PUMPKIN SEED BRITTLE

PUMPKIN SEED BRITTLE

I hope I’m making your life easier when I say you should make this well in advance of dinner. This is not just because you need the brittle to be completely cold before shattering it into shards to serve with coffee, but because making caramel with an audience, or even the prospect of one, can be a step too far. I always like any form of cooking which involves a possible element of danger, but even so, regard that as a private pleasure. I wouldn’t want to have a tableful of people waiting as I did it. It would be as nervy-making as reversing into a parking spot with a crowd of passers-by grinding to a halt to watch and make those irritating would-be-helpful hand signals as you do so.

- Nigella lawson

Yield : Serves 8

Ingredients

1¼ cups sugar

½ cup water

¼ teaspoon cream of tartar

1 cup green pumpkin seeds

Method

Cover a baking sheet with a piece of Silpat or other re-usable parchment, or tear off some aluminum foil and lightly oil it.

Dissolve the sugar, water and cream of tartar in a saucepan over a low heat.

Turn the heat up and bring the mixture to a boil but do not stir.

Let the syrup bubble over a fairly high heat for about 10 minutes until it turns a deep golden amber color.

Don’t be tempted to wander away, make a phone call or leave the pan unattended, as the syrup could caramelize sooner.

There are various factors at play here, and I know nothing of the dimensions of your pans or what materials they’re made of – and that’s not the whole story either.

Quickly tip the pumpkin seeds into the amber-colored syrup, swirl the pan so that they become evenly coated and then take off the heat.

Pour the syrup immediately on to the Bake-O-Glide or oiled-foil-lined tray, trying to spread the molten liquid in a thin layer.

It is possible to spread the brittle with a palette knife if it has mounded too much, but move fast: you will have only a short time to do this before it begins to set.

Leave the brittle to cool and harden completely before breaking it into pieces.I rather like to leave it as it is, a wibbly-wobbly outlined disc of green-studded amber, and quite, quite beautiful, bashing it into sharp pieces at the table.

This is just not the same made with supermarket, dried out, bleached-out husks. Use organic, still oily green pumpkin seeds only.

CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER FUDGE SUNDAE

CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER FUDGE SUNDAE

This is the ultimate ice cream sundae. Obviously, if you’re not a peanut-eater, it won’t be for you, but for everyone else it is the stuff of dreams. Last time I made this sauce, I nearly had to make another batch, I’d eaten so much before even getting the ice creams out of the freezer.

Talking of which, obviously you should choose whichever flavors of ice cream you want. Even if you are reduced to just plain-old, same old-vanilla, you have a party right here.

I made a jar of this for a friend to take home for her supper recently. As soon as she’d had it she sent a text saying “Bottle that sauce, make millions.” Well maybe, but until then, here’s the recipe.

And you should know that this is just as irresistible as a storecupboard special, if you replace the syrup and cream with ¾ cup of sweetened condensed milk, whisking in ¼ cup of hot water from the kettle before pouring the glossy sauce out of the pan.

Yield : Serves 4 very lucky people

Ingredients

¾ cup heavy cream

4 oz milk chocolate, chopped

½ cup smooth peanut butter (Skippy for preference)

3 tablespoons golden syrup or light corn syrup

4 scoops toffee or caramel ice cream

4 scoops chocolate ice cream

4 scoops vanilla ice cream

¼ cup salted peanuts, roughly chopped or left whole, to taste

Method

Put all the cream, chopped chocolate, peanut butter, and golden syrup into a saucepan and put it on the heat to melt, stirring occasionally. In about 2 minutes you should have your sauce ready.

Get out four sundae glasses and put a scoop of toffee or caramel ice cream in each, followed by one of chocolate and then another of vanilla.

Pour over some chocolate peanut butter fudge sauce and sprinkle with salted peanuts.

Hand them round.

CHOCOLATE FUDGE CAKE

I have a bad Amazon habit. You know the “when the going gets tough, the tough go shopping” line? Well, the not-so-tough get their retail therapy online. Or I do: when I can’t sleep I start ordering books. And I comfort myself twice over by telling myself how useful they are, how they really help my work.

I offer this recipe, adapted from a book that in itself soothes, Tish Boyle’s Diner Desserts, bought at about 3 A.M. one unravelingly wakeful night, as proof.

This is the sort of cake you’d want to eat the whole of when you’ve been dumped. But even the sight of it, proud and tall and thickly iced on its stand, comforts.

- Nigella Lawson

Yield : Serves 10, or 1 with a broken heart

Ingredients

For the cake:

2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour

¾ cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar

1/3 cup light brown sugar

¼ cup best-quality cocoa powder

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

3 eggs

½ cup plus 2 tablespoons sour cream

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

¾ cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled

½ cup corn oil

1 1/3 cups chilled water

For the fudge icing:

6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, minimum 70% cocoa solids

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

1¾ cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Method

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Butter and line the bottom of two 8-inch cake pans.

In a large bowl, mix together the flour, sugars, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

In another bowl or wide-necked measuring cup whisk together the eggs, sour cream and vanilla until blended.

Using a standing or handheld electric mixer, beat together the melted butter and corn oil until just blended (you’ll need another large bowl for this if using the hand mixer; the standing mixer comes with its own bowl), then beat in the water.

Add the dry ingredients all at once and mix together on a slow speed.

Add the egg mixture, and mix again until everything is blended and then pour into the prepared tins.

And actually, you could easily do this manually; I just like my toys and find the KitchenAid a comforting presence in itself.

Bake the cakes for 45–50 minutes, or until a cake-tester comes out clean.

Cool the cakes in their pans on a wire rack for 15 minutes, and then turn the cakes out onto the rack to cool completely.

To make the icing, melt the chocolate in the microwave—2–3 minutes on medium should do it—or in a bowl sitting over a pan of simmering water, and let cool slightly.

In another bowl beat the butter until it’s soft and creamy (again, I use the KitchenAid here) and then add the sifted confectioners’ sugar and beat again until every-thing’s light and fluffy.

I know sifting is a pain, the one job in the kitchen I really hate, but you have to do it or the icing will be unsoothingly lumpy.

Then gently add the vanilla and chocolate and mix together until everything is glossy and smooth.

Sandwich the middle of the cake with about a quarter of the icing, and then ice the top and sides, too, spreading and smoothing with a rubber spatula.

CHOCOLATE CHERRY CUPCAKES

CHOCOLATE CHERRY CUPCAKES

These are very easy, very good—somehow light and dense at the same time—and I love their dark, glossy elegance. When I made them for the cake sale at my daughter’s school fair, they sold, even at more than a dollar a piece, quicker than anything else. Still, if the cost considerations include time, then this probably counts as a cheap undertaking.

The jam I use for these is a morello cherry preserve; if you’re using a less elegant, and probably sweeter confection, reduce the sugar in the cakes a little. And if you have any Kirsch about the place, then add a splash to the batter and icing.

- Nigella Lawson

Yield : Makes 12

Ingredients

For the cupcakes:

½ cup soft unsalted butter

4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, broken into pieces

1 1/3 cups morello cherry jam

½ cup sugar

Pinch of salt

2 large eggs, beaten

1 cup self-rising cake flour

12-cup muffin pan and paper baking cups

For the icing:

4 ounces bittersweet chocolate

1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon heavy cream

12 natural-co

Method

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Put the butter in a heavy-bottomed pan on the heat to melt. When nearly completely melted, stir in the chocolate.

