Chocolate Fondant with Strawberry Sorbet
TIER 2
Chocolate Fondant with Strawberry Sorbet
This is a more refined take on the Tier 1 recipe. The fondants are baked in individual ring moulds and plated with chocolate soil and raspberry sorbet. The soil adds crunch and a subtle saltiness, while the sorbet brings brightness and balance to the plate. All the elements can be prepared in advance, then the fondants are baked just before serving.
4
FONDANTS
Ingredients
Makes 4 Fondants
Strawberry Sorbet
90g Water
160g Caster/White Sugar
35g Liquid Glucose or any invert sugar
2g Locust Bean Gum or NH Pectin
450g Strawberry Puree
Citric Acid To Taste (1-2g)
Fine Sea Salt To Taste
Chocolate Crumble
50g Caster/White Sugar
50g Ground Almonds
30g Plain/All-Purpose Flour
20g Cocoa Powder
3g Flakey Salt
35g Unsalted Butter, Melted
Chocolate Fondant
200g Dark Chocolate (70% Cocoa Solids), Chopped
200g Unsalted Butter, Room Temperature
200g Icing/Powdered Sugar
220g Whole Eggs
75g Egg Yolks
55g Plain/All-Purpose Flour
45g Cocoa Powder
Pinch of Flakey Sea Salt
Special equipment
Digital thermometer
Hand blender
Ice cream machine
4 7×3.5cm (2.7×1.3”) metal ring molds
Stand mixer or electric hand whisk
Piping bags (optional)
Method
Strawberry Sorbet
1. Place a medium bowl inside a large bowl that is filled with ice water. Set this to one side.
2. Into a medium saucepan, add the water, sugar, glucose and locust bean gum.
- 90g Water
- 160g Caster/White Sugar
- 35g Liquid Glucose or any invert sugar
- 2g Locust Bean Gum or NH Pectin
3. Whisk the mixture over a medium heat until it reaches 85C/185F on a digital thermometer.
4. Immediately remove it from the heat and pour it into the medium bowl you set aside, over the ice. Stir this occasionally until it reaches around 10C/50F on a digital thermometer.
5. Transfer the cooled mixture to a tall measuring jug, then pour the strawberry puree on top. Blend till smooth with a hand blender.
- 450g Strawberry Puree
6. Add in the citric acid (or lemon juice) and blend. Taste the mixture and add more if needed to suit your taste.
- 1-2g Citric Acid
7. The mixture can be churned immediately in your ice cream machine, or left in the fridge for up to 24 hours.
8. When you are ready to churn it, add a pinch of salt and stir this through. Then pour it into your machine, churning according to the machine instructions. It usually takes around 15-30 minutes until it is a thick, scoopable texture.
9. Once it is done, it will still be slightly soft, so transfer it to a tupperware and place it back in the freezer for 2-3 hours. Then it will be the perfect scooping texture.
Chocolate Soil
1. Preheat the oven to 160C/320F non-fan assisted (145C/295F fan-assisted)
2. Place all the dry ingredients into a bowl and stir together with a spatula.
- 50g Caster/White Sugar
- 50g Ground Almonds
- 30g Plain/All-Purpose Flour
- 20g Cocoa Powder
- 3g Flakey Salt
3. Pour in the melted butter and stir together to form a crumbly chocolate mix.
- 35g Unsalted Butter, Melted
4. Tip the crumble onto a baking sheet and bake for 12 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow it to cool completely. If you would like the soil to be a finer consistency you can blend it briefly in a food processor but it’s optional! Store the mixture and set to one side.
Chocolate Fondant
1. Preheat the oven to 190C/375C non-fan assisted (175C/345F fan-assisted).
2. Lightly grease four 7×3.5cm (2.7×1.3”) metal ring molds with soft butter and then coat with cocoa powder, tapping out the excess. Place these onto a baking tray lined with a silicon mat or baking paper.
3. Place the chocolate into a bowl and place this over a pan of gently simmering water, stirring occasionally until it has melted. Remove it from the heat to cool for 5 minutes.
- 200g Dark Chocolate (70% Cocoa Solids), Chopped
4. Add the butter and sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and beat on a medium speed for 2-3 minutes, until it is very thick and pale.
- 200g Unsalted Butter, Room Temperature
- 200g Icing/Powdered Sugar
5. Lower the speed, and drizzle in the eggs slowly, scraping down the side of the bowl as needed.
- 220g Whole Eggs
- 75g Egg Yolks
6. Pour in the cooled chocolate and mix to combine, scraping down the bowl as needed.
7. Finally, sift in the flour and cocoa powder, along with a good pinch of the salt. Stir this through with a spatula until you have a smooth, thick batter.
- 55g Plain/All-Purpose Flour
- 45g Cocoa Powder
- Pinch of Flakey Sea Salt
8. Add the mixture to a piping bag and pipe it into the greased ring molds, filling them about ¾ of the way up.
9. Place the tray into the centre of the oven and bake for 14 minutes. They should feel slightly firm/bouncy when you touch the edge and then the centre should look slightly molten.
Assembly
1. While they are baking, prepare the plates. Take the chocolate soil and pour 1-2 tbsp on the side.
2. Remove the sorbet from the freezer and let it warm up for a few minutes before using a warm spoon to scoop some on top of the soil. Do this, just before the fondant comes out of the oven.
3. Once the fondants are baked, place a palette knife underneath each one and carefully lift it onto the serving plate.
4. Carefully remove the ring mold and peel away the baking paper. Serve immediately.
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Apple & Almond Puff Pastry Tart
TIER 1
Apple & Almond Puff Pastry Tart
In Tier 1 we’re mastering the essential technique of laminating inverse puff pastry. This is trickier as the dough is wrapped in a butter block which means it can get a little sticky, but the resulting pastry melts in the mouth. We’ve covered laminating a few times so if you’ve tried those classes, you will be really confident heading into this. Once the dough has rested, we cut it into discs, fill it with an almond cream and finally add some sliced apples. After your first bite, you’ll want to eat the whole tray!
6
TARTS
Ingredients
Makes 6 Individual Tarts
Inverse Puff Pastry
Butter Block
100g Plain/All-Purpose Flour
300g Unsalted Butter, Room Temperature
Dough
200g Plain/All-Purpose Flour
4g Fine Sea Salt
120g Double/Heavy Cream
20g Cold Water
5g White Vinegar
Almond Cream
55g Unsalted Butter, Soft
55g Icing Sugar
130g Ground Almonds
10g Cornstarch/Cornflour
45g Whole Eggs, Room Temperature
2-3 Pink Lady Apples
Egg Wash
35g Egg Yolk
30g Double/Heavy Cream
Icing/Powdered Sugar To Decorate
Special equipment
Stand mixer
Digital thermometer
12cm cookie cutter
Piping bag
Method
Inverse Puff Pastry
Butter Block
1. Add the soft butter and flour into a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Beat for 1-2 minutes on a medium speed until smooth, scraping down the bowl as needed.
- 100g Plain/All-Purpose Flour
- 300g Unsalted Butter, Room Temperature
2. Trace a rectangle 35 x 20 cm/14 x 8 inches in the centre of a large sheet of parchment paper or acetate, then flip it over. Place the butter mixture into the centre, folding over the edges of the paper and taping them in place if needed.
3. Use a rolling pin to roll it into a rectangle with even thickness. Chill for 3 hours in the fridge or overnight.
Dough
1. For the dough, add all the ingredients to a large bowl and stir together until there are no more dry ingredients. It can help to squeeze it together with your hands.
- 200g Plain/All-Purpose Flour
- 4g Fine Sea Salt
- 120g Double Cream
- 20g Cold Water
- 5g White Vinegar
2. Tip the mixture onto a lightly floured work surface and knead it for 1–2 minutes. Initially, it will be quite dry, but as you continue to work it, it will become smooth and gain some very slight elasticity.
3. Trace a rectangle 17.5 x 20cm into the centre of a large sheet of baking parchment or acetate and flip it over. Place the dough in the centre and fold over the edges of the parchment, taping it in place if needed. Roll the dough to the edges until you have an even block. Refrigerate for 3 hours, or ideally overnight. A longer chill is preferable to relax the gluten.
4. Once both have chilled, remove the butter block from the fridge, it needs to be 9–10°C (48–50°F) before using. Once it is close to temperature, remove the dough from the fridge; this needs to be at 6–7°C (43–45°F).
5. Place the dough block in the centre of the butter and fold the butter over, sealing the seam with your fingers. Be quite generous with flouring the work surface and the dough here, or the butter will stick.
6. Rotate the dough 90 degrees so the seam is facing you horizontally, and use a sharp knife to score the edges of the dough where it is folded over the butter. This will release tension and make it easier to roll.
7. Lightly roll the dough to give it some slight width, then rotate the dough 90 degrees again so the seam is now vertically in line with your body.
8. Roll the dough lengthways into a long rectangle, being liberal with the flour so that it doesn’t stick, until it reaches a thickness of about 5–7mm. Use a sharp knife to trim off any wonky ends and dust off any excess flour.
9. Perform a double fold, folding one side of the dough up about 1/5th of the way, bringing the opposite side over to meet it, and then folding the whole piece in half. Wrap the dough tightly in cling film, and place it in the freezer for 15 minutes, then into the fridge for 10 minutes.
10. Remove the dough from the fridge, and with the open seam facing you (i.e if you were looking at the dough straight on, you would be able to see where it has been folded over itself), use a sharp knife again, to score the edges of the dough where it is folded.
11. Turn the dough 90 degrees so the open seam is now horizontal to you and give the dough a quick roll, to give it a little bit of width.
12. Turn the dough 90 degrees again so the open seam is facing you again and begin to roll the dough. Roll the dough into a long even rectangle, very very lightly flouring it, just as we did in step 8.
13. Perform another double fold, and place it in the freezer for 15 minutes, then into the fridge for 10 minutes.
14. Repeat this process one more time, but finishing with a single fold rather than a double fold. To do this, take one-third of the dough and fold it up, then take the other third of dough and fold this over the top.
15. Wrap the dough tightly in clingfilm and refrigerate, ideally overnight. Again, a longer chill helps to relax the gluten.
Almond Cream
1. Into a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and icing sugar on a medium-low speed until smooth, 1-2 minutes.
- 55g Unsalted Butter, Soft
- 55g Icing Sugar
2. Scrape down the sides and add the ground almonds and cornstarch, then mix again just until combined.
- 130g Ground Almonds
- 10g Cornstarch/Cornflour
3. Finally pour in the eggs and beat until it is evenly combined.
- 45g Whole Eggs, Room Temperature
4. Cover this and set it to one side at room temperature.
Assembly
1. Preheat the oven to180C/355F Non-Fan assisted (165C/330 Fan).
2. Remove the puff pastry from the fridge and lightly flouring it, roll it into a rough square shape, around 3-4mm thick.
3. Using a 12cm/4.5” cookie cutter, cut 6 discs of pastry and lift these onto a baking tray lined with a silicon baking mat (or a perforated tray lined with a perforated baking mat). Cut more discs if you have enough dough.
4. Add the pistachio cream into a piping bag, and pipe and even layer into the centre of the puff pastry, leaving about a 1.5cm/0.6” border around the outside.
5. Take the apples and core them, then cut them in half. Next, thinly slice them with a knife or a mandolin.
6. Stack the apple slices together, fanning them apart just slightly and place enough into the tart to cover the pistachio cream, but avoid going over the border of puff pastry.
7. Whisk the egg wash ingredients together and with a pastry brush, very lightly brush the border of puff pastry. You can sprinkle some coarse brown/demerara sugar over the top too for some added crunch, or even toasted flaked almonds.
- 35g Egg Yolks
- 30g Double/Heavy Cream
8. Place these into the centre of the oven and bake for around 35-40 minutes, or until a golden brown colour.
9. Remove them from the oven and lift them onto a wire rack to cool for 15 minutes, then serve. They can be eaten warm or you can allow them to cool completely. Before serving, add a dusting of icing/powdered sugar to finish.
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Lemon Meringue Tart
TIER 1
Lemon Meringue Tart
Lemon meringue tart is something I’ve been a bit hesitant to make before – I always thought there was way too much meringue, and it was overly sweet, so it was my mission to be proved wrong! The lemon filling is slightly richer than my Dad’s recipe, with more egg yolks which means it sets slightly firmer. We make a Swiss meringue for the topping, but with less sugar, which we press flat against the filling to create a more modern design.
1
9-INCH TART
Ingredients
Makes 1 9-inch tart
Lemon Sweet Pastry
100g Unsalted Butter, Cold & Cubed
70g Icing/Powdered Sugar, Sifted
Pinch of Fine Sea Salt
Zest ½ Lemon
50g Egg Yolk
200g Plain, All Purpose Flour
Egg Wash
40g Egg Yolk
10g Double/Heavy Cream
Lemon Filling
160g Whole Eggs
120g Egg Yolks
230g Caster/ White Sugar
200g Double/Heavy Cream
6g Lemon Zest
150g Lemon Juice
Swiss Meringue
100g Egg Whites
100g Caster/White Sugar
Special equipment
Stand mixer
9-inch fluted tart ring
Hand blender
Baking beans
Blow torch
Digital thermometer
Method
Lemon Sweet Pastry
1. Into the bowl of a stand mixer, add the butter, icing sugar, salt and lemon zest. With the paddle attachment, beat the mixture for 2-3 minutes, scraping it down a few times in between, until you have a smooth paste.
2. Add in the egg yolks, and beat again, until the mixture is evenly combined, you will need to scrape down the bowl a few times again.
3. Tip in the flour, and use a rubber spatula to scrape the bottom of the bowl to make sure the butter doesn’t get stuck. Scrape the sides, and then mix on a low speed until it pulls together to form a dough.
4. Scoop the dough out onto your work surface, and give it a quick knead just to bring it together. Shape it into a disc and warp it in clingfilm, before refrigerating for an hour or longer.
5. Once it’s chilled, remove it from the fridge and let it soften slightly at room temperature. The dough needs to be cold but flexible. If it is too cold when you roll it, it will crack.
6. Flour the dough and your rolling pin and applying even pressure, roll the dough out into a large, rough circle shape, around 3-5mm thick.
7. Working quickly, carefully lift this into a 23cm fluted tart ring on a baking tray. Use your fingers to press the dough into the side of the tin, then with the excess dough, fold it to create a thick rim around the outside of the tin. We will remove this excess later, but it will help to prevent the dough from shrinking as it bakes.
8. Dock the bottom of the pastry with a fork, and then freeze it for 30 minutes.
9. Preheat the oven to 175C Non-fan assisted (345F or 160C fan-assisted).
Lemon Filling
1. Into a large measuring jug, add the cream, sugar, eggs and egg yolks and blend until smooth.
2. Add in the lemon juice and zest, and blend again to combine, avoiding adding too many air bubbles.
3. Place a sheet of clingfilm on the surface, and refrigerate until needed.
Pastry Continued
1. Once the pastry has chilled, scrunch a large circle of parchment/baking paper up, then press it firmly into the tart. Fill it to the top with baking beans or rice.
2. Place it into the centre of the oven and bake for 25 minutes. Remove the parchment paper and beans, then bake for a further 5-10 minutes until it is a pale golden brown.
3. Whisk together the egg wash ingredients, then brush these all over the tart. Bake for a further 8-15 minutes, or until it is a deep golden colour.
4. As soon as it is out of the oven, use a serrated knife, holding it against the edge of the tin, and carefully trim off the excess pastry. Brush out any crumbs. Lower the oven temperature to 110C Non-fan assisted (230F or 95C fan-assisted).
5. Remove the lemon filling from the fridge and peel off the clingfilm. Scoop off any remaining bubbles with a spoon, then pour the mixture into a medium saucepan.
6. Place the pan onto a medium low heat and stir constantly until it reaches 40C/104F on a digital thermometer.
7. Immediately remove it from the heat and gently pour it through a sieve, back into a tall measuring jug.
8. Place the tart shell, on a tray, into the centre of the oven and pour the lemon filling in. Use a blow torch to pop any remaining bubbles.
9. Bake for around 55 minutes, or until the filling has just set when you gently wobble the tray.
10. Remove it from the oven and allow it to cool for 30 minutes at room temperature, before refrigerating for 1-2 hours.
Swiss Meringue
1. Into the bowl of a stand mixer (or a medium bowl if using an electric hand whisk), add the egg whites and sugar.
2. Place this over a pan of gently simmering water, whisking constantly until it reaches 65C/149F on a digital thermometer.
3. Immediately remove it from the heat, and place it onto a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Whisk for 5-7 minutes, until you have a medium stiff peak.
4. Remove the lemon tart from the fridge and with it still in the tin, spread the meringue over the top. Then using a large offset spatula, starting at one edge, press it firmly against the rim of the tin and drag it firmly across the tin, to smooth the top. You can do this a few times if needs be.
5. Use a blow torch to caramelise the meringue to an even golden brown colour. Alternatively place it under a hot grill, keeping a very very close eye on it.
