Cakes to Keep | Nussecken (nut corners)

In our June issue we asked you to share your recipes for cakes that are ‘keepers’ - the tried and tested ones, passed on by friends or family. Here’s one to whet your appetite.

‘Nussecken are common in Germany, but this recipe is a hand me-down that reached my family when I was a child. The grandmother of my best friend in nursery was a proper farmer granny: solid body, solid character, solid baking! I was always in awe (and a little bit scared) of her. Baking was her love language – there were always baked goods in her little kitchen, which smelled of coffee, butter biscuits and somehow, burnt onions. She gave my mum this nussecken recipe – or rather, a brief ingredients list, handwritten on a ripped-out notebook page – and when I moved to the UK in 2016, this bit of my German home came with me in the recipe folder that my mum made for me. It’s well loved and ever-growing, and now the nussecken are my boyfriend’s favourite treat, too.’ Mareike Wehner, Prenton, Merseyside

Makes around 30

300g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
150g sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 medium eggs
130g margarine
3-4 tbsp jam (such as apricot or plum)

For the topping:
220g margarine
200g sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
300-400g mixed chopped nuts (use your favourites, but definitely use almonds and hazelnuts!)

To finish:
200g dark chocolate 

1 Preheat the oven to 180C/Fan 160C/ Gas 4. Make the base by mixing all of the ingredients, except for the jam, together and spread out on a large, buttered baking tray. Spread the jam on top using the back of a spoon.

2 For the topping, melt the margarine and sugar slowly in a pan. Add the vanilla extract and 3 tablespoons of water. Once the sugar has dissolved, remove from the heat and add the nuts, then stir to mix gently.

3 Pour the nut mix onto the base and bake everything for 25 mins, or until set and starting to brown.

4 Leave to cool, then cut into triangles that fit nicely into your palm (the equivalent of 3-4 large bites). Meanwhile, melt the chocolate in a bain-marie and dip two corners of the triangles into the molten chocolate and leave to harden on baking paper.

Cook’s note: If bits break off, not to worry – but eat the evidence as quickly as possible! Also, if there’s any chocolate left, use a spoon and release your inner Jackson Pollock over the drying nussecken.

We shared four more recipes for your hand-me-down cakes in our June issue. It’s on sale now or available to order to your door from our online store.

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Recipe | Nectarine & Apricot Pudding Pizza

Blending the sweetness of the fruits and dark chocolate with the savoury base to prove that pizzas don’t just have to be for mains.

Makes 1 pizza

1 ball of homemade pizza dough (see the May issue for the recipe or make to your own recipe or buy)
2 tbsp apricot jam
1 large fresh nectarine, stoned and cut into 1cm thick segments
1 tbsp dark chocolate chips
2 tsp icing sugar

1 One a lightly-floured surface to stop it from sticking, roll out your dough to create a thin base.

2 Spread the jam on top, leaving a 2cm gap around the edge. Place the nectarine on top of the jam, then sprinkle over the chocolate chips.

3 Use a floured pizza peel to carefully place the pizza in a pizza oven (the temp should be around 400C). Check it every minute and turn halfway through cooking. It should take around 2-3 mins and is ready once the chocolate starts to melt and the edges turn golden.

4 To serve, place on a board and dust with icing sugar.

Cook’s note: To cook in the oven, place on a lined baking tray in a preheated oven at 200C/Fan 180C/ Gas 6 for 8-10 mins, or until the edges begin to brown.

This pudding pizza is just one of the pizza ideas from our May issue feature, Pizza Piazza. Pick up a copy of the May issue for the other recipes, which include homemade pizza dough, homemade tomato sauce, chilli spiced aubergines, Spring Shoots Pizza, Chilli & Paprika Spicy Pizza Bread. The recipes are by Kay Prestney and the photography by Rebecca Lewis.

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Make | Pickled Radish on Rye

Colourful spring veg bring sunshine to your May table. They’re delcious with a slathering of butter on thin slices of rye bread

Serves 6

250g radishes
5 tbsp white wine vinegar
3 tbsp caster sugar
1 tbsp fennel or mustard seeds
Loaf of rye bread
Unsalted butter

1 Trim the ends of the radishes before slicing them, no thicker than a pound coin, and put them in a sterilised jam jar with a vinegar-proof lid.

2 Put the vinegar, sugar and seeds in a pan and bring to a simmer. Once the sugar has dissolved, remove from the heat and pour over the radishes. Stir and leave to cool before storing it in the fridge. Use within a week.