Leave for a moment to begin softening, then take the pan off the heat and stir with a wooden spoon until the butter and chocolate are smooth and melted. Now add the cherry jam, sugar, salt, and eggs.

Stir with a wooden spoon and when all is pretty well amalgamated stir in the flour.

Scrape and pour into the muffin baking cups in their pan and bake for 25 minutes. Cool in the pan on a rack for 10 minutes before turning out.

When the cupcakes are cool, break the chocolate for the icing into little pieces and add them to the cream in a saucepan.

Bring to the boil, remove from the heat, and then whisk—by hand or electrically—till thick and smooth. Ice the cupcakes, smoothing the tops with the back of a spoon, and stand a cherry in the center of each.

BANANA BREAD

BANANA BREAD

This is the first recipe anyone hesitant about baking should try: it’s fabulously easy and fills the kitchen with that aromatic fog which is the natural atmospheric setting for the domestic goddess. There are countless recipes for banana bread: this one is adapted from one of my favorite books, the one I read lying on the sofa to recover from yet another long, modern, stressed-out day, Jim Fobel’s Old-Fashioned Baking Book: Recipes from an American Childhood. If you’re thinking about giving this cake to children, don’t worry, the alcohol doesn’t pervade: you just end up with stickily, aromatically swollen fruit.

- Nigella Lawson

Yield : Makes 8–10 slices

Ingredients

Scant ½ cup golden raisins

6 tablespoons or 3 ounces bourbon or dark rum

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

½ cup unsalted butter, melted

½ cup sugar

2 large eggs

4 small, very ripe bananas, mashed

¼ cup chopped walnuts

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

9 x 5-inch loaf pan, buttered and floured or with a paper insert

Method

Put the golden raisins and rum or bourbon in a smallish saucepan and bring to the boil. Remove from the heat, cover, and leave for an hour if you can, or until the raisins have absorbed most of the liquid, then drain.

Preheat the oven to 325°F and get started on the rest.

Put the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium-sized bowl and, using your hands or a wooden spoon, combine well.

In a large bowl, mix the melted butter and sugar and beat until blended.

Beat in the eggs one at a time, then the mashed bananas.

Then, with your wooden spoon, stir in the walnuts, drained raisins, and vanilla extract.

Add the flour mixture, a third at a time, stirring well after each bit.

Scrape into the loaf pan and bake in the middle of the oven for 1-1¼ hours.

When it’s ready, an inserted toothpick or fine skewer should come out cleanish.

Leave in the pan on a rack to cool, and eat thickly or thinly sliced, as you prefer.

LEMON MERINGUE CAKE

LEMON MERINGUE CAKE

In all honesty, the origin of this cake is simply that I cannot make a go of a lemon meringue pie. I’ve tried, and I’ve tried, and it’s not that I’ve utterly failed, but I haven’t completely delighted myself. There’s enough of that kind of falling short in the rest of life, without having to usher in disappointment and self-loathing in the kitchen. This, then, is the easy option. After the effortless success – no credit to me, it’s just a simple recipe – of the strawberry meringue layer cake in Forever Summer, it seemed obvious to make a few marginal changes to turn it into this. And the funny thing is, the layers of cake, with their crisp-carapaced squashy-bellied meringue topping are sandwiched with tart lemon curd and softly whipped cream, so much better than a lemon meringue pie could ever be. I include it here because it seems to sing with springtime and Easter hopefulness, but I wouldn’t push it away at any time of the year.

- Nigella Lawson

Yield : Makes 8 slices

Ingredients

1 stick plus 1 tablespoon very soft unsalted butter

4 eggs, separated

1½ cups plus 1 teaspoon superfine sugar

¾ cup all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

Zest of 1 lemon

4 teaspoons lemon juice

2 teaspoons milk

½ teaspoon cream of tartar

2/3 cup heavy or whipping cream

½ cup plus 2 tablespoons good quality lemon curd

Method

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line and butter two 8-inch cake pans.

Mix the egg yolks, ½ cup of the sugar, the butter, flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and lemon zest in a processor. Add the lemon juice and milk and process again.

Divide the mixture between the prepared pans.

You will think you don’t even have enough to cover the bottom of the pans, but don’t panic.

Spread calmly with a rubber spatula until smooth.

Whisk the egg whites and cream of tartar until peaks form and then slowly whisk in the cup of sugar.

Divide the whisked whites between the two pans, pouring or, more accurately, spreading the meringue straight on top of the cake batter.

Smooth one flat with a metal spatula, and with the back of a spoon, peak the other and sprinkle 1 teaspoon sugar over the peaks. Put the pans into the oven for 20–25 minutes.

With a cake-tester, pierce the cake that has the flat meringue topping to check it’s cooked all through. (It will have risen now but will fall back flattish later.) No sponge mixture should stick to the tester.

Remove both cakes to a wire rack and let cool completely in the pans.

Unmold the flat-topped one onto a cake stand or plate, meringue side down.

Whisk the heavy cream until thick but not stiff and set aside.

Spread the flat sponge surface of the first, waiting, cake with the lemon curd and then spatula over the cream and top with the remaining cake, bronze-peaked meringue uppermost.

CHOCOLATE CHOCOLATE-CHIP MUFFINS

CHOCOLATE CHOCOLATE-CHIP MUFFINS

Look, I’m not claiming this is the healthiest breakfast in the world, but I think you can let them try their hand at these once in a while at the weekend, don’t you?

Yield : Makes 12

Ingredients

1¾ cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

2 tablespoons best-quality unsweetened cocoa

1 large egg

¾ cup semisweet chocolate chips (plus more for sprinkling later)

1 cup milk

1/3 cup plus 2 teaspoons vegetable oil

¾ cup superfine sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Method

Preheat the oven to 400°F and fill a muffin tin with paper cups.

Measure out the dry ingredients into a large bowl.

Pour all the liquid ingredients into a measuring cup.

Mix both together, remembering that a lumpy batter makes the best muffins (although my children always over-mix as they argue over whose turn it is to stir next) then spoon into the waiting muffin cups.

Sprinkle more chocolate chips on top then cook for 20 minutes or until the muffins are dark, risen and springy.

PEANUT BRITTLE WITH ART AND SOUL

PEANUT BRITTLE WITH ART AND SOUL

This title isn’t a boast, but a name to denote provenance. It’s a recipe given to me, at my greedy request, by the cook-and-a-half, Art Smith. True, I’ve slightly simplified it, but only because I don’t have his deserved confidence, so I make my batch smaller, and leave out the difficult technical bits.

But even so, what this makes is fabulous: you really have to steel yourself to give it away.

- Nigella Lawson

Yield : Makes approx. 10 oz.

Ingredients

1 cup sugar

¼ cup water

½ cup light corn syrup

1 cup salted peanuts

1½ teaspoons vanilla extract

1 tablespoon soft butter

1¼ teaspoons baking soda

Method

Get out a large sheet of parchment paper or aluminum foil, place on a cookie sheet, and butter or oil it. Sit it by the stove, waiting to receive the brittle once it’s ready to pour.

Put the sugar, water and syrup into a saucepan, bring to the boil gently, then turn up the heat and let it boil for 8-10 minutes, swirling (but not stirring) the pan a couple of times, until the syrup has turned gold in color. It will be smoking by then, so be warned!

Take the pan off the heat and, with a wooden spoon, stir in the nuts, followed by the vanilla, butter and baking soda. You will have a golden, frothy, hot and gooey mixture.

Pour this briskly onto the waiting parchment or foil, using your wooden spoon to coax and pull it to make a nut-studded sheet, puddle-shaped though it may be, rather than a heap.

