Rose and Raspberry Marshmallows

 Easter is the time of year where devout christians and those of us who are feeling a bit guilty decide to give up delicious treats, unfortunately i have never felt that guilty when it comes to food! I am very much an advocate of enjoying food, and it does not come much better than these tiny morsels of marshmallows. When i think of marshmallows, i think of the cheap british 'Flumps', they come in scarily bright colours for 12 pence each and where pure sugar.

 It appears that these once cheap children confectionaries are now very much a fashionable delicacy, sitting alongside macarons and petit fours in pattisseries. As an ode to my favourite raspberry marshmallows when i was tiny, i have pimped them up with rose water making them perfect for gifts, an after dinner treat, or if you are like me just something you shamelessly eat in an afternoon! They are relatively easy to make, but some stages are a little fiddly, but completely worth it.

For (approx. 30 marshmallows)

You will need:

20x 30 shallow baking tin,

300g Fresh raspberries,

1/2 tsp Rose water,

400g Caster sugar,

2 tbsp Golden syrup,

3x 12g Sachets of powdered gelatin, 

2 Large free range egg whites,

2 tsp Vanilla extract,

A few edible flowers to decorate

Icing sugar to powder the marshmallows

1.Line your tin with baking parchment and set aside ready for later. Place your fresh raspberries in a

pan on a low heat with your icing sugar and 3 tbsp of cold water. Bring this to a simmer and leave until the raspberries have broken down and the mixture is nice and pulpy. 

2. Once this has happened sieve your raspberry mixture into a heat proof bowl. This may take a little

while but be persistent and make sure you have sieved through as much of the pulp as possible, the more raspberry flavour the better! Now stir in the rose water and try to keep the mixture nice and warm before using it again in the next stage.

3. Heat the caster sugar and golden syrup in a small saucepan with 150ml of cold water to a soft ball

(120C on a sugar thermometer for about 10 minutes). Be careful not to over stir your mixture as this will cause the sugar to begin to crystalize, if you leave the mixture it will not come to any harm. I would  recommend wearing something with long sleeves whilst cooking this as the mixture occasionally has the tendancy to spit, and trust me, boiling hot sugar syrup and skin do not mix well.




4. Place the bowl of raspberry puree over a pan of simmering water and sprinkle over the gelatin and

heat until completely dissolved. This will be easy to see as the mixture will no longer be grainy, this is also an important stage as by correctly dissolving the gelatin the marshmallows will be lovely and springy as they should be.

5. When the sugar syrup has reached the correct temperature, remove from the heat and whisk in the raspberry gelatin mixture, once again take care as the mixture will bubble and spit. Now add your vanilla essence.





6. In a seperate bowl, whisk the egg whites with an electric whisker until they form soft peaks.

Although some of you lucky lot will own a free standing electric whisker (has been on my christmas list for many years!), for the rest of us paupersyou can just as easily use a hand held electric whisk. Slowly add the hot raspberry vanilla mixture whilst continuously whisking. Do this until the mixture is glossy and thick. By now the mixture should have tripled in size, this can take about  5 minutes.

7. Pour into the prepared tin and scatter with flower petals and leave to set. When using flowers it is incredibly important that you know where/how they have been grown and if they are edible. Pansies and

rose petals are good ones but only if you know they have not been grown using pesticides or any other harmful chemicals. Some flowers will not  be edible so make sure you do your research first. Your mixture will be a very light baby pink colour so throw in some other colours to brighten it up a bit!

Once set cut into squares with a wet or oiled knife. I dusted the bottom and sides of my marshmallows with icing sugar as they seem to stick to everything! The basic principle of marshmallow making is relatively easy, meaning you can adapt this recipe to make different flavours. A rhubarb and ginger marshmallow is on my list of things to do as it is one of my favourite things and is now in season. Would love to hear from anyone who gives these a go, so please get in touch if you have any questions or suggestions, happy baking!