3 Serve on rye or sourdough, thinly sliced and thickly spread with butter.

Cook’s note: You can add flavour to the butter by softening it and stirring in chopped herbs, crushed garlic or anchovies. For easy canapés, cut the bread into bite-size pieces and top with a couple of slices of radish.

Find this and more ideas for a Whitsun gathering from page 6 in our May ‘Folk’ issue, in shops now. The recipes are by Lucy Brazier and the photographs by Jonathan Cherry.

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Recipe | Spiced Honey Scotch Bonnet Ham with Pineapple Rice

Inspired by the spices used in Caribbean dishes, this rich and sticky celebration ham makes a tasty spring Sunday roast.

Serves 7-8

Ingredients

2.5kg unsmoked or smoked boned and rolled gammon joint
1 onion, halved
1 carrot, roughly chopped
1 celery stalk, roughly chopped
1 fresh bay leaf
1 scotch bonnet chilli, halved
½ bunch of thyme, tied together

For the glaze:
½ tsp allspice
1 tsp dried thyme
½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground cloves
100g clear runny honey
½ scotch bonnet chilli
50g pineapple, peeled and cubed
1 tbsp vegetable oil

For the rice:
80g unsalted butter
1 onion, finely chopped
1 tsp garlic granules
1½ tsp allspice
2 tsp dried thyme
400g long-grain rice
300g pineapple, cubed
2×400g tins kidney beans, drained
4 spring onions, finely sliced

1 Place the ham in a deep pan and add the veg, chilli and herbs. Cover with cold water and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat, cover, and cook gently for 1hr 40 mins. Turn off the heat and leave for 30 mins.

2 Line a roasting tin with foil, add the ham and leave to cool. Retain the cooking water – you’ll need 650ml, so top it up if needed.

3 Preheat the oven to 220C/Fan 200C/Gas 7. Using a knife, remove the ham skin, then score the fat.

4 For the glaze, blitz all the ingredients in a food processor until smooth. Brush half over the ham and roast for 15 mins. Brush again with the remaining glaze and roast for a further 10–15 mins. Leave to rest, but keep the oven on.

5 For the rice, heat the butter in an ovenproof pan. Add the onion and a pinch of salt and fry gently for 15 mins. Add the garlic granules, allspice and dried thyme, and cook for 1 min more. Stir through the rice, pineapple and kidney beans, then pour over the reserved ham stock and bring to a simmer.

6 Once simmering, cover and transfer to the oven for 20 mins, then remove from the oven and leave the lid on for 10 mins. Fluff the rice, stir through the spring onions and season with salt.

7 Slice the ham and serve it alongside the pineapple rice.

Cook’s note: Bring the ham to room temp 2 hours before cooking to help it cook more evenly. It’ll keep for up to 3 days in the fridge.

Taken from The Modern Spice Rack by Esther Clark and Rachel Walker (Hardie Grant). Photography: Matt Russell

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Recipe | Maypole Cake

Whether you end up dancing or not, the Maypole encapsulates the month’s playful spirit – we think it’s the, er… icing on the cake

Makes 1 cake
350g rhubarb, cut into 1cm chunks
50g caster sugar
Zest and juice of 1 orange
300ml double cream, whipped
Icing sugar, for dusting

For the cake:
200g butter, softened
200g caster sugar
4 eggs
Zest and juice of 1 orange
200g self-raising flour
1 tsp baking powder

1 Preheat the oven to 180C/Fan 160C/ Gas 4. Put the rhubarb in a roasting tin, sprinkle over the sugar, orange zest and juice. Cover and cook for 15 mins, or until the rhubarb is soft, but not falling apart. Leave to cool.

2 To make the cake, beat the butter and sugar together until creamy. Add one egg at a time with a spoonful of flour to stop the mixture curdling.

3 Add the orange zest and juice. Fold in the flour and baking powder and pour into two greased and lined 20cm sandwich tins. Bake for around 20 mins, checking they’re cooked by piercing the middle with a skewer until it comes out clean. Leave in the tins for 15 mins before transferring to a rack to cool completely.

4 To serve, fold the rhubarb into the whipped cream and generously cover the base of one sponge with the mix. Sandwich the second cake on top and dust lightly with some icing sugar. To make a tabletop Maypole Use a knitting needle and 6mm-wide ribbons. Tie the ribbons to the top of the needle and pierce the cake, leaving the ribbons to stream around or tuck them underneath the base of the sponge.