6. Remove the tart from the tin and slice it with a hot knife to serve.
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Chocolate Orange Marmalade Trifle
TIER 1
Chocolate Orange Marmalade Trifle
Now this isn’t any ordinary trifle. This has layers of soft chocolate sponge, orange marmalade, vanilla and chocolate custard, then finished with whipped cream. It’s not really traditional, but the texture when you get a spoonful of all the layers is amazing. This can be scaled up to a large trifle, you will just need to increase the quantities.
4
MINI TRIFLES
Ingredients
Makes 4 Mini Trifles
Chocolate Sponge
80g Egg Yolks
75g Caster/White Sugar, Divided
150g Egg Whites
45g Plain/All-Purpose Flour
25g Cocoa Powder
50g Vegetable Oil
35g Whole Milk
Custard Base
350g Double/Heavy Cream
175g Milk
1 Vanilla Pod
160g Egg Yolks
55g Caster/White Sugar
Pinch Flakey Sea Salt
Chocolate Custard
260-285g Custard Base
65g Chocolate, 70% Cocoa Solids
Vanilla Custard
260-285g Custard Base
40g Unsalted Butter, Cold & Cubed
Unsweetened Whipped Cream
200g Double/Heavy Cream
Orange Marmalade To Fill
Cocoa Powder To Decorate
Special equipment
39x27cm baking tray
Electric hand whisk or stand mixer
Digital thermometer
Hand blender
Cookie cutter
Piping bag (optional)
Method
Chocolate Sponge
1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/355°F Non-Fan Assisted.
2. Lightly grease a 39x27cm baking tray. Cut a rectangle of parchment paper so that it fits neatly inside the tray, and press it in.
3. Into a medium bowl, add the egg yolks, and 20g of caster sugar. Whisk the mixture with an electric hand mixer (or in a stand mixer) until it is thicker in volume and pale in colour. About 1-2 minutes. Set this to one side.
4. Into a medium bowl, add the egg whites and using an electric hand whisk (or stand mixer) whisk on a medium-low speed. Once the mixture is frothy, increase the speed to medium and slowly add the remaining 55g of caster sugar, about 1 tablespoon at a time. Whisk until you have a medium-stiff peak to the meringue.
5. Gently fold the first third of meringue into the egg yolk mixture. Once incorporated, add the second third, fold it through and then the final third.
6. Next, sift in the plain flour & cocoa powder, and fold the mixture carefully until there are no more streaks of dry ingredients.
7. Finally, pour in the vegetable oil and whole milk. Use a spatula to fold this in, making sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl.
8. Pour the batter onto the lined tray, and then using a spatula, spread the batter out evenly.
9. Bake the sponge for 12 minutes then allow it to cool for 30 minutes at room temperature.
Custard Base
1. Into a medium saucepan add the cream, milk, egg yolks, sugar and beans scraped from a fresh vanilla pod.
2. Place this over a medium-low heat and whisk constantly until it reaches a temperature of 82C/180F on a digital thermometer.
3. Immediately remove it from the heat and pour it through a sieve into a tall measuring jug.
4. Split the mixture into half in between two measuring jugs, you should get around 260-285g per jug.
5. Add the chopped chocolate into one, butter into another, and then blend each until smooth with a hand blender. Add a pinch of flakey sea salt to each and stir it through with a spoon. Alternatively, if you want the vanilla version to be thicker, try using white chocolate instead of butter.
6. Pour the vanilla custard onto a shallow baking tray and cover the surface directly with cling film. Cover the surface of the chocolate jug with cling film and refrigerate – this will thicken faster than the vanilla version.
Assembly
1. Take the cooled chocolate sponge and flip it out of the tray onto a large silicon mat or piece of parchment paper.
2. Take a few tablespoons of orange marmalade and spread this evenly across the sponge with an offset spatula.
3. Take a cookie cutter that is just slightly bigger than the width of your individual trifle dishes.
4. Place a disc of sponge into the base of each trifle dish.
5. Remove the chilled chocolate custard from the fridge (it needs 15-30 minutes to thicken and cool slightly).
6. Add it into a piping bag if you want, otherwise, pour an even layer across each dish.
7. Place it into the freezer or fridge just until a skin has formed on top and when you poke it with your finger, you feel there is enough of a ‘barrier’ to support the weight of the next layer.
8. Add a second disc of sponge, then remove the chilled vanilla custard from the fridge – this will be a looser consistency.
9. Pour this on top of the sponge, leaving enough room at the top for cream.
10. Place the trifles into the fridge or freezer just until the vanilla mixture has set to create a slight barrier and support the weight of the cream. This can take slightly longer as the mixture is softer.
11. For the whipped cream, simply add the cream to a bowl and whisk with an electric hand whisk until you have a medium stiff peak.
12. Spoon the cream on top of the set vanilla custard, and then level it completely with a slightly warm palette knife.
13. The trifles can now be refrigerated until needed or served immediately. Dust with a light coating of cocoa powder when ready to serve.
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Black Forest Swiss Roll
TIER 2
Black Forest Swiss Roll
Black Forest gâteau is one of my all-time favourites, and the mix of cream, fruit, and chocolate is exactly what a good Swiss roll should be about too! This version layers the chocolate sponge from Tier 1 with cherry jam, mascarpone cream, and finishes with a stunning chocolate glaze. Watch the video to help you master the perfect roll, and you’ll catch the little accident I had along the way 😅.
1
SWISS ROLL CAKE
Ingredients
Makes 1 Swiss Roll Cake
Mascarpone Vanilla Cream
4g Powdered Gelatin, 250 bloom
24g Cold water
400g Double/Heavy Cream, Divided
1 Fresh Vanilla Pod
130g Mascarpone
20g Icing/Powdered Sugar
Chocolate Sponge
80g Egg Yolks
75g Caster/White Sugar, Divided
150g Egg Whites
45g Plain/All-Purpose Flour
25g Cocoa Powder
50g Vegetable Oil
35g Whole Milk
Chocolate Glaze
160g Dark Chocolate, 70% Cocoa Solids, Chopped
370g Double/Heavy Cream
10g Unsalted Butter
10g Glucose or Honey
Cherry Jam To Fill
Special equipment
Hand blender
39x27cm baking tray.
Electric hand whisk
Stand mixer
Piping bag
St Honore nozzle
Method
Mascarpone Vanilla Cream
1. Into a small bowl, add the powdered gelatin and cold water. Stir them together and set to one side for 5 minutes to bloom.
2. Into a tall jug, add the mascarpone and set this to one side.
3. Pour 330g of cream into a small saucepan, along with the sugar and the beans scraped from a fresh vanilla pod.
4. Place this over a medium heat, stirring until the mixture is steaming.
5. Remove it from the heat and pour it over the mascarpone. Scoop in the bloomed gelatin, and blend with a hand blender until smooth.
6. Finally, pour in the remaining 70g of cold cream and blend again. Pour the mixture onto a deep baking tray and cover the surface directly with clingfilm.
7. Refrigerate for a minimum of 3 hours.
Chocolate Sponge
1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/355°F Non-Fan Assisted.
2. Lightly grease a 39x27cm baking tray. Cut a rectangle of parchment paper so that it fits neatly inside the tray, and press it in.
3. Into a medium bowl, add the egg yolks, and 20g of caster sugar. Whisk the mixture with an electric hand mixer (or in a stand mixer) until it is thicker in volume and pale in colour. About 1-2 minutes. Set this to one side.
4. Into a medium bowl, add the egg whites and using an electric hand whisk (or stand mixer) whisk on a medium-low speed. Once the mixture is frothy, increase the speed to medium and slowly add the remaining 55g of caster sugar, about 1 tablespoon at a time. Whisk until you have a medium-stiff peak to the meringue.
5. Gently fold the first third of meringue into the egg yolk mixture. Once incorporated, add the second third, fold it through and then the final third.
6. Next, sift in the plain flour & cocoa powder, and fold the mixture carefully until there are no more streaks of dry ingredients.
7. Finally, pour in the vegetable oil and whole milk. Use a spatula to fold this in, making sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl.
8. Pour the batter onto the lined tray, and then using a spatula, spread the batter out evenly.
9. Bake the sponge for 12 minutes then allow it to cool for 30 minutes at room temperature.
Assembly
1. Once the sponge has cooled, flip it out of the tray and gently peel off the parchment paper. Then carefully flip the sponge over onto a large, clean sheet of parchment paper, so that the smooth top side (the side that wasn’t touching the tray during baking) is facing down.
2. Position the sponge with the long edge facing you. Choose one of the short ends—either the left or right edge—and slice off a thin piece at a 45-degree angle using a serrated knife. This angled cut makes it easier to start the roll neatly and helps it tuck in smoothly. Then, at the opposite end, score three lines, about 1cm/0.4” apart, being very careful not to cut through the sponge.
3. Take a few tablespoons of cherry jam and spread this evenly across the sponge using a palette knife.
4. Then, remove the mascarpone cream from the fridge, and scoop half of it into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Place the remaining half back in the fridge to use later.
5. Whisk the cream on a medium speed for 2-3 minutes, until you have a medium stiff peak.
6. Use an offset spatula to spread the cream in a very even layer across the sponge, right to the edges.
7. Starting from the short edge that you didn’t cut, begin to roll the sponge tightly using the parchment paper underneath to guide and lift the sponge as you go. Use firm but gentle pressure to keep the roll even and tight. Once fully rolled, wrap the parchment paper around the log. Then, place a flat tool like a bench scraper against the roll, and with your other hand, gently pull the loose end of the parchment paper. This will tighten the log and help create a more defined cylinder shape. Place the Swiss roll onto a tray and refrigerate for 1 hour, then into the freezer for 15 minutes.
Chocolate Glaze
1. Just before you remove the Swiss roll from the freezer, prepare the glaze, as we will use this immediately.
2. Into a tall jug, add the chopped chocolate and set this to one side.
3. Add the cream and glucose (or honey) to a small saucepan. Note – if you are using a cream with a lower fat percentage (35% for example), you will need less cream, around 260g.
4. Place this over a medium-low heat and stir until the mixture is steaming.
5. Immediately remove it from the heat, and pour it over the chocolate, and add the butter on top.
6. Let it sit for 2 minutes, then use a hand blender to blend until smooth. Avoid adding any air bubbles as you blend it.
7. Remove the Swiss roll from the freezer and place a wire rack over a tray to catch any excess glaze. To elevate the Swiss roll and allow the glaze to drip cleanly down the sides, set a few small ring molds under the roll so it sits slightly above the wire rack. This will keep the bottom from sticking and ensure an even coating all around.
8. Take the glaze and slowly pour it evenly all over the Swiss roll.
9. Let the excess drip off and the glaze set for a few minutes before taking a small knife and wiping away any drips that have set on the underside of the cake.
10. Use a large offset spatula to carefully lift the Swiss roll onto your serving plate, then with a sharp knife that has been heated, cut both ends of the Swiss roll to reveal the swirl. Clean up the plate to ensure a nice presentation. Leave this at room temperature for 30 minutes.
11. Take the remaining mascarpone cream and whisk it to a medium stiff peak. Add this into a piping bag fitted with a St Honore nozzle.
12. Pipe a zigzag of cream down the centre and serve.
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Apple Crumble
TIER 1
Apple Crumble
I like to call this my ‘restaurant crumble’ – not quite your simple butter, flour, sugar mixture as this crumble topping has oats, nuts and muscovado sugar. It’s a bit fancy but I love all the textures. The base of an apple crumble is a great apple filling and this is the fundamental thing we are learning here which we take through to Tier 2. It’s rich with spices and has a lovely soft, almost caramel like sauce wrapping around the apples. Serve with custard (and ice cream!).
4
INDIVIDUAL CRUMBLES
Ingredients
Makes 4 Individual Crumbles
Crumble
125g Plain/All-Purpose Flour
85g Unsalted Butter, Cold & Cubed
15g Oats
30g Whole Hazelnuts, Skinned
60g Ground Almonds
40g Muscovado Sugar
Pinch of Flakey Salt
Apple Filling
35g Unsalted Butter
600g Braeburn Apples (About 12 Apples)
55g Dark Muscovado Sugar
10g Caster/White Sugar
14g Cornstarch/Corn flour
½ Tsp Ground Cinnamon
¼ Tsp Ground Ginger
½ Tsp Vanilla Bean Paste
Freshly Grated Nutmeg
75-100g water (adjust based on desired consistency)
Lemon Juice
Flakey Sea Salt
Special equipment
Food processor
Ramekins
Method
Apple Filling
1. Peel and core the apples, then cut them into cubes – 1x1cm as a guide.
2. Toss them in a bowl with a squeeze of lemon juice once chopped, to prevent them from browning.
3. Into a medium saucepan, add the butter and place it over a medium heat.
4. Stir it until the butter begins to brown slightly and smells nutty.
5. Add in the apples, and stir, cooking over a medium heat for 2 minutes.
6. Add in the sugars, and continue to cook for 5 minutes, to release some of the moisture from the apples.
7. Reduce the heat to medium low, and add in the spices, cook for 30 seconds, then add in the cornflour and cook for a minute.
8. Stir in the water, starting with about half, until you have a sauce that is thick and glossy – the consistency of a runny caramel. If you prefer a crumble with a saucier consistency, then you can add more water.
9. Finally, stir through a pinch of flaky sea salt.
10. Pour the mixture onto a baking tray, and cover the surface with clingfilm. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
Crumble
1. Into a food processor, add all of the ingredients for the crumble.
2. Pulse the mixture until the butter has broken down into pea size pieces.
3. Tip it out onto a large tray and use your hands to squeeze it together until it clumps up.
4. Then rub it between your hands to form a crumble-like mixture. Spread it evenly across your baking tray.
5. Place the tray in the freezer for 30 minutes.
6. Meanwhile, pre-heat the oven to 175C/345F non-fan assisted.
7. Once the crumble has chilled, bake it in the oven for 12 minutes. No need to stir it, just remove it from the oven and let it cool for about 15 minutes. Leave the oven on.
Assembly
1. Remove the chilled apple filling from the fridge.
2. Take 4 ramekins or individual saucepans (I used small copper pots) and fill them up about ¾ of the way with the apple filling.
3. Take the cooled crumble and scoop it on top, filling it to the top of the ramekin.
4. Place the ramekins on a baking tray and bake for around 25-30 minutes, or until the crumble is a deep golden brown colour.
5. Remove them from the oven and serve immediately with ice cream or custard!
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Apple Pie
TIER 2
Apple Pie
A pastry chef once recommended adding cream cheese to a pie dough for extra tenderness and I have to say, I really love this dough! It is slightly technical as we are ‘laminating’ the pie dough to get it extra flakey, but it’s nothing like laminating a croissant so don’t panic! We use the same apple filling as Tier 1 and use it for a classic double crust apple pie. Serve with custard (and ice cream!).
1
9 inch pie
Ingredients
Makes 1 9-inch Pie
Pie Dough
500g Plain/all-Purpose Flour
6g Fine Sea Salt
25g Caster/White Sugar
325g Unsalted Butter, Cold
80g Full-Fat Cream Cheese, Cold
100–150g Ice-cold water
Apple Filling
75g Unsalted Butter
1200g Pink Lady Apples (About 12 Apples)
110g Dark Muscovado Sugar
20g Caster/White Sugar
27g Cornstarch/Corn flour
¾ Tsp Ground Cinnamon
½ Tsp Ground Ginger
1 Tsp Vanilla Bean Paste
Freshly Grated Nutmeg
150–225g water (adjust based on desired consistency)
Lemon Juice
Flakey Sea Salt
To Finish
1 Egg, Whisked
Demerara Sugar
Special equipment
9-inch pie dish
Rolling pin
Method
Pie Dough
1. Add the flour, sugar & salt into a large bowl.
2. Add in the butter (cut into small cubes), and toss it in the flour to coat the pieces.
3. Using your hands, work the butter into the flour, squeezing each piece between your fingers to flatten them.
4. Add in the cream cheese, and stir it through with your hands again to dissolve it into the flour mixture.
5. Now, mix in the ice-cold water, starting with about half, and swirl your hands to mix the water into the dry ingredients. Keep adding water just until there are no more dry ingredients in the bowl. The amount of water you need will depend on the type of flour you use.
6. Lift the dough onto your work surface and pull it together with your hands into a rough square shape.
7. Flour your work surface and the top of the dough, and using a rolling pin, roll it into a long rectangle. The dough might want to stick, so use a bench scraper to get underneath the dough to loosen it.
8. Fold one-third of the dough up, then fold the other third of the dough over the top of this. Wrap the dough in cling film and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
9. Repeat this laminating process two more times, rolling the dough into a rectangle and folding it on itself. Once you have performed the final fold, cut the dough in half, then wrap and chill the dough for at least 1.5 hours, or leave it overnight.