5 Things to Try in New Zealand

© www.c2cphotography.co.uk

I am known to be geographically challenged, terrible at public transport and generally a bit hopeless when it comes to sorting myself out. After graduating i decided to test myself and book a month off work and travel around the South Island of New Zealand and The Cook Islands, entirely on my own. What initially seemed a challenge, turned into one of the most exciting experiences of my life so far. I made a promise to myself that i would try anything and everything, so as you can imagine i have eaten and drank all sorts of new and interesting things. If any of you are also lucky enough to travel to this part of the world there are a few things i would definitely recommend you try....

1. Native Green-Lipped Mussels
On my first night in New Zealand we travelled to a Abel Tasman National Park which is at the very top of the South Island. We stayed on a boat hostel floating on the edge of golden sand and beautiful scenery. I was treated to the best of New Zealand produce when we had steak on the BBQ and Green-Lipped Mussels in the pan. It is common to find these mussels all over main land New Zealand and they are worth looking out for. Compared to British mussels, they are very large in size and the shells have a beautiful green tip, as the name suggests. You would not want to drown these musses in a heavy sauce just steamed with a little white wine and finished with a squeeze of lemon. Throughout my trip i ate these several times, including cold with a nice glass of white wine. They taste so fresh and you can savour the taste of the New Zealand waters. 

2. The Wine

For anyone who has had a glass of Marlborough white wine you will know that New Zealand knows how to make good wine. Not much of a wine connoisseur myself, i decided to go for a wine tour in the Central Otago region near Queenstown. This region only became known for its wine in the 1990s starting with only 11 private wineries, now it boasts more than 75. The Pinot Grape is responsible for 75% of the regions plantings. The high mountains and large deposits of of metamorphic soil allows for the perfect conditions for the grapes to grow. 

I recommend taking a visit to one of the many vineyards as many offer wine tasting sessions and are set within beautiful scenery and give you a little education in the wine growing regions of New Zealand. My favourite white wine was the Riesling, really light and fruity in taste without being too sweet. Compared to very sweet German Rieslings, New Zealand Riesling is a lot dryer without being too acidic. My favourite of the vineyards we visited was Waitiri Creek, set in what looks like a little church set in the rolling hills of the region it is a really beautiful place, and the wine's not bad too! Have a look at their website: http://www.waitiricreek.co.nz/default.aspx

3. Fergburger 

Slightly less glamourous than mussels and good wine, but no less delicious! A 20 minute wait to get in before you've even ordered your burger, gives you a good indication as to its reputation within Queenstown. I went for the 'Mr. Big Stuff' and as you can see it was not on the small side! The best of New Zealand beef with streaky bacon, cheddar cheese and homemade BBQ sauce. It may sound simple but a lot of love goes into these

burgers with homemade buns and sauces. You can try anything from Wild Fiordland deer, New Zealand Lamb, Pork Belly or Cod. I was sorely tempted by the vegetarian option of a 'Bun Laden'; Falafel Patties with lemon yoghurt, chipotle chilli sauce, tomatoe, red onion, cucumber, avacado and aoili. Have a peek at the menu: http://www.fergburger.com/menu.html Some great ideas for homemade burgers!

4. Hokey Pokey (ice cream)

 New Zealand is great for those with a sweet tooth! The child in me was dazzled by the amount of sweets and chocolate but before i left the UK my kiwi friend Sam had made me promise to try Hokey Pokey ice cream. Whilst visiting the Pancake Rocks in Punakaiki, i had my opportunity. I may have been extra charming throughout my trip  but the Kiwi's are very generous with their scoops and one kiwi scoop definitely equates to 2 British scoops. Another conversion rate that worked in my favour! Hokey Pokey ice cream is basically creamy, vanilla ice cream with lumps of toffee honeycomb. Nothing better than having ice cream in the sunshine. I pretty much tried this flavour in every place we went to, some of the friends i met thought i may of had a bit of an ice cream addiction. 