This Maypole Cake recipe is just one of the recipes from our May ‘gathering’ feature which we’ve called ‘Come What May’. It’s a menu for a Whitsun Get-Together, hopefully in the sunshine (British weather allowing) and also incudes recipes for Quick Elderflower & Rosemary Cordial, Pickled Radish on Rye, Whitsun Warldorf Salad, Asparagus & Pea Quiche and Herby Broadbean Couscous. The recipes are by Lucy Brazier and the photographs by Jonathan Cherry.

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Recipe | Spicy Roast Chickpeas

Chickpeas are no modern invention. In fact, Apicius, ancient Rome’s famous culinary writer, wrote a recipe for roasted chickpeas baked in olive oil and served with white wine, anchovy paste and pepper. Do feel free to try his version as well, but here’s our crunchy version. They’re great snacks to have with drinks, or add a few to your lunchbox.

Makes 1 jar

2 x 400g cans of chickpeas
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp za’atar
1 tsp sumac

1 Drain the chickpeas and make sure they’re absolutely dry (a clean tea towel works well for this and it’s essential if you want the chickpeas to be really crispy). If you have time, leave them in a sieve for 30 mins to release any excess moisture.

2 Preheat the oven to 200C/ Fan 180C/Gas 6. Toss the dried chickpeas in the olive oil and sea salt and tip onto a baking tray in a single layer. Place in the centre of the oven for 20-30 mins, shaking every 10 mins, until they’re brown and crispy.

3 Once roasted, sprinkle with the spices to fully coat, turn the oven off, then put the tray of chickpeas back in the oven to cool. This dehydrates them and results in a super crispy chickpea. When they’re completely cold, store in a sealed jar and eat within 3 days.

Cook’s Note: You can play around with other spice combinations. For a sweet and spicy version, combine ¼ tsp each of garlic salt, chilli powder, cumin, salt and black pepper, plus 1 tbsp brown sugar.

The recipe and photography above are from our feature Magic Beans by Kirstie Young, which is all about the not-so-humble chickpea. You can find the rest of the recipes in our April issue. They include Farinata with Fennel, Chicory & Walnuts, Falafel Burgers with Quick Pickles, Chana Masala with Nigella & Herby Rice, and Aquafaba Meringues with Hibiscus Pears.

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Wild Recipe | Nettle Rarebit

Much foraged greenery comes under the bracket of ‘edible, in that it won’t kill you, but not really worth the bother.’ So many are just a bit bland, but not nettles, which have irony, peppery brightness to their flavour making them unique and great fun to cook with. Not fun to pick though. Wear gloves, avoid patches at dog-wee height, and wash them thoroughly, using only the young leaves at the growing tips.

Makes 4 slices

400ml whole milk
2 bay leaves
6 black peppercorns
30g butter
30g plain flour
200g cheddar cheese, grated, plus extra for topping
100g nettle leaves, washed
4 thick slices of crusty farmhouse bread or sourdough

1 Warm the milk in a large pan with the bay and peppercorns. Pour into a jug and set aside to infuse.

2 Melt the butter in the empty milk pan over a low heat, then add the flour and cook for 2 mins, stirring all the while. Pour in the infused milk (having removed the bay and peppercorns), a little at a time, whisking it into the flour mixture before adding the next glug. Keep whisking so it doesn’t go lumpy. When the sauce is the consistency of thick double cream, stop adding the milk and leave to bubble for 2 mins, stirring regularly so it thickens further. You can now remove the thick, smooth sauce from the heat. Fold in the cheddar and season generously with salt and pepper.

3 In another saucepan set over a low heat, wilt the nettle leaves in a tablespoon of boiling water for 2-3 mins. Tip them into a colander and squeeze out the excess water, then roughly chop and stir into the cheese sauce.

4 Set your grill to medium. Arrange the slices of bread on a baking tray and toast on one side. Turn the slices over and spread the cheesy nettle sauce on the untoasted side. Top with a little more cheddar, then return to the grill for 5-8 mins, or until bubbling. Serve immediately.

This recipe is taken from our April issue’s Veg Patch Pantry pages by Kathy Slack, with photography by Kirstie Young. The pages also contain recipes for Shichimi Togarashi Radish Spring Rolls, Purple Sprouting Broccoli with Anchovies, Almonds and Chilli and Wild Garlic Pesto Pasta.

