Recipe | Charred Peach Eton Mess

Peaches and cream, with added amaretti and amaretto – a summer stone-fruit treat, cooked over an open fire…

Serves 8

8 flat peaches, halved and stoned
600ml double cream
2 tbsp caster sugar
300g raspberries
100g blackcurrants
30g fresh mint, chopped
100g toasted flaked almonds 
300g soft amaretti biscuits
60ml amaretto (optional)

1 When the embers are ready, place a cast-iron skillet or pan over the fire. Place the peach halves, cutside down, on the warming skillet.

2 Pour the cream into a bowl, add the sugar and gently whip until it thickens. Add the raspberries, blackcurrants mint, some of the almonds and some of the amaretti biscuits, leaving some back for garnishing at the end. Mix through the amaretto, if using.

3 Keep gently turning the peaches until they’re soft and golden. Once done, take them off the heat and place one half, cut side up in a desert bowl. Allow to cool for a couple of minutes, then add a generous dollop of the cream mixture on top. Place a second peach half into the cream and top with a few mint leaves, some flaked almonds and one final crush of amaretti biscuits before serving.

This recipe is just one of the ideas from our Gathering feature in our August issue, which is a feast over fire for friends. The menu also includes Pisco and Vanilla Sours, Burnt Lemon Broad Bean Houmous, Charred Crudites, Charred Greens with Dill Mustard Sauce, Woodfired Side of Trout with Dill & Caper Creme Fraiche, Quick Pickled Cucumbers and Woodfired Focaccia. Wash it all down with a Peach, Blackberry & Mint Iced Tea. The recipes and styling are by Amy Moore and the photography is by Emma Croman.

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Bake | A Lammas loaf

Toasted basil and blackberry brioche with summer berries for Lammas

A berry- and herb-studded brioche is a great way to celebrate this moment of wheat and berries, but to say making brioche is a bit of a faff would be quite the understatement. It’s a fun project but this dessert will work beautifully with thick, toasted slices of a good-quality bought brioche loaf if you don’t have the time to make your own. The brioche recipe is based on a recipe from River Cottage Baking, with a few additions. Ideally, start making this the day before you need it, as the dough benefits from spending a night in the fridge.

Serves 4-6

For the basil and blackberry brioche

Makes 2 small loaves

400g strong white bread flour

5g powdered dried yeast

10g salt

90ml warm milk

2 tbsp caster sugar

100g butter, softened

4 eggs, beaten

a handful of blackberries per loaf

basil leaves

To glaze

1 egg

2 tbsp milk

For the fruits

210g blueberries

170g blackberries

4 figs, quartered

a few sprigs of thyme

1 For the brioche, put all of the ingredients except the basil, the berries and the glaze ingredients into a large bowl and bring it all together into a dough. Knead for ten minutes (or put the dough into the bowl of your food processor and use the dough hook on it for ten minutes). Place it in a bowl, cover, and chill overnight. The next morning, remove it from the fridge and shape it into your loaves – I put mine into a round cake tin or small loaf tins – then leave them somewhere warm to prove. This could take several hours as the dough will be starting from cold.

2 Preheat the oven to 200C/Fan 180/400F. Once the loaves have doubled in size, decorate them by pushing the blackberries into the surface and laying the basil leaves across it, then beat the egg and the milk together and paint it across the surface. Bake for 10 minutes, then lower the oven setting to 180C/Fan 160/350F and bake for a further 30 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack.

3 Place the fruits and thyme into a saucepan and simmer gently until the berries have burst, the juice is released and the figs are turned the colour of the blackberries. Slice the brioche and toast a piece per person. Serve each person a small bowlful and a piece of toasted brioche to scoop up the warm, herby fruit and to dip into the juices.

This recipe by Lia Leendertz with photography by Kirstie Young was first published in issue 50 of The Simple Things. You can read more about Lammas celebrations in our current August issue.

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Recipe | Barbecue Condiments

In our August issue, our ‘Gathering’ feature includes recipes for a feast over fire. From wood-fired side of trout and charred crudities to focaccia and charred peach Eton mess, there are plenty of ideas to keep your fire party going. But, as we all know, at any outdoor feast, it’s the homemade condiments that really make a barbecue and we have two corkers for you here: Mint Chimichurri and Lime Pickled Onions…

Mint Chimichurri  

1 shallot finely chopped  

1 tsp chilli flakes  

3 cloves garlic, grated  

125ml cup red wine vinegar  

16g fresh coriander  

½ fresh mint leaves  

16g flat leaf parsley  

1 tbsp dried oregano  

½ tbsp of caster sugar 

1 lemon  

250ml extra virgin olive oil  

Salt to taste 

1 Place the fresh herbs (coriander, mint and parsley) in a large wooden board and chop until really finely chopped, place in a bowl. 

