Rhubarb and hazelnut mini pavlovas

January in London is a funny thing. It's cold, yes - but no longer endearingly so, as it was before Christmas. Any dustings of snow are now singularly annoying, rather than festive and exciting. People are struggling along with Dry January (I'm all for heath, but forgive me for saying there is no month where I need a glass of wine in the evening more so than January), and this year, Veganuary - as someone who works in Restaurant PR, I can safely say if I never hear that word again, it will be too soon.

If I sound a little scornful, forgive me. Four years of writing a baking blog has certainly put me off this time of restraint and abstinence. Is it just me who finds this circus of resolution a little gloomy? In the throws of winter and without the holidays to look forward to, I'd prefer it if we were all a little less tough on ourselves at this time of year.

And with that, I bring you a recipe which uses sugar, dairy and majestic forced rhubarb, which is just starting to come to market ahead of its February season. Rhubarb's brightness and light is a welcome and comforting sight to this sun-lover, and the sweetness of meringue the perfect end to January resolutions.

I've written before about my struggle with winter - I come from a family of sun-lovers, and we all feel genuinely happier from May-September (it's a thing!). That being said, I find that with age the return of winter brings with it an underlying comfort and reassurance. The cosiness of nestling in for a weekend in the kitchen becomes increasingly enticing - especially on rainy days such as this. It's funny how things shift as the years go by.

What are you all baking this weekend? I'd love to hear what's going on in your kitchens. This recipe makes 4 or 5 mini pavlovas, but is easily doubled.

THE INGREDIENTS

Rhubarb

300g forced rhubarb

50g caster sugar

1 orange

1 tsp vanilla bean paste

Meringues

150g caster sugar

100g egg whites (2 large/3medium eggs)

150g double cream

1 tsp icing sugar

1 tsp vanilla bean paste

50g toasted hazelnuts, roughly chopped

THE RECIPE

Heat the oven to 160°C / 140°C fan. Line an ovenproof dish with foil. Slice the rhubarb into 4-5cm batons, trimming off the ends. Arrange in the lined dish, then sprinkle with the caster sugar, the vanilla and the juice and zest of the orange. Cover with a second sheet of foil, and roast in the oven for 20-30 minutes until the rhubarb is soft. Don't overcook it, or it will fall apart and loose its shape.


Lower the oven to 100°C / 80°C fan. Line a large baking tray with baking paper. Whisk the eggs whites to stiff peaks in a stand mixer or with an electric whisk. Add the caster sugar, one tbsp at a time, whisking after each addition before adding any more sugar. The sugar should be completely dissolved, and a little meringue rubbed between your fingers should not feel grainy.

Spoon the meringue into mini pavlovas on the baking tray. Try not to squash it, as the height is what will make them so pretty. Place on the bottom shelf of the oven. Bake for 1 hour 30 minutes - 2 hours. The meringue is done when it can be lifted off the baking paper at the edges. Turn the oven off, leaving the meringue inside to cool completely. This will allow the meringue to cool down gradually, and for the centre to become soft and mallowy.

When you are ready to assemble the pavlovas, place the cream in a large bowl. Add the icing sugar and vanilla, and whip until the cream is thick and pillowy. Spoon the cream over the pavlova, then top with the roasted rhubarb. Top with the toasted hazelnuts.

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Rhubarb Syllabub Doughnuts {from Comfort by Candice Brown}

The original start to this post - when I began drafting it over a week ago - was Hello November! But alas, as I sit here furiously typing on 25th November, it feels a little late for such a beginning. December is well and truly in sight and, as shop windows begin to glitter and my efforts to cross Oxford Street every evening become increasingly futile, I feel a little overwhelmed at how quickly this year has passed.

2017 has been quite a year - more on that, I promise, in my annual days-in-between post (which I had better start drafting, yikes!). After a mad few months, it is comforting and cathartic to be back at my keyboard, and back in my little corner of the internet. I try to avoid apologising on Pudding Lane - if you can't run a dictatorship on your own blog, where can you? - but I am sorry that I've not been able to post as frequently this year. It is hard to articulate what this little space means to me, and to post half-hearted recipes and write scrambled introductions would feel, to me at least, a disservice (to me and to you!).

What can I say? Conceptualising, testing, perfecting, styling, shooting and typing up recipes takes time - and time is something that I have not felt very on top of lately. A year of spinning plates has led to so many fantastic things, but has also sadly been to the detriment of my blog, my social life and at times, my sanity! And so, when I met the fabulous Candice Brown last weekend, I felt as if she was speaking to my soul.

I'm sure Candice needs little introduction - GBBO winner, Sunday Times columnist, author and soon to be ice-dancer - it's safe to say that Candice is spinning plates too (about twice as many as I am, in fact.) I was so delighted to be invited by the wonderful teams at The Happy Foodie and Penguin Random House to the first iteration of their new Cookbook Club. Held at the beautiful Rye Studios in Dalston, the book in question was Comfort, with Candice discussing the process of writing the book, her inspirations, and her journey since being crowned GBBO winner in 2016.