5. Flat White                              

There is no question that the Kiwis are the big dogs when it comes to coffee. Before i left i was not a big coffee drinker, but when i went to
Auckland and Wellington i had to try one. There is a big cafe culture which i was very unaware of, but it is pretty hard to come across a bad cup of coffee. The big coffee drinkers amongst the friends i met were very constantly seeking out a decent flat white and they were not disappointed. If you are a solo traveller like me, then i can not recommend a better way to kill a bit of time than sitting in a good cafe with a book. If you are ever in Wellington head over to the Memphis Belle Coffee House. It has been voted best cafe in Wellington multiple times and also serves homemade lemon and ginger tea with fresh ginger, lemon and honey!

So there are a few recommendations if you ever find yourself in this beautiful country. There is so much to see and do i have barely scratched the surface. If any of you have any culinary recommendations yourself would love to hear from you! 

Chocolate Mud Cake

This chocolate cake recipe has been something that has been tried and tested on many family and friends. I love a good chocolate cake but think after a day or two they always go dry and they need to be moist and gooey. When i think of chocolate cake I always think of the Miss Trunchbull's chocolate cake in Roald Dahl's 'Matilda'. So I promise this is a chocolate cake that is moist, worthy of any Roald Dahl novel and only gets better the longer you leave it!

At the weekend my little sister turned 21 and, being a talented baker herself, i knew a Victoria Sponge just wouldn't cut it. This cake is very dense like a brownie so only needs a bit of icing on the outside. I covered the cake in a glossy chocolate fudge icing and decorated with; cherries, strawberries, truffles, macadamia nuts, lavender and homemade pineapple flowers. 

For the sponge you will need:

9" round tin,

220g unsalted butter,

220g Dark chocolate,

25g instant coffee granules,

125g Self Raising flour,

125g Plain flour,

50g Cocoa powder,

1/2 tsp Bicarbonate powder,

480g Golden caster sugar,

4 Eggs Beaten,

7 tspns Full of Vegetable oil,

100ml Butter milk. 

For the icing:

115g butter

85g cocoa 

340g icing sugar

150ml skimmed milk

1. Place your butter and dark chocolate in a glass bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Add 160ml of hot water to your coffee granules and then add the coffee to your chocolate and butter mixture until everything is melted and mixed in.

2. Combine all of your dry ingredients and make a well in the middle and pour in your coffee chocolate mixture. Gentle mix until everything is mixed in and resembles a batter consistency. Seperately beat your eggs, vegetable oil and buttermilk mixture together and then add to your cake batter.  Once the mixture is smooth and all ingredients are combined pour into your pre-lined tin.

3. I would recommended lining your cake tin with two layers of baking parchment and on the outside tie a layer of newspaper round your tin with string. The reason for this is your cake has a large amount of sugar and this means the cake is prone to burning but by lining your cake in this way it should prevent the cake from catching.

4. Bake your cake at 165° for 45 minutes and turn your cake to prevent burning. Bake for a further 35 minutes or until cooked all the way through. Test this by using a metal skewer, you will know your cake is cooked when your skewer comes out clean when piercing into the center of the cake. Now leave until the cake is completely cooked.

5. In the meantime to make your icing, add your melted butter to your cocoa powder and icing sugar and gradually add your milk until the mixture is smooth and thick but not too thin. You want a heavy thick consistency that you can spread and push over your cake until it is completely covered. Whilst the icing is still wet add whatever toppings you would like to cover your cake, because the icing is still wet it will allow your toppings of your cake to stick on firmly. 

As part of making this cake I made my own pineapple flowers which are very pretty and easy to make. The recipe for these will be appearing on my blog shortly! As ever this recipe is very simple to make and is sure to make an impression on anyone who eats it. After discovering this recipe i have never been tempted to use any other recipe to make chocolate cake. Any questions please feel free to get in touch and would love to hear from anyone who has had a go, Happy Baking!

Cherry Brandy Dark Chocolate Brownies

I love a good brownie but i can not tell you my disappointment when i bite into a brownie and it is dry and cakey. A good brownie should be stupidly rich, dark and gooey. I am not one for blondies or brownies that are too sweet, the darker the better. I have used my recipe for brownies and changed it again by adding some booze and fresh cherries to make them taste even better!

