Stephen Fry
Stephen Fry is an actor, writer and presenter. His extensive television career
includes hit shows such as A Bit of Fry &
Laurie, Jeeves and Wooster, Blackadder
and the BBC quiz show QI.
Honey Buns
‘A perfect brunch accompaniment
– gives a delicious alternative to
muffins, breads and spicy cookies’.
Ingredients:
Method:
2 eggs
75g caster sugar
90g self-raising flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
90g butter, melted
1 tsp soft dark sugar
1 tbsp honey
Whisk together eggs and
sugars. Fold in sifted flour,
baking powder and salt.
Leave mixture to rest for
30 mins. Stir in melted
butter and honey. Bake in
paper cases, for approx
25 mins at 180oC, Gas 4
Serves 6-8
Notes:
Jane Asher
Jane Asher is an actress, writer and
businesswoman. Alongside her well-known
baking and decorating books, Jane has written
three best selling novels. Her cake and baking
supplies shop ‘Jane Asher Party Cakes’, opened
in Chelsea, London in 1989 (mail-order: www.
janeasher.com).
.
Easy Biscuits
Makes about 18
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes
Ingredients:
85g spreadable butter
40g icing sugar
150g plain flour
A little caster sugar for
dusting
Method:
These are the simplest
biscuits of all, and loads of fun
to make with children. Using
spreadable butter makes the
dough really easy to work with
and it’s also a little lighter than
full fat butter, as it contains a
small amount of oil. The mix
can be piped, rather than rolled
out, but the rolling and cutting
is much easier for small hands
to cope with.
The baked biscuits are very
good plain (especially if served
with some stewed fruit or
Notes:
mousses) but you can also ice
and decorate them very easily,
or dip them in melted chocolate
for a special treat.
Heat the oven to 375°F
(190°C, gas mark 5). Put the
butter, icing sugar and flour
into a bowl and mix them
together with a wooden spoon,
using the back of the spoon to
press the butter onto the other
ingredients. When the dough
is beginning to come together,
pick it up with floured hands
and knead it gently into a
smooth ball.
Roll the dough out onto the
floured work top and cut out
some shapes (or use the rim
of a glass if you don’t have any
cutters). Put the shapes onto
a lightly greased baking tray
(or line the tray with silicon
or baking paper). Bake in
the preheated oven for 10-15
minutes, until just beginning to
colour. Remove from the oven,
sprinkle with a little caster
sugar and leave to cool.
Simon Rimmer
Simon Rimmer is the co-presenter and resident chef
on Channel 4’s Sunday Brunch, cheering up the
nation on a Sunday morning with a mixture of chat
and delicious food. He owns 2 restaurants in the
North West in which he continues to work in every
week. In March 2012 Simon released his sixth book,
More from the Accidental Vegetarian.
Banana muffins
Ingredients:
Method:
300g plain flour
120g sugar
2tsp baking powder
1tsp baking soda
pinch salt
2 eggs
150ml buttermilk or
yoghurt
90g melted butter
1tsp vanilla extract
4 bananas
30g sugar, mixed with
1tsp cinnamon
sift together the flour,
sugar, baking powder,
baking soda and salt
into a bowl
Notes:
combine the eggs,
buttermilk, butter and
vanilla and mix into the
dry ingredients
mash the bananas with a
fork and fold them in
spoon the mix into 12
individual muffin cases,
then sprinkle over the
sugar and cinnamon
now bake at 200 C for
20-25 mins. Allow to cool
a little and eat them all up
Annabel Karmel
Annabel Karmel is a leading expert and best
selling author on baby food & nutrition. She
also regularly writes for national newspapers, has her own range of children’s food
products and TV show Annabel’s Kitchen.
My favourite
carrot cake
Ingredients:
Method:
300g (10 oz) peeled
carrots (3 large carrots)
200g caster sugar
200g plain flour
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp bicarbonate
of soda
2 tsp mixed spice (or 1
tsp ground ginger, 1 tsp
cinnamon)
85g raisins
100 ml sunflower oil, plus
extra for greasing
3 medium eggs
1tsp vanilla extract
For the icing
60g butter, softened
225g mascarpone or
cream cheese
110g icing sugar
3 to 4 drops vanilla
extract
preheat the oven to 180C Gas
mark 4. Grease a 20 cm round
cake tin and line the base with
baking parchment. Grate the
carrots.
Put the grated carrot in a
bowl. Add the sugar, flour, salt,
baking powder, bicarbonate of
soda, and mixed spice.
Add the raisins and mix
everything together…
whisk together the oil, eggs
and vanilla in a jug, then pour
onto the prepared tin and bake
for 40 minutes.
To make the icing. In a large
bowl, mix together the butter
and cheese using a wooden
spoon. Add the icing sugar and
vanilla and stir until smooth.
Decorate with carrots made
from fondant icing tinted with
food colouring.
