Recipes

This delicious recipe is amazingly simple and, for those who are weight conscious , is very low in calories or Syns.  It  makes an ideal accompaniment to all kinds of grilled or roast meats, fish or a slice of a … Continued

This is a lovely way to use red peppers, at their best in autumn. It’s a fabulous combination of sweet peppers, salty cheese and crisp pastry. Great for a Christmas veggie dish too. Serves 4 You will need three medium … Continued

Seville oranges are traditionally used to make marmalade but they’re also wonderful in this fragrant pud. Think lemon curd, only orange-flavoured; it works perfectly. Serves 4. One pack of shortcrust pastry (or make your own sweet shortcrust pastry with 175g … Continued

A recipe from my Slovak daughter-in-law – just the thing for last-minute Christmas presents. Easy for children to make too. Makes 24. Ingredients 300g plain flour 140g caster sugar 40g chopped almonds or walnuts, fairly finely chopped but not powdered … Continued

Not a fan of the favoured afternoon tea? This might convince you. Warm dropped scones, a sprinkling of sugar, warm juicy strawberries served with clotted cream.  What’s not to like? Ingredients (serves 2) For the dropped scones 150g self-raising flour … Continued

This is like a Christmas cake but not quite so rich. I bake one at the same time as my Christmas cakes – on Stir-up Sunday, the last Sunday in November, when traditionally people make their Christmas cakes, Christmas puds … Continued

This is the best Christmas pud recipe ever, from Eliza Acton’s classic book “Modern Cookery” of 1845: “a remarkably light small rich pudding”. Serves 4 generously. You will need a 1.2litre ceramic pudding bowl, or two x 600ml – or … Continued

This is a traditional Portuguese crown-style cake for Epiphany, to celebrate the arrival of the Three Kings on 6 January. Makes one 24cm cake. Ingredients 340g strong bread flour or plain flour teaspoon fast-acting dried yeast + 75ml water 70g … Continued

There is nothing quite like home-baked mince pies – it really is worth making your own pastry for this and they smell wonderful. Makes 12 regular sized pies or 24 mini-pies. Pastry 200g plain flour 100g unsalted butter, straight from … Continued