Some of my other bakes have looked elegant and photographed beautifully but it is difficult to photograph a gooey lump of chocolate and make it look elegant. I did decorate them with a pinch of red glitter to give them the festive edge but the selling point to these brownies really is the taste.

You will need:

185g unsalted butter

185g good quality dark chocolate

275g Light brown sugar

80g Ground Almonds

50g Plain flour

3 Large eggs

200ml Cherry Brandy

200g Fresh Cherries

100g Milk chocolate

1. Firstly stone your cherries and place in a saucepan on a simmering heat along with your Cherry Brandy. This will cook off the alcohol but marinates your cherries in a lovely boozy flavour. Leave these to one side until they are cool.

2. Now melt your dark chocolate and unsalted butter in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan until your chocolate and butter is melted, then leave to one side. Once cool add this to your flour, almonds, eggs, sugar.

3. Finally add in chunks of your milk chocolate and your Cherry Brandy mixture and gently stir in until you have a smooth consistency. Pour your mixture into a lined square tin. Use a deeper smaller tin if you want deeper brownies. Bake at 180 for 30 minutes or until a crust appears on top and it is firm to touch.

4. Remove from your tin and leave until completely cool before you cut them up. These brownies are amazing warm with some fresh whipped or chantilly cream or a little creme fraiche.

These are another example of bakes that would make good christmas gifts. Wrap in cellophane with red ribbon and make some home made gifts tags with a sprig of holly and give to incredibly grateful family and friends. 

Northern Italian Chocolate and Nut Cake

As promised, here is my first christmas bake. I saw this recipe in a magazine a while ago and it has been on my to-do list! Although it is not a bake it is a non-cook cake, traditional to the region of Siena. Having researched the recipe, it appears that traditionally this cake is made with candied peel but i have decided to use crystalised ginger instead which i think compliments the nuts and Amaretto nicely!

What is ideal about this cake is all  you have to do is bung all the ingredients in together and leave it to set. This cake is very rich so you could easily make a smaller version and wrap it in brown paper and give it as a gift at christmas. 

For the Cake you will need:

250g of good quality dark chocolate (70% cocoa or more)

3 Medium egg whites

100g Crystalised ginger

200g Ground Almonds

100g Finely chopped Walnuts

50g Finely chopped Hazelnuts

200g Icing Sugar

4 Tbsp Amaretto

For the topping:

100g good quality dark chocolate

75g icing sugar, plus extra to dust

1. Line your tin, i have used an 18cm deep oven dish, with cling film and leave to one side. To make your cake melt the chocolate in a large heat proof bowl over a saucepan of bowling water, make sure the water is not touching your glass bowl. Once melted, leave your bowl to one side.

2. Meanwhile, lightly beat your egg whites with a fork for a couple of minutes and to this add your ginger, ground almonds, nuts, icing sugar and Amaretto.  Mix well and then add your chocolate and continue to stir until all your ingredients are mixed in. Pour your mixture into your lined dish and pop into your fridge until set.

3. In the meantime, to make the topping, melt your dark chocolate and add to your icing sugar and mix together. Turn your cake out onto a plate once set and use a spatula to cover the surface of your cake with your topping and once again leave to chill until set. Finally dust your cake with icing sugar or however you wish you decorate it, and enjoy at your leisure! This cake is very rich so you can cut your cake into 16 generous slices and not leave anyone feeling short changed.

I hope you enjoy this Italian classic as much as i do. I have made this recipe a couple of times and i find that this cake is perfect for an afternoon treat with a nice cup of strong coffee. Because this recipe is so simple you could add whatever you like, sour cherries would be a lovely combination with the nuts and ginger. Why not try this for christmas as a nice alternative!

Twelve Bakes of Christmas

My thoughts on the idea of tradition in food at Christmas, as well as my ideas for 12 Christmas Bakes!