2 Add the shallots and garlic to the bowl, along with the olive oil, vinegar, chilli flakes, oregano, sugar, and the lemon zested and juiced. Mix together season with salt to taste  

3 If it’s too thick, add a little water or more olive oil. You’re looking for a glossy consistency.  

Lime Pickled Onions 

1 red onion  

1 lime  

½ tsp caster sugar  

Pinch of sea salt  

1 Peel the onion and chop it in half. Finely slice in half moon rounds, as thinly as you can and place in a bowl.  

2 Squeeze the juice of the whole lime over the chopped onions, the acidity will start to turn the onions bright pink. Add the sugar and salt and mix together well. Usually I will scrunch it all together with my hands to really get the marinade into the onion flesh. Be careful if you have any cuts as the lime juice will cause them to sting. Leave for at least an hour to marinade, or overnight in the fridge is best.  

Cook’s note: These onions will last up to five days in the fridge in an airtight container.  

You can find the rest of the recipes for a feast over fire in our August issue. The recipes are by Amy Moore and the photography by Emma Croman.

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Recipe | Tomato Tatin with Thyme Honey

A tatin typically features a fair amount of sugar but this has a lighter approach – caramelised, slow-roast tomatoes, crisp, golden pastry and thyme-infused honey. A not-too-sweet treat.

SERVES 4–6

150g honey
12 sprigs fresh thyme ~
200g plain white flour
A pinch of sea salt
125g unsalted butter, chilled and cubed, plus 2 tbsp for the tomatoes
1 egg yolk
500g cherry tomatoes, halved
2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
A generous sprinkling of thyme leaves, plus extra to finish
Herbs and edible flowers (such as chive blossom, tarragon, soft lemon verbena leaves, basil, thyme, rosemary, or oregano)

1 Preheat the oven to 200C/ Fan 180C/Gas 6. Start infusing your honey by mixing in the thyme (you’ll have more honey than you need).

2 Make the pastry by sifting the flour into a large mixing bowl or food processor and adding the salt. Add the butter and, using your fingertips, rub it into the flour, or pulse the ingredients in the processor until they resemble breadcrumbs. Mix the egg yolk with 2 tbsp ice-cold water, then, using a blunt knife, stir just enough of this mixture into the dough to make it come together. Wrap in a clean tea towel and put in the fridge to firm up.

3 Season the tomatoes and garlic with salt and pepper. Set a 20cm ovenproof frying pan over a medium heat and add the 2 tbsp butter. Once melted, arrange the tomatoes in the pan, cut side down. Scatter the garlic over the top and cut any remaining tomatoes in half again (so they’ll be quartered now) and nestle them in a layer on top and in the gaps of the base tomato layer.

4 On a lightly-floured surface, roll out the pastry to a large round and trim to a circle 2cm larger all round than the pan. Drape the pastry over the tomatoes and tuck the edges down around the inside of the pan, so it’s snugly blanketing them. Bake in the oven for 30 mins, or until the pastry is puffed up and golden.

5 Leave to rest for 1 minute, then invert the tart tatin onto a baking tray and cook a further 10-15 mins to help crisp up the pastry and caramelise the tomatoes further.

6 Once cooked, give the tomatoes a generous (1–2 tbsp) gloss of the thyme-infused honey (or your favourite honey, of course). Finish with a decent pinch of sea salt, a hearty grinding of black pepper and extra thyme leaves or other edible herbs and flowers. Delicious served hot or at room temperature.

Cook’s note: Any leftovers can be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days and reheated to warm through. Any extra thyme honey will keep happily for months, if not longer – it’s a delicious way of lapping up the flavour as well as the medicinal properties of the thyme. Use in dressings, marinades and more.

This recipe is one of the ideas from our Home Economics feature in our July issue, which this month is all about honey and beeswax. It also includes recipes and ideas for a Honeyed Carrot Cake and a Honey Ripple Ice Cream as well as Beeswax Candles and Beeswax Lip & Body Balm. The feature is by Rachel de Thample and the photography by Ali Allen.

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Recipe | Ginger & Orange Chocolate Biscuit Fridge Cake

This cool but sweet and sticky fridge cake is easy to make, ideal for sharing and better still, you don’t even need to put the oven on.

Makes 12

400g dark-chocolate digestive biscuits

400g orange-flavoured dark chocolate

200g unsalted butter

50g chopped crystalised ginger

50g white chocolate

1 Grease and line a 25cm-square baking tin.

2 Using a pestle and an aluminium baking bowl, break up the biscuits until they’re in small pieces, but not too finely crushed. Or place the biscuits in a plastic bag and use a rolling pin on them.

3 Break up the dark chocolate into small pieces and place into a bain-marie. Melt the dark chocolate and butter, stirring until smooth.

4 In a large bowl, mix the crushed biscuits, the ginger and the melted butter and chocolate until combined.

5 Pour the mixture into the baking tin and use the back of a spoon to press the mixture into the tray, getting into all the corners and flattening the top. Allow to cool and then cover with foil or baking paper and place in the fridge overnight to harden.

6 Once hardened, grate the white chocolate over the top.

Cook’s note: This will store in the fridge for up to a fortnight and also freezes well.  