Apple Filling
1. Peel and core the apples, then cut them into cubes – 2x2cm as a guide.
2. Toss them in a bowl with a squeeze of lemon juice once chopped, to prevent them from browning.
3. Into a large saucepan, add the butter and place it over a medium heat.
4. Stir it until the butter begins to brown slightly and smells nutty.
5. Add in the apples, and stir, cooking over a medium heat for 2 minutes.
6. Add in the sugars, and continue to cook for 5 minutes, to release some of the moisture from the apples.
7. Reduce the heat to medium low, and add in the spices, cook for 30 seconds, then add in the cornflour and cook for a minute.
8. Stir in the water, starting with about half, until you have a sauce that is thick and glossy – the consistency of a runny caramel. If you prefer a pie with a saucier consistency, then you can add more water.
9. Finally, stir through a pinch of flaky sea salt.
10. Pour the mixture onto a baking tray, and cover the surface with clingfilm. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
Assembly
1. Remove one half of the pie dough from the fridge, and on a lightly floured surface, roll it out into a rough circle, around 3-5mm thick.
2. Lift it into a 9” pie dish – you should have a 1” overhang of dough over the edge of the tin.
3. Scoop the cooled apple filling into the dough, pressing it down with a spatula to remove any air pockets.
4. Place the pie in the fridge.
5. Remove the second piece of dough from the fridge, and on a lightly floured surface, roll it into a rough circle.
6. Remove the pie from the fridge and apply a light egg wash around the edge.
7. Lift the second piece of dough on top, and using your fingers, firmly crimp the edges to seal the two pieces of dough together.
8. Using scissors, cut the excess dough away, leaving about a ¼” of dough around the edge.
9. Fold this excess dough underneath itself to create a thick rim.
10. Use your thumb and index finger on one hand to gently pinch the edge of the dough. With the index finger of your other hand, press into the pinched section to push the dough outward, creating a fluted edge. Continue this motion, crimping the entire crust of the pie.
11. Place the pie into the fridge for 30 minutes.
12. Meanwhile, pre-heat the oven to 225C/435F non-fan assisted, and place a baking tray on the lower third rack of the oven.
13. Once the pie is chilled, remove it from the fridge and brush an egg wash over the dough.
14. Sprinkle a light dusting of demerara sugar on top, and then use a knife to cut 3 air vents in the centre of the pie.
15. Place it onto the pre-heated tray, and bake for 25 minutes.
16. Then, move the pie up to the middle shelf of the oven and lower the temperature to 180C/355F. Bake for a further 60-70 minutes.
17. The pie will darken quite quickly, so you will most likely need to cover the top of the pie with a sheet of foil for the final 30-45 minutes to prevent it from burning.
18. Once baked, the pie should be a deep golden colour, and the filling should be bubbling up slightly.
19. Remove the pie from the oven and allow it to cool. Let the pie cool for at least 30 minutes before serving. It will still be warm, with a soft, and runny center. But for cleaner slices, allow it to cool completely or even chill it in the fridge—then reheat individual slices as needed.
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Berry Charlotte Cake
TIER 2
Berry Charlotte Cake
In Tier 2 we take the precision of the ladyfingers to another level, using them to decorate the outside of this berry charlotte cake. When piping them, we want to get them as neat and as even as possible so making the Tier 1 tiramisu is a great place to build your confidence. The charlotte cake has a light berry mousse, with two layers of the lady fingers covered in raspberry jam, and it’s finished with a smooth mascarpone cream. This is frozen overnight and takes a little while to defrost, so keep those timings in mind!
8-10
SERVINGS
Ingredients
Makes 8-10 Servings
Savoiardi Biscuits
115g Egg Yolks
25g Whole Eggs
40g Caster/White Sugar (A)
100g Plain/All-Purpose Flour (A)
260g Egg Whites
100g Caster/White Sugar (B)
1.5g Fine Salt
35g Plain/All-Purpose Flour (B)
Caster/White Sugar To Coat
Berry Bavarois Mousse
6g Gelatin Powder (220-250 Bloom) + 36g Cold Water (or 2 Sheets of Gelatin, soaked)
75g Egg Yolks
30g Caster/White Sugar
50g Whole Milk
300g Double/Heavy Cream (A)
250g Fruit Puree (Raspberry or Strawberry)
400g Double/Heavy Cream (B)
Mascarpone Cream
3g Powdered Gelatin + 18g Cold Water (or 1 Gelatin Sheet, Soaked)
250g Double/Heavy Cream (A)
100g Mascarpone
15g Icing/Powdered Sugar
50g Double/Heavy Cream (B), Cold
To Assemble
Crushed Pistachios
Raspberry/Strawberry Jam
Fresh Strawberries/Raspberries, Sliced
Special equipment
10mm round tip nozzle
Piping bag
Stand mixer
Digital thermometer
Hand blender
7” ring mold
1M star tip nozzle
Method
Savoiardi Biscuits
1. Pre-heat the oven to 160C/320F non-fan assisted.
2. Take 2 large sheets of baking paper and draw two sets of train track lines on the baking paper, each 90mm/3.5” tall. Flip these upside down (so the ink doesn’t touch the pastry) and place them on a baking sheet.
3. Take another baking sheet and draw two 7” circles on baking paper. Flip this upside down.
4. Take a small round tip nozzle (10mm) and put it into a piping bag. The piping nozzle needs to be smaller than you think, as the batter will spread slightly as it is piped.
5. Into a medium bowl, add the egg yolks, whole eggs, and sugar (A). Whisk this to combine, then add the flour (B) and whisk to form a thick paste. Set this to one side.
6. Into the bowl of a stand mixer, add the egg whites (room temperature) along with the salt.
7. With the whisk attachment, whisk on a medium-low speed until it becomes frothy, with small bubbles on top (this will take a few minutes).
8. Slowly add in the sugar (B), about a tablespoon at a time. Once you have added all the sugar, whisk until you have a stiff peak.
9. Take about ⅕ of the meringue mixture and whisk it through the egg yolk mixture. This will be quite stiff, so it needs to be whisked firmly to smooth it out.
10. Add the remaining meringue in 2-3 parts, gently folding it through to ensure you don’t beat out too much air.
11. Once smooth, sift over the remaining flour (B) and fold through until there are no more lumps.
12. Add the mixture into your piping bag and let it rest for a few minutes; this will just make it slightly easier to pipe.
13. Using the guides on your baking tray, pipe two large 7” circles and then individual lines for the lady fingers. You will need 25-30 lady fingers, depending on the size of the ring mold you are using for the mousse. The more you can make, the better! But remember, they need to be baked immediately or the meringue will begin to collapse.
14. Once piped, sprinkle a thin coating of caster/white sugar over the top.
15. Place them directly into the oven and bake until a deep golden brown colour.
Note – as we are baking multiple trays of ladyfingers and sponge discs for the charlotte cake, the placement in the oven affects browning. The top tray will turn golden first because it’s directly exposed to the heat from the top of the oven, while the lower trays are shielded, preventing them from browning properly. We don’t care about the 7” disc brownings, but we need both sets of lady fingers to be golden, so rotate the trays halfway through baking, bringing the lower trays to the top and vice versa. Just do it very very quickly, so we don’t deflate the lady fingers.
16. Bake everything for around 30 minutes, being sure not to underbake the lady fingers especially. They need to be firm to the touch. What I like to do is pop the 7” circles back in the oven just to get them slightly more golden.
17. Remove them from the oven and then allow them to cool at room temperature. Leave the 7” discs out at room temperature but freeze the remaining lady fingers in a sealed tupperware as we won’t need these until the next day.
18. If you want to make these ahead of time, you can place them in an airtight container and freeze them for up to 2 months.
Berry Bavarois Mousse
1. Add the powdered gelatin into a small bowl and pour the cold water over the top. Let it bloom for 5-10 minutes. If using a gelatin sheet, soak this in ice-cold water.
2. Into a medium bowl, add the egg yolks and sugar and whisk briefly to combine.
3. Meanwhile, add the cream and milk to a medium saucepan and heat just until it is steaming.
4. Slowly pour the hot cream over the egg yolk mixture and whisk to combine.
5. Pour it back into the pan and whisk constantly, cooking until it reaches 82C/180F on a digital thermometer, then immediately remove it from the heat. You need to do this quickly or it will begin to scramble.
6. Pour it straight through a sieve into a tall measuring jug.
7. Scoop in the bloomed gelatin powder (or squeeze the water out of the gelatin sheet), and then use a hand blender to blend until smooth.
8. Pour in the fruit puree and blend to combine.
9. Pour this mixture into a tray and cover the surface with cling film. We need this to cool to around 30C/86F on a digital thermometer, so refrigerating it can be the quickest way to chill it.
10. Once at temperature, add the remaining cream to the bowl of a stand mixer and whisk on a medium speed until you have a medium stiff peak.
11. Pour the chilled fruit mixture into a bowl, and then whisk in the whipped cream in 3 parts until you have a smooth mousse.
Assembly Part 1
1. Take the cooled 7” savaordi biscuit discs and, using your 7” ring mold, trim them down to size.
2. Line the inside of the 7” cake ring mold with acetate and place this onto a tray lined with a baking mat.
3. Take a few tablespoons of jam and spread this evenly across each disc, then place one into the base of the ring mold.
4. Take the berry bavarois mousse and fill the ring mold up halfway.
5. Add the second savoiardi disc.
6. Pour the remaining mousse in, filling it to the top of the rind mold. It should settle evenly, but if it needs it, flatten it with a palette knife.
7. Place this into the freezer, ideally overnight, but a minimum of 6 hours.
Mascarpone Cream
1. Add the powdered gelatin into a small bowl and pour the cold water over the top. Let it bloom for 5-10 minutes. If using a gelatin sheet, soak this in ice cold water.
2. Into a medium saucepan, add the cream and heat until it is steaming.
3. Remove it from the heat, and add the bloomed gelatin into a tall measuring jug and pour over the hot cream.
4. Blend to combine, then add the sugar and mascarpone and blend again.
5. Finally, add the remaining cold cream and blend one more time.
6. Cover the surface with clingfilm and refrigerate for 6 hours or overnight.
Note – there is no vanilla in this, but you can absolutely add it, if you want that flavour! Add it to the cream when you are heating it.
Assembly Part 2
1. Remove the frozen berry bavarois from the freezer, and lift it onto your serving dish. Peel off the acetate.
2. Leave it at room temperature for about 30 minutes – 1 hour to soften, this will make it easier to stick the lady fingers on. Alternatively, you can use a heat gun/blow torch to warm the sides and press the lady fingers on.
3. Once the edges have softened slightly, remove the lady fingers from the freezer, and then trim them down slightly so they are all of identical height. You can also use a microplane to lightly shave the edges to get them nice and straight.
4. Press them into the side of the cake – just note that the longer you leave them on the cake, the softer they will become. So if you want them to be a bit more crunchy, then it is best to place them on the cake just as you are serving. But note the cake needs quite some time to defrost!
5. Remove the mascarpone cream from the fridge and add it to a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment.
6. Whisk on a medium speed until it holds a medium peak, being careful not to over whip it.
7. Add the mixture into a piping bag fitted with a 1M star tip nozzle.
8. Pipe a spiral border around the edge of the cake.
9. Finish the cake by decorating it with some crushed pistachios and freshly sliced fruit.
10. The cake needs around 3-4 hours in total once removed from the freezer to defrost so just take those timings into consideration before serving.
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Chocolate Orange Tiramisu
TIER 1
Chocolate Orange Tiramisu
I couldn’t make ladyfingers and not use them in a tiramisu! In Tier 1 we keep the technique of a tiramisu very classic – no cream! But I’ve mixed things up with a chocolate orange flavour. You soak your homemade ladyfingers biscuits in espresso, and layer them between orange mascarpone cream and chocolate shavings. This is a great dessert you can make ahead of time.
8-10
SERVINGS
Ingredients
Makes 8-10 Servings
Savoiardi Biscuits
115g Egg Yolks
25g Whole Eggs
40g Caster/White Sugar (A)
100g Plain/All-Purpose Flour (A)
260g Egg Whites
100g Caster/White Sugar (B)
1.5g Fine Salt
35g Plain/All-Purpose Flour (B)
Icing Sugar To Finish
Orange Mascarpone Cream
600g Mascarpone
65g Egg Yolks
50g Caster/White Sugar (A)
Zest 2 Oranges
145g Egg Whites
50g Caster/White Sugar (B)
Coffee Soaking Syrup
150g Freshly Brewed Coffee
15g Kahlua
Dark Chocolate, Grated
Special equipment
10mm round tip nozzle
Piping bag
Stand mixer
Method
Savoiardi Biscuits
1. Pre-heat the oven to 160C/320F non-fan assisted.
2. Take 2 large sheets of baking paper and draw two sets of train track lines on the baking sheets, 90mm/3.5” tall. Flip these upside down (so the ink doesn’t touch the pastry) and place them on a baking sheet.
3. Take a small round tip nozzle (10mm) and add it into a piping bag. The piping nozzle needs to be smaller than you think, as the batter will spread slightly as it is piped.
4. Into a medium bowl, add the egg yolks, whole eggs, and sugar (A). Whisk this to combine, then add the flour (B) and whisk to form a thick paste. Set this to one side.
5. Into the bowl of a stand mixer, add the egg whites (room temperature) along with the salt.
6. With the whisk attachment, whisk on a medium-low speed until it becomes frothy, with small bubbles on top (this will take a few minutes).
7. Slowly add in the sugar (B), about a tablespoon at a time. Once you have added all the sugar, whisk until you have a stiff peak.
8. Take about ⅕ of the meringue mixture and whisk it through the egg yolk mixture. This will be quite stiff, so it needs to be whisked firmly to smooth it out.
9. Add the remaining meringue in 2-3 parts, gently folding it through to ensure you don’t beat out too much air.
10. Once smooth, sift over the remaining flour (B) and fold through until there are no more lumps.
11. Add the mixture into your piping bag and let it rest for a few minutes; this will just make it slightly easier to pipe.
12. Using the guides on your baking tray, pipe individual lines, ensuring they’re not too close together, as they will spread slightly.
13. Once piped, add a good dusting of icing sugar over the top, wait 1-2 minutes, and then repeat.
14. Place them directly into the oven and bake until a deep golden brown colour – be sure not to underbake them. It should take around 30 minutes, but it can depend on how big you’ve piped them and your oven.
15. Remove them from the oven and then allow them to cool at room temperature. If you want to make these ahead of time, you can place them in an airtight container and freeze them for up to 2 months.
Orange Mascarpone Cream
1. Into a medium bowl, add the sugar (A) and zest of 1 orange, then massage this zest into the sugar.
2. Add the egg yolks and whisk by hand for a minute until thickened slightly.
3. Add the mascarpone and remaining orange zest, and whisk again until completely smooth. Set this to one side.
4. Into the bowl of a stand mixer, add the egg whites and whisk on a medium-low speed until frothy.
5. Slowly add the sugar about a tablespoon at a time. Once you’ve added all the sugar keep whisking until it reaches a stiff peak.
6. Take the meringue, and fold it through the egg yolk mixture in three parts until smooth and evenly combined.
Coffee Soaking Syrup
1. Combine the two ingredients in a shallow dish.
Assembly
1. Take the cooled lady fingers and check to see how they fit into your chosen dish. If you need to cut them down to size, use a knife or a microplane to shave them down so that they fit snugly in the dish.
2. Take the lady fingers and soak them one by one, then, lay them into the base of your tiramisu dish.
3. Once the bottom of the dish is covered, take a few large spoonfuls of the mascarpone cream mixture and spread this evenly across the lady fingers with an offset spatula.
4. Using a microplane, grate a fine layer of dark chocolate over the cream (or cocoa powder)
5. Repeat this two more times, finishing with a layer of the mascarpone cream. Use an offset spatula to completely smooth the top so that it is flush with the rim of the dish.
6. Place the tiramisu into the fridge to chill – ideally 4-6 hours, but overnight is absolutely fine too.
7. When ready to serve, remove it from the fridge and grate over one final layer of dark chocolate (or cocoa powder) and serve.
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Raspberry Sachertorte
TIER 2
Raspberry Sacher Torte
This is a new and improved version of my original Sachertorte. It has 2 layers of chocolate financier (which is delicious baked on its own too!), with a layer of raspberry compote in the centre. We then sandwich that in a chocolate mousse which uses a pâte à bombe base. The whole thing is frozen and finished with a shiny chocolate ganache glaze. I’d recommend a good quality hand blender for this glaze, to avoid adding too many air bubbles.
7"
CAKE
Ingredients
Makes 1 7-inch Cake
Chocolate Financier
210g Dark Chocolate (70% Cocoa Solids)
75g Unsalted Butter
75g Icing Sugar
60g Ground Almonds
60g Plain Flour
6g Baking Powder
1g Fine Sea Salt
150g Egg Whites (Room Temperature)
195g Double/Heavy Cream
Raspberry Compote
180g Raspberry Puree
40g Caster/White Sugar
3g Pectin Nh
15g Lemon Juice
Chocolate Mousse
90g Egg Yolks
45g Whole Eggs
70g Caster/White Sugar
200g Dark Chocolate (70% Cocoa Solids)
(a) 150g Cream (35-48% Fat)
(b) 275g Cream (35-48% Fat)
Chocolate Glaze
200g Dark Chocolate (55% Cocoa Solids), Chopped
240g Cream (35-40% Fat) – Ideally we want a cream that is lower in fat here as it will make the glaze more fluid. I used 39% fat.
