All posts filed under: Dessert

The Perfect French Toast

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French toast, or pain perdu, or sweet eggy bread. Whatever you call it, it’s the ultimate brunch, and really easy to rustle up when you know how to do it right; chunky bread that’s dunked in cinnamon custard, then pan fried in butter and covered in syrup and sugar! Translated as ‘lost bread’ in French, the original recipe for pain perdu was created as a way to reclaim stale, unused off cuts of bread. It’s the perfect way to use up the crust of an old loaf as the custard softens any hard bits and gives them a wonderful buttery crunch when fried in butter. I love maple syrup for it’s smokey sweetness but you could use honey or blueberries and yoghurt as a sweet topping, or crispy bacon for American-style. Serves 2 to 4 people (depends how hungry you are) Ingredients 2 eggs 100g soft light brown sugar 2 tsp cinnamon powder 200ml full fat milk 4 thick slices of brioche, chollah (Jewish egg-enriched bread) or any leftover bread 40g butter 2 tbsp icing …

Mulled Wine Poached Pear and Berry Cheesecake

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This is a cracker of a cheesecake that is absolutely perfect for winterNot the baked type – oh no that’s far too much faf! I like the ones that you just throw together using a packet of biscuits, butter, cream cheese and fruit, then leave in the fridge for as long as you can until set. I’ve put a twist on the classic summer berry cheesecake by adding winter berries and pears, poached in red wine, orange zest, cinnamon and cloves – the classic aromas and flavours of mulled wine. Serves 6-8 people For the base: 100g butter 250g digestive biscuits 100g soft light brown sugar For the cream cheese topping: 180g/ 1 tub of cream cheese 300ml double cream a pinch of sea salt For the mulled wine poached fruit: 1 pear 75g frozen berries (forest fruits/ blueberries/ blackberries etc.) 75g caster sugar 125ml red wine 1 cinnamon stick 5 cloves the zest and juice from ½ an orange Method Peel the pear, cut it in half lengthways then cut each half into 8 long …

Salted Peanut & Sesame Dark Chocolate Truffles

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All those toasted seeds and nuts give a roasted aroma and the perfect crunchy texture for smooth, buttery chocolate ganache. Although it might sound a bit strange sea salt heightens the wonderful deep flavour of dark chocolate. You cannot beat a good chocolate truffle and they always get demolished by my dinner party guests, even when they’ve just devoured a side splitting 3 courser – I believe everyone has that extra stomach reserved solely for chocolate. The other great thing about truffles is that they are really easy to rustle up. You can make them in advance and keep them in the fridge until you are ready to serve them. Serve with post meal coffee, a cup of masala chai, or a sweet dessert wine or dry sherry. Yum! Makes around 50 truffles For the truffles: 300g 70% dark chocolate 50g salted butter 300g double cream For the  coating: 6 tbsp sesame seeds 6 tbsp salted peanuts 1 1/2  tsp sea salt flakes Break up the chocolate into pieces, cut the butter into cubes and put both into …

Mango & Lime Lassi Possets

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My inspiration for this dish came from the delicious mango smoothies (lassis) you find all over India, freshly made on the roadside by wallahs who hand pick the sweet mangoes from the trees and hand squeeze them to a pulp. Over in India there are lots of different ways to prepare lassi; sweet, salted fruit based or yoghurt based- but they all contain lots of sweet spices. My favourite combination is mango with earthy cardamom and cinnamon, sharp lime and savoury, salted yoghurt. I’ve taken these key elements and come up with a set dessert for a perfect post spice sweet. It’s rich but still light, and not too sweet. Such a crowd pleaser! Serves 4 Ingredients 100ml mango pulp from a can (works just as well as fresh mango) 2 limes 150g soft light brown sugar 300ml double cream 200g full fat greek yoghurt a pinch of salt 1/2 tsp ground ginger 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon 1/2 tsp ground cardamom a pinch of ground nutmeg a pinch of dried rose petals (optional) Add the zest and juice from both …

Halwa Spiced Carrot Cake with Condensed Milk Icing & Gold Leaf

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Styled and shot by Lauren Miller (www.laurenmiller.co.uk) (@millerisere) and Faye Wears (www.forksknivesblog.wordpress.com) (@forks_and_knives) Halwa is the most amazing Indian dessert – it’s a carrot-based, nut ridden version of our rice pudding made with loads of condensed milk, saffron, cardamom and golden sultanas. I thought how amazing it would be to have all of the flavours that make halwa taste so fab baked into a  light, spongy carrot cake. So I tried it. And it worked a dream! My fool proof carrot cake recipe has taken many forms in my kitchen (usually depending on what dried fruit and nuts I have in my cupboards) but this version is very special. It has a bold, aromatic taste that works really well with sweet carrots and orange zest. If you can’t get hold of cardamom powder, you can use ground cinnamon or allspice instead. Condensed milk is an essential ingredient in halwa, and here it gives a lovely shine and gooey texture to the icing, which trickles beautifully down the sides of the cake. It’s a perfect wintery treat Ingredients For the …

Mango & Lime Lassi Posset

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I survived on mango lassis when I was living in India. Like an Indian-style smoothie, lassis are made from yoghurt mixed with water and spices, and can be salty or sweet. Salty lassis take a bit of getting used to but are delicious on a cold day. Different parts of India have different preferences and flavourings. In North India, we mainly drank mango lassis. The mangoes over there are so fresh and juicy, you can squash them up with your hands into a pulp, make a small hole in one of the ends and suck out the juice. This, mixed with goats milk yoghurt, plenty of jaggery (unrefined cane sugar) and spices is the basic foundation of a lassi, and absolute heaven after a rich spicy meal. I’ve been working on a dessert to finish the evening of my Curry & Chips Club (my first Curry For Change supper club which will raise money for the charity Find Your Feet). I have come up with the Mango Lassi Posset: a  smooth and creamy lime posset with all the beautiful flavours of a lassi. It’s …