This recipe is just one of the ideas for a picnic in the park (with games!) from our July issue by Kay Prestney, with photography by Rebecca Lewis. The feature also includes recipes for Watermelon Slushies, Fennel & Poppy Seed Sausage Rolls and a Halloumi and Giant Couscous Salad. When you’ve finished your park picnic, let the games commence. We have lots of ideas, including DIY Coits, Football Skittles and ‘Foxes and Rabbits’. See you in the park!

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Recipe | Summer Weekend Roast

A weekend roast lunch for lighter, brighter days

This lamb with buttered greens and herbs is a light, summery dish using lots of the season’s best veg. Delicate, pink lamb nestled among a platter of buttery, greens along with an abundance of fragrant herbs is one of our favourite summer Sunday lunches. Just add friends.

Serves 2, generously

You will need

150g broccoli, cut into small florets
450g rack of lamb
65g butter
1 tbsp sunflower oil
250g (podded weight) of peas, mange tout, green beans
100ml white wine
Generous handful leafy green herbs (such as parsley, fennel, chervil, chives and mint)

To make

1 Preheat the oven to 220C/Fan 200C/Gas 7.

2 Steam the broccoli florets over a double boiler for 2–3 mins, or until al dente, then refresh in cold water to stop them over cooking. Set aside.

3 Season the lamb well. Place 15g butter and the sunflower oil in a frying pan over a high heat. Once sizzling, sear the lamb on all sides for about 5 mins, or until nicely brown.

4 Transfer to the oven for 10–12 mins. Remove and leave to rest for at least 10 mins while you finish the greens.

5 In the pan that you seared the lamb in, melt the rest of the butter over a medium heat then add the peas/ mange tout/beans, plus the broccoli and the wine. Bubble for 2–3 mins so that the alcohol evaporates and the greens cook through. Then add the herbs and check the seasoning.

6 To serve, pile the greens and all the buttery juices onto a warm platter. Slice the lamb into single cutlets and arrange on top.

Cook’s note: Just adjust the greens to whatever you have in stock or in the garden – runner beans, green beans, sugar snaps are all welcome, in any combination that you prefer.

This recipe is from our Veg Patch Pantry pages in our June issue, in which Kathy Slack shares how to enjoy the month’s vegetables from her own garden patch. This month’s recipes also include Raw Courgette Salad with Mozzarella and Parma Ham, Cucumber Cooler Cocktails and Strawberry Ice Cream with Lemon Verbena Shortbread.

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Recipe | Midsommartårta

A Midsommartårta (Midsummer Strawberry Cake) is always enjoyed at midsummer festivities in Sweden – this light version is moreishly bite-sized, so don't expect any left at the end of the party...

Makes 8-12 cakes

You will need

6 egg whites
A pinch of sea salt
150g golden caster sugar
2 tsp rose water (or 1 tbsp ground dried rose petals)
150g ground almonds
A little olive or coconut oil, to grease the pan
300ml double cream
1kg strawberries, hulled
4 tbsp strawberry, raspberry or rhubarb jam
To serve: Edible flowers and wild berries

To make

1 Preheat oven to 180C/Fan 160C/Gas 4. Whip the egg whites with a pinch of sea salt until glossy and meringuelike then gradually add the sugar, whipping until it holds a medium peak. Whisk in the rose water.

2 Shake in the ground almonds slowly, whisking to keep the air in the whites.

3 Brush the inside of a muffin tin or a mini bundt tin with a little oil. Divide the batter between the holes in the tin, filling each just to the top – you should have 8-12 cakes.

4 Slide into the centre of the oven and bake for 12 mins, or until lightly browned. Allow to cool for 5-10 mins before removing from the tin.

5 While the cakes cool, trim the green tops from the strawberries, halve or quarter any larger berries. Mix with the jam and set aside. Whip the cream until just thickened.

6 Once the cakes have cooled, run a knife around the edges to help release them from the tin. If the cakes are a little pale on top, you can flash them in the oven. Upturn to lightly toast them on the top or until lightly golden.

Serve with the strawberries and cream and garnish with edible flowers (and/or wild berries, if you can find some). Cook’s note: The cakes are best served on the day of making but they’ll keep in an airtight tin (once fully cooled) for 1–2 days. You can also freeze, defrost in the fridge and flash in a warm oven to take the chill off, before serving.

This recipe, by Rachel de Thample, is part of our ‘Midsummer Feast’ ‘gathering menu. It features Scandi dishes including Cold Cucumber Soup with Summer Flowers, Roast Beetroot Salad with Crispy Capers, Home Pickled Herring with Fennel, Pommes Anna with Dill Sour Cream and Ryeknäckebröd with Caraway. There’s also an idea for a Meadowsweet and Strawberry Schnapps to wash it all down. Midsummer Feast, it may be, but we think you can enjoy it any day this summer. If you’re making a day of it you may also like to try your hand at the Floral Crowns or some of the other Midsummer traditions on the pages. All in the June issue.

