Make | Sweet & Silly Sandwiches

Picnic season is upon us, and what better reason for a silly sandwich? 

If there’s ever a time when we can cast aside the sensible egg and cress or ham and mustard it must be for a midsummer picnic when a bit of fun and frivolity is always on the menu. Here are a few of our favourite sweet sandwiches that are part lunch, part pudding and part party. 

Fairy Bread

An Antipodean delicacy; open buttered white bread slices, sprinkled with hundreds and thousands. Nutritional factor: zero. Fun factor: eleven out of ten. 

Banana and Honey

Reminding us of childhood Sunday teas, the hilarity of putting banana in between slices of Hovis has never left us. Jazz it up with a sprinkling of cinnamon. 

Grated Apple

Excellent with crusty bread and a slightly salted butter. Add peanut butter if you must but we quite like the simplicity of a good old apple sarnie. 

Chocolate, brie and raspberry

One for toastie fans. This is like a sweeter version of a bacon, brie and cranberry toastie. The brie and the chocolate (dark for preference) melts beautifully into the toast while the raspberry reduces to a very pleasant mush, taking the place of the cranberry sauce. 

Fruit Sandos

A Japanese staple: chilled, whipped cream and seasonal fruits - strawberries, mandarins, pear… whatever you like - sandwiched in slices of milk bread (brioche also works). Fresh, sweet and so pretty looking. 

Sugar sandwiches

No messing about here. This traditionally Irish treat was usually bestowed upon children by over-indulgent grandparents. There’s little as exciting as the sight of the bag of Tate and Lyle, a tub of Stork and some plastic bread on the sideboard in your Granny’s kitchen. Add some lemon juice for a bit of zing and a pancake day ambience. 

In our June issue, we have a rather lovely recipe for a grown-up silly sandwich. The Rose Petal & Strawberry Sandwiches (recipe below) are part of our Heart Body & Soul feature that focuses on roses this month. It also includes instructions to make Rose Bitters, Rosewater Tonic and a savoury galette with Rose Harissa. 

Rose Petal & Strawberry Sandwiches

Give your afternoon tea a floral and fruity twist with sandwiches that give scones a run for their money 

Per sandwich: 

Two slices of brioche bread 

1 tbsp clotted cream 

1 tbsp strawberry jam 

A few drops of rosewater 

3 strawberries 

Fresh rose petals, six or more 

1 Spread the cream onto both slices of the brioche bread. 

2 Stir the rosewater into the jam, then spread this on top of the cream on one slice of bread. Thinly slice the strawberries and carefully lay on top of the cream on the other slice. 

3 Remove the heels of the rose petals if needed before laying the petals on top of the jam and carefully putting the two pieces together. Either cut into dainty fingers or leave as delicious doorsteps.

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More from our June issue…

More inspiration with roses…

Recipe | Summer strawberry tart

A light dessert that’s really easy to make, really lovely to eat

Serves 4–6
2 tbsp melted butter
1 sheet of puff pastry
400g strawberries, hulled and sliced
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp golden caster sugar
Sprigs of mint, to garnish
Icing sugar, to dust
300ml double cream

1 Preheat oven to 200C/Fan 180C/ Gas 6. Grease a rectangular baking tray with half of the butter and place the pastry on the tray.
2 In a large bowl, add the strawberries, vanilla extract and caster sugar. Stir gently to evenly coat the fruit.
3 Arrange the berries in rows, leaving a 2.5cm border of pastry all the way round. Brush this edge with the remaining butter and then place in the oven for 15–20 mins or until golden.
4 Remove from the oven, allow to cool, and top with a dusting of icing sugar and sprigs of mint.
5 Whisk the cream until soft peaks form; transfer to a bowl to serve.

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View the sampler here.

More from the June issue:

More strawberry recipes:

Recipe: Strawberry and thyme pie

June means sunshine and strawberries. This eye-catching pudding oozes natural berry sweetness and could happily accompany you on a weekend picnic or take centre stage at a midsummer soirée. Strawberries and thyme are good friends and the addition of the herb adds an interesting twist to the simple flavour.  

Strawberry and thyme pie

Serves 8

for the dough
125g plain flour
125g almond flour (or use 250g plain flour in total)
125g butter
pinch of salt
30g icing sugar
cold water, as needed

for the thyme custard
200ml milk
seeds of 1 vanilla pod
a few sprigs fresh thyme
2 egg yolks
30g icing sugar
150g cream cheese

for the topping
500-600g strawberries
fresh thyme leaves 

Make the dough: Work both flours, butter, salt and icing sugar into a smooth dough. If dough is too dry, add a few drops of cold water. Shape into a flat disc and wrap in cling film. Rest in fridge for 1 hour.

Start the thyme custard: Bring the milk to a near boil with vanilla and thyme. Turn off heat and let steep until ready to use.

1 Preheat oven to 180C/Fan 160/350F.

2 Dust countertop with flour and pat dough into a thin slab that fits a 22cm pie plate or a pie pan with a removable bottom. Grease the pan and line it with the dough. Leave some overhanging the edge. Carefully press a sheet of parchment paper onto the dough, fill with baking beans and blind bake the crust for 15 mins. Use the parchment paper to lift out the beans. Bake crust for 10 mins more.