Leave it to cool, then break into pieces and store in at airtight container or box; or bag up to give at once as presents.

You’ll get about 1 pound in total, and it’s up to you how much you want to put in each bag, really. I find it easier to do several small batches like this, rather than multiplying quantities as I cook.

COCONUT MACAROONS

COCONUT MACAROONS

These are a very English kind of macaroon, the sort you always used to see displayed in bakers’ shops alongside the madeleines (those sponge castles dipped in luminous strawberry jam and dredged in throat-catching grated coconut, and so very different from those that inflamed the memory of Marcel Proust). The difference with coconut macaroons is that you need neither to be ironic nor self-consciously retro-cool to enjoy them.

One bit of retail bossiness here: buy shredded, not grated, coconut, otherwise the sugary, fragrant dampness—which is, after all, the whole point—will be lost.

- Nigella Lawson

Yield : Makes 8 large macaroons

Ingredients

2 large egg whites

¼ teaspoon cream of tartar

1/3 cup sugar

2 tablespoons ground almonds

Pinch of salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract (or coconut extract, should such be available)

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons shredded coconut

Method

1 baking sheet, lined with parchment or wax paper

Preheat the oven to 325°F.

Beat the egg whites until frothy—no more—then add the cream of tartar and carry on beating, Missus, until soft peaks are formed. Add the sugar a teaspoon at a time and whisk until the peaks can hold their shape and are shiny. Fold in the almonds, salt, vanilla, and coconut. The mixture will be sticky but should, all the same, hold its shape when clumped together.

Form into clementine-sized domes, 2 to 3 inches in diameter. Don’t make them too flat; they look best if you keep them nicely rounded, but this is really just a matter of personal taste, so follow your own.

Cook for 20 minutes or until they’re just beginning to turn golden in parts.

LEKACH

LEKACH

Honey cake and the related ginger cake have been favorite Jewish cakes since the early Middle Ages in Germany. Although the earliest recorded German recipe for Lebkuchen (honey-sweetened gingerbread) is from the sixteenth century, there are much earlier mentions in Jewish records—some as early as the twelfth century, when it was the custom for young boys attending heder (Jewish school) to bring a piece of honey cake on the first day. In Eastern Europe they became Jewish festive cakes and were eaten at all joyful celebrations, such as betrothals and weddings. Honey cake is the traditional cake of Rosh Hashanah, symbolizing the hope that the New Year will be sweet, and also of Purim. This one is moist and delicious with a great richness of flavor. It should be made at least 3 days before you want to eat it, and it keeps a long time.

- Claudia Roden

Yield : One 9-inch cake

Ingredients

2 eggs

1 cup (200 g) sugar

½ cup (125 ml) light vegetable oil

Scant 1 cup (250 g) dark liquid honey

2 tablespoons rum or brandy

½ cup (125 ml) warm strong black coffee

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

A pinch of salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

¼ teaspoon powdered cloves

Grated zest of 1 orange

2 cups (300 g) flour, plus extra to dust the dried fruit and nuts

½ cup (50 g) coarsely chopped walnuts or slivered almonds

1/3 cup (40 g) golden raisins

Method

Beat the eggs with the sugar till pale and creamy. Then beat in the oil, honey, brandy, and coffee.

Mix the baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cloves, and orange zest with the flour. Add gradually to the egg-and-honey mixture, beating vigorously to a smooth batter.

Dust the golden raisins and the walnuts or almonds with flour to prevent them from dropping to the bottom of the cake, and stir them into the batter.

Line a 9-inch (24-cm) pan with greaseproof paper or with foil, brushed with oil and dusted with flour, and pour in the batter. Or divide between 2 9-by-5-inch (24-by-13-cm) loaf pans.

Bake the large cake in a preheated 350°F (180°C) oven for 1¼ hours, or longer, until firm and brown on top, and the smaller ones for 1 hour.

OAT CRUNCH BISCUITS

OAT CRUNCH BISCUITS

Making these delicious little biscuits at home will cost you half what you would pay in the shops. These ingredients are enough for 12 biscuits.

- Delia Smith

Ingredients

4½ oz (125 g) porridge oats

4 oz (110 g) butter or margarine

3 oz (75 g) Demerara sugar

Preheat the oven to gas mark 5, 375F (190C).

Method

Well butter a shallow baking tin (11 x 7 inches/28 x 18 cm). Then melt 4 oz (110 g) butter gently in a saucepan, without letting it colour, and mix the sugar and porridge oats evenly in a mixing bowl.

Now pour the melted butter into the mixture, and mix until all the ingredients are well and truly blended together.

And all you have to do now is press this mixture all over the base of the baking tin and then bake in the oven for 15 minutes or until they’re a nice pale golden colour. Take the tin out of the oven, and cut the mixture into 12 portions – then leave in the tin until quite cold and crisp before removing them to an airtight tin (if you want to store them)

ICED LEMON CURD CAKE

ICED LEMON CURD CAKE

You couldn't get a more lemony recipe than this: layers of lemon-flavoured sponge, filled with home-made lemon curd and then a lemon icing for the finishing touch. It's wonderful.

- Delia Smith

Ingredients

grated zest 1 lemon

1 tablespoon lemon juice

6 oz (175 g) self-raising flour, sifted

1 level teaspoon baking powder

6 oz (175 g) butter at room temperature

6 oz (175 g) caster sugar

3 large eggs

For the lemon curd:

grated zest and juice 1 large juicy lemon

3 oz (75 g) caster sugar

2 large eggs

2 oz (50 g) unsalted butter

For the icing:

zest 1 large lemon

2-3 teaspoons lemon juice

2 oz (50 g) sifted icing sugar

Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 3, 325°F (170°C).

Prepare two 7 inch (18 cm) sandwich tins, 1½ inches (4 cm) deep, by greasing them, lining the bases with silicone paper (baking parchment) and greasing the paper too.

Method

Just measure all the cake ingredients into a mixing bowl and beat – ideally with an electric hand whisk – till you have a smooth, creamy consistency.

Then divide the mixture evenly between the two tins and bake them on the centre shelf of the oven for about 35 minutes or until the centres feel springy when lightly touched with a little finger.

While the cakes are cooking, make the lemon curd. Place the sugar and grated lemon zest in a bowl, whisk the lemon juice together with the eggs, then pour this over the sugar.

Then add the butter cut into little pieces, and place the bowl over a pan of barely simmering water. Stir frequently till thickened – about 20 minutes. You don't have to stay with it – just come back from time to time to give it a stir.

When the cakes are cooked, remove them from the oven and after about 30 seconds turn them out on to a wire rack.

When they are absolutely cold – and not before – carefully cut each one horizontally into two using a sharp serrated knife. Now spread the curd thickly to sandwich the sponges together.

Then to make the icing, begin by removing the zest from the lemon – it's best to use a zester to get long, curly strips.

Then sift the icing sugar into a bowl and gradually stir in the lemon juice until you have a soft, runny consistency.

Allow the icing to stand for 5 minutes before spreading it on top of the cake with a knife, almost to the edges, and don't worry if it runs a little down the sides of the cake.

Then scatter the lemon zest over the top and leave it for half an hour for the icing to firm up before serving.

THE ULTIMATE CARROT CAKE

THE ULTIMATE CARROT CAKE

I have been making carrot cake for years, and each time it seems to improve with a little tinkering here and there. Now I think it has reached its all-time peak – this one has been unanimously voted the best ever!

