 4 minutes until nearly tender but still with some bite – al dente.
2. Meanwhile melt the butter in a frying pan, when it foams add the flaked almonds. Cook until the almonds start to lightly brown – stirring continuously to ensure even browning. Remove from the heat.
3. Drain the beans and stir into the buttery almonds. Season well with salt and pepper.

A Staple Side Dish – Concetta’s Potatoes (Serves 4)

I have named these after our Italian friend (and chef), Concetta, who gave me the recipe many years ago; they are simply sliced baked potatoes with garlic, rosemary and sage.

4 large potatoes – such as Maris Piper (roasting potatoes)

1 teaspoon dried rosemary

1 teaspoon dried sage

Sea salt and black pepper

2 cloves garlic, crushed

Olive oil

1. Peel and slice the potatoes, and parboil in boiling water for 4 minutes.
2. Place in a roasting tin, sprinkle over the rosemary, sage and garlic, season with salt and black pepper and drizzle over some olive oil – mix well.
3. Place in a preheated oven, 200’c fan, for 35-40mins until crispy and well browned.

Menu Two

Cod with Spring Greens and Creamy Mash (Serves 4)

This is the type of dish which would make an easy midweek meal, yet is also special enough to serve for an ‘occasion’ dinner. The cod is served on a bed of spring greens, flavoured with pancetta and garlic, and served with a creamy sauce on a bed of mashed potato – heaven! Admittedly, it is quite an indulgent dish, made with butter and cream, but hey, once in a while, we must live! If you are feeling virtuous, you could leave the cream and butter out of the sauce so that it is more of a broth (depending on my mood, I sometimes cook it this way – it is still very tasty!), however, you must serve it with the creamy mash!

4 skinless cod fillets

100g cubed pancetta

3 sprigs of thyme, leaves picked

1 clove garlic, chopped

400g spring greens, roughly chopped

150ml chicken stock (hot)

100ml double cream (optional – see note above)

50g butter (optional – see note above)

(To serve: mashed potato – recipe below)

1. First of all make your mashed potato (recipe below), and keep warm.
2. For the greens, fry the pancetta in a large saucepan until browned and crisped. Add the thyme leaves and garlic, and stir. Now add the spring greens, then the hot stock, cream and butter (if you making the recipe without the cream/butter, just add a large knob of butter instead to bring the sauce together). Cover with a lid, allow to steam for a few minutes, shaking the pan a couple of times until cooked.
3. Meanwhile fry the fish until just cooked through (about 3-4 minutes on each side)
4. To serve, place a dollop of mash potato and some spring greens, with their sauce, on each plate and top with the fillet of fish.

Creamy Mashed Potato (Serves 4)

1kg potatoes (floury, such as Maris Piper)

100ml full-fat milk

100ml double cream

2 cloves garlic, sliced

Sea salt and black pepper

1. Peel the potatoes and cut into even sized chunks. Steam until completely cooked through.
2. Put the milk, cream and garlic in a small saucepan and bring to the boil. Remove from the heat.
3. Mash the potatoes (see note above) adding the milk mixture a little at a time. Season well with salt and pepper.

Menu Three

Rigatoni with Sweet Tomatoes, Aubergine & Mozzarella (Serves 4)

This has been one of my family’s favourites for many years. It’s a Jamie Oliver recipe from one of his older books, ‘Jamie’s Dinners’, and is his take on the classic Italian dish of ‘Pasta alla Norma’. The wonderful combination of aubergines and tomatoes is enriched by the addition of mozzarella, as the cheese melts it becomes deliciously ‘stringy’! I prefer if without the addition of the dried chilli flakes, but if you like a bit of heat you could add some.

To watch the video of this recipe being cooked click here!

