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May I introduce you to Apple Doodle? Thank you. We had this a lot during my childhood and I never tired of it. It’s a sponge sweetened with golden syrup and punctuated with the sharpness of Bramley apple; served, of course, with lashings of Bird’s custard. The golden syrup adds a surprisingly significant extra layer of flavour to it – takes it from the standard baked sponge pudding to one with a real character.
Now, I know and you know that this is an odd recipe to share in the height of a very warm Summer, but there is method to my madness.
1. We had had a salad week – that is, one piece of protein and lots of salad. I wanted something filling, darn it.
2. I fancied a substantial pudding but couldn’t bear the thought of an oven blasting away.
3. I saw a pot of tres posh ‘made-with-the-eggs-of-a-golden-hen-and-milk-from-the-Queen’s-cow-and-a-pod-of-vanilla-plucked-by-a-tame-cheetah’ custard and it was cheap. If someone else had bought it, they might have poured it over something horrible.
4. I had a dreg of raspberry jam in the bottom of the jar and the jar was annoying me in the fridge. It kept getting in the way. It even fell out of the fridge that morning, so its fate was sealed.
So, actually, this is an extremely sensible recipe for the height of Summer because it takes moments to make, doesn’t require an oven or hob and is jolly nice to eat after endless days of what is essentially the ritual munching of humans on glorified grass otherwise famed as ‘seasonal eating’. Seriously, I am this close to going off beetroot again. Don’t even talk to me about feta.
If you cannot stand the thought of eating a hot pudding in this weather, then be kind to yourself and print it out for Autumn. Having such a quick option for a pudding that usually takes hours to steam is invaluable.
Continue reading 'Speedy Sponge Pudding'»
Sticky cinnamon buns. A yeasted dough, curled up around a buttery, sugared, cinnamon filling, sporting a buttery, maple and golden syrup top. Did I mention the pecans too? Far, far less intimidating to make than it might appear, these are wow. Just wow.
I’m sure there are lots of names for it. This is one of Nigella’s recipes and she calls it ‘hokey pokey’, so there you are. Make up a name and this is it.
We always called it honeycomb. Of course it has nothing to do with honey, but rather a lot to do with sugar and golden syrup. Fat free though – yes, really! Fat free! Unless you dip it in chocolate, but that’s a different matter.
Sweet, crunchy but chewy. And easy? Easy?! If you have 10 mins to spare and want to give someone a present that isn’t a box of dusty chocolates from the shop, then this is a choice to consider.
Continue reading 'Honeycomb, cinder toffee…'»
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