- Delia Smith

Ingredients

7 oz (200 g) wholemeal self-raising flour

3 level teaspoons mixed spice

1 level teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

6 oz (175 g) dark brown soft sugar, sifted

2 large eggs

5 fl oz (150 ml) sunflower oil

grated zest 1 orange

7 oz (200 g) carrots, peeled and coarsely grated

4 oz (110 g) sultanas

2 oz (50 g) desiccated coconut

2 oz (50 g) pecan nuts

For the syrup glaze:

juice 1 small orange

1 tablespoon lemon juice

3 oz (75 g) dark brown soft sugar

For the topping:

1 x 250 g tub mascarpone

1 x 200g tub fromage frais, 8% fat

1 rounded tablespoon golden caster sugar

1 heaped teaspoon ground cinnamon

To serve:

2oz (50 g) pecan nuts

You will also need 2 x 8 in (20 cm) sandwich tins, 1½ in ( 4 cm) deep, bases lined with baking parchment.

Method

Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 6, 400°F (200°C), then turn it down to gas mark 3, 325°F (170°C) when you have toasted the pecan nuts.

First, place all the pecan nuts on a baking sheet and, using a timer, toast them in the oven for 8 minutes. Now chop one half roughly for the cake and the other more finely, for the topping later. Then don’t forget to turn the oven down to gas mark 3, 325°F (170°C) for the cake.

To make the cake, whisk the sugar, eggs and oil together in a bowl with an electric hand whisk for 2-3 minutes, then check that there is no sugar left undissolved.

Now sift the flour, mixed spice and bicarbonate of soda into the bowl, tipping in the bits of bran left in the sieve.

Then stir all this in gently, followed by the remaining cake ingredients. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared tins and bake the cakes on the centre shelf of the oven for about 30 minutes.

They should be nicely risen, feel firm and springy to the touch when lightly pressed in the centre, and show signs of shrinking away from the sides of the tin. If not, give them another 2-3 minutes and test again.

Meanwhile, make the topping by whisking all the ingredients together in a bowl until light and fluffy.

Then cover with clingfilm and chill for 1-2 hours, until you are ready to ice the cakes.

To make the syrup glaze, whisk together the fruit juices and sugar in another bowl and then, when the cakes come out of the oven, stab them all over with a skewer and quickly spoon the syrup evenly over the hot cakes.

Now leave them to one side to cool in their tins, during which time the syrup will be absorbed.

Then, when the cakes are completely cold, remove them from the tins.

Spread one-third of the filling over one of the cakes, place the other on top, then cover the top and sides with the remaining icing.

Scatter the remaining toasted pecan nuts over the top.

SATURDAY CARROT CAKE

SATURDAY CARROT CAKE

One of the surprises of the website is what marvellous memories some of you have. Within a few weeks of launch along came an e-mail from G Blatherwick requesting this recipe from the 1980s Saturday TV programme SuperStore.

It is a darker, denser cake than my most recent version and very simple to make: as I said at the time the rule for recipes on that crazy programme was, 'Pick something where nothing – much – could go wrong.

- Delia Smith

Ingredients

3 oz (75 g) peeled and grated carrot (about 1 medium-sized carrot)

4 oz (110 g) plain wholewheat flour

½ level teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

½ level teaspoon ground cinnamon

3 fl oz (75 ml) groundnut oil

3 oz (75 g) soft brown sugar

1 large egg, lightly beaten

2 oz (50 g) chopped walnuts

For the topping:

2 oz (50 g) full-fat soft cream cheese

1 oz (25 g) unsalted butter (at room temperature)

1 oz (25 g) icing sugar, sieved

8 walnut pieces (optional)

Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 2, 300°F (150°C).

You will need a 1 lb (450 g) loaf tin 6 x 3¾ x 2¾ inches (15 x 9.5 x 7 cm). Brush it with some melted butter, then line the base with greaseproof paper, and brush that as well.

Method

Grate the carrot straight into a mixing bowl, then sift in the dry ingredients to give them a good airing and tip any grains left behind in the sieve into the bowl too.

Add all the rest of the cake ingredients and stir well until everything is well and truly mixed, then scrape the mixture into your prepared tin.

Bake the cake in the centre of the oven for 1 hour, or until well risen.

When cooked it will come about two-thirds of the way up the tin and just begin to shrink away from the sides of the tin.

After that remove it from the oven and leave the tin on a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes before turning the cake out and stripping off the paper.

When it has cooled for 45 minutes or so, you can spread the topping on.

To make the topping, combine the ingredients in a small bowl and beat until smooth.

Spread it thickly on the top of the cake and decorate it, perhaps with additional walnut pieces.

Store in an airtight tin or container.

BARA BRITH

BARA BRITH

There are several different versions of this Welsh 'speckled bread'. Many of them don't contain yeast; but, for me, this version is the nicest and if there's any left over it's delicious toasted. In my Welsh childhood, I remember it made with yeast, very spicy and spread with lots of butter. Please note that easy-blend yeast is not suitable for this recipe.

- Delia Smith

Ingredients

8 fl oz (225 ml) milk

2 oz (50 g) brown sugar, plus 1 teaspoon

4 level teaspoons dried yeast

1 lb (450 g) strong plain flour

1 level teaspoon salt

3 oz (75 g) butter or margarine

1 level teaspoon mixed spice

1 egg, beaten

12 oz (350 g) mixed dried fruit

clear honey, to glaze

You will also need a 2 lb (900 g) loaf tin, well greased.

Method

First warm the milk in a small saucepan till it's hand-hot, and then pour it into a bowl.

Whisk in the teaspoon of sugar, followed by the yeast, then leave it in a warm place to froth for about 15 minutes.

Now sift the flour and salt into a large mixing bowl, stirring in the remaining 2 oz (50 g) sugar as well.

Then rub the fat into the dry ingredients until the mixture looks like fine breadcrumbs.

Stir in the mixed spice next, then pour in the beaten egg and frothed yeast, and mix to a dough.

Now turn the dough on to a floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic (about 10 minutes), then replace the dough in the bowl and cover with a damp cloth or some clingfilm.

Leave in a warm place to rise until it has doubled in size – about 1½ hours. After that, turn the dough out and knock it down to get the air out, then gradually knead the fruit in and pat out to a rectangular shape. Roll it up from one short side to the other and put it in the loaf tin (seam-side down).

Place the tin inside an oiled plastic bag and leave it to rise, until the dough has rounded nicely above the edge of the tin (about 30-45 minutes). Meanwhile, pre-heat the oven to gas mark 5, 375°F (190°C).

When the dough has risen and springs back when pressed lightly with a floured finger, remove the bag; transfer the loaf to the oven and bake on the shelf below centre for 30 minutes.

Then cover the top of the loaf tin with foil to prevent it over-browning, and continue to bake for a further 30 minutes.

Turn the loaf out, holding it in a tea-cloth in one hand and tapping the base with the other.

It should sound hollow – if not, pop it back upside down (without the tin) for 5 minutes more.

Cool the loaf on a wire rack, and brush the top with clear honey to make it nice and sticky, before the loaf cools.

Slice thinly and serve buttered.

FOUR NUT CHOCOLATE BROWNIES

FOUR NUT CHOCOLATE BROWNIES

If you've never made brownies before, you first need to get into the brownie mode, and to do this stop thinking 'cakes'. Brownies are slightly crisp on the outside but soft, damp and squidgy within. I'm always getting letters from people who think their brownies are not cooked, so once you've accepted the description above, try and forget all about cakes.