All I can say is - what a woman. She describes herself as lucky, which I found an interesting concept. If this is true, I'd wager that my mum has had it right all along in telling us that luck is what happens when hard work meets opportunity. Candice is certainly testament to that.

I left feeling inspired, empowered and - perhaps most importantly - full to burst following a veritable feast of all the delicious cakes and bakes from the book. It was such a delight to meet some of my fellow bloggers (Instagram friends no longer!), and Candice of course. Here is one of my favourite recipes from Candice's books - rhubarb syllabub doughnuts. I'll let you take a minute to digest quite how delicious a recipe title that is.

THE INGREDIENTS

For the dough 

270g strong white bread flour, plus extra for dusting 

10g instant yeast 

10g salt 

20g caster sugar, plus optional extra for dredging 

finely grated zest of 1 lemon 

120ml lukewarm whole milk 

40g unsalted butter, very soft 

1 egg 

rapeseed oil 

For the filling

200g fresh rhubarb, chopped into small pieces 

2 tbsp medium/sweet white wine 

1 tbsp golden caster sugar 

grated zest of 1 orange 

150ml double cream 

150g mascarpone cheese 

1 tbsp icing sugar 

½tsp vanilla bean paste

To finish (optional)

100g icing sugar, sifted

THE RECIPE

Put the flour in the large bowl of a free-standing electric mixer fitted with a dough hook. Make a small well in the middle. To one side put the yeast and on the opposite side put the salt, sugar and lemon zest. Pour the lukewarm milk, the very soft butter and egg into the well.

Mix on a low speed for 2 mins until everything is combined. Turn up the speed slightly and mix/knead for 5 mins until you have a smooth, soft dough. (You can also make the dough by hand, kneading on a lightly oiled surface for 10 minutes.)

Turn out the dough on to a lightly oiled work surface and shape into a smooth ball. Place in a lightly greased large bowl and cover with a clean tea towel. Leave to rise in a warm place for 1-2 hours until at least doubled in size.

Turn out the risen dough on to a lightly floured surface. Slightly knock out the air, then divide equally into either six large balls or 12 mini balls. Gently pinch and pull the outside of each ball into the middle so you get a nice smooth, round shape. Arrange the balls, not touching each other, on a baking sheet lined with greaseproof paper. Place this in a clean plastic bag and leave for 45-60 mins until doubled in size.

Heat 10-15cm of rapeseed oil in a high-sided medium-sized saucepan or deep-fat fryer until the oil reaches 150C. Deep-fry the doughnuts in batches – no more than 3 at a time – and check the oil temperature between each batch. Carefully place the dough balls into the oil. If they are large, fry for 3 minutes on each side; fry small balls for 2 minutes on each side. When done, the doughnuts will be puffed and golden brown. Lift out with a slotted spoon and place on kitchen paper to drain.

At this point you can roll the warm doughnuts in caster sugar if you like. Put the rhubarb, white wine, golden caster sugar and orange zest in a small saucepan. Set on a low/medium heat and cook until the rhubarb is softened and the liquid has reduced to a thick syrup. Transfer 1tbsp of the syrup to a small bowl. Set the pan of rhubarb aside to cool.

In another bowl, combine the double cream, mascarpone, icing sugar and vanilla and whisk together until the mix is just thickened and will hold its shape. Spoon the cream mixture into a piping bag fitted with a fairly large round nozzle. Fill a second piping bag fitted with a fairly large, round nozzle with the rhubarb mix.

Using a chopstick, poke 2 holes side by side into the side of each doughnut – give the chopstick a wiggle around so you create space inside the doughnut. Pipe the cream mix into one hole and the rhubarb mix into the other hole (be careful as this mix is a little thinner and may run).

If you haven’t rolled the doughnuts in caster sugar, then make a glaze with the reserved rhubarb syrup and the icing sugar. Drizzle this over the top of the filled doughnuts.

Recipe from Comfort: Delicious Bakes and Family Treats by Candice Brown. (Ebury Press, £20). Photography by Ellis Parrinder. This post was written in collaboration with The Happy Foodie but all views are, as always, entirely my own. 

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Rhubarb and rose pavlova

My Mum always says that a hot April makes for a wet summer. If she's right, then we are in for an absolute downpour. Over the past few days, London's parks have been chocca with dizzy, vitamin D-deprived city dwellers getting their fix after so many months of cold, grey weather. Spring is in full swing, and I could not be happier.

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Rhubarb and Rose Linzer Biscuits

I've lost track of the number of time that I have sat down to write this post over the past few weeks. I'd like to blame writers block, that glamourous state of apparent blankness which has, I'm told, birthed many of the great literary works of the modern world. 

Safe to say I have not been teetering on the edge of anything remotely groundbreaking. I'm just busy. And hard as I find it to admit, I'm struggling a little bit.

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Rhubarb Spelt Upside Down Cake

This year, I have been completely and utterly enchanted by bedazzling forced rhubarb. Raised on an (often overwhelming) abundance of homegrown summer rhubarb, the delicate, paler variety of rhubarb that comes to market in these winter months slipped our notice. Perhaps we were still recovering from a summer of getting through our own wild rhubarb, or perhaps the locally supplied greengrocers in Rutland didn't stretch to this Northern export.

