Raspberry jam wreath :- Recipe

SERVES 8-10. HANDS-ON TIME 50 MIN, OVEN TIME 45 MIN, PLUS RISING & PROVING

To prepare the dough up to 24 hours in advance, leave to rise overnight in the fridge, then bring back to room temperature before knocking back and rolling out (step 4). The wreath is best eaten on the day it’s made.

Tips:- 

Use a firm-set jam so it stays inside when you roll up the dough. We used Tiptree (Bonne Maman was runny). If you’d like to add a bit more jam after cooking (depending on how practised you are at rolling you might lose a bit before the wreath goes in the oven), brush it into the grooves after cooking and return it to the oven for a couple more minutes to set.

• 450g strong white bread flour, plus extra for dusting
• 1½ tsp salt • 7g sachet fast-action dried yeast
• 1½ tsp ground cinnamon
• 3 tbsp light soft brown sugar
• 290ml milk (whole or semiskimmed)
• 1 large free-range egg, lightly beaten, plus 1 extra for glazing
• Sunflower oil for greasing
• 2 tbsp demerara sugar

FOR THE FILLING 

• 200g raspberry jam (see tips)

Steps to go:- 

• Sift the flour and salt together into a large mixing bowl, then stir in the yeast, cinnamon and light brown sugar. In a small saucepan, gently heat the milk until steaming (don’t let it come to the boil), then turn off the heat and leave the milk to cool for 5 minutes or so.

•  When the milk is warm (not hot) to the touch, pour it onto the flour in the bowl, then add the beaten egg. Quickly mix with a spoon, then use your hands to bring it together as a dough. If you have a stand mixer, attach a dough hook and knead the dough for 5-10 minutes until it springs back to the touch. (Alternatively, knead the dough by hand for 10 minutes until springy and smooth – don’t add more flour, even by dusting the work surface, as it will affect the dough texture.)

•  Lightly oil a large mixing bowl, put in the dough and cover with cling film. Leave to rise for 1 hour in a warm place until doubled in size, light and pillowy. Meanwhile, line a large baking sheet with non-stick baking paper.

•   Knock the air out of the risen dough and tip out onto a lightly floured work surface. Roll the dough into a 75cm x 25cm rectangle 3-4mm thick (this might be tricky as the dough will keep contracting, but persevere). Spread the jam thinly over the rectangle then, with a long side facing you, tightly and carefully roll up the dough into a long swiss roll.

• Using a sharp, heavy knife, halve the dough along its length. Turn both pieces cut-side up so you can see the layers. Press the 2 strands together at one end, then twist the pieces of dough around each other, keeping the cut sides up and always lifting the far strand over the near strand. You’ll need to move the ends of the strands away from you every now and then to make space. Do this gently, as the dough stretches easily and needs to be kept as plump as possible. Lift the twisted dough carefully onto the baking sheet, then gently shape it into a circle, pressing one end on top of the other. Loosely cover with lightly oiled cling film and leave to prove for 45-60 minutes until well puffed. Heat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/gas 4.

•   To check the dough has proved enough, gently press the underside – if it’s ready to bake, your finger will leave a slight indent. Gently brush the dough with egg glaze and sprinkle over the demerara sugar. Bake for 20 minutes or until risen and golden, then loosely cover with foil and cook for 25 minutes more or until crisp on the outside but still soft inside (it should feel a bit like brioche). Take out the baking sheet and leave to stand for 5 minutes, then carefully lift the wreath onto a wire rack to cool completely (see tips). Serve with extra jam, if you like.

PER SERVING (FOR 10) 

• 283kcals, 

• 2.4g fat (0.9g saturated), 

• 7.7g protein, 

• 56.5g carbs (22g sugars), 

• 0.8g salt, 

• 2.2g fibre 

Potato and morcilla scotch eggs

MAKES 6. HANDS-ON TIME 35 MIN, FRYING TIME 10 MIN, PLUS COOLING

Make the mash, and cook and cool the eggs the day before, then keep both chilled in the fridge. Alternatively, reheat the fully cooked eggs the next day in a medium oven for 10 minutes or until they begin to smell fragrant.

Morcilla is the Spanish version of black pudding. Find it in Spanish delis or online at brindisa.com. If you can’t get it, use black pudding instead.

The timings in step 3 should give you eggs with runny centres. If you want firmer yolks, boil for 3-4 minutes more.

• 400g floury potatoes, such as maris piper, chopped into chunks
• 2 litres sunflower oil to deep-fry, plus a glug
• 300g morcilla or black pudding, crumbled or finely chopped (see Know-how)
• 50g manchego or cheddar cheese, grated
• Large knob of butter
• Handful fresh flatleaf parsley, finely chopped
• 10 large free-range eggs – 6 of them whole, 4 lightly beaten
• Plain flour for coating
• 250g dried breadcrumbs
• Sea salt flakes to sprinkle

YOU’LL ALSO NEED…

• Digital probe thermometer

1.  Boil the potatoes in a large pan of salted water for 15-20 minutes until just tender. Meanwhile, heat a glug of oil in a frying pan. Crumble the morcilla into the hot oil and fry for 2 minutes, without stirring, until slightly crisp. Fry, but this time stirring, for another 2 minutes, then remove from the pan and set aside.

2. When the potatoes are cooked, remove from the heat, drain and steam dry for a couple of minutes. Return to the pan, then mash well. Add the cheese and butter, season well, stir in the fried morcilla and parsley, then leave to cool.