- Delia Smith

Ingredients

1 oz (25 g) macadamia nuts

1 oz (25 g) Brazil nuts

1 oz (25 g) pecan nuts

1 oz (25 g) hazelnuts

2 oz (50 g) dark chocolate (75 per cent cocoa solids)

4 oz (110 g) butter

2 large eggs, beaten

8 oz (225 g) granulated sugar

2 oz (50 g) plain flour

1 level teaspoon baking powder

¼ level teaspoon salt

Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 4, 350°F (180°C)

You will also need a well-greased oblong baking tin measuring 7 x 11 inches (18 x 28 cm), lined with silicone paper (baking parchment), allowing the paper to come 1 inch (2.5 cm) above the tin.

Method

Begin by chopping the nuts roughly, not too small, then place them on a baking sheet and toast them in a pre-heated oven for 8 minutes exactly.

Please use a timer here otherwise you'll be throwing burned nuts away all day!

While the nuts are cooking, put the chocolate and butter together in a large mixing bowl fitted over a saucepan of barely simmering water, making sure the bowl doesn't touch the water.

Allow the chocolate to melt, then beat it until smooth, remove it from the heat and simply stir in all the other ingredients until thoroughly blended.

Now spread the mixture evenly into the prepared tin and bake on the centre shelf of the oven for 30 minutes or until it's slightly springy in the centre.

Remove the tin from the oven and leave it to cool for 10 minutes before cutting into roughly 15 squares.

Then, using a palette knife, transfer the squares on to a wire rack to finish cooling.

PRESERVED GINGER CAKE

PRESERVED GINGER CAKE

In all my years of cooking, this is, quite simply, my favourite cake. It's simple but absolute heaven. The spiciness of the ginger within the moist cake, coupled with the sharpness of the lemon icing, is such that it never fails to please all who eat it.

- Delia Smith

Ingredients

5 pieces preserved stem ginger in syrup, chopped

2 tablespoons ginger syrup (from jar of stem ginger in syrup)

1 heaped teaspoon ground ginger

1 heaped teaspoon grated fresh root ginger

6 oz (175 g) butter, at room temperature, plus a little extra for greasing

6 oz (175 g) golden caster sugar

3 large eggs, at room temperature

1 tablespoon molasses syrup

8 oz (225 g) self-raising flour

1 level tablespoon ground almonds

2 tablespoons milk

For the icing:

juice 1 lemon

2 extra pieces preserved stem ginger in syrup

8 oz (225 g) unrefined golden icing sugar

Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 3, 325°F (170°C).

You will also need a non-stick cake tin measuring 6 x 10 inches (15 x 25.5 cm), 1 inch (2.5 cm) deep, and some silicone paper (parchment) measuring 10 x 14 inches (25.5 x 35 cm).

Method

First prepare the cake tin by greasing it lightly and lining it with the silicone paper: press it into the tin, folding the corners in to make it fit neatly. The paper should come up 1 inch (2.5 cm) above the edge.

To make the cake, take a large mixing bowl and cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.

Next break the eggs into a jug and beat them with a fork until fluffy, then gradually beat them into the mixture, a little at a time, until all the egg is incorporated.

Next fold in the ginger syrup and molasses; the best way to add the molasses is to lightly grease a tablespoon, then take a tablespoon of molasses and just push it off the spoon with a rubber spatula into the mixture.

Now sift the flour and ground ginger on to a plate, then gradually fold these in, about a tablespoon at a time.

Next fold in the almonds, followed by the milk, and lastly the grated root ginger and pieces of stem ginger.

Now spread the cake mixture evenly in the cake tin, then bake on the middle shelf of the oven for 45-50 minutes, or until the cake is risen, springy and firm to touch in the centre.

Leave the cake to cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then turn it out on to a wire rack and make sure it is absolutely cold before you attempt to ice it.

For the icing, sift the icing sugar into a bowl and mix with enough of the lemon juice to make the consistency of thick cream – you might not need all the lemon juice.

Now spread the icing over the top of the cake, and don't worry if it dribbles down the sides in places, as this looks quite attractive.

Cut the remaining ginger into 15 chunks and place these in lines across the cake so that when you cut it you will have 15 squares, each with a piece of ginger in the centre.

It's absolute heaven. If you'd like one or two of these cakes tucked away for a rainy day, they freeze beautifully – simply defrost and put the icing on half an hour before serving.

AUSTRIAN COFFEE AND WALNUT CAKE

AUSTRIAN COFFEE AND WALNUT CAKE

This is unashamedly rich and luscious. Firstly, coffee and walnuts have a great affinity; secondly, so do coffee and creaminess; and thirdly, because the cake is soaked in coffee syrup, it's also meltingly moist.

- Delia Smith

Ingredients

For the sponge cake:

1½ level tablespoons instant coffee mixed with 2 tablespoons boiling water

3 oz (75 g) walnut halves

6 oz (175 g) self-raising flour

1½ level teaspoons baking powder

6 oz (175 g) softened butter

6 oz (175 g) golden caster sugar

3 large eggs at room temperature

For the syrup:

1 level tablespoon instant espresso coffee powder

2 oz (50 g) demerara sugar

For the filling and topping:

1 level tablespoon instant espresso coffee powder

1 rounded tablespoon golden caster sugar

10 walnut halves, reserved from the sponge cake

9 oz (250 g) mascarpone

7 fl oz (200 ml) 8 per cent fat fromage frais

Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 3, 325°F (170°C).

You will also need two 8 inch (20 cm) sandwich tins, 1½ inches (4 cm) deep, lightly greased and the bases lined with silicone paper (baking parchment).

Method

First of all you need to toast all the walnuts, so spread them on a baking sheet and place in the pre-heated oven for 7-8 minutes. After that, reserve 10 halves to use as decoration later and finely chop the rest.

Take a very large mixing bowl, put the flour and baking powder in a sieve and sift it into the bowl, holding the sieve high to give it a good airing as it goes down.

Now all you do is simply add all the other cake ingredients (except the coffee and walnuts) to the bowl and, provided the butter is really soft, just go in with an electric hand whisk and whisk everything together until you have a smooth, well-combined mixture, then fold in the coffee and chopped walnuts.

This will take about 1 minute but, if you don't have an electric hand whisk, you can use a wooden spoon and a little bit more effort.

What you should end up with is a soft mixture that drops off the spoon easily when you give it a sharp tap; if not, add a spot of water.

Divide the mixture between the prepared sandwich tins, spreading the mixture around evenly. Then place the tins on the centre shelf of the oven and bake them for 30 minutes.

While the cakes are cooking you can make up the syrup and the filling and topping. For the syrup, first place the coffee and sugar in a heatproof jug, then measure 2 fl oz (55 ml) boiling water into it and stir briskly until the coffee and sugar have dissolved, which will take about 1 minute.

Next, the filling and topping, and all you do here is place all the ingredients, except the reserved walnuts, in a bowl and whisk them together till thoroughly blended.

Then cover the bowl with clingfilm and chill till needed.

When the cakes are cooked, ie, feel springy in the centre, remove them from the oven but leave them in their tins and prick them all over with a skewer while they are still hot.

Now spoon the syrup as evenly as possible over each one and leave them to soak up the liquid as they cool in their tins.

When they are absolutely cold, turn them out very carefully and peel off the base papers – it's a good idea to turn one out on to the plate you're going to serve it on. Then spread half the filling and topping mixture over the first cake, place the other cake carefully on top and spread the other half over.

Finally, arrange the reserved walnut halves in a circle all around. It's a good idea to chill the cake if you're not going to serve it immediately.