40g Soft, Unsalted Butter
20g Raspberry Liqueur (Optional)
Special equipment
9×13” baking tray
6.3”x1.7” (16×4.5cm) ring mold
Stand mixer
Digital thermometer
Hand blender
7″ ring mold
Method
Chocolate Financier
1. Take a 9×13” baking tray, and lightly grease the bottom, lining it with a sheet of parchment paper. Pre-heat the oven to 175C/345F Non-fan assisted.
2. Into a small bowl, add the chocolate and butter and place this over a pan of gently simmering water. Stir until it has completely melted and then set it to one side to cool slightly.
3. Into a medium bowl, add the icing sugar, ground almonds, salt, flour, and baking powder. Whisk these together until they are combined.
4. Pour in the egg whites and whisk again until smooth.
5. Pour in the cream and whisk until smooth.
6. Finally, slowly pour in the chocolate mixture while whisking, until you have a thick chocolate batter.
7. Pour the batter into the lined tray and use an offset spatula to spread it out evenly.
8. Bake for 20 minutes in the oven and then remove and allow to cool at room temperature for 30 minutes, before refrigerating for 2-3 hours – chilling it will make it easier to cut without falling apart!
Raspberry Compote
1. If you don’t have raspberry puree, you can simply blend 180g of fresh raspberries and use that.
2. Pour the raspberry puree into a medium saucepan and place it on a medium low heat.
3. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, stir together the sugar and pectin.
4. Once the puree is steaming, whisk in the pectin sugar mixture and keep cooking until it reaches a boil.
5. Remove it from the heat, and whisk in the lemon juice.
6. Pour the mixture into a bowl and cover the surface directly with clingfilm. Refrigerate for 1-2 hours.
Assembly Part 1
1. Once the financier has chilled, use a 6.3”x1.7” (16×4.5cm) ring mold to cut two discs. If you don’t have enough space to cut two full discs, you can cut a second disc, and then cut some scraps and press the cake together slightly. Don’t worry too much if you don’t have a ring mold this exact size, you just want something smaller than the ‘main’ 7” ring mold that we are using later. This is the insert layer that gets sandwiched in between the chocolate mousse.
Note – we will need the spare financier scraps later to decorate the cake so set them to one side. When you have a moment, very briefly blend them to a crumb, then get them onto a tray and into the freezer to use later.
2. Lift one of the discs into the bottom of the 6.3” ring mold, which is on a tray lined with a silicon baking mat.
3, Remove the raspberry puree from the fridge and stir it to loosen it.
4. Pour this into the ring mold and spread it to the edges so that you have an even layer.
5. Place the second chocolate sponge on top and gently sandwich it together.
6. Place the ring into the freezer for 2-3 hours or until frozen.
Chocolate Mousse
1. The key to this mousse is ensuring that the temperatures are correct otherwise, it could split or go grainy.
2. Into a medium bowl, add the chocolate and place this over a pan of gently simmering water. Stir this until melted, then turn off the heat, but keep it on the water so it stays warm & fluid.
3. Then, add the whole eggs, egg yolks and sugar into the bowl of a stand mixer.
4. Place the bowl over a pan of gently simmering water and whisk by hand until it reaches around 60C/140F on a digital thermometer.
5. Immediately remove the bowl from the heat, place it onto a stand mixer and whisk on a medium speed.
6. Meanwhile, add the cream (a) into a small saucepan and place it over a medium heat, stirring until it is steaming.
7. Remove the cream from the heat and pour it over your melted chocolate, then use a hand blender to emulsify them together.
8. At this point we need to check the temperatures of both ingredients. The chocolate/cream needs to be between 40-50C (104-122F) and the egg yolk mixture needs to be between 20-25C (68-77F) when we combine them. This will ensure they combine properly.
9. If you find one is colder than the other, just gently stir it over a pan of very gently simmering water.
10. Once both components are at temperature, gently fold the egg yolk mixture (which will have thickened) into the chocolate in three parts until smooth. Set this bowl to one side.
11. Into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, add the remaining cream (b). Whisk this until it forms medium soft peaks, do not overwhip it.
12. Take the soft cream and fold it into the chocolate base in three parts until you have a smooth mousse.
13. Take a 7” ring mold and tightly wrap the bottom with clingfilm (you can line it with acetate if you want – this will just make it slightly easier to demold). Place it onto a tray lined with a baking mat.
14. Scoop a small portion of the chocolate mousse into the ring mold, then remove the raspberry/chocolate insert from the freezer. Pop it out of the ring mold and press it into the chocolate mousse.
15. Top up the rest of the ring mold with the chocolate mousse, using a palette knife to completely smooth the top. You may have a little extra chocolate mousse – get this into some ramekins and chill it to have a nice dessert later!
16. Place the entire dessert into the freezer for a minimum of 6 hours, until frozen solid.
Chocolate Glaze
1. Once the glaze is ready we are going to pour it immediately over the cake so be prepared with the frozen cake nearby and a rack ready to pour it on. It can help to demold the mousse from the ring mold, then place it back in the freezer so when you are ready to glaze you don’t need to faff around getting it out of the mold.
2. Into a tall jug, add the chopped chocolate.
3. Add the cream into a small saucepan, and gently stir it until it is steaming.
4. Immediately remove it from the heat and pour it over the chopped chocolate.
5. Let it sit for a minute, then use a hand blender to blend it until smooth. Really try to avoid adding any air bubbles here.
6. Add in the soft butter and raspberry liqueur (optional) and blend again until smooth.
7. Remove the frozen mousse from the freezer and place it onto a glass, with a tray and wire rack underneath.
8. Pour the glaze evenly over the entire cake.
9. The glaze will set quickly, so once it has stopped dripping, use a knife to just trim away the drips.
10. Remove the blended-up crumbs from the freezer and press these into the bottom of the cake.
11. Then carefully lift it onto your serving plate. You might damage it slightly lifting it up/moving it, so just patch up any bits with more blended crumb!
12. Let it defrost for 2 hours at room temperature, then serve.
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Chocolate Orange Swirl Cookies
TIER 1
Chocolate Orange Swirl Cookies
These stunning cookies use the same base dough, one flavoured with orange and the other flavoured with cocoa powder. The doughs are laid on top of each other and carefully rolled into a tight log to create the spiral effect. You can get creative and colour one of the doughs, or even make a quick ganache and sandwich the cookies together!
18-20
COOKIES
Ingredients
Makes 18-20 Cookies
Chocolate Dough
170g Plain/All-Purpose Flour
2g Fine Sea Salt
30g Cocoa Powder
80g Icing/Powdered Sugar
30g Ground Almonds
110g Unsalted Butter, Cold & Cubed
40g Whole Eggs
Orange Dough
200g Plain/All-Purpose Flour
2g Fine Sea Salt
80g Icing/Powdered Sugar
30g Ground Almonds
110g Unsalted Butter, Cold & Cubed
Zest 1 Medium Orange
40g Whole Eggs
Egg Wash
1 whole egg, whisked
Special equipment
Stand mixer
Silicon mats (optional)
Rolling pin
Method
Chocolate Cookie Dough
1. Add all of the dry ingredients into the bowl of a stand mixer, along with the cubed butter.
2. Mix on a medium low speed for 2-4 minutes, until the butter has broken down, and the mixture has a breadcrumb/sandy-like texture.
3. Pour in the egg mixture and mix for about 20 seconds, the dough will not pull together however, so remove the bowl from the mixer and squeeze the dough with your hands, until it forms a dough.
4. Place the dough in between two silicon mats or pieces of parchment paper and roll it to about 3-5mm thick – the thinner the better really. You want to roll it as best as possible into a neat rectangle shape as that will reduce the wastage later on.
5. Place the dough into the fridge for a minimum of 3 hours.
Orange Cookie Dough
1. Add all of the dry ingredients into the bowl of a stand mixer, along with the cubed butter.
2. Mix on a medium low speed for 2-4 minutes, until the butter has broken down, and the mixture has a breadcrumb/sandy-like texture.
3. Pour in the egg mixture and mix for about 20 seconds, the dough will not pull together however, so remove the bowl from the mixer and squeeze the dough with your hands, until it forms a dough.
4. Place the dough in between two silicon mats or pieces of parchment paper and roll it to about 3-5mm thick – the thinner the better really. You want to roll it as best as possible into a neat rectangle shape as that will reduce the wastage later on.
5. Place the dough into the fridge for a minimum of 3 hours.
Assembly
1. Once the doughs have chilled remove them from the fridge, and apply a light egg wash to the chocolate dough. Then, lift the orange dough on top, gluing it in place.
2. Leave them at room temperature to soften for just a few minutes – this will make them easier to roll.
3. Once softer, with the chocolate dough on the bottom, carefully roll the dough, lengthways (with the short side of the rectangle of dough facing you), into a tight log. Wrap this in clingfilm and then refrigerate for at least 1 hour
4. Before they are done chilling, preheat the oven to 150C/300F, non-fan assisted.
5. Once chilled, use a very sharp knife to cut the log into discs of equal thickness – about 5mm, then lift the biscuits onto a tray lined with a silicon baking mat.
6. Immediately place the tray into the oven and bake until lightly golden around the edges – about 20-25 minutes. Allow to cool then serve.
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Kugelhopf
TIER 1
Kugelhopf
This bread has ties to Germany, Austria and France and is a popular bread served around the holidays. Think of it like giant hot cross bun in a bundt tin! The dough is a soft, buttery brioche flavoured with soaked raisins that have been steeped in orange, lemon and vanilla. When the cake is finished it is soaked in melted butter and then coated in sugar. I have to say, this is one of the most delicious recipes I’ve made ALL year! I’ve used a Kugelhopf tin, but the dough can also be made in a classic bundt tin.
2
400G LOAVES
Ingredients
Makes 2 400g Loaves
Soaked Raisins
100g Sultanas
20g Sugar
150g Water
Peels of 1/2 Lemon
Peels of 1 Medium Orange
Brioche Dough
425g Strong White Bread Flour (13-14% Protein)
10g Salt
50g Sugar
17g Fresh Yeast or 8.5g Instant Dry Yeast
190g Eggs
65g Whole Milk
Zest of 1 Lemon
Zest of 1 Orange
210g Unsalted Butter, Slightly Cold & Cubed
To Finish
Melted Butter
Caster/White Sugar
Special equipment
Stand mixer
Dough scraper
Kugelhopf tin/Bundt tin
Digital thermometer
Method
Soaked Raisins
1. Into a small saucepan, add all the ingredients for the soaked raisins. Bring it to a boil and then pour the mixture into a tupperware. Cover and refrigerate for a minimum of 6 hours, ideally overnight.
Brioche Dough
1. For the brioche dough, add all the ingredients, except the butter, to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook.
2. Mix for 10 minutes on a medium speed, scraping down the sides of the bowl occasionally.
3. After 10 minutes, add the butter slowly, a few cubes at a time. It helps to squeeze the cold butter in between your fingers gently just before you add it into the mixer.
4. Once all the butter has been added, continue to mix the dough until it is pulling away from the sides of the mixer and the dough passes the windowpane test.
5. Right at the end, drain the soaked raisins and briefly mix these in. We don’t want to knead them for too long or it will discolour the dough.
6. Scoop the dough out of the bowl, and shape it into a round ball using a dough scraper before lifting it into a lightly oiled bowl.
7. Allow the dough to proof for 2 hours at room temperature. It should double in size.
8. While it is proofing, lightly butter your Kugelhopf tin and coat the inside with flour, before tipping out the excess.
9. Once the dough has proofed, remove it from the bowl, knocking out the air.
10. Cut it into two equal 400g pieces of dough.
11. Carefully shape each piece into a ball, then with one of the dough balls, use your fingers to press a hole in the middle, creating a donut shape.
12. Confidently lift it into the greased tin and cover the tin with cling film.
13. With the other piece of dough, simply shape it into a ball and place it back into the bowl. Cover the surface of the dough and the bowl with cling film. Place both the tin and the bowl in the fridge overnight.
14. The next day, leave the tin at room temperature and proof for 2-3 hours, while leaving the other dough in the fridge.
15. Before baking, preheat the oven to 170C/355F Non-Fan Assisted.
16. Once proofed, the dough should have doubled, to just below the top edge of the tin. Bake the dough for around 35 minutes, it should be a golden colour and register 95C/203F when a digital thermometer is inserted in the middle.
17. Allow it to cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then flip it out and use a pastry brush to cover the entire dough in melted butter, before rolling in sugar.
18. Allow to cool before serving.
19. You can now remove the second dough from the fridge, and re-use the tin. Shape it into a donut again by piercing a hole in the centre and lift it into a the lightly greased tin.
20. Cover the tin with a tea towel and allow it to rise again until doubled – about 2-3 hours at room temperature. Bake as per step 16/17.
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Gâteaux Basque
TIER 2
Gâteaux Basque
Using the same idea of working with a high fat, high butter dough, in Tier 2 we work with a pastry that is very similar to a Sablé Breton. The dough is rolled, almost like a deep dish cookie pie, and filled with cherry jam and pastry cream. It’s traditionally finished by decorating it with the stripes of a fork and baked until golden. Most recipes say to cool it completely, but I really prefer it slightly warm as I think it has a much better texture!
1TART (SERVES 8-10)
Ingredients
Makes 8-10 Servings
For the Pastry
125g Egg Yolks
250g Caster/White Sugar
1g Salt
375g Plain/All-Purpose Flour
2.5g Baking Powder
20g Ground Almonds/Almond Flour
2g Lemon Zest
250g Unsalted Butter, Very Soft & Cubed
Egg Wash
1 Egg Yolk
For the Pastry Cream
500g Whole Milk
1 Fresh Vanilla Pod
70g Caster/White Sugar
120g Egg Yolks
40g Cornstarch/Cornflour
Pinch of Fine Sea Salt
45g Unsalted Butter, Cold & Cubed
Black Cherry Jam To Fill (or your favourite jam)
Special equipment
20 x 3.2 cm Tart Ring
Stand Mixer
Silicon Baking Mat
Rolling Pin
Method
Pastry
1. Sift the dry ingredients together in a bowl and set this to one side.
2. Into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, add the egg yolks, sugar, lemon zest and salt. Whisk on a medium speed for 2 minutes until the mixture is thick and light in colour.
3. Add in the sifted dry ingredients, along with the soft butter (in small cubes). Mix with a paddle attachment just until it pulls together into a smooth dough. This won’t take long.
4. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead it briefly until smooth, then shape it into 2 equal discs and wrap it in clingfilm. Refrigerate the dough for 1 hour.
Vanilla Pastry Cream
1. In a medium saucepan on the stovetop over medium heat, add the milk and the scraped vanilla pod just until it is steaming.
2. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the sugar, egg yolks, cornstarch, and salt until smooth and thickened.
3. Slowly pour the hot milk mixture over the sugar and eggs mixture, whisking constantly.
4. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan. Whisk constantly over medium heat until it begins to bubble, then cook for 1 minute.
5. Remove the saucepan from the heat and pass the mixture through a sieve placed over a large bowl.
6. Whisk in the butter until the mixture is smooth. Pour the mixture onto a baking tray, spread it out and cover the surface directly with clingfilm. Spreading it thin will help it to chill faster.
Assembly
1. Line a baking tray with a silicon mat, and lightly butter the inside of your tart ring. Place this into the centre.
2. Once the pastry discs have chilled, remove one from the fridge. Briefly massage the dough in your hand to soften it slightly. Place it onto a lightly floured work surface.
3. Roll the dough out into a rough circle, until it is around 5mm/0.19” thick. Cut a disc around 23cm/9” and quickly but carefully lift the disc into your tart ring.
4. Lightly flour your fingers and gently press the dough into all edges of the tart ring. There should be a slight overhang of dough over the edge of the tart ring. Use a sharp knife to trim off the excess so that the dough is now flush with the edge of the ring. Refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes.
5. Once the dough is chilled, remove it from the fridge and spread 3-4 tbsp of your desired jam over the bottom of the pastry so that you have a thin, even layer.
6. Remove the pastry cream from the fridge and add it into a bowl. Whisk it by hand until it is smooth and homogenous
7. Pour the pastry cream directly into the tart shell and use the back of a spoon to spread this out evenly across the tart. Place this back in the fridge briefly.
8. Remove the second disc of pastry from the fridge and again use your hands to lightly massage it so that it softens slightly.
9. Place this onto a lightly floured surface and roll it out into a rough disc, until it is around 5mm/0.19” thick.
10. Remove the tart ring from the fridge and lift the circle of dough directly on top. Then use a rolling pin to roll over the top of the pastry, pressing it against the edges of the tin, to very neatly trim off the excess pastry. Refrigerate it for 1-2 hours.