1 large aubergine (or 2 small)

Olive oil

2 cloves garlic, sliced

1 onion, chopped

2 x 400g tins of plum tomatoes

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

A bunch of fresh basil, leaves picked and stalks sliced

4 tablespoons double cream

455g rigatoni or penne

200g mozzarella cheese

½ teaspoon of chilli flakes (optional – see note above)

Grated Parmesan cheese to serve

1. Remove both ends of the aubergines and slice into 1cm slices then slice these across to form 1 cm cubes.
2. In a large frying/sauté pan heat 5 tablespoons of olive oil. When it’s hot, add the aubergine cubes and stir them around so that they are lightly coated in the oil. Cook for about 10 minutes over a medium heat until softened.
3. Add the onion and garlic, cook for a few more minutes. When they have a little colour, add the tinned tomatoes, the balsamic vinegar and the sliced basil stalks (if you want to add some heat you could add the chilli flakes at this point). Simmer gently for 15 minutes, season with salt and pepper, then stir in the cream.
4. Meanwhile cook the pasta according to the instructions on the packet, until al dente.
5. When the pasta is ready, drain it and add it to the aubergine and tomato sauce. Tear up the mozzarella and fresh basil leaves, and stir them through the pasta and sauce – the mozzarella will start to melt, becoming beautifully stringy (it can be a little messy to serve!). Serve sprinkled with grated Parmesan cheese.

A Little Treat…

A Classic Champagne Cocktail (Serves 1)

This is probably one of the most sophisticated cocktails…how can you resist?!

Tip: Put your champagne flute in the freezer before using it as it really does keep the champagne nicely chilled!

1 sugar cube

2 dashes of angostura bitters

2 teaspoons cognac

Chilled champagne, to top up

Orange twist, to garnish

1. Shake the bitters over the sugar cube and put it in the bottom of a chilled champagne flute.
2.  Add the brandy, then top up with champagne.
3. Twist the orange peel over the top of the glass to release some of the oils, then drop into the glass to serve.

Lemon Surprises – with Gluten Free Option! (Serves 4)

Many of you will be familiar with ‘Lemon Surprise Pudding’, it’s one of those gratifying recipes which you put in the oven as a batter and it comes out not only as a soft sponge, but miraculously with a pool of lemony sauce underneath! You may already have a recipe for it, but I urge you to try this one, as the sponge really is the lightest that I have come across! The addition of lemon thyme is optional, it slightly lifts the flavours and, of course, makes a lovely decoration!

I like to make this dessert in individual bowls or ramekins, but you can make it in one dish.

45g soft butter

150g caster sugar

2 lemons, finely grated zest & juiced

2 eggs, separated

200ml milk

50g self-raising flour (gluten free if required – I use Doves)

4 sprigs lemon thyme (optional)

Icing sugar, for dusting

Double cream to serve

1. Use an electric mixer to cream the butter and 100g of the caster sugar with the lemon zest until pale and fluffy. Beat in the egg yolks. Gradually add the milk, lemon juice and flour in turns, mixing well between each addition to make a smooth batter.
2. Place the egg whites in a clean bowl and whisk with the remaining 50g caster sugar to soft peaks, add the picked leaves from two sprigs of thyme, then gently fold through the batter.
3. Divide the batter among four individual bowls/ramekins with the capacity for about 175ml or put in one dish. Place in a roasting tin, lined with a tea towel (this will stop them slipping), and pour in enough boiling water to come about halfway up the sides of the ramekins or dish.
4. Carefully transfer to a preheated oven, 160’c fan, and bake for 20 minutes or until golden on top and springy to touch. Turn the oven off and let the puddings rest in the oven for another 20 minutes, so the custard firms slightly.
5. Decorate with the remaining thyme sprigs, dust with icing sugar and serve with cream.

Finally, we are a few days away from being officially in spring (Saturday!)…so I’ve been thinking about food which will soon be coming into season. To be honest, these days, because we can get most of our produce year round, we can cook things out of season, however, it’s obviously good to take notice of what’s in season, as not only is it usually tastier, but it is also better for the environment. I’ve designed this week’s menus with this in mind…

Probably, the food that automatically ‘springs’ to mind is lamb. The vision of spring is often that of lambs frolicking in the meadows and, for many of us, it also means lamb on our menus, so naturally, it will be featuring on Menu Mistress this week.