CHOCOLATE FUDGE CAKE

CHOCOLATE FUDGE CAKE

This recipe was born in the Seventies, when there was a sudden surge of partiality for all things healthy and 'whole'. The problem was, 'whole' sometimes meant heavy. Not so with this one, though, as the wholemeal flour gives an extra special moistness to the cake.

- Delia Smith

Ingredients

For the cake:

6 oz (175 g) self-raising wholemeal flour

1 rounded teaspoon baking powder

6 oz (175 g) very soft butter

6 oz (175 g) light soft brown sugar

3 large eggs, at room temperature

1 rounded tablespoon cocoa powder

For the chocolate fudge filling and topping:

4½ oz (125 g) light soft brown sugar

1 x 170 g tin evaporated milk

4½ oz (125 g) dark chocolate (50-55 per cent cocoa solids), broken into small pieces

2 oz (50 g) soft butter

2 drops vanilla extract

To decorate:

4 oz (110 g) whole almonds

cocoa powder or icing sugar, for dusting

Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 3, 325°F (170°C).

You will also need two 7 inch (18 cm) sponge tins, 1½ inches (4 cm) deep, lightly greased, and the bases lined with baking parchment.

Method

First of all, weigh the flour, then take out 1 rounded tablespoon of flour and replace it with the rounded tablespoon of cocoa. The tablespoon of flour you take out won't be needed.

Now simply take a very large mixing bowl, place the flour, baking powder and cocoa in a sieve and sift it into the bowl, holding the sieve high to give it a good airing as it goes down.

All you do is simply add the remaining cake ingredients to the bowl and beat them together. What you will end up with is a mixture that drops off a spoon when you give it a tap on the side of the bowl. If the mixture seems a little too stiff, add a little water and mix again. Now divide the mixture and spread it evenly in the prepared tins and bake on the centre shelf of the oven for about 30-35 minutes or until springy in the centre. After 30 seconds (or thereabouts), turn the cakes out on to a wire cooling rack and strip off the base papers.

Leave to cool while you make the chocolate fudge filling and topping.

To do this, combine the sugar and evaporated milk in a heavy saucepan.

Heat gently to dissolve the sugar, stirring frequently.

When the sugar has dissolved and the mixture comes to the boil, keep the heat very low and simmer for 6 minutes without stirring.

Remove the pan from the heat and, using a small balloon whisk, whisk in the chocolate, followed by the butter and vanilla extract.

Transfer the mixture to a bowl and, when it is cool, cover it with clingfilm and chill for about an hour to allow the mixture to thicken.

Then beat again, and spread half on one sponge, placing the other one on top.

Use the rest to spread over the top and sides and decorate the top with almonds, dusted with cocoa powder or icing sugar.

NIGELLA'S STICKY GINGERBREAD

NIGELLA'S STICKY GINGERBREAD

"I can’t disentangle the smell of gingerbread from the smell of Christmas: I can think of no better welcome as people come through the door of the kitchen than the waft of it freshly baking in the oven. It is relaxingly simple to prepare, is good at any hour and keeps wonderfully.

I’m happy with it unfrosted, just left plain or perhaps snowily dusted with icing sugar, but if you want you can (as I do if it is for a bake sale) make a sharply contrasting icing by sieving 175g icing sugar and mixing it till thick and spreadable with a tablespoon of lemon juice and one of warm water. Spread this over the cold slab of gingerbread, and leave to set before cutting.

But it is, perhaps, the simplicity of the gingerbread, sticky with syrup and dark muscovado sugar, that makes me love it most. A square of it with a nice cup of tea would make even wrapping-up seem less vile, though I’d recommend having a pack of wipes nearby."

- Nigella Lawson

Ingredients

150g butter

200g golden syrup

200g black treacle or molasses

125g dark muscovado sugar

2 teaspoons finely grated ginger

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda, dissolved in 2 x 15ml tablespoons warm water

250ml full-fat milk

2 eggs, beaten to mix

300g plain flour

Method

Preheat the oven to 170°C/gas mark 3 and line a roasting tin or ovenproof dish (approx. 30cm x 20cm x 5cm) with Bake-O-Glide, foil or baking parchment (if using foil, grease it too).

In a saucepan, melt the butter over a lowish heat along with the sugar, syrup, treacle, fresh and ground gingers, cinnamon and cloves.

Take off the heat, and add the milk, eggs and dissolved bicarbonate of soda in its water.

Measure the flour into a bowl and pour in the liquid ingredients, beating until well mixed. It will be a very liquid batter, so don’t worry. This is part of

what makes it sticky later.

Pour it into the prepared tin and bake for 45–60 minutes until risen and firm on top. Try not to overcook, as it is nicer a little stickier, and anyway will carry on cooking as it cools.

Transfer the tin to a wire rack and let the gingerbread cool in the tin before cutting into 20 squares, or however you wish to slice it.

BLONDIES

BLONDIES

- Nigella Lawson

Ingredients

200g porridge oats, not instant

100g plain flour

0.5 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

150g soft unsalted butter

100g light muscovado sugar

1 x 397g can condensed milk

1 egg

1 x 170g packet dark chocolate morsels or chocolate chips

1 x 23cm square cake tin or 1 x foil tray approx. 30 x 20 x 5cm

Method

Preheat the oven to 180degrees celcius/gas mark 4 and line your square cake tin with foil – this makes it easier to get the Blondies out once they’re cooked – or use a foil barcecue tray.

Combine the oats, flour and bicarb in a bowl.

In another bowl mix or beat the soft butter with the sugar until pale and airily creamy, then beat in the condensed milk followed by the oats, flour and bicarb mixture.

When these are well mixed, beat in the egg, and into this relatively thick mixture fold the chocolate chips.

Dollop this thick bumpy batter into the prepared tin, and smooth it down with a spatula, then cook in the preheated oven for about 35 minutes. When ready, it will be quite a pronounced dark gold around the edges and coming away from the tin. It will look and feel cooked on top, though just beneath it will still seem frighteningly squidgy, not to say, wibbly. But it firms up as it cools in the tin, so to end up with the requisite chewiness you have to take it out of the oven while it feels a tad undercooked.

COFFEE AND WALNUT LAYER CAKE

COFFEE AND WALNUT LAYER CAKE

"Neither of my grandmothers, nor indeed my mother, was a baker but this cake is nonetheless the cake of my childhood. When I was little, I used to make it for my younger sister’s birthday every year. Demonstrated at the 2011 Melbourne Food and Wine Festival."

- Nigella lawson

Ingredients

Sponge

50g walnut pieces

225g caster sugar

225g soft unsalted butter, plus some for greasing

200g plain flour

4 tsp instant espresso powder

2½ tsp baking powder

½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

4 eggs

1–2 x 15ml tbsp milk

Buttercream Frosting

350g icing sugar

175g soft unsalted butter

2½ tsp instant espresso powder, dissolved in 1 x 15ml tbsp boiling water

25g walnut halves, to decorate

2 x 20cm sandwich tins

Method

Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas mark 4. Butter the 2 sandwich tins and line the base of each with baking parchment.

Put the walnut pieces and sugar into a food processor and blitz to a fine nutty powder.

Add the 225g butter, flour, 4 teaspoons espresso powder, baking powder, bicarb and eggs and process to a smooth batter. Add the milk, pouring it down the funnel with the motor still running, or just pulsing, to loosen the cake mixture: it should be a soft, dropping consistency, so add more milk if you need to.