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Royal Recipes | Battenberg Cake

A right royal retro treat for street parties and home scoffing alike.

Battenberg cake was first baked in 1884 to celebrate Princess Victoria’s (Queen Victoria’s granddaughter and Prince Philip’s grandmother – making her King Charles’ great-grandmother) marriage to Prince Louis of Battenberg. Early cakes could have as many as 25 squares!

Serves 6

You will need

125g butter, softened
125g caster sugar
2 eggs
½ tsp almond extract
100g self-raising flour
50g ground almonds
2 tbsp milk
Red food colouring (this uses Dr Oetker’s gel food colouring, nearly the whole tube)
Pinch of salt
100g apricot jam
350g marzipan
Icing sugar, for dusting

To make

1 Heat oven to 180C/Fan 160C/Gas 4. Using a triple layer of foil, make a barrier down the centre of a 20cm square tin, then line each compartment with two pieces of baking paper.

2 To make the sponge, cream the butter then whisk in the sugar a couple of tablespoons at a time.

3 Whisk the eggs and add the almond extract. Gradually beat this into the butter mixture.

4 Sift the flour, salt and ground almonds into the bowl. Finally, add the milk and carefully fold everything together with a metal spoon. Measure half the mixture and place that into another bowl. Add the food colouring a drop at a time into one of the bowls until you get a really vibrant pink batter. Carefully spoon the uncoloured mixture into one half of the tin and level the top, then spoon the pink portion into the other half and do the same. Bake for 20 to 25 mins, or until a skewer comes out clean. Allow the cakes to cool for a couple of minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack.

5 Cut each sponge in half lengthways, so that you end up with two pink and two yellow strips.

6 Warm the apricot jam in a saucepan with a tablespoon of water, then press it through a sieve. Take a pink cake strip and brush one side with the jam. Place a yellow piece next to it, jam sides facing, and push the two gently together. Brush the top surface with jam and place a piece of yellow cake atop the pink piece and vice versa with the yellow. Brush all the outside edges with yet more jam glaze.

7 On a surface dusted with icing sugar, knead, then roll out your marzipan into a 30cm x 20cm rectangle, large enough to wrap the cake.

8 Roll the cakes tightly in the marzipan, gently smoothing the marzipan with your hands to neaten it. Turn the cake back over with the seam underneath, trim a slice off each end and serve.

Taken from The Hebridean Baker: My Scottish Island Kitchen by Coinneach Macleod (Black and White Publishing). Photography: Susie Lowe

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Having a Coronation gathering yourself? As well as serving up this Battenberg Cake, you could take inspiration from Royal Knees Ups of years gone by…

A Tarragon, Spinach and Broad Bean Quiche has been chosen as the official dish to celebrate for King Charles III’s coronation, but that’s the ‘official dish’ for those of us celebrating at home. The coronation banquet on the day is likely to be much more fancy.

Should you choose to push the boat out for your own celebrations, you could do worse than recreate the meal served for Queen Elizabeth II’s Coronation State Banquet on 3 June 1953. 

The feast began with Tortue Claire Sandringham (clear turtle soup). Turtle is most definitely off the menu these days, so you could make it a Mock Turtle Soup instead and use beef mince. The fish course was Delices des Soles Prince Charles - easy enough to recreate, as is the rack of lamb and vegetables that followed. After that was Asparagus with Sauce Mouselline (we’re not posh enough to know why a random vegetable course appears between the main and dessert, but we’re going to assume it is called ‘The Asparagus Course’ and try it at home. Why not?) The Coronation Banquet ended with Boites de Fraises Reine Elizabeth, which we’re hoping was fancier than a punnet of strawberries, alongside assorted ‘friandises’, which we have discovered to be ‘tiny little cakes and things’. 

If you wanted to go properly historical, how about a pheasant platter with pigeon and partridge, which was served at Richard III’s Coronation Banquet in 1483? He rounded it off with baked quinces and oranges for pud.

Feeling ambitious? Vegetarians should definitely look away now: Henry VIII’s coronation banquet of 1509 is said to have included swans and peacocks served with their feathers fanned decoratively, as if they were still alive. (Bet they tasted like chicken…)

Meanwhile, an entirely edible model temple made from sweet meats and marzipans as in George IV’s coronation meal, would definitely get you a Hollywood Handshake from your guests, too. 

Don’t forget the entertainment. Tradition dictates that the King’s champion rides into the banqueting hall on horseback, battle ready and challenge any guests who may want to deny the King his throne to a duel. We’re not saying you need to hire an actual knight for your coronation gathering, but it would be more fun than a round of Monopoly after dinner, wouldn’t it?

You’ll find the Battenberg Cake and more ideas for a royally good gathering in our May issue.
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Idea | Radish Slammers

Swoosh, salt and scoff – the most fun to have with a radish

Serves 4 as nibbles

1 bunch of radishes
100g salted butter, softened
3 tbsp flaky sea salt

1 Wash the radishes and pick off any soggy leaves. Pat dry – they need to be very dry otherwise the butter won’t stick to them.

