The idea for this came from a customer of mine just back from a skiing trip. Itâs one of those perfect marriages of ingredients, and one of the easiest desserts to prepare and serve. What could be simpler: berries biding their time in the freezer and white-chocolate sauce gently heating over a pan of simmering water until youâre ready for it. Buy either mixed frozen berries, or just raspberries. Alternatively, freeze your own on a flat tray then transfer them to a bag in the freezer to store for a rainy day. Donât use larger berries; strawberries and bigger blackberries struggle to defrost however hot the sauce is.
Buttermilk pudding with sea buckthorn recipe
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You can make this dessert all year round with seasonal fruits such blueberries, raspberries and rhubarb, but sea buckthorn is very special. It grows along the coast on sand dunes, but is also farmed and harvested on the Essex coast by The British Sea Buckthorn Company. You can buy the berries frozen from britishseabuckthorn.com.
Prep time:Â 30 minutes, plus chilling time
SERVES
METHOD
Soak the gelatin in cold water for a few minutes until soft, then squeeze out the excess water with your hands. Bring 100ml of cream to the boil with the sugar in a pan. Remove from the heat, allow to cool a little, then stir in the gelatin until dissolved. Whisk in the rest of the cream and the buttermilk.
Sitwell tucking in at The Pig-at Combe
Credit: Marco Kesseler
Inside, outside, on top, underneath…Frankly, as long as restaurants reopen, I don’t mind where I get a table. And a sneak preview of England’s glorious hospitality reboot has me excitedly jumping for joy at the prospect. In less than a fortnight, all being well, we will be able to leave our homes, see some friends, eat, drink, browse and sluice, talk seriously, shout frivolously, and do so in the knowledge that someone else will be washing up.
People like me bang on about the glories of Britain’s food scene; the dextrous, diverse and delectable choice that is now available. And not having had it makes us now relish it in such a proudly tantalising way.
Temperley sour cocktail recipe
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When it comes to apples, the man namechecked in the title of this drink is the master. Julian Temperley, the driving force behind The Somerset Cider Brandy Company, has been supplying my restaurants from day one, all the way from the top of Burrow Hill.
Prep time: 5 minutes
20ml Burrow Hill apple juice
15ml Somerset Pomona liqueur
METHOD
Pour all of the ingredients, apart from the ice and cherry, into a shaker. Shake briefly to combine.
Fill the shaker with cubed ice and shake for roughly 10 seconds, to chill and dilute slightly, then strain into a coupe and garnish with the cherry.
Badam barfi (almond fudge) recipe
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This treat is inspired by my motherâs tradition of teaching me to cook by verbal instructions only. We didnât deal in written recipes, even when, later, she taught some of the women who cook in my restaurant. For ease I have given you the actual quantity of the sugar to be added, but there is also an element of âandaazâ, or estimate, involved.
In honour of my mother, I put it on my menu when I opened Darjeeling Express in Covent Garden.
Prep time: 30 minutes, plus 1 hour 10 minutes soaking, and setting |