11. Just before it is chilled. Preheat the oven to 160C/320F fan assisted, or 175C/345F non-fan assisted.
12. Whisk an egg yolk, then brush this evenly over the top of the pastry using a pastry brush.
13. Using a fork, trace 4 sets of parallel lines with a fork, then turn the mould 1/4 turn and trace 4 more sets of parallel lines perpendicular to the first sets of lines. This will result in a diamond-shaped crosshatch pattern. Prick a few small holes in the pastry too, to help any steam escape as it bakes.
14. Place the tart directly into the oven, and bake for 40 minutes, then lower the heat to 150C/300F Fan assisted (165/330F Non-fan assisted) and bake for a further 15-20 minutes or until a deep golden colour.
15. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. I prefer to eat it slightly warm, so I allow it to cool for around 75-90 minutes but it can also be eaten once it has completely cooled to room temperature too.
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Raspberry Jam Frangipane Tart
TIER 2
Raspberry Jam Frangipane Tart
In this recipe we take our homemade raspberry jam from tier 1 and spread it on a Páte Brisée pastry case. Then we fill it with an almond frangipane and delicately decorate it with a pattern of flaked almonds. I usually fill my desserts with almond cream instead of frangipane, but the addition of pastry cream really improves the texture and adds even more flavour to the dessert.
1
9-INCH TART
Ingredients
Makes 1 9-inch Tart
Pâte Brisée
200g Plain/All-Purpose Flour
100g Unsalted Butter, Cold & Cubed
50g Cold Water
3g Sea Salt
Pastry Cream
250g Whole Milk
½ Fresh Vanilla Bean Pod
35g Caster/White sugar
60g Egg Yolks
20g Cornstarch/Cornflour
2g Fine Sea Salt
20g Cold Unsalted Butter
Frangipane
165g Unsalted Butter, Room Temperature
165g Caster/White Sugar
Zest ½ Lemon
130g Whole Egg, Lightly Whisked Together
165g Ground Almonds/Almond Flour
2g Sea Salt
85g Pastry Cream, Cooled
To Fill & Finish
Raspberry Jam (Tier 1)
Flaked Almonds
Fresh Raspberries
Icing/Powdered Sugar
Special equipment
Stand mixer
Silicon mats
9-inch fluted tart ring
Baking beans
Piping bag
Method
Pâte Brisée
1. Into the bowl of a stand mixer, add the butter, flour and salt. Mix on a low speed until the butter has completely broken down into fine crumbs and there are no large chunks of butter.
2. Slowly drizzle in the cold water and mix for a few seconds until it pulls together into a dough.
3. Gently knead the dough into a disc on your work surface and wrap it in clingfilm, then refrigerate for 30 minutes.
4. After 30 minutes, place it in between two silicon mats (or two sheets of parchment paper), and roll the dough into a rough disc that is around 3-5mm thick.
5. Refrigerate the pastry again for 1 hour and preheat the oven to 180C/355F Non-fan Assisted. This is a good point to prepare your pastry cream.
6. Peel the silicon mats/parchment paper off the pastry and ensure the dough is cold but flexible. If it is too cold it will break so just leave it for a few minutes to soften slightly if needed.
7. Lift the pastry into a 22.5cm fluted tart ring and use your hands to gently press it into the edges. Work quickly, being careful not to tear the pastry.
8. Use a knife to trim the excess pastry off and place the tart shell back into the fridge to chill for 15 minutes.
9. Scrunch up a piece of baking paper and press this into the chilled tart shell. Fill the tart shell with baking beans or rice and then place it on a tray and straight into the oven to bake.
10. Bake the tart for 30 minutes, then remove the baking beans, and continue to bake for a further 10-15 minutes, or until the pastry is an even golden brown colour.
11. Remove it from the oven and allow it to cool for 30 minutes.
Pastry Cream
1. In a medium saucepan on the stovetop over medium heat, add the milk and the scraped vanilla pod just until it is steaming.
2. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the sugar, egg yolks, cornstarch, and salt until smooth and thickened.
3. Slowly pour the hot milk mixture over the sugar and eggs mixture, whisking constantly.
4. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan. Whisk constantly over medium heat until it begins to bubble, then cook for 1 minute.
5. Remove the saucepan from the heat and pass the mixture through a sieve placed over a large bowl.
6. Whisk in the butter until the mixture is smooth. Cover the bowl with cling film and refrigerate it for an hour.
Frangipane
1. Into a stand mixer, add the soft butter, salt, lemon zest and sugar. Beat for 2-3 minutes on a medium-low speed until slightly thicker and paler in texture.
2. Slowly drizzle in the eggs and beat for a further minute.
3. Finally, add in the ground almonds/almond flour and scoop in the required amount of cooled pastry cream. Beat until smooth.
4. Add the mixture into a piping bag.
Assembly & Baking
1. Lower the oven temperature to 175C/345F Non-Fan Assisted.
2. Take the raspberry jam and spread a few tablespoons across the bottom of the cooled pastry. Make sure it is nice and even.
3. Next, pipe the frangipane evenly into the tart shell. Use a palette knife if needed to smooth it out.
4. Slice your fresh raspberries in half and press them gently into the frangipane.
5. Next, take your time, and evenly place the flaked almonds around the entire tart in a nice circular pattern. This is optional, you can simply sprinkle them on!
6. Place it into the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes or until it is an even golden colour all over.
7. Remove it from the oven, and at this point this filling will still be slightly soft, so let it cool for an hour at room temperature before serving.
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Raspberry & Strawberry Jam
TIER 1
Raspberry & Strawberry Jam
In these recipes we learn the basics of making jams. I walk you through the recipe for raspberry and strawberry jam. The techniques are very similar but I’ll take you through each step, and discuss crucially, the jam setting point, which is a really important temperature to hit to make sure your jam sets! I’ve also included a bonus recipe in the PDF – my dad’s homemade marmalade (thanks Dad!). This was something I grew up eating, so I hope you guys love it as much as me!
4
JAM JARS
Ingredients
Makes 4 Jam Jars
Raspberry Jam
500g Fresh Raspberries
50g Honey
300g Caster/White Sugar
3g Pectin NH + 50g Caster/White Sugar
5g Lemon Juice
Strawberry Jam
750g Fresh Strawberries
450g Caster/White Sugar
225g Water
4.5g Pectin NH + 70g Caster/White Sugar
8g Lemon Juice
BONUS RECIPE
Seville Orange Marmalade (makes 8 jars)
1kg Seville Oranges
Juices of 2 Lemons
2500g Water
2000g Caster/White Sugar
Special equipment
4 x 100g jam jars, sterilised
Digital thermometer
Pectin
Method
Before starting your jam-making, you want to make sure you have cleaned, dried and sterilised your jam jars. Simply wash them in soapy water, dry them, then place them into the oven for 10 minutes at 140C.
Raspberry Jam
1. Into a small bowl, add the pectin and sugar (50g) mixture. Stir the mixture together and set this to one side.
2. Add the fresh raspberries, honey, and remaining sugar into a medium saucepan. Place the pan onto a medium heat and stir it together.
3. Keep cooking the mixture until it reaches 80C on a digital thermometer, and stir in the sugar/pectin mixture.
4. Continue to cook the mixture until it reaches 104C – this can take a little while, between 5-10 minutes so keep a close eye on the thermometer, stirring it pretty continuously.
5. 104C is an important temperature as this is the setting temperature for jams. The closer it gets to this temperature, the thicker and darker the jam will become, and the bubbles will become heavier.
6. As you are cooking it, use a spoon to skim off any foam/impurities that rise to the top.
7. Remove it from the heat, stir in the lemon juice and then distribute it between your jam jars. You should get 2 jars.
8. Leave them to cool to room temperature before refrigerating.
Strawberry Jam
1. Into a small bowl, add the pectin and sugar (70g) mixture. Stir the mixture together and set this to one side.
2. Hull the fresh strawberries and slice them in half. If the strawberries are smaller, then you can leave them whole.
3. Add the sugar and water into a saucepan, and cook it until it reaches 120C.
4. Once at temperature, immediately tip in the strawberries, stir them through the sugar mixture, then add the pectin sugar mixture.
5. Continue to cook the mixture until it reaches 104C – this can take a little while, between 5-10 minutes so keep a close eye on the thermometer, stirring it pretty continuously. 104C is an important temperature as this is the setting temperature for jams. The closer it gets to this temperature, the thicker and darker the jam will become, and the bubbles will become heavier.
5. As you are cooking it, use a spoon to skim off any foam/impurities that rise to the top.
6. Remove it from the heat, stir in the lemon juice and then distribute it between your jam jars. You should get 2 jars (or maybe slightly more)
7. Allow them to cool to room temperature before refrigerating/storing.
Seville Orange Marmalade (My Dad’s Recipe)
1. Wash the Seville oranges if they are dirty.
2. Cut the oranges in half and juice them. Pour the juice into a medium saucepan.
3. Scoop out the flesh from the inside of the oranges and place these into a muslin cloth.
4. Take the remaining peels of the oranges, and cut them into thin strips (or thicker strips if you prefer slightly chunkier strips in your marmelade). Add these to the pan.
5. Add the juice of the lemons into the pan, and place the juiced lemons into the muslin cloth too. Tie thie up so the orange flesh and lemons are secured.
6. Place the muslin into the saucepan, along with the water.
7. Bring the mixture to a boil, and then lower it to a simmer, and continue to cook the mixture until the orange peels are very soft. Anywhere from 1-2 hours!
8. Remove the muslin and squeeze out the juices from it, into the pan.
9. Add in the sugar and boil the mixture, cooking it until it reaches the jam-setting point of 104C.
10. Once it has reached the setting point, remove it from the heat for 15 minutes, and during this time a lot of froth/impurities will rise. Skim these off. The resting time will also help to distribute the orange peels.
11. Scoop the marmalade into your sterilised jam jars (it will make 7-8 jars!). Allow them to cool to room temperature and then place the lids on and refrigerate/store.
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Chausson Aux Pommes
TIER 1
Chausson Aux Pommes
Ok these are essentially apple turnovers, but I felt the name didn’t do them justice and it sounds much more fancy in French! In this recipe I take you through how to make rough puff pastry in detail, so make sure you watch the video to master those folds! Then we cut it into a classic turnover shape and fill it with a sweet apple compote. It’s the perfect buttery, fruity, flakey dessert!
4-6
TURNOVERS
Ingredients
Makes 4-6 Turnovers
Rough Puff Pastry
500g Plain/All-Purpose Flour
10g Fine Sea Salt
240g Ice Cold Water
10g White Vinegar
400g Unsalted Butter, Very Cold & Cubed
Apple Compote
500g Apples (Braeburn/Pink Lady/Golden Delicious – about 5-6 large apples)
60g Dark Brown Sugar
25g Unsalted Butter
1 Vanilla Bean/1 Tsp Vanilla Bean Paste
Pinch of Sea Salt Flakes
Bowl of ice water with the juice of 1 lemon
Egg Wash
25g Egg Whites
60g Egg Yolks
15g Double/Heavy Cream
Glaze
60g Water
60g Caster/White Sugar
Or
65g Water
125g Sugar
30g Liquid Glucose
Special equipment
Stand mixer
Rolling pin
Hand blender
Digital calipers (optional)
Oval template (see PDF)
Fluted pastry wheel
Method
Rough Puff Pastry
1. Pour the flour into the bowl of a stand mixer along with the salt.
2. Pour in the cold water and vinegar.
3. Tip the cubed butter into the centre, then with the paddle attachment, mix on a low speed, just until the dry bits of flour have been absorbed. This should only take 15-20 seconds. The lumps of butter will still be there!
4. Scoop the mixture out of the bowl onto a lightly floured work surface. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough into a long rectangle. You need to work quickly here especially if it is a warm day as the butter will start to soften too much.
5. Once you’ve rolled it out, you might need to use a lightly floured bench scraper to loosen it from the work surface.
6. Perform a single turn, by folding one-third of the dough up on itself, and then folding the remaining third of dough over the top as seen in the PDF.
7. Wrap the dough in cling film and chill it. If it is a warm day, I prefer to do 10 minutes in the freezer then 15 minutes in the fridge. But on a ‘normal day’, 20 minutes in the fridge will be enough.
8. Unwrap the dough and with the open seam facing you, turn the dough 90 degrees so it is now adjacent to you. Roll the dough slightly to give it a little bit of width, then rotate it 90 degrees again so the open seam is facing you again. Roll the dough into a long rectangle again, flouring as needed to ensure it doesn’t stick.
9. Use a bench scraper to get underneath the dough if it feels like it is sticking, then perform a double turn, by folding ¼ of the dough up on itself, then the remaining ¾ of the dough to meet. Fold the dough in half, then wrap in cling film to chill again.
10. Repeat steps 9&10, 2 more times (performing two more double turns) and chill the dough.
11. Unwrap the dough again, and roll it out, performing one final single turn (as seen in step 7). In total you will have done 1x single turn, 3x double turn, 1 x single turn. Refrigerate the dough for 2 hours (or overnight).
Apple Compote
1. Peel and core the apples, then dice them into small cubes (‘brunoise’ as they would say in French!). As you are chopping them, add them to the bowl of cold water with the lemon juice to prevent them from oxidising.
2. Once chopped, drain them and add them into a medium saucepan. Cook them over a medium heat until the juices start to come out of the apples – about 3 minutes. Strain them to remove the excess liquid, then add in the light brown sugar, butter and vanilla.
3. Continue to cook them, stirring frequently, until you have a golden caramelised mixture, this should take about 6-10 minutes. Once cooked, stir through the sea salt flakes.
4. Add the mixture into a jug and blend until you have a thick compote texture.
5. Add this mixture into a bowl and set it to one side in the fridge to cool completely.
Assembly
1. To create the classic chausson aux pommes shape, we need a fluted oval shape which is then folded in half. You can buy special cutters for this but they are expensive, so I created a little hack so that we can do it at home!
2. At the bottom of the PDF there is an oval template you can print off (ideally on some thick card). This will give you an oval that is 6.7”x4.8”.
3. Print this off and then to get the fluted edge, we use a fluted pastry wheel and cut around the template while it is on top of the puff pastry. If you do not have a fluted cutter don’t worry you can just cut around it with a knife. But this template will give you the perfect size!
4. Remove the chilled puff pastry from the fridge and place it onto a floured work surface. Note – it can be easier to work with the pastry in two batches so that it doesn’t get too warm, in this case, just cut the chilled dough in half, and reserve one in the fridge while you roll the other. For the following steps I will assume you are working with a half batch and you just need to repeat the steps to make the remaining pastries.
5. With the open seam facing you, turn the dough 90 degrees so it is now adjacent to you. Roll the dough slightly to give it a bit of width – it needs to be around around 7.5” tall so that it is taller than the oval template.
6. Rotate it 90 degrees again so the open seam is facing you again. Roll the dough into a long rectangle, flouring as needed to ensure it doesn’t stick.
7. Don’t worry about the length of the rectangle, we are more concerned about the thickness – it needs to be around 0.2”/5mm thick. If it is too thick, when it bakes, it will puff up too much! If the dough feels too soft at this point, get it straight into the freezer for 10 minutes to firm up a little. It is much easier to work with when it is cold.
8. Assuming you are working with a half batch of the dough, use the oval template to cut out 2-3 ovals (the number you get will depend on how efficiently you were rolling it and how thick it is!)
9. Lift the fluted ovals onto a tray lined with a silicon mat, and place them in the fridge for 15 minutes.
10. At any point during the process, if you find the dough is getting too warm, place it back into the freezer for 5/10 minutes to chill it down then carry on.
11. Prepare the egg wash by whisking together all the ingredients until you have a homogenous mixture.
12. To ensure you get the same amount of filling, I like to decant my chilled compote into little dishes, each weighing 50g. Then I can just scoop it straight into the pastry knowing I’ve got the correct amount.
13. Remove the chilled pastry from the fridge and, working quickly, scoop 50g of compote into the centre. Refer to the drawing below, we want to make sure we keep the compote away from the edges so it doesn’t leak out later so use your fingers to keep it nice and centred.
14. Brush an egg wash around the edge of the pastry surrounding the compote and fold the bottom half of the pastry over. Use your fingers to seal the dough together, being careful not to warm the dough too much with your hands and ‘smoosh’ it.
15. Use a knife to poke 4 holes in the back of the pastry and then flip it over so this side is now touching the baking tray lined with a silicon mat. Brush the top of the pastry with an egg wash then refrigerate it for 20 minutes. At this point, preheat your oven to 175C/345F non-fan assisted.
16. Remove the pastry from the fridge and apply a second egg wash, then using a sharp knife, lightly score a decorative pattern into the pastry, I just do a series of vertical lines!