2 Arrange the radishes on a board with a mound of salt next to them and a slab of softened butter. Encourage people to pick a radish, swoosh it through the butter then dunk it in the salt before tucking in.

The radish slammers are just one of the ideas from this month’s Veg Patch Pantry feature by Kathy Slack, which also includes recipes for Chard & Herb Frittata, Whole Poached Chicken with Kale & Mushroom Broth with Barley and Caramelised Radish and Feta Salad.

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Recipe | Easter Pie (Torta Pasqualina)

A traditional Easter pie from Liguria, Italy, that can be traced back to the 1500s and still enjoyed today

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

500g whole milk ricotta
550g chard, spinach, or a mix
160g parmesan, finely grated, or a mix of parmesan and aged pecorino
5 medium eggs
Nutmeg (optional)
Olive oil or melted butter, to brush
1 pack filo pastry (around 270g)
Fine salt

To make

1 If your ricotta is watery, drain it for 30 mins in a sieve set over a bowl.

2 Discard any tough stems from the greens. Rinse and divide across 2 large pans and allow to wilt, stirring occasionally over a medium heat (or blanch in a pot of boiling water for a minute or two, just until wilted), then refresh under cold water. Transfer to a colander and squeeze out as much water as possible, then chop finely.

3 In a bowl, mix the ricotta with the greens, parmesan and 1 egg. Add a few gratings of nutmeg and season with salt to taste.

4 Preheat the oven to 210C/Fan 190C/Gas 6–7 and brush a deep, 23cm springform tin with olive oil or melted butter.

5 Layer sheets of filo over your tin, letting them settle so they cover the base and drape over the sides. Brush each sheet with oil or butter as you layer. Reserve 1 sheet for the top.

6 Spoon the ricotta mixture into the pastry, level out with the back of a spoon, then use the spoon to create 4 small hollows in the filling.

7 Crack the remaining 4 eggs into the holes and season the yolks. Dot a little butter onto each egg. Fold the overhanging pastry over the top and use the remaining sheet, to cover any gaps. Brush oil or butter over the top.

8 Cook for 40 mins until golden on top, then cover with baking paper. Cook for a further 20–30 mins.

Cook’s note: Can be stored in the fridge for 5 days and eaten cold, or gently reheated. Traditionally, families without ovens took their pie to a local bakery to be cooked, carving their initials into the crust so that the right pie came home for Easter Sunday

Taken from: Stagioni: Contemporary Italian Cooking to Celebrate the Seasons by Olivia Cavalli (Pavilion, HarperCollins Publishers). Photography: Sophie Davidson

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Recipe: Easter rabbit biscuits

Studded with juicy currants and scattered with caster sugar, these biscuits would make an alternative sweet treat when chocolate eggs are beginning to cloy. Who says you can’t eat the Easter bunny?

MAKES 14
120g unsalted butter, softened
80g golden caster sugar, plus more to sprinkle
1 egg, separated
200g plain flour, plus more to dust
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1⁄2 tsp mixed spice
Pinch of salt
80g currants
1 tbsp whole milk 

TOOLS
10cm rabbit cutter, or other shape

1 Line two baking trays with baking parchment. Using a food mixer or a large bowl with hand-held electric whisk or wooden spoon, cream the butter and sugar together and beat in the egg yolk. Sift in the flour, spices and salt. Stir in the currants and milk to make a pliable dough. Do not over-mix, or the biscuits will become tough. Wrap in cling film and chill for 30 mins.Preheat the oven to 190C/Fan 170/375F.
2 Lightly flour a work top and a rolling pin and roll the dough out to 5-6mm thick. Cut biscuits out quite close together. You need to press down hard to cut through the currants! Re-roll the dough and cut out the
biscuits until all the dough is used. (At this point, you can freeze the cut-out biscuits.) Place on the baking trays and bake in the preheated oven for about 10 mins.
3 Remove from the oven, brush each biscuit with a little ofthe egg white and sprinkle with caster sugar. Return to the oven for 5–7 mins, until golden. If you’ve used a smaller cutter, bear in mind that the baking time will be slightly less than for these 10cm-long rabbits,
so keep an eye on them.
4 Leave on the tray for a few mins to harden a bit, then carefully remove to cool on a wire rack. These will keep well in an airtight container for a few days.

Recipe taken from Seasonal Baking by Fiona Cairns (Weidenfeld & Nicholson, £17). This recipe was originally published in The Simple Things for Easter 2015.

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Tipple | Aperol Tonics

A more substantial take on the much-loved spritz. Still refreshing, but with added depth.

Makes 1

50ml Aperol
25ml grenadine
1 tbsp lemon juice
125ml tonic water
Ice
Orange slices, to serve

1 Combine the Aperol, grenadine and lemon juice together in a glass and add ice.

2 Top with the tonic water, garnish with orange slices and serve.

Cook’s note: Serve with moreish taralli (traditional Italian nibbles) or breadsticks.