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Tipple | Cornish Wrecker Cocktail

Gather some gorse while out on a walk to create a zesty cocktail that tastes of the coast

These royally good cocktails were served to the Queen on a visit to the Eden Project in 2021 – this is Cornwall in a glass. Makes 1 glass

For the syrup:
200g caster sugar
2 handfuls of gorse flowers
2 drops of natural coconut flavouring

For the cocktail:
50ml Wrecking Coast Clotted Cream gin (or your favourite gin)
12.5ml coconut rum
1½ tbsp lemon juice
1½ tbsp gorse flower syrup
Ice cubes
Soda water
1 lemon twist (or slice)
Edible flowers (we used borage), to garnish

1 First, make the gorse flower syrup. In a saucepan, heat the sugar, gorse flowers, coconut flavouring and 100ml of water over a very low heat for about 30 mins, or until the sugar’s dissolved, the flowers have wilted and the syrup has turned a gentle yellow colour.

2 Remove from the heat and leave to infuse and cool for at least 6 hrs, or ideally overnight. Strain then decant into a sterilised jar.

3 To make the cocktail, shake all the ingredients, except for the soda water and garnish, together in an ice-filled cocktail shaker until super cold.

4 Strain over ice and top up with soda water. Garnish with a lemon twist and a borage flower to serve.

Bartender’s note: When picking gorse flowers, always wear gloves and check thoroughly for bugs. Only pick open buds.

Taken from Time & Tide by Emily Scott (Hardie Grant). Photography: Kristin Perers

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Recipe | No Bake Cheesecake

Photography by Emma Croman

Pretty as you please cheesecake, with fresh fruit and flowers doing decorative duty

You will need

170g digestive biscuits
100g unsalted butter, melted
300ml double cream
100g icing sugar
250g cream cheese
1½ lemons, zested and juiced
A handful of fresh berries (we used raspberries and blueberries), a sprig of thyme and edible flowers

To make

1 Line the base of an 18cm springform cake tin with baking paper. Blitz the biscuits in a food processor until they resemble breadcrumbs. Combine with the melted butter then press evenly into the base of the tin with the back of a spoon. Cover and put in the fridge while you prepare the filling.

2 Whip the double cream in a fresh bowl until it forms soft peaks. Sift in the icing sugar and add the cream cheese, lemon juice and zest. Fold the mixture until thoroughly combined.

3 Remove the cheesecake base from the fridge and spoon on the cream mixture, smoothing the top with the back of the spoon. Cover and return to the fridge for 2 hrs 30 mins, or until fully set. When ready, gently remove the cheesecake from the tin and decorate with fresh berries, thyme sprigs and edible flowers.

This is just one of the recipes from our Gathering feature in our April issue, which we’ve called ‘Dinner For Good’. The menu is for a charity supper club and also includes ideas for Smoked Salmon Rostis, Herb Focaccia, Courgette, Mint and Ricotta Polpette and more. Recipes are by Louise Gorrod and photography by Emma Croman.

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Recipe | Crab, Radish and Chilli Bruschetta

When the sun shows its face, let optimism win over the actual temperature and lure friends outside with something tasty… Or maybe just throw open the back door and tuck in indoors

This recipe for crab bruschetta will bring some spring zing to the lunch table and the promise of many more outdoor meals to come. Serve on crusty bread with big wedges of lime.

Serves 6

Ingredients

200g fresh crab meat
Zest and juice of ½ small unwaxed lemon
½ small red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
50g mayonnaise
1 handful of finely chopped fresh parsley
6 slices of fresh crusty bread (such as sourdough or baguette)
2 tbsp olive oil
1 small garlic clove, peeled and cut in half
6 large radishes, finely sliced
2 small limes, cut into large wedges

To make

1 In a large mixing bowl, mix together the crab meat, lemon juice, chopped chilli, mayonnaise and half the chopped parsley.

2 Brush the slices of bread with the olive oil and rub them with the raw garlic clove, then toast on both sides under the grill.

3 Top each slice with the crab mix, then sprinkle with the remaining parsley and lemon zest. Top with the finely-sliced radish pieces and add a twist of freshly ground black pepper to each slice. Serve immediately with the lime wedges.

This recipe is from the gathering feature in our March issue, which is a ‘Plant Party’. Get together with friends to swap houseplants, seedlings, cuttings and seeds and when you’ve finished swapping, sit down to a seasonal lunch of crab bruschetta, halloumi, basil and beetroot skewers, ricotta and spinach dumplings and spring mixed pea salad with mint and pistachios. Finish with a homemade lemon and blueberry tart. The recipes and styling are by Kay Prestney and the photography is by Rebecca Lewis.