Notes:
Amanda Holden
Amanda Holden is an actress, presenter and
mother. She has stared in Cutting It, Wild at
Heart and Thoroughly Modern Millie. Since
2007 she has been a judge on ITV’s Britain’s
Got Talent.
Vanilla cupcakes
Ingredients:
110g/4oz butter or margarine,
softened at room temperature
110g/4oz caster sugar
2 free-range eggs, lightly
beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract
110g/4oz self-raising flour
1-2 tbsp milk
For the buttercream icing
140g/5oz butter, softened
280g/10oz icing sugar
1-2 tbsp milk
a few drops food colouring
Method:
Notes:
Preheat the oven to
180C/350F/Gas 4. Line a
cupcake tray with paper cases.
Cream the butter and sugar
together in a bowl until pale.
Beat in the eggs while stiring
in the vanilla extract. Fold in
the flour using a large metal
spoon, add a little milk until
the mixture is of a dropping
consistency. Half fill the paper
cases with mixture.
Bake in the oven until
golden brown (approx 10-15
minutes). Cool for 10 minutes,
then remove from the tin and
cool on a wire rack.
For the buttercream icing,
beat the butter until soft then
add half the icing sugar and
beat until smooth. Add the
remaining icing sugar with
one tablespoon of the milk,
adding more milk if necessary
and food colouring, until
the mixture is smooth and
creamy. Spoon the icing into a
piping bag and decorate your
cupcakes.
Sophie Grigson
Sophie Grigson is one of the UK’s most respected
cookery writers. She has written over 20 cookery
books, many bestsellers, and maintained a
successful TV and journalism career for many
years. She regularly writes for the UK’s top
newspapers and food magazines.
Sfouf
photo by William Shaw
Sfouf…brilliant sounding name, great cake. It
comes from Lebanon, where it is the kind of thing
that your granny might bake. A mere half teaspoon
of turmeric gives the crumb a golden glow, as well as
a unique mild aroma. Even more unexpected is the
tahini, used to grease the baking in. It gives the both
base and sides a crispness and subtle sesame scent.
Ingredients:
Serves 12
2 tablespoons tahini
300g semolina
250g plain flour
300g caster sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp turmeric
180g butter, melted and
cooled until tepid
300ml milk
1 tblspn pine nuts
Method:
Notes:
Pre-heat the oven to 200C/
Gas Mark 6. Use the tahini to
grease a 25 x 30 cm cake tin,
smearing it thickly over base
and sides.
Mix semolina, flour, sugar,
baking powder and turmeric.
Make a well in the centre and
add the butter and half the
milk. Beat the mixture, adding
the remaining milk gradually.
Scrape into the cake tin and
smooth down lightly. Scatter
pine nuts over the surface.
Bake for 30-40 minutes, until
the cake springs back when
pressed gently, and the sides
pull away from the tin. Plunge
a skewer into the centre – if it
comes out clean, then the cake
is cooked. Cool for 5 minutes in
the tin, then finish cooling on a
wire rack.
Cut into squares or diamonds
to serve.
Thomasina Miers
Thomasina Miers won Masterchef in 2005 and
went on to become a TV chef and the co-founder
and Executive Chef of Wahaca Restaurants. She
is the author of five books and lives in London
with her husband and two daughters.
copyright @ Karolina Webb
Fruity, nutty flapjack
I love flapjacks. Not only are they a cinch to make
but they are also the most more-ish, nutty, syrupy
biscuits out there.
Make these in a square tin and you can cut out little
squares to wrap up in shiny paper for presents. You
can even coat them in a thin layer of good quality
dark chocolate to be extra wicked!
Ingredients:
3 tbsp golden syrup (or better
still 2 tbsp syrup and 1 tbsp
of treacle)
100g butter
100g dark muscovado sugar
150g rolled oats
50g dates or prunes, chopped
into tiny pieces
50g apricots, chopped into
tiny pieces, or raisins
50g blanched almonds
11/2 inches of root ginger,
peeled and finely grated (or
1
/2 tsp powdered ginger)
Notes:
Method:
Pre-heat oven to 190C
You will need approximately a
22cm cake tin (or a 19cm
squared tin), preferably with
a loose bottom. Toast the nuts
in the pre-heated oven for 4-5
minutes until they turn a pale
golden colour. This will release
their flavour. Roughly chop them.
Melt the golden syrup, treacle,
butter and sugar together in a
saucepan. Grate in the ginger
and stir in the oats, fruit and
nuts.
Butter the cake tin and press
the mixture into the tin. Flatten
the top with a spatula. Bake in
the oven for 15-20 minutes until
golden brown and bubbling. Set
aside to cool for fifteen minutes.
When the cake has cooled down a
little, pour the chocolate over and
spread out evenly. Leave in a cool
place to set.
You may find you want to make
double the recipe. They didn’t
hang around too long when we
made them.