However, my spring menu planning hasn’t been quite as easy as I had anticipated, as despite spring’s reputation for its abundance of fresh produce, I was surprised to learn that some ingredients, which I had expected to be in season, were actually still out of season. For example, I wanted fish to feature on this week’s menus, but apparently, spring is a quiet time in our UK waters, as the winter species have moved away and the summer species have yet to arrive, so my options were limited. Fortunately, lemon sole is very much in season from the spring through to the end of the summer, giving me the prefect opportunity to share a particularly good recipe for this beautifully delicate fish!…

This week, Menu One is ‘Lemon Sole with Spring Onions and Peas’. Lemon sole’s sweet flesh needs to be treated gently otherwise it can be easily overpowered, so in this recipe, it’s simply fried and topped with spring onions and peas with a sprinkling of lemony breadcrumbs (I have also suggested a gluten free alternative). There is nothing particularly fancy about this recipe, but it is incredibly tasty – highlighting the true flavours of spring.Menu Two is a delicious recipe for ‘Lamb with Garlic and Coriander’, the lamb racks, having been marinated in a coriander spice mix, are cooked on top of roast new potatoes and shallots, these vegetables thus soak up the lamb’s wonderful juices. Everything is roasted in one pan making it an easy dinner, any time of the week. Finally, Menu Three is my vegetarian menu, ‘Spinach and Gorgonzola Stuffed Jacket Potatoes’; a delicious recipe from Ottolenghi’s cookbook, ‘Simple’, and yes, it is a very simple, yet satisfying midweek supper! The Gorgonzola cheese is the winning ingredient in this recipe, turning the humble potato into a show stopper – just serve with a crispy salad.

I hope you enjoy cooking some of these spring treats!…don’t forget to drop by next Tuesday for my ‘Tuesday Treat’!

Menu One

Lemon Sole with Spring Onions and Peas (Serves 4)

This dish is full of lovely fresh flavours. It is served with a sprinkling of toasted breadcrumbs which are flavoured with lemon zest; if you are gluten free like me, you can either substitute the breadcrumbs for gluten free ones – I use ‘Mr Crimbles Gluten Free Ready to Use Breadcrumbs’, or you can omit the breadcrumbs – it will still be delicious simply sprinkled with lemon zest and juice . Keep this dish simple – just serve with steamed new potatoes.

4 lemon sole, filleted and skinned

100g butter

Olive oil

12 spring onions, sliced

220g peas (defrosted if frozen)

16 basil leaves, roughly chopped

8 tablespoons vegetable stock (such as Marigold Swiss  Vegetable Boullion)

Plain flour for dusting (gluten free if required)

4 lemon wedges to serve

Sea salt and black pepper

For the breadcrumbs:

4 tablespoons of breadcrumbs (see above for gluten free option)

Zest of 1 lemon

Pinch of chilli flakes

1. Firstly toast the breadcrumbs in a frying pan, with a drizzle of olive oil. Mix with the lemon zest and chilli flakes, and put to one side.
2. Place the butter, spring onions, peas, basil, stock and a little olive oil in a saucepan and season with salt. Cover the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes over a medium heat. Check the seasoning and keep warm whilst you cook the fish.
3. Dust the fish with the flour. Heat a little olive oil in a frying pan and fry the fish for about 3 minutes on each side (you will probably have to do this in batches).
4. Place the lemon sole on plates, spoon over the pea mixture and sprinkle with the toasted breadcrumbs, serve with a wedge of lemon on the side and some steamed new potatoes.

Menu Two

Lamb with Garlic and Coriander (Serves 4)

This is a wonderful ‘all in one’ roast, the lamb is cooked on top of the potatoes which soak up all the delicious fatty juices!