I have never been part of a family who has used christmas to spend lots of money. Last year i made lots of homemade chutneys and jams, whilst my sister made homemade biscuits and it went down very well with friends and family. Christmas has always been pretty simplistic and traditional in my house, most importantly we can always guarantee that we will all be in the house, at the same time for one whole day. One thing that does not remain traditional in my house, is the food. I would argue that this is the case for many family homes in the UK.

Me and my little sister on Christmas day!

With the enormity of Italian cookbooks that have been published in the last three years, it appears that people's tastes are veering towards foods such as pannatone for christmas. Food that differs from your conventional british sunday roast and christmas pudding is instantly elevated to something that appears to be more special. When Marks and Spencers advertise their christmas produce there will always be a twist on a traditional classic. Lets be honest most of us will be seduced by the idea of orange and cranberry stuffing over the traditional.                                    

  The first time i felt christmassy last year was when i went to a local pub, after a walk in the freezing cold, and had mulled cider and a slice of stollen. It was nice to see a traditional norfolk pub serving this traditional chrismas german bread. It is amazing how the spices and fruit from the Stollen and the mulled cider, evoked more feelings of christmas than a roast turkey ever could. I didn't even know what Stollen was when i ordered it but it seemed instantly more appealing because it was different to the usual foods available at christmas.

Whilst flicking through my mum's recipe books for inspiration for some christmas bakes i stumbled upon a recipe for sticky ginger pudding cake. This recipe has been a staple in my house for years and is

Sticky Ginger Cake c/o 'Puddings and Desserts' by
Elizabeth Pomeroy

a particular christmas favourite. I almost didn't recognise it in its original 70s form, covered in whipped cream and glace cherries. Delving further into the cook book i found some really lovely ideas that would be perfect for christmas. I think the trap that we commonly fall into is sticking to what we know but we often forget that there are so many twists and new ideas that make christmas dinners instantly more exciting. There is always an archive for forgotten and amazing recipes hidden in old fashioned recipe books, it is always good to know the basics before jumping in trying to create something completely different.

This christmas i will be endeavouring to stay away from recipes that promise something completely new but draw upon the classics within Europe and add a few twists. The older recipes are the best, but it is just a case of adapting them or changing them to suit your tastes. For those of you who are not overwhelmed by traditional british puddings, i will re-introduce you to them in a way that give you more ideas for your christmas day. So keep your eyes peeled for my 12 bakes of christmas over the next 4 weeks!

* My 12 Bakes of Christmas *

Northern Italian Chocolate and Nut Cake

Sticky Ginger Cake with Salted Caramel Ice Cream

Pumpkin Christmas Bread with Spiced Fig Jam

Christmas Sundae with Mulled wine sorbet and brown sugar meringues

Stollen with Mulled Cider

Binham Blue and Walnut Filo Wreath 

'Better than Meat' Veggie Sausage rolls 

Stained Glass Window Biscuits

Chilli and Ginger Jam with Fig Biscotti 

Cinnamon and Hazelnut Monkey Bread 

Plum and Cranberry Fruit Pie

Cherry Brandy Chocolate Brownies 

My Cranberry and Orange Crumble Cake made for Christmas last year!

Orange Rose and Pistachio Cake

My lovely neighbour Sharon turned 50 this week and i have used the orange curd i made last week to create her a very special birthday cake. Orange, rose and Pistachio are very traditional flavours  in turkish cuisine but there is no reason why these amazing flavours can not be transfered into a very traditionally british sandwich cake. 

This cake does take a little more care and attention than my other recipes but is completely worth the time! Simply decorated with ground pistachios and crystalised rose petals ( ridiculously simple to make!), it makes a big impression against cream cheese icing with a touch of rose water. 

For the sponge you will need:

400g melted butter

2 whole medium oranges

400g light brown caster sugar

6 eggs

150g ground almonds

350g Self Raising Flour

For the decoration:

250g Full fat cream cheese

250g Mascapone

200g icing sugar

100g pistachio (without their shells)

1 tsp rose water

Rose petals

1 egg white

150g caster sugar

Orange curd ( one you prepared earlier!)

