Tag: dessert

Tuesday Treat

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Espresso, Chocolate & Chilli Cake with Coffee Cream

Chocolate and coffee – say no more!.. Yes, this is a recipe for keeps. The cake is wonderfully moist; it will sink a little as it cools, so don’t expect a pretty-looking cake, however, all is forgiven with your first, delicious bite! Don’t be put off by the mention of chilli, it’s not a spicy cake, the chilli just gives the chocolate flavour more depth. The addition of the coffee cream makes this cake exceptional (you may want to double the quantity of the cream!). Have I sold it to you?!..

3 tablespoons plain flour (gluten-free if required), plus extra for the tin

250g dark chocolate (I use Lindt Excellence 70% Cocoa Dark Chocolate)

250g salted butter, softened and chopped, plus extra for greasing

1 tablespoon instant espresso powder

2 red birds-eye chillies, deseeded and finely chopped

¼ teaspoon chilli powder

6 medium eggs

4 tablespoons brown sugar

175g caster sugar

½ teaspoon cream of tartar

4 tablespoons ground almonds

Cocoa powder to serve

For the Coffee Cream:

300ml double cream

1 tablespoon instant espresso powder

  1. Grease a 22cm springform cake tin with soft butter and line the bottom with baking parchment. Shake a little flour around the buttered edges.
  2. Melt the chocolate and butter together over a pan of simmering water. Once melted, whisk together until smooth and add the espresso powder, chillies and chilli powder.
  3. Whisk the egg yolks with the brown sugar and caster sugar, either in an electric mixer or with an electric hand whisk, for 5-10 mins until thick and pale.
  4. In a separate bowl, using a clean whisk, beat the egg whites and cream of tartar until soft rounded peaks form.
  5. Pour the chocolate mixture onto the beaten yolks and sugar, and gently mix until smooth. Add the almonds and flour and mix again. Spoon the egg whites into the chocolate mixture and gently fold together. Pour the batter into the prepared tin and bake in a preheated oven, 160’c fan, for 40-45 mins until the cake is set but with a slight jiggle in the centre. (If the cake is starting to brown too quickly, cover with a piece of baking parchment.
  6. Leave to cool in the tin – it will sink a little as it cools.
  7. Meanwhile, whisk the cream and espresso powder until soft peaks form.
  8. Remove the cake from the tin, slice and serve with a generous dollop of coffee cream and a dusting of cocoa powder.

Tuesday Treat

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Raspberry & Pomegranate Roulade

Any roulade is a favourite dessert of mine, however, this one is particularly good! The cream filling is cut with Greek yoghurt, in addition there’s the fresh zing from lemon zest and the tartness of raspberries and pomegranate seeds. With added ground almonds, the meringue roulade is slightly more cake-like but still very light. Like all roulades this is best eaten fresh!

4 large egg whites

225g caster sugar

50g ground almonds

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1 teaspoon cornflour

For the filling:

350ml double cream

160g strained full-fat Greek-style yogurt

Finely grated zest of 1 unwaxed lemon

2 teaspoons lemon juice

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons icing sugar, plus more to dust

100g raspberries

130g pomegranate seeds

For the topping:

1-2 tablespoons shelled, unsalted pistachios, roughly chopped

*You will need a 30x20cm Swiss roll tin, lined with baking parchment (alternatively you could draw a rectangle, 30x20cm, on piece of baking parchment placed on a baking tray).

  1. Place the egg whites in a large bowl and whisk to soft peaks. Slowly add the sugar, whisking in a few tablespoons at a time until it has all been used up and you have stiff, glossy meringue. Gently fold in the almonds lemon juice and cornflour.
  2. Spoon the meringue into the prepared tin and use a spatula to smooth out.
  3. Bake in a preheated oven, 150’c fan, for 30 minutes, until firm on top and slightly golden.
  4. Meanwhile tear off another piece of baking parchment of the same size and lay it on a clean work surface – you’ll need this to roll the meringue when it’s cooked.
  5. Whisk the cream, yogurt, lemon zest, lemon juice, vanilla extract and icing sugar in a bowl to a thick cream. Place half the berries in a bowl and use a fork to mash, to create pools of juice.
  6. When the meringue is cooked, turn it out onto the fresh piece of baking parchment you prepared earlier. Gently peel off the parchment from the base of the meringue and leave to completely cool (this will take about 10 minutes).
  7. When the meringue is cold, spoon the cream over it, reserving a couple of tablespoons for decoration. Sprinkle over most of the pomegranate seeds, reserving 2 spoonfuls for decoration, and scatter over the whole raspberries and crushed berries, swirling the juices with the end of the spoon so that you have bright pink streaks running through it.

Tuesday Treat

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Vanilla Pavlova with Passion Fruit Cream, Pineapple and Mint Salsa (Serves 8)

This is a real show-stopping dessert. The combination of the fresh pineapple and passion fruit alongside the whipped cream and marshmallow-like texture of the meringue is sublime – plus there’s the fresh tang from the mint! This glorious recipe is from Paul Ainsworth’s cookbook ‘For the Food I Love’.