(If you are making this by hand, bash the nuts to a rubbly powder with a rolling pin and mix with the dry ingredients; then cream the butter and sugar together, and beat in some dry ingredients and eggs alternately and, finally, the milk.)

Divide the mixture between the 2 lined tins and bake in the oven for 25 minutes, or until the sponge has risen and feels springy to the touch.

Cool the cakes in their tins on a wire rack for about 10 minutes, before turning them out onto the rack and peeling off the baking parchment.

When the sponges are cool, you can make the buttercream.

Pulse the icing sugar in the food processor until it is lump free, then add the butter and process to make a smooth icing.

Dissolve the instant espresso powder in 1 tablespoon boiling water and add it while still hot to the processor, pulsing to blend into the buttercream.

If you are doing this by hand, sieve the icing sugar and beat it into the butter with a wooden spoon. Then beat in the hot coffee liquid.

Place 1 sponge upside down on your cake stand or serving plate. Spread with about half the icing; then place on it the second sponge, right side up (i.e. so the 2 flat sides of the sponges meet in the middle) and cover the top with the remaining icing in a ramshackle swirly pattern.

This cake is all about old-fashioned, rustic charm, so don’t worry unduly: however the frosting goes on is fine. Similarly, don’t fret about some buttercream oozing out around the middle: that’s what makes it look so inviting.

Gently press the walnut halves into the top of the icing all around the edge of the circle about 1cm apart

COCONUT AND CHERRY BANANA BREAD - Nigella Lawson

COCONUT AND CHERRY BANANA BREAD

- Nigella Lawson

Ingredients

125g soft unsalted butter, plus some for greasing

4 small-medium bananas (approx. 500g with the skin on)

150g of caster sugar

2 eggs

175g plain flour

2 teaspoons of baking powder

1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

100g of dried cherries

100g of desicated coconut

1 x 900g (2lb) loaf tin

Method

Preheat the oven to 170 C/gas mark 3. Put a loaf liner in your tin, or just line the bottom with baking parchment and grease the sides.

Melt the butter in a saucepan, take off the heat and leave to cool. Peel and mash the bananas in another bowl.

Beat the sugar into the cooled, melted butter, then beat in the bananas and the eggs. Fold in the flour, baking powder, and bicarb. Finally, add the dried cherries and coconut.

Fold well so that everthing is incorporated, then pour and scrape into the lined loaf tin and smooth the top.

Bake for 5o mins, but check after 45. When it’s ready, the cake will be coming away from the sides of the tin and will be bouncy on top. Leave it in the tin for 10 mins before transfering to a wire rack to cool.

CHOCOLATE BANANA MUFFINS

I think of muffins as a treaty weekend breakfast, but these look so darkly elegant, especially in their matching dark-brown, tulip-skirted party frocks, that they positively beg to be brought out with coffee after dinner. Certainly, while most muffins are at their best pretty well straight out of the oven, the bananas in the mixture make sure these beauties keep their moist, eat-me texture long after those less favoured have staled and lost their allure."

- Nigella Lawson

Ingredients

3 very ripe or overripe bananas

125ml vegetable oil

2 eggs

100g soft light brown sugar

225g plain flour

3 x 15ml tablespoons best-quality cocoa powder, sifted

1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

1 x 12-bun muffin tin

Method

Preheat the oven to 200°C/gas mark 6 and line a muffin tin with papers. Don’t worry about getting special papers: regular muffin cases will do the job.

Mash the bananas by hand or with a freestanding mixer.Still beating and mashing, add the oil followed by the eggs and sugar.

Mix the flour, cocoa powder and bicarb together and add this mixture, beating gently, to the banana mixture, then spoon it into the prepared papers.

Bake in the preheated oven for 15–20 minutes, by which time the muffins should be dark, rounded and peeking proudly out of their cases. Allow to cool slightly in their tin before removing to a wire rack.

BREAKFAST BARS

BREAKFAST BARS

"I am addicted to these, and so is everyone I give them to. Although they're quick to throw together, they do take nearly an hour to bake, so what I suggest is, make a batch at the weekend and then you will have the oaty, chewy bars ready and waiting for those days when you have to snatch breakfast on the hoof.

Mind you, they are just like milk and cereal in bar form, so there's nothing to stop you nibbling at one with your morning coffee at home every day. If you are not a morning person, believe me, they will make your life easier.

They also store well; indeed, they seem to get better and better. So just stash a tin with them and remove as and when you want."

- Nigella Lawson

Ingredients

1 x 397g can condensed milk

250g rolled oats (not instant)

75g shredded coconut

100g dried cranberries

125g mixed seeds (pumpkin, sunflower, sesame)

125g natural unsalted peanuts

Method

Preheat the oven to 130°C/gas mark 1/2, and oil a 23 x 33 x 4cm baking tin, or use a throwaway foil one.

Warm the condensed milk in a large pan.

Meanwhile, mix together all the other ingredients and then add the warmed condensed milk, using a rubber or wooden spatula to fold and distribute.

Spread the mixture into the tin and press down with the spatula or, better still, your hands (wearing disposable vinyl gloves to stop you sticking), to even the surface.

Bake for 1 hour, then remove from the oven and, after about 15 minutes, cut into four across, and four down to make 16 chunky bars. Let cool completely.

TOTALLY CHOCOLATE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

TOTALLY CHOCOLATE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

"Along with chocolate, there is much comfort to be gleaned from reading cookbooks. This recipe combines two loves by being chocolatey to the point of madness and having revealed itself to me after a cosy, snuggled-down read of Elinor Klivans' glorious Big Fat Cookies. What I do is make up the full batch of these (hard to divide it really, since it contains only 1 egg) and form all 12 cookies, but bake only half and freeze the other half. I freeze them on a little tray and, once they're hard, I bung them in a freezer bag, seal it and stash it back in the freeze, to bake them unthawed at a later date. That way, I've got 6 chocolate cookies to keep me and my family happy without any time or effort.

This is what I call an investment. And it's worth it - these are the chocolatiest cookies you will ever come across."

- Nigella Lawson

Ingredients

125g dark chocolate, minimum 70% cocoa solids

150g flour

30g cocoa, sieved

1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

125g soft butter

75g light brown sugar

50g white sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 egg, cold from the fridge

350g (2 bags) semi-sweet chocolate morsels or dark chocolate chips

Method

Serves: Makes 12

Preheat the oven to 170°C/gas mark 3.

Melt the 125g dark chocolate either in the microwave or in a heatproof dish over a pan of simmering water.

Put the flour, cocoa, bicarbonate of soda and salt into a bowl.

Cream the butter and sugars in another bowl. (I use my freestanding mixer, itself an odd source of comfort to me.) Add the melted chocolate and mix together.

Beat in the vanilla extract and cold egg, and then mix in the dry ingredients. Finally stir in the chocolate morsels or chips.

Scoop out 12 equal-sized mounds - an ice cream scoop and a palette knife are the best tools for the job - and place on a lined baking sheet about 6cm apart. Do not flatten them.

Cook for 18 minutes, testing with a cake tester to make sure it comes out semi-clean and not wet with cake batter. If you pierce a chocolate chip, try again.

Leave to cool slightly on the baking sheet for 4-5 minutes, then transfer them to a cooling rack to harden as they cool.

APPLE AND CINNAMON MUFFINS

APPLE AND CINNAMON MUFFINS

- Nigella Lawson

Makes 12 muffins

Ingredients

2 eating apples or 1 large cooking apple, peeled and cut into small dice

250g plain flour or spelt flour

2 tsp baking powder

2 tsp ground cinnamon

125g light brown sugar, plus 4 tsp for topping

125ml honey

60ml runny natural yoghurt

125ml flavourless vegetable oil

2 eggs

75g whole almonds, skin on

Method

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celcius and line a 12-hold muffin tin with papers.

