Orange, pistachio and pomegranate cakes
Combining fruits with nuts in baking is a timeless, tried-and-tested combination that you can rarely go wrong with. I’ve added citrus to the mix in the form of partially caramelised juicy orange, which adds another dimension to the cakes. Glossy, colourful fruit sits proudly on top of a moist pistachio cake, and the syrup created from the fruit and sugar soaks into the sponge, making these cakes incredibly moreish.
MAKES 9 CAKES
PREP TIME: 20 MINS
COOKING TIME: 30–35 MINS
170g caster sugar
2 medium oranges
Seeds from 1/2 pomegranate
75g unshelled pistachio nuts, shelled
125g butter, softened, plus extra for greasing
2 eggs
50g plain flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
You will also need a 12-hole muffin tin.
1 Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/gas 4 and grease the muffin tin with butter. Divide 45g of the caster sugar between 9 of the holes (a teaspoon/5g in each).
2 Use a sharp knife to cut the top and bottom off each orange, then slice off the skin, keeping as much of the flesh intact as possible. Slice the oranges into cross sections, then quarter each section and place two segments into each hole of the tin opposite each other, with the curved edge sitting against the sides. Fill the remaining quarters of each hole with a layer of pomegranate seeds. Bake the fruit in the oven for 10 minutes so they start to caramelise.
3 Blitz the pistachio nuts in a food processor until they resemble a fine powder. Cream together the butter and remaining sugar in a separate bowl until light and fluffy, then beat in the eggs one at a time. Add the flour, baking powder and ground pistachios to the bowl and continue to beat until the mixture is smooth.
4 When the fruit has baked for 10 minutes, remove the tin from the oven. Divide the cake batter among each hole, spreading it right to the edges, and bake for 20–25 minutes or until the cakes are risen and a skewer inserted into the centre of one of the cakes comes out clean.
5 Leave the cakes to cool in the tin for a few minutes, then run a knife or palette knife around the edge of each cake to make them easier to remove, then turn the whole tray out upside down over a board. A bit of hot syrup might escape as you turn the tray, so be very careful. Serve the cakes hot, with a big scoop of ice-cream, or cold with a cup of hot coffee.
Grapefruit and white chocolate possets with shortbread
The science behind posset is fascinating. When you add acidic lemon juice to milk, it curdles, but cream’s higher fat percentage limits its ability to follow suit. Instead, the acidified cream thickens and becomes silky and smooth. I add white chocolate to my posset as its creamy sweetness really lifts the sharp yet fragrant grapefruit to a new level.
MAKES 6 POSSETS AND 10–12 BISCUITS
PREP TIME: 15 MINS PLUS CHILLING
COOKING TIME: 20–22 MINS
500ml double cream
150g caster sugar
100g white chocolate, chopped
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Grated zest and juice of 1 small unwaxed pink grapefruit
Icing sugar, white chocolate curls and grapefruit zest, to decorate
GRAPEFRUIT SHORTBREAD
115g plain flour
35g caster sugar
75g cold butter, cubed
Grated zest of 1 small unwaxed pink grapefruit
1 Pop 6 shallow glasses into the freezer to chill. You can use any style of glass for this recipe, but the deeper the glasses, the longer the posset will take to set.
2 Pour the cream into a large heavy-based saucepan and add the sugar. Heat over a low heat, stirring, until the grains of sugar have dissolved, then turn up the heat and boil for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. The boiling cream will double or triple in size, so make sure you’ve chosen a large enough saucepan. Remove from the heat and stir in the chopped white chocolate.
3 Keep stirring until no lumps of chocolate remain, then pour in the lemon juice and the zest and juice of the grapefruit, and mix thoroughly. The mixture will thicken as the acid is added to the milk.
4 Pour the posset mixture into the chilled glasses and place the glasses in the freezer for 45 minutes to set, then enjoy immediately or transfer to the fridge until you’re ready to serve. If you’re making these ahead of time you can keep them in the fridge without using the freezer, where they will take around 3 hours to set. Dust the top of the set possets with icing sugar then decorate with white chocolate curls and grapefruit zest.
5 While the possets are chilling, make the shortbread. Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/gas 6 and line a baking tray with baking parchment. Place the flour, caster sugar and butter in a food processor and pulse until the mixture begins to clump together, then add the grapefruit zest. You could do this in a large bowl and use your fingers to rub the butter into the flour. Tip out on to a large sheet of cling film, then roll into a log and freeze for at least 15 minutes.
6 Unwrap the dough and slice into 10–12 rounds using a sharp knife. Arrange on the lined baking tray and bake for 10–12 minutes, until a pale golden brown. Remove from the oven and then leave to cool completely. Serve the shortbread with the chilled, set possets.
There is nothing better than relaxing with a refreshing glass of homemade cloudy lemonade on a warm summer’s day, and these little marshmallow bites recreate that holiday feeling. You can adapt this recipe to suit your taste by using any kind of drink as the base for the marshmallow. Pink lemonade or cream soda work especially well or try champagne for a special occasion. They make great gifts.
MAKES 25 LARGE SQUARES
PREP TIME: 30 MINS PLUS SETTING TIME
Oil, for greasing
125ml cloudy lemonade
Grated zest and juice of 1/2 unwaxed lemon
2 × 12g sachets gelatine powder
450g caster sugar
150g golden syrup
100g icing sugar
2 tbsp cornflour
You will also need a sugar thermometer
1 Line