17. Place the pastries straight into the oven on the middle shelf and bake for around 45-50 minutes. The apple compote is already cooked so all we are looking for is a nice golden puff pastry.
18. About 10 minutes before you can prepare the glaze so that it is still slightly warm. Add the sugar and water into a saucepan, and simply bring it to a boil. Continue to cook it until it has thickened slightly but is still runny. Slightly looser than the consistency of honey.
19. I’ve given you two options for the glaze, the second one is just slightly shinier from the addition of glucose but is prepared with the exact same method! Just boil the ingredients together.
20. Once the pastries are baked, lift them onto a wire rack and brush them lightly with the glaze. They can be eaten warm or served once cooled, but they are best eaten the same day so that the pastry is as fresh as possible.
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Latticed Pistachio Mille-Feuille
TIER 2
Latticed Pistachio Mille-Feuille
You guys know I love a Mille Feuille, and this filling combination has to be my favourite yet. It’s the same rough puff pastry recipe as Tier 1 (I don’t cover this again in the video for Tier 2), but we walk through how to bake it into the perfect Mille Feuille shape. Then we make a raspberry cremeux and a pistachio cremeux to fill it with, alongside a tangy raspberry coulis. The lattice top is optional, but creates a real show stopping design!
1
LARGE MILLE FEUILLE
Ingredients
Makes 1 Large Mille-Feuille
Rough Puff Pastry
250g Plain/All-Purpose Flour
5g Fine Sea Salt
120g Ice Cold Water
5g White Vinegar
200g Unsalted Butter, Very Cold & Cubed
Basic Cremeux
400g Double Cream
115g Egg Yolks
60g Caster Sugar
5g Powdered Gelatin (200-250 Bloom) + 30g Cold Water
Pistachio Cremeux
240g Basic Cremeux
40g Pistachio Paste
Raspberry Cremeux
240g Basic Cremeux
100g Raspberry Puree
Raspberry Coulis
2g Powdered Gelatin (200-250 Bloom)
12g Cold Water
105g Raspberry Puree
105g Frozen Raspberries
5g Pectin NH
20g Caster Sugar
Icing Sugar To Decorate
Special equipment
Stand mixer
Rolling pin
Digital thermometer
Hand blender
Digital calipers (optional)
Lattice pie cutter
Silicon mats
Baking trays
Piping bags
Method
Rough Puff Pastry
1. Pour the flour into the bowl of a stand mixer along with the salt.
2. Pour in the cold water and vinegar.
3. Tip the cubed butter into the centre, then with the paddle attachment, mix on a low speed, just until the dry bits of flour have been absorbed. This should only take 15-20 seconds. The lumps of butter will still be there!
4. Scoop the mixture out of the bowl onto a lightly floured work surface. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough into a long rectangle. You need to work quickly here especially if it is a warm day as the butter will start to soften too much.
5. Once you’ve rolled it out, you might need to use a lightly floured bench scraper to loosen it from the work surface.
6. Perform a single turn, by folding one-third of the dough up on itself, and then folding the remaining third of dough over the top as seen in the PDF.
7. Wrap the dough in cling film and chill it. If it is a warm day, I prefer to do 10 minutes in the freezer then 15 minutes in the fridge. But on a ‘normal day’, 20 minutes in the fridge will be enough.
8. Unwrap the dough and with the open seam facing you, turn the dough 90 degrees so it is now adjacent to you. Roll the dough slightly to give it a little bit of width, then rotate it 90 degrees again so the open seam is facing you again. Roll the dough into a long rectangle again, flouring as needed to ensure it doesn’t stick.
9. Use a bench scraper to get underneath the dough if it feels like it is sticking, then perform a double turn, by folding ¼ of the dough up on itself, then the remaining ¾ of the dough to meet. Fold the dough in half, then wrap in cling film to chill again.
10. Repeat steps 9&10, 2 more times (performing two more double turns) and chill the dough.
11. Unwrap the dough again, and roll it out, performing one final single turn (as seen in step 7). In total you will have done 1x single turn, 3x double turn, 1 x single turn. Refrigerate the dough for 2 hours (or overnight).
Basic Cremeux/Pistachio Cremeux/Raspberry Cremeux
1. Add the pistachio paste and raspberry puree into two separate bowls and set these to one side.
*Note – Pistachio Paste is quite expensive so you can make it yourself. Just toast shelled pistachios in the oven for about 15 minutes at 170C/340F and then process them in а food processor. You will need to do this with about 300g of Pistachios or it won’t be enough for the blades of your food processor to pick up. It will take some time to blend them and you need a high powered food processor!
2. Add the powdered gelatin into a small dish and pour over the cold water. Allow this to bloom for 10 minutes. Once bloomed, scoop this into a large bowl with a sieve placed over the top.
3. Into a medium bowl, add the egg yolks and sugar. Whisk briefly to combine.
4. Add a splash of the cream just to prevent any lumps and whisk to combine.
5. Pour the entire mixture into a medium saucepan along with the cream. Place the pan on a medium heat and whisk constantly, The mixture needs to reach 80-82C. As you continue to cook it, you will see it thicken in the pan, just be really careful not to scramble the eggs.
6. Once at temperature, immediately remove it from the heat and pour it through the sieve over the gelatin. Some of the egg might have caught on the bottom of the pan but don’t panic!
7. Use a hand blender to blend the mixture to ensure the gelatin has completely incorporated.
8. The mixture should weigh around 480-500g so we’re going to split this equally between the two bowls.
9. Pour around 240g of the mixture over the pistachio paste and blend it with a hand blender to completely emulsify it. Cover the surface with cling film and refrigerate overnight (minimum of 6 hours)
10. For the raspberry, let the basic cremeux cool to around 40C/104F before pouring it over the puree. Blend with a hand blender to completely emulsify it. Cover the surface with cling film and refrigerate overnight (minimum of 6 hours)
Raspberry Coulis
1. Add the powdered gelatin into a small dish and pour over the cold water. Allow this to bloom for 10 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, whisk together the sugar and pectin and set this to one side.
3. Add the frozen raspberries (they can be fresh too) and raspberry puree to a small saucepan.
4. Cook them down until they reach around 40C/104F on a digital thermometer, then add in the sugar/pectin mixture. Continue to cook the mixture until it reaches a boil.
5. Remove the pan from the heat, scoop in the bloomed gelatin and stir it to dissolve it into the raspberry mixture.
6. Pour this into a bowl and cover the surface with clingfilm. Refrigerate for a minimum of 1-2 hours.
Assembly
1. Remove the chilled puff pastry from the fridge and place it onto a floured work surface.
2. With the open seam facing you, turn the dough 90 degrees so it is now adjacent to you. Roll the dough slightly to give it a little bit of width, then rotate it 90 degrees again so the open seam is facing you again. Roll the dough into a rectangle, flouring as needed to ensure it doesn’t stick.
3. We are going to bake this on a baking tray, so we just need to ensure the rectangle we roll isn’t bigger than the tray. We are more concerned about the thickness. It needs to be around 7.5” tall and 0.2”/5mm thick.
4. Once you are at that thickness, you can use a pastry wheel or a knife, to trim the rectangle of pastry down so it fits perfectly on your tray.
5. Lift the dough onto a silicon mat and refrigerate it for 20 minutes.
6. Once chilled, cutting vertically, cut off ⅓ of the rectangle, leaving the remaining ⅔ intact.
7. Work quickly here so the dough stays cold (if not, chill it again. This part will be a disaster if the dough is too warm!), use a lattice pastry wheel cutter or a lattice cutter and cut the ⅓ of dough to create the lattice design.
8. Get both the latticed strip of dough, and the other strip of dough into the fridge for another 20 minutes while you pre-heat the oven to 175C/345F non-fan assisted.
9. Once it has chilled. Remove it from the fridge and place a second silicon mat on top, along with another tray and some extra weight! We need to weigh the top tray down as much as possible to stop the pastry from puffing up. I like to use more baking trays!
10. Place the tray of pastry into the oven on the middle shelf and bake it for 60 minutes.
11. After 60 minutes remove all the trays on top, and the pastry should be a light golden colour (if not place the trays back on and bake it for a little longer)
12. Place it back into the oven, uncovered, and bake until it is golden brown.
13. Remove it from the oven and increase the oven temperature to 220C/430F.
14. Dust the puff pastry liberally with icing/powdered sugar and then place it back in the oven, closer to the top shelf this time.
15. Keep a very close eye on it and bake it until the sugar has caramelised and the pastry is a deep, shiny golden colour. Be really careful not to burn it. It can take anywhere from 2-5 minutes.
16. You will find the lattice probably caramelises quicker than the other piece of pastry so you can remove this early.
17. Get both onto a wire cooling rack to cool for 15 minutes.
18. Using a serrated knife trim down the latticed piece of pastry into a neat rectangle. Then cut the other piece of pastry into two, and then trim each of those pieces down so they match the exact size of the lattice pastry.
Final Assembly
1. Add the chilled raspberry coulis into a tall jug, and with a hand blender, blend it to a smooth mixture. Add this into a piping bag and set it to one side.
2. Whisk both the raspberry and pistachio cremeux using a stand mixer until they are thick and hold a stiff peak. The pistachio cremeux will whisk up thicker than the raspberry cremeux, so don’t worry if the raspberry is slightly softer.
3. Add these into separate piping bags fitted with large round tip piping nozzles.
4. Pipe three lines of the pistachio cremeux onto the base of the plain, non latticed pieces of puff pastry. There should be one line on each outer edge and one in the centre. It’s important the pistachio is on the outside to provide support, as the raspberry cremeux would be too soft to support the weight of the layers.
5. Pipe the raspberry cremeux into the gaps and then pipe 2 lines of raspberry coulis on top.
6. Dust icing sugar diagonally across the top of the latticed pastry, using a flat object to cover one side of the pastry.
7. Carefully stack and assemble the mille-feuille, finishing the latticed piece on top. It is now ready to serve. If you need to serve it later, ensure you keep it refrigerated so the cremeux doesn’t soften too much at room temperature.
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Raspberry Soufflé Tartlets
TIER 2
Raspberry Soufflé Tartlets
In Tier 2 we make a Bake It Better first – raspberry pastry! I tested this a few times and am really happy with the result. We fill this with a raspberry soufflé and garnish with fresh raspberries. It’s actually the pastry element of this recipe that makes this the Tier 2 recipe – the beauty of adding soufflé to a tart is there’s no pressure on the rise! So once you’ve mastered the pastry, it’s plain sailing!
4
INDIVIDUAL TARTS
Ingredients
Makes 4 Individual Tartlets
Raspberry Pastry
75g Unsalted Butter, Cold & Cubed (small cubes)
50g Icing Sugar
4g Powdered Raspberry Powder
38g Egg Yolks
150g Plain/AP Flour
Red Food Colouring Powder/Gel
Egg Wash
20g Egg Yolk
5g Double/Heavy Cream
Red Food Colouring Powder/Gel
Raspberry Soufflé
– Raspberry Base
120g Raspberry Puree
10g Cornstarch
Pinch of Sugar
– Meringue Base
75g Raspberry Base
80g Egg Whites
50g Caster Sugar
Fresh Raspberries To Fill + Garnish
Special equipment
Stand mixer
Silicone mats
4x 7.5cm x 2cm perforated tart rings
Multi-wheel pastry cutter OR a ruler
Digital thermometer
Piping bags
Method
Raspberry Pastry
1. Into the bowl of a stand mixer, add the cold cubed butter and then sift over the raspberry powder, icing sugar and red food powder. With the paddle attachment, beat on a medium low speed for 2 minutes or until the butter is smooth. As the butter is cold you will need to scrape down the bowl a few times to ensure it is completely incorporated.
2. Add in the egg yolks and beat again for around 30 seconds, scraping down the bowl again to ensure it’s all incorporated.
3. Finally, sift in the flour, scrape the bottom of the bowl just to loosen the butter stuck on the bottom, and then mix again on a low speed until it pulls together to form a dough, about 20-30 seconds.
4. Scoop the dough out and place it onto a large silicone mat and place a second silicone mat on top. Roll the dough out with a rolling pin until it is around 3-5mm thick, don’t worry too much about the shape.
5. Place the entire sheet of pastry into the freezer for 30 minutes.
6. While the dough is chilling, take the perforated tart ring and very lightly grease the inside with soft butter. This helps to prevent the dough from sticking to the ring.
7. Remove the chilled dough from the freezer and, working quickly, peel the top silicone mat off of the dough. Press the 4 tart rings firmly into the dough, lift them up, and transfer them to a perforated tray lined with a perforated baking mat. The dough should be cold enough that it attaches to the ring as you lift it up. Place the tray in the fridge while you cut the walls.
8. With the remaining dough, use a ruler and a sharp knife to cut 4 strips of dough each measuring 9.6 x 0.9 inches (24.4 x 2.3cm). These measurements seem quite precise, but this will ensure the dough fits perfectly into the tart rings with no excess overlapping. If they feel too warm to lift up, place them back in the freezer for 5 minutes just so they can cool back down slightly.
9. Remove the baking tray with the tart bases from the fridge and remove one strip of dough for the walls.
10. Working quickly, take the strip of dough and place it inside the tart ring. Use your fingers to gently press together this strip of dough, against the base of the tart. The idea is to slightly push down the wall of dough so that it meets the dough on the base of the tart shell and there are no gaps. If at any point you feel the dough is too warm or is tearing, place everything back in the freezer for 10 minutes then carry on.
11. Repeat this with the remaining tarts, again, chilling the dough if needed. At this point, squeeze together the remaining scraps of dough, and repeat the process, rolling the dough and chilling it, so that you can create the final 2 tart shells.
12. Once you have lined all the tart shells, avoid trying to move them in case the dough tears. Chill the entire tray in the freezer for 15 minutes and pre-heat your oven to 175C/350F.
13. Remove the shells from the freezer and holding a knife perpendicular to the tart shell, trim off the excess pastry hanging over the tart ring so that the pastry is flush.
14. Place the tart shells in the oven, and bake for 15 minutes. While they bake, add the egg wash ingredients to a small ramekin and blend it to combine – I prefer to use a hand blender as it fully emulsifies the colouring into the egg mixture.
15. Remove the tarts from the oven and allow them to cool for 5 minutes. At this point, the pastry should have retracted slightly from the ring mould, and you should be able to lift it off easily.
16. Lift the shells up and using a pastry brush, apply an even egg wash all over the tart. Lower the oven temperature to 140C/285F and place them back on the tray and into the oven for a further 5 minutes. Remove from the oven to cool.
Raspberry Soufflé
– Raspberry Base
1. Into a medium bowl, whisk together the sugar and cornstarch.
2. Add the puree into a medium saucepan and heat it until it reaches around 40C. Once hot, sift in the cornstarch mixture and whisk together. Continue to cook until the mixture thickens and starts to bubble. Once bubbling, cook for a further minute.
3. Immediately pass the mixture through a sieve into a bowl and cover the surface with cling film. Chill for 30 minutes in the fridge.
– Meringue Base
1. Fill a pan with a shallow amount of water and place it over a medium heat. Meanwhile, add the egg whites and sugar into a medium bowl and place this over the water once it is simmering.
2. Whisk constantly until it reaches 60-65C (140-150F) on a digital thermometer.
3. Immediately remove it from the heat and place it on a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment.
4. Whisk on a medium speed for 6-7 minutes until you have a stiff meringue.
5. While it is whisking, remove the raspberry base from the fridge, whisk it, then weigh 75g and add this into a medium bowl.
6. When the meringue is done, fold it in thirds into the raspberry base until you have a homogenous mixture.
Assembly
1. Add the raspberry soufflé mixture into a piping bag and snip the end off.
2. Take the cooled tart shells, and place a few torn up raspberries into the base.
3. Pipe the soufflé mixture into the tart shells, filling them right to the top, and then use a palette knife to level them so they are completely flush with the top of the tart.
4. Place the tarts back onto your baking tray, and place the perforated tart rings around the pastry again. This will just help to provide a little structure and prevent the pastry from cracking as the soufflé expands.
5. Place the tarts into the oven and bake them for 7 minutes. They should rise just slightly.
6. Once they are baked, these can be served warm or alternatively served chilled (place the tarts into the fridge for 1 hour)
7. To garnish, add some freshly sliced raspberries.
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Chocolate and Raspberry Soufflé
TIER 1
Chocolate and Raspberry Soufflé
I’ve cheated a bit in Tier 1 and used the chocolate soufflé recipe from my book, because you honestly can’t beat it! But I tried adding a frozen raspberry insert in the middle, which oozes out once baked, and it really takes the dessert to the next level from both a flavour and a wow factor perspective. Make sure you use good quality chocolate with 50-60% cocoa solids to ensure the right consistency.