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Recipe | Rhubarb & Marzipan Cake

Topped with forced rhubarb and almonds, inside the crumb are chewy nuggets of marzipan

You will need

(Makes one large cake)

250g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
70g butter
200g caster sugar
2 eggs
Grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp vanilla extract
100g marzipan, cut into
5mm chunks
100g forced rhubarb, in 5cm chunks
15g flaked almonds

To make

1 Preheat the oven to 160C/Fan 140C/ Gas 3. Grease and line a 20cm cake tin with baking paper.

2 In a bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt.

3 Meanwhile, beat together the butter, sugar, eggs, lemon zest and juice in another bowl.

4 Stir in the vanilla extract and the marzipan chunks.

5 Fold the flour mixture into the wet mixture briefly. You want this to be barely combined and still lumpy.

6 Transfer to the prepared cake tin and then arrange the rhubarb chunks and flaked almonds over the top.

7 Bake for 40-50 mins, or until golden and a skewer comes out clean.

8 Leave in the tin for 10 mins before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely before cutting.

This recipe is from our feature ‘Think Pink’ in our March issue, which also includes ideas for Pickled Rhubarb, Rhubarb & Ginger Negroni, and a Rhubarb, Beetrot and Goat’s Cheese Salad. The recipes are by Lottie Storey and the photography by Kym Grimshaw.

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Breakfast Rules | How To Do a Full English

Photography by Alamy

Where breakfast is concerned, we think if a job’s worth doing it’s worth doing properly. Before you switch on the gas under your frying pan, read our ‘Full English Breakfast Rules’, which, if not actually enshrined in law, are certainly on the side of right.

1. Lard not butter for cooking sausages, please. It has a higher smoke point than butter so it achieves a crispier sausage without burning. It’s also high in Vitamin D. Who knew? Practically a health food. Vegetarians and vegans are permitted to use vegetable oil. 

2. A word about food-pairing: mushrooms should be eaten with sausages; bacon should be eaten with grilled tomato. Don’t ask us why; it’s just the rules. 

3. Hash browns have no place in a Full English (ignore the photo above!). Save them for your American breakfasts of pancakes that are a bit too thick and mis-monikered jams. If you need a bit of beige crunch it can be achieved by the addition of fried bread, the English Hash Brown. Fried potatoes are permitted if they are already cooked and left over from last night’s dinner. 

4. Beans should be served in a separate ramekin. It’s not about being fancy, it’s just about not mixing your yolk and your bean juice (or frantically chasing your beans round the plate with your fork until 11am).

5. Brown sauce is the best sauce. Tomato is acceptable. Anything else really belongs with another meal. 

6. You should include one, and no more than one, fancy extra. Black pudding for meat eaters perhaps? Grilled halloumi for vegetarians? But don’t stray too far from the original or before you know it you’ll be chopping smoked salmon and chives into your eggs, and then where will we be? 

7. Speaking of eggs… Obviously fried is best, sunny side up, with a yolk that spills all over the plate as you cut into it. Other types of eggs are available, but fried is really where it’s at.

8. Stay trad with your drinks. Orange juice or a good strong cup of tea, please. Absolutely no fancy milky coffees - we are not here for smashed avocado on sourdough type breakfasts. 

9. Toast should be served in a toast rack alongside your Full English (yes, as well as fried bread) to enable you to move seamlessly into toast and marmalade for ‘breakfast pudding’ from the same plate. Use your first piece of toast to mop up egg yolk and bacon fat as a sort of palate and plate cleanser before moving on to the marmalade or jam toast course. Toast plates are for wimps anyway. And you’ll save on the washing up. 

10. Finish with a(nother) cup of tea and the crossword if possible.

In our February issue, we look at the history of breakfast from cereals and grapefruit to fry-ups and fancier fare. Turn to page 84 to read more.

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Recipe | Cheese Fondue

How do you fondue? Think oozy, creamy and elastic, rather than too stringy.

Serves 6–8

2-3 garlic cloves, peeled
200ml dry white wine
Juice of ½ a lemon
400g gruyère, grated
200g emmental, grated
Fondue pot with heater (optional)

1 Rub the inside of a large saucepan (or fondue pot, if using) with the garlic cloves.

2 Add the wine and lemon juice and bring to a simmer, then start adding handfuls of the grated cheese, whisking between additions.

3 When all the cheese is added, change to a wooden spoon and use a figure of eight stirring method. When ready to serve, transfer the melted mixture to your fondue pot and bring to the table. The heater should keep the cheese warm but it may occasionally need re-stirring to keep the cheese loose. If you don’t have a fondue pot, bring your saucepan to the table and place on a trivet.