3 Let crust cool, then neatly trim the edges. Keep the oven on.

4 Return to the custard. Beat the yolks and icing sugar until light and frothy. Pour into the warm milk through a strainer. Whisk it all and pour back into the pan. While stirring, bring mixture to a near boil and reduce it slightly over low heat. Turn off heat and beat in the cream cheese. Pour the mix into the blind-baked crust and put the pie back in the oven for 15 mins.

5 Allow the pie to cool on a rack for at least 30 mins.

6 Quarter the strawberries and use them to dress the pie.

7 Serve garnished with thyme. 

From Home Baked by Yvette van Boven (Stewart, Tabori & Chang) 

Read more from the June issue:

More strawberry recipes:

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View the sampler here

Recipe: Easiest strawberry ice cream ever!

No fancy ice cream machine? Fear not, for this frozen berry beauty from our friends at Abel and Cole you only need a freezer. And by using coconut milk instead of cream, is good for vegans too. Everyone's a winner!

Ingredients

1 punnet strawberries
2 tablespoons icing sugar
A splash of cream, coconut milk or orange juice

1. Trim the tops off the berries and roughly chop. Freeze until frozen solid, at least 2 hours but preferably overnight.

2. Break the frozen berries up and place in a food processor with the sugar and 50ml cream. Start the motor going on your food processor and trickle in more cream until the mix comes together.

3. Take it slowly, though, and don't go mad with the cream as the berries will warm up as they churn, gently softening the mix to the most stunningly fresh homemade ice cream you'll ever dip your spoon into. 

Abel and Cole have even made a video showing just how simple this is.

July is National Ice Cream month so give our Peppermint Chocolate Chip recipe a try as well!

Recipe: Chocolate dipped strawberries

Fancy a fruity summer treat? Try our recipe for chocolate dipped strawberries - perfect for parties and picnics. Wimbledon fortnight is nearly upon us. The polite cheer of the crowd, the dull thud of ball against racket, and the wall-to-wall Pimms and strawberries make this British institution a true staple of summer. Ditch the cream and try something a little different this year, with a recipe for indulgent chocolate-dipped strawberries from Betty Twyford.

Chocolate dipped strawberries

You will need: 450g strawberries 100g dark chocolate 100g milk chocolate 100g white chocolate

To make: Melt the chocolate by breaking it up into squares and placing each type of chocolate into separate bowls. Place the bowls into a neat little row at the back of the Aga (or place each bowl over a pan of boiling water) and leave there until melted. Rinse the strawberries and pat dry. Lay some bake-o-glide (silicone paper) onto a flat chopping board or tray. Leaving the stalks and leaves intact, dip the tips of the strawberries into chocolate and lay onto the bake-o-glide. Transfer to the fridge to cool. When set and cool, and you are ready to serve, put your strawberries into a serving dish and decorate with a sprig of mint. Want to get fancy? Double dip the strawberries to create whatever combinations you like. We particularly like a dark chocolate base and white tip.

Recipes: Five ways with strawberries

Strawberry season is upon us, and we're looking forward to getting out into the fields to pick-our-own. Meanwhile, these five strawberry recipes are summer on a plate.

Not just for pudding, these scarlet nuggets of sunshine can brighten up any plate from brunch to party nibbles.

Strawberry and brown sugar toasted brioche sandwiches (makes 4)

Pre-heat oven to 180C/350F. Cover a roasting tray with foil and place 8 slices of brioche on the tray. Toast till golden brown on each side. Set aside to cool. Hull and quarter 400g strawberries into a bowl, add a heaped tsp of vanilla bean paste and 100g soft brown cane sugar and mix well. Sandwich the strawberry mixture between two slices of thinly buttered brioche.

Strawberry, parma ham and parmesan crostini (makes 8)

Hull and quarter 200g strawberries and set aside. Take 8 slices of sourdough and 8 slices of parma ham. Toast the bread and arrange the ham on top. Next come the strawberries, then sprinkle with parmesan shavings. Drizzle with a little extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar, before topping with basil leaves and freshly cracked black pepper. Serve straight away.

Strawberry, pomegranate, fennel and radish salad (serves 4)

Hull and dice 250g strawberries. Slice two heads of fennel very thinly with a mandoline or sharp knife. Finely slice 100g spring onions and 250g radishes. Mix cut fruit and veg and 100g pomegranate seeds with a handful of roughly chopped mint. Combine 50ml olive oil, a squeeze of lemon juice and 1tbsp pomegranate molasses and season. Dress the salad and top with crumbled feta.

Macerated berries with honey and mint (serves 4)

Hull and halve 500g strawberries lengthways into a large bowl and set aside. In a jug, pour 250ml cloudy apple juice and 75ml runny honey and mix well. Tear a handful of fresh mint leaves into pieces and add them to the marinade. Pour over the strawberries and coat the fruit gently, so you don't bruise it. Cover the bowl with cling film and leave somewhere cool (not the fridge) for an hour. Serve in individual bowls.

Strawberry, goat's cheese and black pepper tart (serves 4)

Preheat the oven to 200C/400F. Roll out a pack of shortcrust pastry then cut circles big enough to fit 4 mini tartlet tins. Blind bake for 20-30 minutes. Hull and halve 400g strawberries and mix in a bowl with 1tsp cracked black pepper. Chop a spring of rosemary needles and mix with the fruit. Spoon the filling into the pastry and top with a slice of soft goat's cheese. Pop back in the oven for 10 minutes.

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