6 egg whites

1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste

330g caster sugar

1½ tablespoon cornflour

2 teaspoons lemon juice

Zest of 1 lime

For the Pineapple and Mint Salsa:

1 ripe pineapple, peeled, cored and diced

1 pod of vanilla, seeds removed

4 passion fruit

12 mint leaves

For the Passion Fruit Cream:

125g crème fraiche

20g icing sugar

150ml double cream

  1. First, make the meringue. Whisk the egg whites and vanilla paste together until light and fluffy. Now slowly start to whisk in the sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, until fully incorporated. Continue to whisk until the meringue forms soft peaks. Sift the cornflour and using a spatula fold it through the fluffy egg white. Finally, fold through the lemon juice.
  2. Onto a baking sheet lined with baking paper, spoon (or pipe) the meringue, forming 8 domed circles (approx. 10cm). Bake in a preheated oven, 110’c fan for 55 minutes, then turn off the oven and leave the pavlovas in the oven to cool and dry.
  3. To make the pineapple and mint salsa, take a bowl and add the pineapple and vanilla seeds (from the pod). Cut the passion fruit in half and scrape out the fruit into a sieve over a small bowl to collect the juice. Keep back 1 tablespoon of juice for the fruit cream (see below) and add the rest to the salsa, along with the passion fruit seeds. Chop up some of the mint but reserve a few leaves for decoration. Now give the salsa a good stir.
  4. Next make the passion fruit cream. Take a mixing bowl and add the crème fraiche, icing sugar and reserved 1 tablespoon of passion fruit juice, whisk together to combine. In a separate bowl, whisk the double cream until you have soft peaks. Fold the whipped double cream through the passion fruit mixture and whip until stiff. Chill in the fridge until ready to serve.
  5. To serve, place the pavlovas onto a large platter or individual plates. Divide the passion fruit cream between the pavlovas in neat dollops, then spoon over the pineapple and mint salsa. Finish with lime zest and reserved mint leaves.

Tuesday Treat

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Banana Soufflés with Caramel Sauce (Serves 6)

Oh my, these are good!.. They are soft, fluffy and fruity; a super light dessert which will impress everyone. Soufflés have a reputation for being difficult to make, but believe me when I say that these are super easy. The soufflé mix can be made up to two hours in advance, just keep chilled in the ramekins and bake straight from the fridge. Meanwhile, the caramel sauce can be made up to 2 days in advance; keep chilled and reheat gently to serve.

*It’s important to get the size of the ramekins right to make sure that they rise up – I used ramekins with a 200ml capacity (9cm diameter) and they rose up perfectly.

20g butter, softened for coating the ramekins

100g caster sugar, plus extra for coating

75ml whole milk

2 large eggs, separated

2 tablespoons cornflour

1 large ripe banana, about 100g

1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste

Icing sugar, for dusting

For the caramel sauce:

20g dark muscovado sugar

1 tablespoon golden syrup

25g butter

150ml double cream

  1. Preheat the oven to 180’c fan and put a baking tray in the oven.
  2. Grease 6 ramekins (see note above) with butter and evenly coat the base and sides with a little sugar.
  3. Heat the milk until it’s just at a simmer then remove from the heat. Using an electric whisk, beat the egg yolks and 50g of the caster sugar together until pale, then whisk in the cornflour. Now, gradually whisk in the warm milk.
  4. Place the banana and vanilla bean paste in a food processor or blender and whizz until very smooth. Stir into the milk mixture.
  5. Using clean beaters, whisk the 2 egg whites until stiff, then gradually add the remaining sugar, whisking until shiny.
  6. Use a metal spoon to fold the banana mixture into the egg whites, a quarter at a time, until blended and mousse-like.
  7. Spoon the mixture into the prepared ramekins. Place on the hot baking tray and bake in the preheated oven, 180’c fan, for 12-15 minutes until risen and golden brown.
  8. Meanwhile, make the caramel sauce. Place the sugar, butter and syrup in a pan and heat gently, stirring, until smooth. Bring to a simmer then stir in the cream and cook gently for a further 2 minutes.
  9. Remove the soufflés from the oven dust with icing sugar and serve immediately with the warm sauce – it’s a good idea to make sure your guests are seated at the table so you can serve them the moment they come out of the oven so that everyone can appreciate them in their full ‘risen’ glory!

Tuesday Treat

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Ice-Cream with Mars Bar Sauce (serves 4)

Yes, I know it’s still March and it’s cold outside, but this ice-cream dessert is served with a hot sauce! In addition it’s the simplest dessert to whip up; a proper ‘cheats’ recipe. It’s been my ‘go-to’ recently as I’ve been away a lot and time in the kitchen has been hit and miss, however, this recipe is one which always delivers even when running around like a ‘headless chicken’!.. As Skye McAlpine, the creator of this recipe, says in her cookbook, ‘A Table Full of Love’… “There is nothing that is sophisticated and absolutely everything that is utterly delicious about this pudding”…

100g Mars bar (about 2), chopped

8 tablespoons double cream

Vanilla ice-cream

Sea salt flakes

3-4 tablespoons flaked almonds, lightly toasted in a dry frying pan (optional)

  1. Put the chopped Mars bar in a small saucepan. Pour in the cream and warm gently over a low heat, stirring constantly until the chocolate is completely melted. This should take about 3-4 minutes. Add a couple of generous pinches of salt to taste.
  2. Scoop the ice-cream into bowls. Pour over the hot chocolate sauce and, if using, sprinkle over the almonds. Serve immediately!