4 If the cheese cools down too much, you can reheat it and bring it back to the table. Enjoy it immediately by using skewers to dip chunks of bread, veg or potatoes into the fondue, but never dip meat into a communal pot.

FON-DOS
• Only dip bread and potatoes into your fondue – veg at a push, but never meat.
• Use a fine grater for cheeses that are firm enough to grate, crumble or finely dice softer cheese and avoid ready-grated cheese as these melt less easily.
• If you’re not using an electric fondue, heat the mix in a pan on the stove and transfer it to a table-top warmer when ready.
• If the mixture begins to separate or split, add a little lemon juice.

This recipe is just one of the ideas from our feature ‘Cheese Please!’ from our February issue, which also includes recipes for side platters of roast potatoes, veg, bread and meats as well as a Beetroot Puree with Smoked Salmon, Raclette and a Black Forest Gateau.

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Recipe | Migliaccio (Shrove Tuesday Cake)

Traditionally baked in Campania, Italy, for Shrove Tuesday, its name is from the miglio (millet) once used to make it, now replaced by semolina.

Serves 12

Ingredients

400ml whole milk
¼ tsp salt
180g semolina
60g unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing
3 medium eggs
250g caster sugar
250g ricotta, drained
Zest of 1 unwaxed orange
Zest of 1 unwaxed lemon
2 tsp vanilla bean paste
½ tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp orange blossom water
100g dark chocolate chips
Icing sugar, for dusting

To Make

1 Preheat the oven to 180C/Fan 160C/ Gas 4. Grease a 23cm springform tin and line with baking paper.

2 Put the milk, 400ml of water and salt in a pan and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat and gradually add the semolina, whisking vigorously. Keep whisking for 2-3 mins to produce a thick paste, then take the pan off the heat and, while hot, add the butter. Stir well, then pour into a wide tray. Line the surface with plastic wrap and set aside to cool.

3 Put the eggs and sugar into the bowl of a stand mixer. Whisk at high speed until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture looks pale and frothy. With the mixer still going, add the ricotta, a spoonful at a time. Remove the plastic wrap from the semolina and break into chunks. While the mixer is still going, add the chunks to the egg mixture in batches, making sure each one is incorporated before adding more.

4 Add the orange and lemon zest, vanilla, cinnamon, and orange blossom water to the mixture and whisk.

5 Add the chocolate chips and fold in by hand with a spoon or spatula.

6 Spoon the batter into the tin and level the surface. Bake on the bottom shelf of the oven for 85-90 mins, or until the edges start browning and the surface turns golden with large cracks; it’ll have a slight wobble if shaken. Leave the cake to cool in the tin – it’ll deflate as soon as it leaves the oven, but this is normal. Once cool, transfer to a serving plate and dust with icing sugar before serving.

Cook’s note: Migliaccio can be stored in an airtight container or the fridge, but it should always be wrapped in plastic wrap to avoid drying out. It’s best served at room temperature.

Taken from Giuseppe’s Easy Bakes by Giuseppe Dell’Anno (Quadrille). Photography: Matt Russell

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Recipe | Coconut Marmalade Slices

Slice up to have a citrus-coconut piece to hand – works for any time, any place, anywhere.

Makes around 20 slices

You will need:
200g plain flour
25g icing sugar
50g polenta or cornflour
150g butter, cold and diced
1 egg

For the topping:
200g caster sugar
75g ground almonds
110g desiccated coconut
200g butter, softened
Zest of 1 Seville orange
125g polenta or cornflour
2 large eggs
2 heaped tbsp marmalade

1 Make the pastry by putting the flour, icing sugar and polenta (or cornflour) into a large bowl or food processor.

2 Add the diced butter and either rub it in with your fingertips or, if using a food processor, pulse until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the egg and mix again until the mixture comes together to form a dough.

3 Preheat the oven to 200C/Fan 180C/Gas 6 and grease and line the base and sides of a 23cm x 33cm tin with greaseproof paper.

4 Roll out the pastry and carefully line the tin (if it breaks, just patch it back together with your fingers). Prick all over and bake blind for about 15 mins. Leave to cool while you make the topping. Meanwhile, reduce the oven temperature to 170C/Fan 150C/Gas 3.

5 For the topping, beat together the sugar, almonds, coconut, butter, zest and polenta (or cornflour), then beat in the eggs.

6 Spread a thin layer of marmalade over the pastry base and spoon the topping carefully over the top. Bake for 30 mins, or until golden brown and set. If the bake starts to brown too much during cooking, cover loosely with foil halfway through. Once cool, slice into wedges.