4-5
SOUFFLÉS
Ingredients
Makes 4-5 Souffles
Raspberry Insert
50g Raspberry Jam
50g Fresh Raspberries
Splash of Water
Chocolate Soufflé
– Beurre Manie
50g Unsalted Butter, Softened
50g Plain Flour
Pinch of sea salt
– Chocolate Base
270g Whole Milk
50g Granulated/Caster Sugar
200g Chopped Dark Chocolate, 50-60% Cocoa Solids
110g Egg Yolks
French Meringue
180g Egg Whites
70g Granulated/Caster Sugar
Special equipment
3.8cm x 1.9cm silicone half-sphere mould (15 hole) OR a small silicone ice cube tray
Stand mixer
Piping bags
Ramekins
Method
Raspberry Insert
1. Into a medium saucepan, add the fresh raspberries, raspberry jam and just a little splash of water (3 tsp roughly).
2. Place it over a medium low heat, and stir it together until the raspberries have broken down, and it is bubbling and has thickened just slightly.
3. Into a silicone half sphere mould, or a silicone ice cube tray, pour the raspberry mixture in, spread it out so it is even, and then freeze for 3 hours or until it is solid.
Chocolate Soufflé
– Beurre Manie
1. Into a small bowl, add the butter, flour and salt and use a spatula to form it into a paste. Sometimes it is actually easier just to use your hands and mix it together as the quantities are so small.
2. Set this bowl to one side.
– Chocolate Base
1. Into a medium saucepan, add the milk and sugar. Place it over a medium heat and stir occasionally until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is steaming.
2. Remove it from the heat and add in the beurre manie from above. Whisk this through until it has dissolved, then place the pan back on the heat and whisk constantly until the mixture has thickened and holds a slightly more elastic consistency.
3. Remove it from the heat and whisk in the chocolate until the chocolate has completely dissolved. Don’t worry if it looks slightly greasy or split here. Scoop this mixture into a medium bowl.
4. Add the egg yolks on top and immediately whisk this (to make sure the eggs don’t cook from the heat), until you have a smooth, glossy mixture.
5. Cover the surface with cling film and let it rest for 30 minutes.
French Meringue & Assembly
1. Preheat the oven to 160C/320F Fan Assisted.
2. Lightly grease the ramekins with soft butter, using an upwards stroking motion.
3. Tip in a few tablespoons of sugar and swirl this around, tipping out the excess. Place these on a tray and set to one side.
4. Meanwhile, add the egg whites into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment and whisk on a medium low speed until the mixture is frothy and thick bubbles have formed.
5. With the speed on medium, slowly add in the sugar a tablespoon at a time, waiting about 15 seconds in between each addition.
6. Once you’ve added all the sugar, keep whisking until you have a stiff meringue.
7. Fold the meringue in thirds, into the chocolate base, until you have a homogenous mixture with no streaks of meringue.
8. Remove your frozen raspberry inserts from the freezer.
9. Add the soufflé mixture into a piping bag, and pipe the mixture into the ramekins, filling them about 3⁄4 of the way. Then press your raspberry into the middle and cover it up, filling the ramekin to the top with the remaining soufflé mixture.
10. Use a palette knife to smooth the top and create a flush edge, then quickly run your thumb around the outside of the soufflé to create a rim.
11. Place them into the oven immediately and bake for 18 minutes.
12. Remove them from the oven and serve immediately. They should be well risen!
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Lemon Meringue 'Longboys'
TIER 2
Lemon Meringue ‘Longboys’
In TIer 2 we make the same dough as Tier 1, we just add a touch of lemon zest to give them a bit of extra flavour. Then, inspired by Longboys Doughnuts in the UK, we use an oblong mould to create a different shape, coat them in lemon sugar, then top them with a lemon crème pâtissière, Italian meringue and candied lemon peel. Don’t fancy lemon? Try the chocolate crème pâtissière and crumble from my eclair recipe!
8
'LONGBOYS'
Ingredients
Makes 8-9 ‘Longboys’
Donut Dough
550g Strong White Bread Flour
125g Whole Milk
7g Instant Yeast
200g Whole Eggs
12g Fine Sea Salt
125g Unsalted Butter, Cold + Small Cubes
75g Caster/Granulated Sugar
20g Powdered Milk (Full Fat)
10g Vanilla Extract
Zest 1 Lemon
Lemon Crème Pâtissière
300g Double/Heavy Cream
200g Whole Milk
1 Fresh Vanilla Pod
85g Caster sugar
100g Egg Yolks
40g Cornstarch/Cornflour
Zest of 2 Lemons
Candied Lemon Peel
Zest of 1 Unwaxed Lemon
50g Caster Sugar
50g Water
Lemon Sugar
150g Caster/Granulated Sugar
Zest 1 Lemon
Italian Meringue
110g Egg Whites
70g Water
300g Caster Sugar
3 Litres of Vegetable Oil For Frying
Special equipment
Stand mixer
Oil spray (optional)
Oblong cookie cutter (I used a 14.5cm x 3.5cm cutter)
Deep fat fryer
Digital thermometer
Piping bags
St Honore nozzle
Method
Donut Dough
1. Into the bowl of a stand mixer, add the wet ingredients, followed by the dry. Attach the dough hook and mix it on a medium speed for 10 minutes, scraping down the bowl every 3-4 minutes.
2. After 10 minutes, turn the mixer off and let the dough rest for 5 minutes. This will relax the gluten and make the next part of the mixing easier!
3. Turn the mixer back on, and knead for a further 10-12 minutes. The dough should start to come away from the sides of the bowl but there will still be a few bits stuck to the side.
4. Remove it from the mixer and lift the dough onto your work surface. Give it a quick knead and shape it into a nice tight ball. The dough should feel smooth and pass the windowpane test when you stretch a small piece of the dough.
5. Lift it into a lightly oiled bowl, then lightly spray the top of the dough with an oil spray and cover the surface directly with cling film. Cover the bowl with a sheet of cling film too and refrigerate the dough overnight (12-18 hours). This will make it much easier to work with.
6. Before you are ready to work with the dough, prep a baking tray by cutting 8 rectangles of parchment paper and lightly oiling them before placing them on the tray. This will make it easier to transfer the donuts to the fryer.
7. The next day remove the chilled dough from the fridge. Very lightly flour your work surface and lift the dough on. Lightly flour the top of the dough and a rolling pin, and roll the dough out, the shape doesn’t matter, but you want it to be around 12-15mm thick (0.5”). Ensure there is a little flour underneath the dough once you’ve finished rolling otherwise when you go to remove the cut donuts they will stick to the table.
8. Take the oblong cookie cutter and dip it in a bowl of flour to make sure it doesn’t stick to the dough. Press the cookie cutter into the dough to cut the shapes, and lift them onto the sheets of parchment you cut earlier.
9. Very lightly oil the top of the donuts with an oil spray, and then cover the entire tray with a sheet of cling film and allow the donuts to rise for 2-3 hours at room temperature. In warmer weather, 2 hours should be fine, but when it is colder it will be closer to 3 hours. The donuts should look puffier and will have increased in volume when they are done.
Lemon Crème Pâtissière
1. It is best to make this ahead of rolling out your donuts so that it has enough time to chill.
2. Add the sugar into a bowl along with the lemon zest and briefly rub them together to release some of those citrus oils.
3. Add the egg yolks and cornflour and whisk the mixture together until it is thick, then set it to one side.
4. In the meantime, scrape the beans from the fresh vanilla pod and add these into a medium saucepan along with the milk & cream.
5. Place the pan over a medium heat and stir occasionally until the mixture is steaming.
6. Once hot, slowly pour the mixture over the egg yolks, and whisk until they are combined. It is important to do this slowly to avoid scrambling the eggs.
7. Add the entire mixture back into the pan and place it on a medium heat.
8. Whisk continuously until the mixture thickens and begins to bubble. Once it bubbles, cook for a further minute, then remove it from the heat and pass it through a sieve into another bowl. At this point it’s likely your mixture will have split a little, so just add a splash of water (2 tsp) and blend with a hand blender and it will pull it back together.
9. Place a sheet of cling film directly on the surface and refrigerate until ready to use (3-4 hours).
Candied Lemon Peel
1. Use a vegetable peeler to peel the lemon into strips.
2. With a sharp knife, cut the peel lengthways to create thin strips.
3. Into a small saucepan, add the lemon strips, sugar and water. Place it over a medium low heat and gently simmer for around 10 minutes. The strips of lemon should appear slightly translucent and the liquid should thicken.
4. Use some tongs to remove them from the pan and place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment and allow to dry completely. About half an hour.
Lemon Sugar
1. Add the sugar into a bowl along with the lemon zest and briefly rub them together to release some of those citrus oils.
2. Set the bowl to one side.
Frying
1. When the donuts are close to being proofed, add the oil to your deep fat fryer (or a large pan) and heat it to 170C/340F. A deep-fat fryer is ideal here as it is able to regulate the temperature at a much more consistent level vs frying in a pan.
2. When the donuts are ready, drop 1 into the oil, and slowly peel off the sheet of parchment paper.
3. Fry for 90 seconds, flip, fry for 60 seconds, flip, fry for 15 seconds, flip, fry for 15 seconds. Nb. Due to the shape of these donuts they’re likely to flip over by themselves in the oil, so I’d recommend holding them in place lightly with some tongs so you can ensure an even bake on each side. I’ve also increased the fry time just slightly from the video as I found slightly longer was better!
4. Remove your donut and place it on a wire rack, allowing any excess oil to drip off. After a minute, and while the donuts are still warm, toss the donut in the bowl of lemon sugar then place back on your wire rack.
5. Repeat with the remaining donuts.
Italian Meringue
1. Into a small saucepan, add the water, then pour the sugar on top. Place it over a medium heat
2. Meanwhile, add the egg whites into a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Whisk it on a medium low speed.
3. Once the water and sugar mixture has started to boil, cook it until it reaches a temperature of 118C/244F on a digital thermometer. By this point, the egg whites should be bubbly and frothy.
4. Immediately remove the sugar syrup from the heat, increase the stand mixer speed to medium high, and slowly drizzle the sugar syrup in, aiming to pour it in between the whisk and the bowl. Just make sure not to pour it on the whisk or it will splatter everywhere.
5. Continue to whisk for 6-7 minutes, or until the bowl is cool to the touch and stiff peaks form on the meringue.
6. Add the meringue to a piping bag fitted with a St. Honore nozzle.
Assembly
1. Remove your lemon crème pâtissière from the fridge and whisk it for 15-20 seconds to loosen it a little. Add it to a piping bag.
2. Take a donut and cut it lengthways down the middle. Pipe in some lemon creme patissiere until it reaches the top of the donut, then smooth it with a palette knife. Repeat with the rest of the donuts.
3. Next, take your meringue and in a zig zag motion, pipe it down the middle of your donut. Then, using a blow torch, lightly torch the top of your meringue until it’s slightly brown. Repeat with the rest of the donuts.
4. Garnish with your candied lemon peel.
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Advanced Raspberry Sorbet
TIER 2
Advanced Raspberry Sorbet
In Tier 2 we get our maths head on! We walk through the formula I learnt to make any fruit sorbet, and we put it into practice in this stunning raspberry sorbet. It’s the perfect balance of flavours (thanks to the formula!), and the addition of the stabiliser makes it super smooth. I’ve included a detailed Google Sheets document for you to use to create any fruit sorbet in future, so be sure to check it out.
1
TUB (APPROX. 300G)
Ingredients
Makes 1 Tub (approx. 300g)
202g Caster Sugar
36g Dextrose
3g Stabiliser
299g Water
10g Fresh Lemon Juice
450g Fresh Raspberries
Special equipment
Digital thermometer
Hand blender
Ice-cream machine
Method
For the ‘science’ behind this recipe and the option to create your own flavoured sorbet, follow the guidelines in this document.
1. Pour the cold water into a saucepan and heat over a medium heat to 40C. In a bowl, stir together the sugar, dextrose and stabiliser and then pour into the water once it’s reached temperature. Whisk together until the mixture reaches 85C, then take off the heat and leave to cool to approximately 40C.
2. Once cooled, add the mixture to a bowl and pour in the lemon juice and raspberries. Blend briefly with a hand blender to combine (don’t blend for too long as you will start to blend the raspberry seeds, which will dull the colour of your sorbet). Pass the mixture through a sieve into a bowl, then cover the surface with cling film and put it in the fridge for 12 hours/overnight.
3. The next day, pour the mixture into your ice cream machine and churn for 20-30 minutes until it’s a thick, sorbet-like consistency.
4. Transfer the sorbet into a container and freeze for 1-2 hours before serving.
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Basic Lemon Sorbet
TIER 1
Basic Lemon Sorbet
In Tier 1 we walk through the fundamentals of a sorbet, and make a basic sorbet without getting too technical! This is the perfect palate cleanser – quite a tart lemon flavour that’s so refreshing. As we don’t add any stabiliser in this recipe, this sorbet is best served within 24 hours to prevent the sugar from recrystallising. It’s a simple and delicious recipe to get you warmed up for Tier 2!
1
TUB (APPROX. 300G)
Ingredients
Makes 1 Tub (approx. 300g)
145g Caster Sugar
55g Dextrose
435g Water
345g Fresh Lemon Juice
Special equipment
Hand blender
Ice-cream machine
Method
1. Pour the cold water into a saucepan and add the sugar and dextrose. Place over a medium heat and bring it to the boil whilst whisking. Boil for a minute then take the sugar syrup off the heat and leave to cool for approximately 15 minutes (until cool to the touch).
2. Add the mixture to a bowl and pour in the lemon juice (it’s a good idea to sieve this to avoid adding any pips/pulp). Blend with a hand blender to combine. Cover the surface with cling film then put the mixture in the fridge for 4 hours. You can leave this in the fridge for longer, but 4 hours is the ideal maturation time.
3. After 4 hours, pour the mixture into your ice cream machine and churn for 20-30 minutes until it’s a thick, sorbet-like consistency (yours may take longer depending on your machine).
4. Transfer the sorbet into a container and freeze for 1-2 hours before serving.
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Tropical Pavlova
TIER 2
Tropical Pavlova
In Tier 2 we really elevate the design of the pavlova and use a funky mold to create this more professional looking plated dessert. We use the same meringue recipe and chantilly cream as Tier 1, and pair it with a frozen passion fruit cremeux, a mango and passion fruit salsa. If you don’t fancy giving the design a go, it would taste equally as good all mashed together as an Eton Mess!
8
INDIVIDUAL PAVLOVAS
Ingredients
Makes 8 Individual Pavlovas
French-Swiss Meringue
100g Egg Whites
100g Caster Sugar
75g Icing Sugar
Desiccated coconut for decoration (optional)
Passionfruit Cremeux
50g Egg Yolks
35g Whole Eggs
25g Sugar
75g Passion Fruit Purée
60g Unsalted Butter, Soft
1g Powdered Gelatin (200 Bloom) + 6g Water
Whipped Vanilla Chantilly Cream
600g Double/Heavy Cream
125g White Chocolate
5.5g Powdered Gelatin (200 Bloom) + 33g Water
1.5 Tsp Vanilla Bean Paste / 1 Vanilla Pod
Tropical Fruit Salad
Whole Mango, chopped into small cubes
Seeds of 4 Passion Fruits
¼ Lime, Zested
3 Tsp Passion Fruit Purée
Assembly
100g White Chocolate, Melted
Lime, Zested
Special equipment
Stand mixer
Hand blender
Digital thermometer
3.8cm x 1.9cm half-sphere mould (15 hole)
Piping bags
Large round tip nozzle OR small cookie cutter
Method
Passion fruit Crémeux
1. In a small bowl, add the water to the powdered gelatin and let it sit for 5 minutes
2. In a bowl over a pan of gently simmering water, add the sugar, eggs, egg yolks and passion fruit purée. Whisk constantly until the mixture thickens and reaches 83C.
3. Once the mixture reaches temperature, pass it through a sieve into a bowl. Then, add the bloomed gelatin and butter on top and blend with a hand blender until smooth.
4. Add the passion fruit crémeux to your half sphere mould and use a palette knife to smooth the top of the mould to make sure they’re even. Freeze overnight/6 hours.
Whipped Vanilla Chantilly Cream
1. In a small bowl, add the water to the powdered gelatin and let it sit for 5 minutes
2. Add the white chocolate to a tall jug and add the bloomed gelatin on top
3. To a saucepan over a medium heat add 185g of the cream and the vanilla bean paste/vanilla beans and heat until it’s steaming.
4. Once steaming, pour it over your chocolate and gelatin mixture and leave for 2 minutes. You want to make sure the cream covers the top of the chocolate. After two minutes, blend the mixture together with a hand blender.
5. Once blended, add the remaining cream (415g) and blend again.
6. Pour the cream mixture into a bowl and cover the surface with cling film. Leave to chill in the fridge overnight/12 hours.
French-Swiss Meringue
1. Preheat the oven to 80C/175F Non-Fan Assisted
2. Into the bowl of a stand mixer, add the egg whites and sugar.
3. Place this over a pan of gently simmering water, and whisk constantly until it reaches a temperature of 55C/130F on a digital thermometer.
4. Once at temperature, remove it from the heat and place it onto a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Whisk for 6-7 minutes on a medium speed, until the bowl feels cool to the touch and the meringue is thick.