2 racks of lamb with 6 cutlets each

2 heads of garlic

5 tablespoons olive oil

2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar

1½ teaspoons coriander seeds, lightly crushed

8 sprigs of thyme

1kg small salad potatoes such as Charlotte, peeled and halved

350g shallots, peeled and halved

Sea salt and black pepper

1. Cut each rack into three, so that you have 6 pieces (double chops).
2. Peel and chop two cloves of garlic and whisk together with 3 tablespoons of olive oil, the vinegar, coriander seeds. Add a couple of chopped thyme sprigs and some black pepper. Marinate the lamb in this mixture in the baking tin that you will cook it in, for several hours or overnight, turning once or twice and rubbing in the marinade.
3. When ready to cook, remove the lamb from the baking tin and set aside. Add the potatoes, the remaining, unpeeled garlic cloves and the shallots to any marinade left in the tin, adding 2 tablespoons of olive oil and lots of sea salt. Give it all a good mix and roast in a preheated oven, 200’c fan, for 30-35 minutes, until the potatoes are just tender when tested with the tip of a sharp knife, but not quite done.
4. Turn the oven up to 220’c and place the lamb on top of the potatoes, tucking in the remaining thyme sprigs. Roast for a further 15-20 minutes.
5. To serve, cut two of the pieces (double chops) of lamb in half so that you have four individual chops, then place one double chop and a single chop on each plate, alongside the delicious roast potatoes and shallots. Green beans with Almonds are very good served with this dish (recipe below).

Fine Green Beans with Almonds (Serves 4)

A great classic combination – and super easy to serve up!

250g fine green beans

10g butter

15g flaked almonds

Sea salt and black pepper

1. Top the green beans, place in a saucepan of salted boiling water and cook for about 4 minutes until nearly tender but still with some bite – al dente.
2. Meanwhile melt the butter in a frying pan, when it foams add the flaked almonds. Cook until the almonds start to lightly brown – stirring continuously to ensure even browning. Remove from the heat.
3. Drain the beans and stir into the buttery almonds. Season well with salt and pepper.

Menu Three

Spinach and Gorgonzola Stuffed Jacket Potatoes (Serves 4)

This is a delicious recipe from Ottolenghi’s cookbook, ‘Simple’, and yes, it is a very simple, yet satisfying midweek supper! The Gorgonzola cheese is the winning ingredient in this recipe, turning the humble potato into a show stopper – just serve with a crispy salad.

4 large baking potatoes

50g butter

6 tablespoons double cream

120g Gorgonzola cheese

400g baby spinach

40g walnut halves (optional)

Sea salt and black pepper

1. First of all toast the walnuts (if using) in a preheated oven, 200’c fan, for about 5 minutes (keep an eye on them!), then chop roughly.
2. Pierce each potato a few times with a fork and place them on a baking tray lined with baking parchment. Bake in a preheated oven, 220’c fan, for 1 hour or just over.
3. Cut each potato in half, lengthways, scoop the flesh out into a medium bowl, setting the skins aside for later.
4. Roughly mash the potato with 40g of butter, the cream, Gorgonzola, 1 teaspoon salt and a generous grind of pepper and set aside.
5. Take the remaining 10g of butter and divide between the potato cavities. Sprinkle with a generous pinch of salt and return to the oven for 7-8 minutes to crisp up. Remove from the oven and set aside.
6. Place a medium saucepan, half filled with salted water, on a high heat. Once boiling, add the spinach for about 10-15 seconds, just to wilt. Drain the spinach, squeezing out as much water as possible. Stir this into the potato flesh mixture and spoon this mash back into the empty potato skins, piled high.
7. Bake the potatoes in the oven, 220’c fan, for 10-15 minutes, until the mash is crisp and browned. Remove from the oven, sprinkle with the walnuts, if using, and serve with a side salad.