This aperol tonic recipe is just one of the ideas from our April issue for a Sunday Roast with an Italian twist, including Roast Fillet of Beef with Salsa Verde, Crispy Roast Gnocchi and Peperonata, Simple Shaved Asparagus Salad, Roasted Parmesan Cabbage and Lentils and a Traditional Colomba Cake. The recipes are by Lottie Storey and the Photography by Kym Grimshaw.

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Cakecasions | Stately Home Car Park Cake

If wine is good enough for pairing, then so is cake. Just match your cake to your occasion. Any occasion.

There’s always time for cake. But some events call for a very particular sort of cake. Cake should always come out for a new job or a new baby, of course. But cake ought not to be saved just for special occasions. Cake is the stuff of life – the trick is to recognise when it’s needed and, more specifically, what sort of cake fits the bill. These moments are ‘Cakecasions’. Sunday afternoon spent sorting the shed? That needs a nice, stoic fruitcake – plenty of fruit and nuts for decluttering energy and a good excuse for punctuating the work with several cups of tea. Crafternoon with a friend? A simple Victoria sponge always hits the right note. But the cakecasion might simply be ‘Tuesday afternoon’. Who said the occasion had to pass a validity test? If it demands cake, that’s good enough for us. As the American author Dean Koontz once said: “Where there is cake, there is hope. And there is always cake.” To help you get started with your cakecasions practice, in our April issue, we’ve matched a few delicious cakes to some events and situations that practically demand them. Here’s one of them…

Picture this Sunday scenario: you’ve de-mucked the walking boots, piled the anoraks into the back of the car and are ready to set off to a National Trust property for a bit of light history and a couple of hours spent nodding appreciatively at the Capability Brown features of a large garden. What have you forgotten? A Thermos and some cake for after your walk, obviously. What this Cakecasion calls for is something cheering and practical. It should be easily transportable, and preferably not require the use of a fork so that you can hold your cake in one hand and your flask top of tea in the other.  Mini limey olive oil cakes are ideal. Sensible, but with a hit of Mediterranean sunshine. Moist, but with a light crust that allows them to be held without covering yourself in icing. They’re sturdy, easy to munch one-handed and individually portioned so you don’t even need the knife you’ve inevitably left at home. The other inevitability, of course, is that it’ll rain. So when the heavens open as you arrive, you can gaily abandon your plans to admire the landscaped gardens and, instead, enjoy cake in your car. Try not to look smug: rather, smile beatifically as damp dog owners and wet walkers stagger past you, back to their cars.

MINI LIMEY OLIVE OIL CAKES Individual cake bites with a crunchy edge and a moist centre. Makes 12

163g plain flour 
80g fine or medium polenta
11/2 tsp baking powder 
3/4 tsp salt 
2 tbsp lime zest 
250g granulated sugar 
250ml extra virgin olive oil 
3 large eggs 
2 tbsp fresh lime juice 

For the glaze:

120g icing sugar 
2½ tbsp fresh lime juice 
A couple of drops of vanilla extract 

1 Preheat the oven to 180C/Fan 160C/ Gas 4 and grease a 12-cup muffin tin.

2 Whisk together the flour, polenta, baking powder and salt. 

3 Put the sugar in a large bowl, then rub the lime zest into the sugar using your fingertips. Add the olive oil, eggs and lime juice, and whisk until combined. Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix with a spatula until just combined. 

4 Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups. Bake for 20-22 mins, or until golden. As soon as the cakes are cool enough to handle, pop them out of the tin and place them upside downon a cooling rack.

5 In a small bowl, whisk the icing sugar, lime juice and vanilla extract. Drizzle the glaze over the warm cakes. Wait a bit for the glaze to set before serving. Cook’s note: Store at room temp in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Recipes taken from Baking By Feel: Recipes to Sort Out Your Emotions (Whatever They Are Today!) by Becca Rea-Tucker (Harper Wave). Photography: Amy Scott

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Recipe | Apple Cake Bake

Cake to round off a woodland wander

Cuts into 16 squares

2 sweet apples (we used Gala), peeled, cored and cut into rings
Juice of half a lemon
250g butter
250g golden caster sugar
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp cinnamon
250g self-raising flour
1 tsp baking powder

For the topping:
2 tbsp demerara sugar
1 tbsp cinnamon
2 tbsp chopped roasted hazelnuts

1 Preheat the oven to 200C/ Fan 180C/Gas 6 and line a 20x20cm tin with baking paper.

2 Prepare the apples by squeezing over the lemon juice and setting aside.

3 Add all the ingredients for the topping to a small bowl, mix together and set aside.

4 Meanwhile, cream together the butter and sugar until fluffy and light, then add the eggs one at a time, fully incorporating before adding the next.

5 Add the vanilla extract, cinnamon, flour and baking powder, and mix until you have a smooth batter.

6 Pour half the batter into the tin and push it into the corners with a spatula. Add half the apple rings in a single layer, then cover with the remaining batter and add a final layer of apples. Sprinkle over the topping mixture and bake on the middle shelf for 45-50mins, or until the top is golden and a skewer comes out clean.