1. First things first, you can't have a beautifully moist and zesty orange cake without fresh oranges. So, place your two oranges in a saucepan of boiling water and boil on the heat for an hour. Make sure the oranges are constantly covered in water so that the oranges are cooked through. Do not peel the oranges, we want all of the lovely zest from the skin! Once cooked leave to cool ready for blitzing later.

2. Combine your melted butter with your brown sugar and then liquidise your two oranges, strain the stringy bits and add to the butter and sugar. Now whisk all of your eggs together until they become creamy and form stiff peaks. With a spatular gently combine the butter mixture to your eggs, do not mix too vigorously as this will beat out the air from your egg mixture.

3. Now weigh out your flour and combine with the ground almonds, once again gently combine to your egg mixture mixing enough to ensure all of your ingredients are mixed in. Now divide your cake mixture into 2 and pour into pre-lined sandwich tins and bake at 170 for 40 minutes or until cooked all the way through. 

4. Once your cakes are cooled slice each sandwich half in half again so you are left with 4 bits of cake in total. Now, place the bottom of the cake on a plate and generously layer with orange curd before placing cake layer number two on top. Cover layer number 2 with orange curd and layer number 3, leaving the top layer bare to cover with cream cheese icing.

5. I have always had a complete nightmare with cream cheese icing as it always goes runny but i promise that if you combine full fat cream cheese with mascapone and icing sugar to taste, your mixture will stay firm. Add one tsp of rose water to give it a little extra flavour which will go perfectly with the orange and pistachio. Put all of your icing on top of your cake and with a knife push the icing across and around the cake until it is evenly covered. 

6. To make crystalised rose petals pick some roses from your garden  or source some from somewhere that grows their roses without any pesticides. Lightly beat your egg white with a fork and then dip each rose petal in the egg whites and then sprinkle with caster sugar and leave on baking parchment to crystalise. This can be done days before you make and decorate your cake but if you want to do it on the day allow 2-3 hours for the rose petals to crystalise.

7. Finally roughly chop your pistachios or blitz in a food processor, make sure they still have lots of texture and are not too finely ground. generously sprinkle these over the top of your cake and arrange your rose petals to make it look like they have delicately fallen on top. Leave in the fridge to firm up but make sure you take it out in time before you serve as nobody likes cold cake!

Orange Curd

I honestly think i could eat lemon curd on its own and the other day was sorely tempted! My neighbour is turning 50 next week and i have decided to make her a special cake. Without ruining what i will be making, i can say that my curd will be used in my sandwich cake. However, i will not be using my favourite lemon, but creating orange curd. 

This curd is very sweet and unless you have a very sweet tooth you may not wish to spread it on your crumpets in the morning! Despite this, it would be amazing drizzled over a pavola with mulled autumn fruits or poured over rum ice-cream. As with all my recipes, it is incredibly easy to make and a great way to use up oranges and lemons nearing the end of their shelf life.

You will need :
The zest and juice 2 large oranges
The zest and juice of 1 medium lemon
225g caster sugar
110g unsalted butter
3 large beaten egg yolks
This makes 450g (1lb)

1. Heat the sugar, butter, orange juice and zest and lemon in a glass bowl over a simmering saucepan of water. Remember to not overfill your saucepan with water, you do not want the bottom of your glass bowl to be in contact with the water.

2. Once the sugar and butter have melted, add your egg yolks and constantly whisk your mixture to prevent any egg cooking in lumps, ensuring a smooth consistency to your curd. You will find that the mixture becomes slightly creamy and lighter in colour as the mixture begins to thicken. You will need to continue to whisk your mixture for approximately 20 minutes or until the mixture coats the back of a spoon.

3. Once you're mixture reaches the right consistency, remove from the heat and strain through a sift. Now pour into a jam jar and once cooled secure the lid and place in a fridge to set. This curd will keep up to a month so once put in a fridge do not forget to label and date.

Last Christmas i decided to make Lemon Curd, Apple and Cranberry Chutney and ginger and Chili Jam for friends and family. As you can see this does not take long to make but with home made labels and jam covers it would be a really lovely gift in a hamper for friends and family.