This recipe is taken from our feature ‘That’s My Jam’, which includes several recipes made using marmalade such as Simple Orange Cake With Marmalade and Blood Oranges, Roast Chicken Thighs with Marmalade & Sweet Potato and Marmalade Bread & Butter Pudding. The recipes are by Phillipa Vine and photography by Anna Rubingh.

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Sip one, purl one

A cockle-warming tankard of ale and gin, lifted with heady, woody spices and sweetened with sugar. It sounds like something out of a Charles Dickens story – and, indeed, it is.*

This mulled drink was popular in the nineteenth century, and it’s making a resurgence thanks in part to cocktail expert Tristan Stephenson. “Purl happens to be, in my eyes at least, one of the greatest warm winter pick-me-ups ever to grace a bar top,” he says. “Choice spices and herbs combine with malty beer, bitter wormword and the botanical aromatics of gin to form a delicious concoction similar to mulled wine.” Perfect for defrosting the extremities, and soothing the spirit, after a hard day’s sales shopping or a good winter walk.

Here is Tristan’s own recipe for a purl if you fancy making them to see in the new year. It’s from his book, The Curious Bartender’s Gin Palace (Hardie Grant).

For the Botanical Infusion:
150ml / 5 fl oz Plymouth Gin
3g crushed black pepper
3g bay leaves
3g sage
1g gentian root
1g wormwood
1g star anise
1g nutmeg
1g dried rosemary

For the cocktail (makes 700ml):
150ml of your botanical infusion
500ml or 2 cups brown ale
50g or 1/4 cup demerara sugar
50g or 1/4 cup caster sugar

Method

Macerate all the ingredients for the botanical infusion in a jam jar (or similar), leave for 2 weeks, then strain and reserve. You can speed this process up a little by pressurising the ingredients in a hand-held cream whipper, charged with a nitrous-oxide cartridge.
For the cocktail, build all the ingredients into a glass bottle or a large jar, allowing the sugar to dissolve. The cocktail can be enjoyed cold, straight from the fridge, or warmed up in its bottle. Adjust the sugar according to taste and feel free to play around with different styles of beer.

* In The Old Curiosity Shop he describes “a great pot, filled with some very fragrant compound, which sent forth a grateful steam, and was indeed choice purl, made after a particular recipe”.

A version of this blog was first published in November 2013.

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Recipe | Turmeric & Cumin Baked Cauliflower

Sunshine yellow and bejewelled with pomegranate, cauli gets its moment as star of the table.

Serves 4

1 whole cauliflower, leaves and stalk removed
½ tsp cumin
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp garlic granules
2-3 tbsp olive oil

For the garnish:
200ml natural yogurt
3-4 tbsp pomegranate seeds
Small bunch coriander

1 Bring a large pan of water to the boil and place the cauliflower upside down inside. Boil for 5 mins. Drain and steam dry for 10–15 mins, then pat dry. Meanwhile, line a baking sheet with greaseproof paper and preheat the oven to 220C/Fan 200C/Gas 7.

2 Mix the cumin, turmeric, garlic granules and oil together in a small bowl. Place the cauliflower on the baking sheet (right way up) and brush all over with the mixture. Season and bake for 25–30 mins, or until the edges start to turn golden.

3 Transfer to a serving plate and drizzle over the yogurt, pomegranate seeds and coriander before serving.

This dish is from our ‘Spice Routes’ Gathering menu, which also includes Slow-Cooked Lamb, Spiced Rice with Saffron & Apricots, Honey & Harissa Roasted Carrots, Sumac Yoghurt and Fig & Custard Tart. All the recipes are in our January issue, which is in shops now.

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Recipe | Root Veg, Marmite & Cheddar Pie

A veggie centrepiece to knock their socks off. This moreish main course uses seasonal root veg in a comforting cheese sauce with a Marmitey twist.

Serves 3-4

You will need

250g King Edwards potatoes
200g celeriac, peeled weight
200g carrots, peeled weight
250g parsnips, peeled weight
325g pack ready-rolled all-butter puff pastry
1 egg, beaten

For the sauce:
30g butter
2 tbsp plain flour
350ml whole milk
100g cheddar, grated
1-2 tsp Marmite (depending on if your guests are lovers or haters)

1 Peel the potatoes, celeriac, carrots and parsnips and cut into 1cm cubes. Put in a pan of cold, salted water and bring to the boil. Simmer for 5 mins, drain and steam-dry in a colander.