7 Allow to cool for 5 mins in the tin before removing and cutting into squares. Wrap up individual squares to serve up before leaving for the woods.

The apple cake bake is just one of the recipes in our ‘Gathering’ feature from our March issue. It’s a menu for a woodland picnic that we’ve called ‘Down with the Daffodils’ and includes recipes for Trail Mix, Sweet Potato, Ginger and Coconut Soup, Easy Loaf, Chorizo Chilli and Speedy Jacket Potatoes, with Mint Mochas and Peanut Butter Hot Chocolates to wash it down.

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Recipe | Posh Beans on Toast

While there’s nothing wrong with a reliable tin of beans, ring the changes with a homemade version. These smoky cannellini beans on garlic toast are bursting with flavour, but still quick enough for lunch.

Serves 2

1 tbsp olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 tsp hot smoked paprika
½ tsp mixed spice
½ tsp oregano
Pinch of chilli flakes
200ml passata
½ tsp brown sugar
400g tin cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
A handful flat-leaf parsley, chopped
4 slices sourdough bread
1 garlic clove, peeled and cut in half

1 Heat the olive oil in a saucepan over a medium heat, then add the onion and cook gently until it’s softened, but hasn’t taken on any colour.

2 Add the paprika, mixed spice, oregano and chilli flakes to the onion and stir for a further 1 min before adding the passata and brown sugar.

3 Simmer for around 5 mins, or until the passata begins to brown a little, then stir in the cannellini beans and cook for another 5 mins until the beans are heated through. Remove from the heat and stir in the parsley.

4 Meanwhile, toast the bread and rub each slice with the cut side of the garlic. Top with the beans and serve.

This recipe is one of the ideas from our feature, ‘Use Your Loaf’, in our March issue, which includes lots of ideas for lunches on toast, including Sourdough Rarebit, Smashed Chickpeas with Harissa Yoghurt, Brioche French Toast, and Black Cherry Compote and Ricotta. The recipes are by Lottie Storey and the photography by Kym Grimshaw.

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Two recipes for Pancake Day: fat and thin pancakes

An original fast food, pancakes take centre stage in February. How do you like yours?

Words: LAURA ROWE Illustrations: VICKI TURNER

Associated with many religious festivals including Shrove Tuesday (celebrated on 28 February this year) and Hanukkah, pancakes’ few ingredients symbolise big things: eggs for creation, flour the staff of life, salt wholesomeness and milk purity. It was also a celebratory way to use up the foods forbidden during Lent fasting.

Over time they’ve become more everyday. In the US they like them in the morning, fat, stacked high and covered in maple syrup. Maybe you prefer a mini version; bitesize buckwheat blinis from Eastern Europe, topped with sour cream, smoked salmon or caviar? Or perhaps you’re a fan of the thin pancake, rolled and stuffed with shredded roast duck, hoisin sauce, cucumber and spring onions for dinner in a bao bing like the Chinese. There’s a pancake for everyone and any time. But whichever way you like to eat them, the question remains: do you flip high or slide low?

FAT PANCAKES

Mix 135g plain flour with 1 egg, 130ml milk, 1 tsp baking powder, 2 tbsp caster sugar and 2 tbsp melted butter and whisk for a thicker batter. You want the consistency of double cream. 

Drop 1 heaped tbsp into a hot, buttered frying pan and fry for 1 min until you begin to see bubbles on the surface. Flip or turn over and fry until golden brown and risen

THIN PANCAKES

Mix 100g plain flour with 2 eggs, 300ml milk and 1 tbsp melted butter. Whisk thoroughly and rest for 30 mins. You want the consistency of pouring single cream. 

When ready to cook, add a knob of unsalted butter to a non-stick frying pan. As it starts to melt, add a ladle of the rested batter and swirl the mix around the pan until it covers the entire base. 

Cook for 1-2 mins before flipping, or gently turning over and repeat on the other side. Then bin it: the first pancake is always the worst. Repeat and you’ll have perfect pancakes for the rest of the batch. Serve with lemon juice and sugar or whatever takes your fancy.

Extract from Taste: The Infographic Book of Food by Laura Rowe, illustrations by Vicki Turner by Aurum Press, £20. Buy your copy here.

This blog was first published with issue 44 of The Simple Things.

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Recipe | Coconut Kisses (Beijinhos de Coco)

Photography and Styling by Catherine Frawley

Their name means ‘coconut kisses’ in Portuguese. They’re typical party sweets, but this version has plenty of coconut

Makes about 20

1 can condensed milk
150g desiccated coconut (plus 50g extra to coat the outside)
30g butter

1 Melt the butter, condensed milk and coconut in a large pan over a low heat.

2 Stirring continuously, the mixture will thicken after about 5 mins. It’s ready when you can drag your spoon along the bottom and it takes a 2–3 secs to reform. Pour onto a plate lined with greaseproof paper and chill for 1 hr.

3Using a teaspoon, form into small balls and roll in the extra coconut.