5. Remove it from the stand mixer and place a sieve over the top. Sieve in the icing/powdered sugar, and use a whisk to gently fold this in. We use a whisk because we want the icing sugar to incorporate easily, but we also want to knock some of the stiffness out of the meringue, just slightly, so that we get a softer texture for the design of the pavlova.
6. Add your meringue mixture to a piping bag fitted with a large round tip nozzle. Flatten the mixture gently to remove any air bubbles.
7. Lightly grease the back of a half sphere mould (the same one you used for the passion fruit cremeux). I like to use an oil spray, but you can lightly brush a neutral oil over the mould.
8. Holding the piping bag vertically over one of the moulds, push down until the meringue covers the half sphere, then quickly do a ‘whip’ motion at the top to release the piping bag. Repeat with the other half spheres, spacing them out so the meringues don’t touch (they will expand slightly as they bake).
9. Lastly, sprinkly desiccated coconut over the meringue, making sure to hit the sides of the meringue. Then put the meringue in the oven for 3 hours.
Tropical Fruit Salad
1. Add all the ingredients to a bowl and stir together
Assembly
1. Once the meringues are baked, leave them to cool for an hour then gently release them from the mould.
2. Once cooled, gently grate the bottom of the meringues to create a flat surface for them to sit.
3. Melt the white chocolate over a pan of simmering water. Once melted, add a spoonful of white chocolate into a meringue cup. Tip the meringue to the sides to coat the inside of the cup, then tip out the excess chocolate. Put them in the fridge for 5 minutes until the chocolate has set.
4. Fill the meringue cups with tropical fruit salad so that it’s flush with the top of the cup. Then remove the frozen passion fruit cremeux half spheres from the freezer and add them on top.
5. Add the chilled whipped vanilla chantilly to a stand mixer and whisk until it forms a medium peak – about 1-2 minutes. Be careful not to over whisk it. Add it to a piping bag fitted with a round tip nozzle. Then, holding it vertically over the top one of your meringues, push down so the cream covers all of the sphere.
6. Zest a light dusting of lime over the top of the meringues. Serve roughly 30 minutes after removing the passion fruit cremeux from the freezer (to allow it time to defrost, but not to melt).
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Rhubarb Pavlova
TIER 1
Rhubarb Pavlova
We start by mastering the meringue. This is a French-Swiss meringue, which involves whisking egg whites and sugar over a bain-marie (the Swiss element), then folding through icing sugar once cooled (the French element). This makes a gorgeous soft meringue that doesn’t start to weep. We fill it with tart poached rhubarb and a sweet vanilla chantilly cream – I love this flavour combination!
4
INDIVIDUAL PAVLOVAS
Ingredients
Makes 4 Individual Pavlovas
French-Swiss Meringue
200g Egg Whites
200g Caster Sugar
150g Icing Sugar / Powdered Sugar
Poached Rhubarb
2 Rhubarb Stalks, Washed + Woody Stalks Removed
Peel & Juice of ½ Orange
½ Vanilla Bean, Cut in half and scraped
135g Water
15g Grenadine
135g Sugar
Vanilla Chantilly Cream
300g Double/Heavy Cream
5g Icing/Powdered Sugar
1 Tsp Vanilla Bean Paste
To Decorate
Icing Sugar/Powdered Sugar
Raspberry Powder (optional)
Special equipment
Stand mixer
Digital thermometer
Flexible dough scraper/large metal serving spoon
Silicon mat
Method
French-Swiss Meringue
1. Preheat the oven to 80C/175F Non-Fan Assisted
2. Into the bowl of a stand mixer, add the egg whites and sugar. Place this over a pan of gently simmering water, and whisk constantly until it reaches a temperature of 55C/130F on a digital thermometer.
3. Once at temperature, remove it from the heat and place it onto a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Whisk for 6-7 minutes on a medium speed, until the bowl feels cool to the touch and the meringue is thick.
4. Remove it from the stand mixer and place a sieve over the top. Sieve in the icing/powdered sugar, and use a whisk to gently fold this in. We use a whisk because we want the icing sugar to incorporate easily, but we also want to knock some of the stiffness out of the meringue, just slightly, so that we get a softer texture for the design of the pavlova.
5. Using a flexible dough scraper or a large metal serving spoon, scoop up the meringue, then wipe it on the edge of the bowl. Scoop that bit of meringue up again, and wipe it on the edge of the bowl one more time, before scooping it up for a final time. This scooping/scraping action will help to smooth the meringue.
6. Wipe off any excess meringue on the dough scraper/spoon with your finger and then swiftly but gently, dollop the meringue onto a baking tray lined with a silicon mat/parchment paper. As you are pulling up, and dolloping the final bit of meringue, do it slowly to create a slight ‘flick’ to the pavlova. This is all best seen in the video!
7. Repeat this to create 4 pavlovas in total.
8. Place these in the centre of the oven and bake them for 3 hours without opening the door. Once baked, remove from the oven and allow to cool to room temperature. These can then be used straight away, or stored in an airtight container to use the next day.
Poached Rhubarb
1. Remove the woody ends from the rhubarb, then chop it into small pieces, really whatever size you prefer. Place these into a shallow dish.
2. Into a saucepan, add all the remaining ingredients. Bring it to a boil to dissolve the sugar. Remove it from the heat to let it sit for a minute before pouring it over the rhubarb.
3. Place a lid on top of the dish or a large tray and let it sit for 5-10 minutes, or until the rhubarb is tender but still has a slight bite. Drain the rhubarb from the liquid and set it to one side.
4. You can keep the sugar syrup to drizzle over the top of your finished pavlovas. If you want a slightly thicker syrup, place it back on the heat and boil until it has reduced and thickened. Then leave to one side.
Vanilla Chantilly Cream
1. Place the ingredients into a medium bowl and using a hand whisk/electric whisk/stand mixer, whisk it to a medium peak.
Assembly
1. Take a meringue and tip it upside down in your hands so the bottom is facing upwards. Holding it very gently to prevent it cracking, use a knife to carefully score a hole in the bottom of the meringue. You want quite a large hole, the same shape as the meringue, but don’t go too close to the edges. Keep going over the score lines until the meringue breaks free, then carve out the centre of the meringue with a spoon. If you want, you can keep the bottom of the meringue to add back once you have filled the meringue.
2. Scoop a little bit of chantilly cream into the shell, then add a few pieces of the poached rhubarb then top it up with more cream so that it is filled just to the top of the hole you created.
3. Lift it up, place a plate on the meringue, and quickly and carefully flip it over so the meringue is now on the plate. Repeat with all four meringues.
4. Dust the meringues with icing sugar & raspberry powder (and add some of the rhubarb liquid drizzled over the top if desired).
5. This needs to be served immediately once filled.
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Lemon ‘Babka’ Bundt Cakes
TIER 1
Lemon ‘Babka’ Bundt Cakes
This recipe is my take on a non-yeasted Polish Babka Bundt. It’s a simple lemon cake recipe that’s super soft, covered in a lemon syrup and finished with a lemon sugar. I’ve gone for these beautiful miniature bundts, but if you don’t have a similar tin you can use a muffin tin!
6
INDIVIDUAL BUNDT CAKES
Ingredients
Makes 6 Individual Bundt Cakes
For the lemon sugar
Peel of 4 Large Lemons (60g)
200g Caster/Granulated Sugar
*This will make more than you need but it can be stored in an airtight container – this will ensure the lemon peel doesn’t go bad.
For the lemon cake
Zest 1 Lemon (2g)
125g Caster/Granulated Sugar
100g Plain/All-Purpose Flour
5g Baking Powder
2g Salt
100g Ground Almonds
200g Whole Eggs
50g Vegetable Oil
30g Lemon Juice
Soft Unsalted Butter + Flour To Coat
For the lemon syrup
100g Sugar
50g Lemon Juice
50g Water
Special equipment
Stand Mixer
Blender
4 Cup – 6 Cavity Mini Bundt Tin
Method
Lemon Sugar
1. Preheat the oven to 80C/175F Non- Fan Assisted.
2. Peel the lemons using a vegetable peeler – you should get roughly 60g of lemon peel.
3. Place the lemon peels onto a baking tray lined with a silicon mat.
4. Place the lemon peel in the oven to dry them out, it will take 1-1.5 hours. They should look shrivelled once done.
5. Once completely dry to the touch, remove them from the oven and allow them to cool for 30 minutes.
6. Into a blender, add the sugar and dried lemon peels. Blend on high speed for 15-20 seconds, or until you have a fine, fragrant powder with no large lumps of lemon skin.
7. Add the mixture into an airtight container and set it to one side.
Lemon Cake
1. Preheat the oven to 180C/355F Non-Fan Assisted. Take soft butter (not melted), and use a pastry brush to brush the inside of the bundt tin cavities to ensure an even coating. Over the top of the tins, sieve over a few tablespoons of plain/all-purpose flour in each cavity, and shake it around the tin to coat. Tap out the excess and set the tin to one side.
2. In a medium bowl, add the sugar and the lemon zest. Massage the zest with your fingertips into the sugar to release the citrus oils.
3. Into a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Whisk it together to combine, then whisk in the ground almonds. Set this mixture aside.
4. In a large bowl, add the eggs and lemon sugar. Using an electric hand mixer (or a stand mixer), whisk on a medium speed for 3-4 minutes until the mixture is thick, pale and fluffy.
5. Pour in the oil, along with the lemon juice and whisk by hand to incorporate it, ensuring to catch any ingredients that may be at the bottom of the bowl.
6. Tip in the sifted dry ingredients and use a hand whisk again to combine until there are no more dry bits.
7. Scoop the batter into the cavities of the bundt tin, filling them up about ⅘ (75g per cavity if you’re using the same sized Bundt tin as me).
8. Bake the cakes for 18-20 minutes, until a skewer comes out clean. Whilst baking, make the Lemon Syrup.
9. In a medium saucepan over a medium heat, mix together the sugar, water and lemon juice and bring to a gentle simmer. Once simmering, take off the heat and leave to cool whilst the cakes continue to bake.
10. Once the cakes have baked and a skewer comes out clean, let them cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then place a wire rack on top before carefully flipping them over to release the cakes. Pour over the lemon syrup.
11. The cakes can be eaten warm or allowed to cool. Before serving, take the lemon sugar you made earlier and place it into a fine mesh sieve, and gently dust it over the top of the cake. The extra sweetness elevates the flavour of the cake!
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Raspberry Maritozzi Marchigiani
TIER 2
Raspberry Maritozzi Marchigiani
For this recipe, we use the same dough as Tier 1 but we turn it into a more advanced shape. We make a raspberry reduction and a raspberry gel which really takes it to the next level. I’ve not added crème pâtissière to this one, but you easily can to add that extra bit of decadence. I’ve topped it with raspberry powder and edible flowers to give it that extra wow factor.
6
LONG BUNS
Ingredients
Makes 6 Long Buns
For the raspberry gel + raspberry reduction
400g Frozen Raspberries
40g Caster/Granulated Sugar
Agar Agar Powder
For the dough
315g White Bread Flour
25g Caster/Granulated Sugar
6g Instant Dry Yeast
5.5g Sea Salt
55g Whole Eggs
160g Whole Milk
Zest ½ Lemon
2g Vanilla Bean Paste (1 Tsp)
55g Unsalted Butter, Cold + Cubed
For the egg wash
50g Whole Egg
5g Whole Milk
For the vanilla cream
300g Double/Heavy Cream
5g Icing/Powdered Sugar
To Decorate
Raspberry Powder
Edible Flowers (Micro Amaranth, Wood Sorrel)
Special equipment
Stand mixer with paddle and whisk attachments
Hand blender
Piping bag
Palette knife
Method
For the Raspberry Gel and Reduction
1. Into a medium heat-proof bowl, add the frozen raspberries and pour the sugar over the top. Toss them gently to combine. Tightly wrap the surface of the bowl with cling film so that it is completely sealed.
2. Place a medium saucepan on the hob, filling it ⅓ with water. Bring this to a gentle simmer.
3. Immediately lower the heat to its lowest setting and place the bowl of raspberries on top. Let this sit on the pan for 2 hours.
4. After 2 hours, place a sieve lined with kitchen paper over a large bowl and pour the cooked raspberries into the sieve.
5. Place the bowl into the fridge for 2 hours (or ideally overnight), allowing the raspberry syrup to drip into the bowl underneath.
6. Scoop the raspberry reduction out of the sieve and scoop this into a bowl. Cover it and refrigerate until ready to use.
7. Take the raspberry liquid from the bowl, and pour it into a jug sitting on a digital scale. For every 100g of raspberry syrup, we are going to add 1g of agar agar powder. (So for example, if the liquid weighs 120g, add 1.2g of agar agar powder)
8. Add the raspberry syrup and the agar agar powder into a saucepan and bring it to a boil, whisking to combine. Once at a boil, cook for 1 minute.
9. Remove it from the heat and pour it onto a shallow baking tray and set it in the fridge to cool until firm to the touch (this should take about 30 minutes).
10. Once firm, break the gel into pieces and blend until smooth. Set this gel aside, covered in the fridge, until ready to use.
For the Dough
1. Into the bowl of a stand mixer, add milk, eggs and yeast. On top of that, pour the flour, sugar & finally the salt. Add in the lemon zest & vanilla.
2. Knead the dough for 10 minutes on a medium low speed, scraping down the sides half way through to make sure everything is incorporated.
3. After 10 minutes, add in the cubed cold butter a little at a time, and increase the speed to medium. Once all the butter has incorporated, knead for a further 3 minutes by which point the dough should be nice and smooth.
4. Lift the dough out of the bowl and onto your work surface. Gently shape it into a smooth round ball and lift it into a lightly oiled bowl. Cover the bowl with cling film and proof the dough for 1 hour, or until it has doubled in size.
5. Once proofed, remove the dough from the bowl and cut it into 100g pieces. You should get 6 pieces of dough in total.
6. Take each piece of dough and roughly shape it into a tight ball. Then, using your hand, flatten the dough into a rough oval shape, flip it over, so the smooth side is now facing down, and the short edge of the dough is facing towards you.
7. If the dough has started to contract, just press it out again with your fingers.
8. Use your fingers to gently blend the bottom edge of the dough into the work surface. Then, starting at the top, tightly roll the dough on itself, into a log shape. You might need a tiny bit of flour on your hands as you do this, but avoid using too much or it will prevent the dough from sticking together.
9. Once you’ve got the log shape, gently roll it back and forth on the surface, and then use your fingers to apply some pressure at the ends of the dough, pressing down and rocking the dough back and forth, to form small ‘tails’ on the end of the dough (almost like a baguette)
10. Carefully lift the dough, seams side down, onto a baking tray lined with parchment paper, and repeat with the remaining dough.
11. Cover the dough loosely with a tea towel and allow it to proof again for another 1-1.5 hours until the dough has increased in size about 1.5x.
12. Just before the dough is ready, preheat the oven to 180C/355F (non-fan assisted).
13. Prepare the egg wash by whisking together the egg and milk.
14. Use a pastry brush to paint an even coating over the dough and then place the dough into the oven and bake for around 25 minutes, or until golden brown.
15. Remove from the oven and lift them onto a wire cooling rack, to cool completely.
For the cream
1. In a stand mixer, whisk together the double cream and icing sugar until you have a medium peak.
Assembly
1. Cut your bun down the centre (like a hot dog!) and add a small amount of the raspberry pulp across the bottom of the bun. I wouldn’t recommend overloading your bun with this! If you want to take this to the next level, you can also add some crème pâtissière from Tier 1 too!
2. Fill the rest of the bun with the whipped cream. Then, using a warm palette knife, scrape across the edge of the bun to smooth the cream and create a nice clean finish. You’ll be left with a little cream around the edges, so I tend to use my (clean!) finger to remove this.
3. Next, add your raspberry gel to a piping bag and cut a small hole at the end. Pipe the gel onto your bun as you wish. I went full-on hot dog and piped mine like ketchup in a zigzag pattern over the cream.
4. Finally, dust your optional raspberry powder over the top of the bun, and add the optional edible flowers. Repeat for all buns.
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Lemon Meringue Pavlova
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Black Sesame & Blackberry
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Lemon Meringue Pie
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Apple Crumble
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Strawberry Shortcake
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Passion Fruit Slice
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Golden Gianduja Tart
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Strawberry Meringue Tart
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Summer Fruits Cheesecake
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Chocolate Orange Cheesecake
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Black Forest Gateaux
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Almond & Orange Cake
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Lemon Cake
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Strawberry Roll Cake
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Passion fruit Soufflé
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Vanilla Panna Cotta
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Strawberry Popsicle
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Vanilla & Blueberry Danish
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Roasted Strawberry & Creme Brûlée Tart
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Lemon Citrus Crunch
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Herringbone Lattice Apple Pie
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Crème Brûlée Cheesecake
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Lemon Tart
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Frangipane Tart
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