2 Meanwhile, make the sauce. Melt the butter in a large saucepan over a low heat. Add the flour and give everything a gentle stir for a couple of minutes so the flour has a chance to cook. Next, gradually add the milk, stirring as you do, to make a thick sauce. Let it bubble for a minute, then stir in the cheddar and Marmite, some more salt and a turn of pepper. Gently stir in the root veg. Tip the mixture into a heatproof bowl and leave it to cool – and it’s important that the filling is cooled, otherwise it will melt the pastry.

3 Preheat the oven to 210C/Fan 190C/Gas 6-7. Cut two circles out of the puff pastry sheet – one around 18cm in diameter and the other a couple of centimetres bigger. Place the smaller pastry circle on a lined baking sheet. Pile the cooled filling in the middle in a dome shape, leaving a little bare rim of pastry around the outside.

4 Place the larger pastry circle on top of the filling and use a little water to glue the top sheet to the pastry border on the bottom sheet. Press the seams together with a fork, score a spiral shape in the top of the pastry, but don’t cut right through, and poke a little steam hole in the top. Brush the pie with beaten egg and bake for 25-30 mins, or until golden brown and crisp

This root veg pie is just one of the recipe from our December Veg Patch Pantry, in which Kathy Slack serves up ideas for growing, harvesting and eating with the seasons. This month’s pages also have recipes for Cumin Roast Root Veg Salad, Celeriac Gnocchi with Hazelnuts & Parmesan, Root Veg Gratin and a Root Veg Remoulade. Photography is by Kirstie Young.

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Recipe | Chai Spiced Shortbread

This is a classic shortbread recipe with a little sprinkle of some of those spices you find in masala chai.

Ingredients

Serves 4

250g soft butter
70g golden caster sugar
250g plain flour
60g cornflour
Pinch of fine salt
¾ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground green cardamom
¼ tsp ground black cardamom
½ tsp ground ginger
½ tsp ground cloves

How to make

1 Preheat the oven to 190C/Fan 170C/ Gas 5. Meanwhile, whisk together the butter and sugar until well combined and fluffy.

2 Sift in the flour, cornflour, salt and spices and mix gently – you don’t want to go crazy here as overworking the dough isn’t good.

3 Once combined, press the shortbread dough into a baking tray lined with baking paper. You can also use a sandwich cake tin if you’d prefer. Use a fork to make little holes and gently mark out the wedges or finger shapes that you’ll cut later.

4 Bake for about 1 hr. Remove from the oven and cut through your markings while still a little warm. Allow to cool and enjoy with a cup of masala chai.

This recipe is just one from our feature East, West, Home’s Best, which is taken from Modern South Asian Kitchen by Sabrina Gidda (Hardie Grant) with photography by Maria Bell. The other recipes include Aloo Gobi Hash with Fried Egg & Green Chutney, Tunworth Cheese Naan, Butter Chicken Pie and Ginger & Jaggery Pudding.

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Tipple | Hot Cranberry Toddy

Boozy or not, this hot cocktail looks almost too pretty to drink and is a warming, wintry way to welcome guests or just to enjoy a quiet, dark November night at home. It’s a good way to warm up after you’ve been watching the fireworks, too.

Ingredients

Serves 4

2 satsumas, peeled and segmented
5cm of fresh ginger root
8 x star anise
1 tsp black peppercorns
½ tsp cloves
½ tsp juniper berries
4 x 10cm cinnamon sticks
1ltr unsweetened cranberry juice
2 tbsp honey
2 shots of whisky (optional)
for the topping:
2 tbsp unrefined golden sugar
½ tsp ground cinnamon

To make

1 Place all the ingredients (except for the topping ingredients) into a large pan over a medium heat. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer gently, while stirring, for 10 mins.

2 Meanwhile, mix the topping ingredients in a dish. Slightly dampen the top of each glass with a little water, then dip into the sugar mix.

3 Strain the hot spiced cranberry juice through a sieve into each glass, then add two star anise, a cinnamon stick and a few satsuma segments to each glass to garnish.

4 Add half a shot of whisky to each, if desired, and serve while still warm.

This Hot Cranberry Toddy is just one of the recipes from our November Gathering Pages, which we’ve called ‘Craft-A-Peel’. It’s a menu of snacks and finger foods to fuel you and a few friends while you make decorations for winter together. It also includes recipes for Pomegranate and Goat’s Cheese Bites, French Chestnut Soup, Spiced Flatbreads, Stollen Traybake and a Turmeric Hot Tipple. The recipes and styling are by Kay Prestney and the photography is by Rebecca Lewis.

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