Their name means ‘coconut kisses’ in Portuguese – and just like the brigadeiros, they’re typical party sweets, but this version has plenty of coconut

Cook’s note: These truffles will keep in the fridge for 5 days.

The Coconut Kisses are just one of the recipes from our February ‘Gathering’ feature which is a fiesta style Brazilian feast. It also includes recipes for Brazilian Cheese Bread, Chicken Croquettes, Brazilian Barbecue Steak with Salt, Sauce a Vinagrete and, of course, Caipirinhas. The issue is in shops now.

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Recipe: January dauphinoise

From Mark Diacono’s plot in Devon this month, a recipe to make the most of his favourite blissfully bitter root veg - celeriac

“I’ll eat dauphinoise at any time of year, but this potato/celeriac split in the heart of winter’s cold is probably my favourite. Serve with griddled chicory or sprouting broccoli.”

January dauphinoise

Serves 6
25g unsalted butter, softened 
300g waxy potatoes
300g celeriac
300ml double cream
4 bay leaves
2 large garlic cloves, peeled and crushed

1 Preheat oven to 170C/Fan 150C/325F. Rub a gratin dish liberally with butter.

2 Peel the potatoes and celeriac and slice thinly, either with a sharp knife or a mandoline, submerging the celeriac slices in water with a little lemon juice to prevent them discolouring.

3 Whisk together the cream and garlic and season well. Toss the veg in the mixture and layer them in alternate layers in the gratin dish with the bay leaves, then pour over any remaining cream.

4 Bake for 75 mins, pressing down all over with a fish slice or spatula every 20 mins or so, to stop the spuds from drying out. It is ready when the top is bubbling and golden, and the vegetables soft and yielding when pierced with a knife.

Recipe and photograph by Mark Diacono, a green-fingered foodie who grows, cooks and eats the best of the familiar, forgotten and climate-change foods on his Devon smallholding. His book A Year at Otter Farm (Bloomsbury, £25) has inspiring recipes for every season. His latest book is Spice: A Cook’s Companion (Quadrille, £25). This blog was first published in January 2015.

Recipe | Mac 'n' Cheese Balls

Mac ‘n’ Cheese you can eat with your hands? We’re in! These moreish bites are ideal for a games night, when you need to eat one-handed if you don’t want to lose.

Makes about 30 balls

300g macaroni
40g butter
40g plain flour
1 tsp mustard powder
250ml milk
150ml single cream
100g cheddar, grated
50g parmesan, grated
Parsley leaves to garnish, optional

For the coating:
40g cheddar, grated
Small handful parsley
5 crackers, crushed

1 Preheat the oven to 220C/ Fan 200C/Gas 7. Meanwhile, line 2 baking sheets with baking paper (or cook in smaller batches).

2 Cook the macaroni according to pack instructions, minus 2 mins (as it will be finished off in the oven).

3 Mix together the ingredients for the coating on a plate and set aside.

4 In a medium pan, melt the butter. Once foaming, stir in the flour and keep stirring over the heat for about 2 mins. Remove from the heat, stir in the mustard powder and season.

5 In a large jug combine the milk and cream and start adding that gradually to the butter and flour mixture. Stir to fully combine it before adding the next splash. Once it’s all added, return the pan to the heat, bring to a boil and simmer for 2 min, stirring constantly. The mixture should begin to thicken. Remove from the heat and stir in the grated cheddar and parmesan.

6 Drain the pasta and add it to a bowl. Pour over the cheese sauce and mix.

7 With your lined baking tray and coating ingredients easy to hand, start forming small balls. Take a tablespoon of macaroni cheese, form it into a loose ball then roll in the coating and place on the baking tray.

8 Bake for 20 mins, turning halfway – the cheese should be starting to brown. Serve with a parsley garnish.

This recipe is just one on the menu on our Gathering pages this month, a feast for a board games evening that we’ve called ‘Let the Games Begin!’ It also features cauliflower bites, mini beetroot & sweet potato burgers, mini lamb & mint burgers, halloumi bites, winter slaw, churros with chocolate sauce and root beer floats.

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Recipe | Blood Orange Posset

A citrussy pud for a special dinner or the full-stop to a fresh, palate-cleansing lunch, this zesty posset is easy to make and full of flavour

Dating back to the 16th century, possets are one of the simplest desserts to make. Blood orange juice adds both flavour and a bright yellow hue to this pretty posset.

Serves 4

500ml double cream
150g caster sugar
2-3 blood oranges, zested and juiced

To serve:

4 x 150g glass jars (bowls or glasses will work if you don’t have jars)

1 In a pan, gently bring the cream and sugar to the boil over a low heat, stirring until the sugar’s dissolved.

2 Boil the mixture for 3 mins, or until it’s thickened, then remove from the heat and stir in the orange juice (you’ll need 75ml) and most of the zest (leaving some for a garnish).

3 Divide the mix between the glass jars and transfer to the fridge to set overnight. To serve, remove from the fridge and top with the remaining orange zest.

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