3. Meanwhile, put the 6 whole eggs in a pan of boiling water and cook for 6 minutes exactly (see tip). Drain, cool under running water, then carefully shell. (It will help if your eggs aren’t exceedingly fresh – older eggs peel more easily.)

4. Once the mash has cooled, divide it into 6 equal pieces (about 100g per egg). With lightly floured hands, press each piece, one at a time, into a flat disc of mash a little smaller than your upturned hand. Put the disc in your palm and place an egg in the middle, then bring the disc up around the egg to enclose, making sure there are no gaps or places where the mash is too thin – the casing should be about 1cm thick.

5. Once all the eggs are wrapped, roll each one first into flour, then beaten egg, then breadcrumbs, shaking off the excess each time. Press the breadcrumbs gently into the eggs in your hands to keep them secure, then dip back into the egg and again into the breadcrumbs, pressing in the breadcrumbs again.

6. Heat the sunflower oil in a large heavy-based saucepan until it reads 160°C on a digital thermometer. Fry the eggs in batches for 5-6 minutes until golden and crisp, then serve immediately, halved, sprinkled with sea salt, with a tomato dip or relish alongside. They’re best warm but they can also be eaten cold – the yolks will stay runny.

PER SCOTCH EGG

• 648kcals,
• 37g fat (10.8g saturated),
• 27.3g protein,
• 50.7g carbs (2.7g sugars),
• 2.1g salt,
• 1.4g fibre 

Ham, Cheese And Chilli Beetroot Chutney Toastie

MAKES 2 (WITH LEFTOVER CHUTNEY). HANDS-ON TIME 30 MIN, SIMMERING TIME 30 MIN, OVEN TIME 5-6 MIN

The chutney will keep in the fridge in an airtight container for up to a week. Use the leftovers on cheeseboards, with a ploughman’s or in chicken wraps.

FOR THE CHUTNEY 

• 250ml red wine vinegar
• 250g caster sugar
• 1½ tsp black mustard seeds
• 1½ tsp cumin seeds
• 2 red chillies, deseeded and finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 2 banana shallots, finely chopped
• 1 bunch raw beetroot, peeled and coarsely grated (around 500g prepared weight)

FOR THE TOASTIE

• 4 slices good bread
• Butter for spreading
• 2 thick slices good quality ham
• 100g mix of blue cheese and cheddar, crumbled or grated
• Parmesan for grating

1.  To make the chutney, gently warm the vinegar and sugar in a pan over a medium heat until the sugar dissolves. Add the remaining chutney ingredients and some salt. Bring to the boil and cook for around 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until the mixture has reduced and the liquid is syrupy. Leave to cool.

2.  Heat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/ gas 4 and put a baking sheet inside. Butter one side of each slice of bread. Heat a large frying pan over a medium heat, then add 2 of the bread slices, butter-side down. Spread with a couple of spoonfuls of chutney, top with a slice of ham each, then divide the blue cheese and cheddar between them.
Sandwich with the remaining slices of bread, butter-side up. Cook for 5-6 minutes, pressing down on the sandwiches with a spatula or fish slice until the bread has toasted on the underside. Flip and repeat.

3. Grate a good layer of parmesan over the top of each sandwich, then flip again, frying until the cheese is golden and crisp. Transfer to the baking sheet, parmesan-side up, and bake in the oven for 5-6 minutes to properly melt the cheese inside.

PER TOASTIE 

• 577kcals,
• 29.4g fat (17.2g saturated),
• 25.6g protein, 51.1g carbs (17g sugars),
• 2.7g salt,
• 3.1g fibre.

Recipe :- Chocolate porter cake

The un-iced cake will keep for up to 2 days in a container in a cool place. It will keep frozen, wrapped in cling film, for up to 1 month. 

Ingredients:- 

• Sunflower oil for greasing

• 260ml porter (we like St Peter’s
Old-Style Porter)



• 250g unsalted butter

• 100g dark chocolate (70% cocoa
solids), chopped into chunks

• 50g cocoa powder

• 200g caster sugar

• 200g soft light brown sugar

• 2 large free-range eggs

• 150g full-fat Greek yogurt

• 2 tsp vanilla bean extract

• 280g plain flour

• 2½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

FOR THE TOPPING

• 200g full-fat cream cheese (we like
Philadelphia)

• 80g icing sugar

• 200ml double cream

YOU’LL ALSO NEED…

• Deep 23cm loose-bottomed cake tin

1 Heat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/gas 4. Grease a deep 23cm loose bottomed cake tin and line with baking paper. In a large pan, gently warm the porter, butter and chocolate until the butter and chocolate have melted.

2 Mix the cocoa powder and sugars in a large bowl, rubbing away lumps. Pour in the chocolate mixture gradually, whisking well using a balloon whisk, then add the eggs. Whisk until it’s thick and smooth, then whisk in the yogurt, vanilla, flour and bicarbonate of soda.

3 Pour the batter into the lined tin and bake for 1 hour or until a skewer comes out clean. Leave for 5 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool.

4 Meanwhile, in a large bowl, beat the topping ingredients with an electric mixer until the mix just holds its shape. Swirl the icing on top of the cooled cake.

PER SERVING (FOR 16) 464kcals,
26.6g fat (16.5g saturated), 5.8g
protein, 48.4g carbs (34.6g sugars),
0.5g salt, 1.4g fibre