Croissant Bread and Butter Pudding with Chocolate Chips & Pecan Nuts

We don’t always think of different foods as being in or out of fashion, either a la mode or dastardly dreary. But maybe, like me, you’ve been quietly pleased to see a few good old fashioned staples getting a bit of a facelift lately? Real classics like Bread & Butter Pud, and the ultimate in comfort food, Rice Pudding, have both been in the spotlight, and I just couldn’t ignore the proverbial bandwagon. So coming up are my twists on two classics… (check back for the rice pudding soon)

Spiced Fig Ice-Cream

Yip, hear me say figs poached in red wine and spices and then, yes, mixed into a light and fluffy ice cream. And the result? Our sublimely summery best friend, the voluptuous anti-depressant that we all know and love that is ice cream, takes on a whole new persona, and you’re left with a symphony in your mouth. In short, fresh-faced and pretty fabulous.

3 Minute Lemon & Coconut Sponge Pudding

Love lemony puds I do. And these? Well these are positively enchanting, not just because they have the added kick of the coconut; take an i-kid-you-not total of 3 minutes to go from gooey cakey mixure to pudding perfection, but also because the lemony-limey drizzle just rounds it all off til it sings. This just might be my new default desert. And it’s also exquisite in its simplicity, so you can play around with different flavors all you like. The base of the pudding is really just a simple sponge cake mix with the ratio of 1:1:1 for butter-sugar-flour, with a couple of eggs added in and then whatever flavorings you like, the list is endless… Oh, and in case you were wondering, no, I have no shame in microwaved puds.

Easter’s Dark Chocolate and Pear Tart

Bizarrely (for some), I am not the biggest Easter egg fan, perhaps because of my general indifference towards chocolate. So that was never the exciting part of Easter weekend for me. It was more about the reason for the season, the roast lamb, and whatever came next. Put chocolate in the form of a tart though, and we find ourselves having a whole different conversation. And so it was that after our stuffed roast leg of lamb and creamy pea and mint risotto on Sunday – along with Robert’s not to be forgotten slow-roasted rosemary potatoes, this (gorgeously autumnal) little tart is what we enjoyed with a scoop of home made honey and toasted pecan nut ice cream (recipe to follow soon).

As renowned French chef Raymond Blanc so eloquently puts it, great food is about ‘Love, butter and good ingredients’ and I like to think of this as just that, all rolled into one.

Fresh Fig and Vanilla Tart

Hello fair friends. It’s been a while. I hope you’ve been happily munching away on yummy bits and bobs like Smoked Salmon Tapas or Speedy Asian Beef Salad in my absence? I’ve been busy foraging for fresh fruit and veg, and having a Tarting old time. There’s something very special about cooking or baking with seasonal ingredients. In days gone by this was just the norm, now it seems to be very much a luxury. One that I try to indulge as often as time and money will allow.

Rose´-poached Nectarines with Mascarpone

Fruit poached in wine and spices is just that, and yet it’s so much more. It always tastes like some kind of miracle the way the juices of the fruit ooze out so willingly and complement the sugared syrup of the wine and piquancy of the spices. It’s poetry to me. It’s also one of my favorite default desserts – you can poach figs, berries, pears, apples – the list is almost endless, and it’s the epitome of low maintenance. In this case it’s nectarines that take centre stage for an enchanting little post-dinner treat.

Fig and Honey Crumble with Lavender and Coconut

Figs! Having just come into season here in South Africa, they have been keeping me awake at night for far too long now. Fig crumble, honey roast chicken with figs and a gorgonzola and pecan nut salad, poached figs in a spicy red wine reduction with clotted cream – see what I mean? I have been relentlessly hounded by fig fantasies. And so it was with much delight that I received a little parcel of farm-fresh beauties last weekend from Rob’s chic and cheffy Aunty Sue in Stellenbosch and couldn’t wait to put them to work. This crumble was made all the more delicious by the fact that it turned up at our dinner table on the eve of my book launch, and so was shared with my Mum and friend Jenna who were both in town to share in the fun. So now I am happy to share with you a humble little fig crumble that will have you swooning.

Almost Instant Chocolate Mousse

“You know what? SOD IT. Yip. You heard me, you beastly sub-conscious calorie counter you”

It’s true, I usually pride myself on pretty healthy and reasonably calorie-conscious cooking, with everything carefully thought through, all neat and tidy and just so. You know the type. Well that was then. And this is now. And now our lives have been loudly and happily interrupted by baby chaos, which has brought with it a merry stream of visitors.

Spiced-Honey Figs With Orange Wafers

These will make your tongue dance. The chewy-crispy orange wafers are the very definition of more-ish, and the juicy figs with mascarpone and cinnamon-honey are, well, sublime. All together? It tastes like some kind of miracle.

Pavlova 101 – Now Anyone Can Make Meringues

You say Pavlova, I say Palava, some say Meringues… either way they can be quite hard to get exactly right, and, ergo, quite easy to botch. But if you concentrate and follow these tips closely you’ll get the knack in a jiffy and won’t look back. They store for up to 2 months in an airtight container, so really are your best friend for last-minute entertaining.