Measure the flour, baking powder and 1 tsp cinnamon into a bowl.

Whisk together the 125g brown sugar, honey, oil and eggs in a bowl – or, as I prefer, a jug, for ease of pouring.

Chop the almonds roughly and add half of them to the flour. Keep the other half aside, and to them add the second teaspoon of ground cinnamon and 4 tsp of brown sugar. This will be the topping for your muffins.

Fold the wet ingredients into the dry. Add the chopped apple and stir to combine. As with all muffin batters, don’t overmix – the lumpier and heavier the batter, the lighter the finished muffin will be.

Spoon the batter into the muffin papers and sprinkle with the topping.

Put into the oven and bake for 20 minutes, by which time the muffins should have risen, and become beautifully golden.

Remove from oven and allow to stand for 5 minutes, before taking them out of the pan and devouring with unapologetic greed.

STRAWBERRY AND ALMOND CRUMBLE

STRAWBERRY AND ALMOND CRUMBLE

"This is a crumble of dreams. This is nothing short of alchemy: you take the vilest, crunchiest supermarket strawberries, top them with an almondy, buttery rubble, bake and turn them on a cold day into the taste of English summer. Naturally, serve with lashings of cream: I regard this is as obligatory, not optional."

- Nigella Lawson

For this recipe you will need 1 ovenproof pie dish approximately 21cm/10in diameter x 4cm/2in deep (approx. 1.25 litre/2 pints capacity).

Ingredients

For the filling

500g/1lb 2oz strawberries, hulled

50g/2oz caster sugar

25g/1oz ground almonds

4 tsp vanilla extract

For the topping

110g/4oz plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

75g/3oz cold butter, diced

100g/3½oz flaked almonds

75g/3oz demerara sugar

double cream, to serve

Preparation method

Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6. Put the hulled strawberries into your pie dish (I use a round one) and sprinkle over the sugar, almonds and vanilla extract. Give the dish a good shake or two to mix the ingredients.

Now for the crumble topping: put the flour and baking powder in a mixing bowl and rub in the cold, diced butter between thumb and fingers (or in a freestanding mixer or food processor). When you’ve finished, it should resemble rough, pale oatmeal.

Stir in the flaked almonds and demerara sugar with a fork.

Tip the topping over the strawberry filling, covering the strawberries in an even layer and pressing the topping in a little at the edges of the dish.

Set the dish on a baking sheet and bake in the oven for 30 minutes, by which time the crumble topping will have darkened to a pale gold and some pink-red juices will be seeping and bubbling out at the edges.

Leave to stand for 10 minutes before serving, and be sure to put a jug of chilled double cream on the table alongside.

CINNAMON PLUMS WITH FRENCH TOAST

CINNAMON PLUMS WITH FRENCH TOAST

"This is a doubly gratifying recipe for the waste-averse: the French toast (a slightly fancier take on the eggy-bread of my childhood) is made with the remains of a loaf otherwise too stale to eat and the cranberry-sharp, cinnamon-scented compôte uses up plums that were bought more in the spirit of optimism than good sense. If you’re lucky enough to have a plum tree, this would gratifyingly use up a glut."

- Nigella Lawson

Ingredients

For the plums

250ml/9fl oz cranberry juice

100g/3½oz caster sugar

500g/1lb 2oz plums

1 cinnamon stick

For the French toast

2 free-range eggs

60ml/2½fl oz full-fat milk

½ tsp ground cinnamon

1 tbsp sugar

4 large slices stale white bread

2 tbsp soft, unsalted butter

Preparation method

Put the cranberry juice and sugar into a wide, heavy-based saucepan and stir to help start dissolving the sugar. Then put the saucepan over a low heat until the sugar dissolves entirely.

Halve the plums and remove the stones, then halve them again if they are big brutes.

Once the sugar’s dissolved into the red liquid, add the cinnamon stick, then turn the heat up, bring the mixture to the boil and let the pan bubble away for a couple of minutes until the mixture is on the way to becoming syrupy.

Turn the syrup down to a simmer and add the plum halves (or quarters). Cook them gently for about 10 minutes, although note that this is based on starting off with viciously unripe fruits, so you might need less time.

Once the plums are tender but not disintegrating, remove the pan from the heat, cover and set aside, keeping warm.

For the French toast, whisk together the eggs, milk, ground cinnamon and sugar in a pie dish.

Sit two pieces of bread in the eggy mixture, turning after each side has soaked up enough of the mixture to colour the bread yellow, so that it absorbs the liquid but doesn’t fall to pieces.

Melt half the butter in a frying pan over a medium heat and cook the soaked pieces of bread for a couple of minutes on each side, or until scorched golden in parts. Transfer the French toast to a warm plate and keep warm. Repeat the process with the remaining slices of bread, eggy mixture and butter.

Serve the French toast with the beautiful scarlet plum compôte alongside.

GLUTEN-FREE VENETIAN CARROT CAKE

GLUTEN-FREE VENETIAN CARROT CAKE

"I long thought that carrot cake was an American invention, until I found out that an early version was made by Venetian Jews in the original ghetto. This modest disc is not much to look at - apart from a glorious golden-ness - but it is divine to eat. Only those with less austere eating habits will care to dollop alongside each damply crumbling wedge of cake my Italianate nod to the American cream-cheese frosting – a soft, rum-flavoured mascarpone cream."

- Nigella Lawson

Ingredients

For the carrot cake

3 tbsp pine nuts

2 medium carrots (approx. 200-250g/7-9oz)

75g/3oz golden sultanas

60ml/2¼fl oz rum

150g/5oz caster sugar

125ml/4½fl oz regular olive oil, plus extra for greasing

1 tsp vanilla extract

3 free-range eggs

250g/9oz ground almonds

½ tsp ground nutmeg, or to taste

½ lemon, finely grated zest and juice

For the mascarpone cream (optional)

250g/9oz mascarpone

2 tsp icing sugar

2 tbsp rum

Preparation method

For the carrot cake, preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4.

Line the base of a 23cm/9in round springform cake tin with re-usable non-stick silicone liner or baking parchment and grease the sides with olive oil.

Toast the pine nuts by browning in a dry frying pan; the oven alone is not enough to scorch out the paleness. Set aside.

Grate the carrots in a processor (for ease) or with a coarse grater, then sit them on a double layer of kitchen paper and wrap them, to soak up excess liquid. Set aside.

Put the golden sultanas in a small saucepan with the rum, bring to the boil, then turn down and simmer for 3 minutes.

Whisk the sugar and oil until creamily and airily mixed.

Whisk in the vanilla extract and eggs and, when well whisked, fold in the ground almonds, nutmeg, grated carrots, golden sultanas (with any rum that clings to them) and, finally, the lemon zest and juice.

Scrape the mixture into the prepared cake tin and smooth the surface with a rubber spatula. The batter will be very shallow in the tin.

Sprinkle the toasted pine nuts over the cake and put it into the oven for 30–40 minutes, or until the top is risen and golden and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out sticky but more or less clean.

Remove from the oven and let the cake sit in its tin on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then unspring and leave it on the rack to cool.

For the mascarpone cream, mix the mascarpone with the icing sugar and rum.

To serve, transfer the cake to a plate. Put the mascarpone cream in a bowl to spoon alongside the cake, for those who want.