Grown in darkness then 'forced' out of the ground by candlelight, forced rhubarb traditionally hales from Yorkshire, and is the elegant cousin of its wild relation. Its stems are thinner, softer, and dazzlingly pink when poached or roasted. The flavour, while a little sweeter, still packs the perfect punch for fruit-based puddings.

Upside-down cakes are a wonderful way to make use of seasonal bounty. The warm, soft baked fruit calls for a nutty, textured sponge, and while you could stick with white flour, alternative grains such as spelt or buckwheat work wonderfully in sweet bakes. While not gluten free, these grains are naturally lower in gluten, and are higher in natural nutrients that refined flours. 

You can find the full recipe for Kitchen Garden Magazine here.

THE INGREDIENTS

For the rhubarb

400g forced rhubarb

100g caster sugar

1 lemon, juiced

1 vanilla pod

For the cake

125g butter, softened

100g golden caster sugar

2 eggs

25g ground almonds

100g spelt flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp fine salt

Line the base of a 7" cake tin (not loose-bottomed) with baking parchment, and grease the sides. Preheat your oven to 180C / 160C fan.

Wash and trim the ends from the rhubarb, then cut into neat, 3-4cm batons. Place the rhubarb in a saucepan along with the lemon juice and 50g of the sugar. Slice the vanilla pod in half, scrape out the seeds, and add to the pan. Cook the rhubarb over a gentle heat for 5-10 minutes, until the rhubarb is just soft but still holding it's shape. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool. Sprinkle the remaining 50g of caster sugar over the base of the lined tin, and add the vanilla pod from the poaching liquor.

For the cake, cream together the softened butter and golden caster sugar, then add the eggs one at a time, beating until smooth with each addition. Separately, combine the ground almonds, spelt flour, salt and baking powder, then sieve into the butter mixture. Mix until just combined.

To assemble the cake, carefully arrange the rhubarb batons over the sprinkled sugar in the base of the tin. Pack them as neatly and as tightly as you can, as it is more likely to hold it's shape if it does not have room to spread out while baking. Reserve the rhubarb syrup.

Spread the cake batter over the rhubarb, using a palette knife to carefully level the surface. Do this gently, so as not to disturb the rhubarb pattern you have created. Transfer the cake to the oven, and bake for 25-35 minutes. The cake is done when a cocktail stick plunged into the centre of the cake comes out clean.

Leave the cake to cool for 15 minutes, then carefully run a knife around the edge of the tin to loosen it. Carefully turn the cake out onto a serving plate, removing the tin slowly in case any of the fruit has stuck. Peel back the paper, and brush with the reserved rhubarb syrup before serving.

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RHUBARB ROSE WATER POSSET

 British rhubarb is a tale of two seasons. In summer, luscious and sturdy green rhubarb flourishes. Huge, elephant ear leaves give shelter to dappled stalks, speckled pink and brilliantly tart in flavour. This rhubarb is a bit of a battle-axe - growing profusely, unfazed by the elements, abundant to the point of exasperation for its growers.

But in the bleakness of January and February, delicate forced rhubarb comes to the fore. Traditionally grown in Yorkshire by candlelight, this variety is denied the sunlight that nourishes its wild relation. Encased in darkness then 'forced' out of the ground with artificial light, the result is a more slender, pinker and sweeter version of this wonderful plant.

The season for forced rhubarb is short, and it's not as cheap to buy as the summer variety. But delicately poached, there are few things more beautiful or delicious. My grandparents force their own rhubarb with a steel bin and a good dose of determination, and I am resolute to follow their lead if I ever succeed in securing an elusive London allotment.

As for this recipe - it's simple, elegant, pretty and delicious. My mum's go to dinner party pudding was always lemon syllabub, and these pastel pink possets are a seasonal version of the classic.

THE INGREDIENTS 

150g forced rhubarb

150ml water

75g caster sugar

250ml double cream

1 tsp rose water

1/2 a lemon, juiced

Trim the ends away from the rhubarb, and cut the stalks into 3cm batons. Arrange in the base of a saucepan, sprinkle with 25g of the caster sugar, then pour over the water. Gently bring to the boil over a medium heat, then simmer for 10-15 minutes. Remove from the heat when the rhubarb is soft and pink throughout, and the liquid has reduced to a thick, pink syrup. Leave to cool.

Pour the cream and the remaining sugar into a milk pan, mix, then bring to the boil. Allow it to bubble for a few seconds, then reduce the heat and simmer for 2-3 minutes. Remove from the heat.

Drain 75ml of syrup from the rhubarb, then add this to the cream along with the rose water and lemon juice. Mix quickly, then pour the cream into 3-4 ramekins. Leave to set in the fridge for 3-4 hours. Serve topped with the rhubarb and a drizzle of the remaining syrup.

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RHUBARB SORBET

Pretty pink rhubarb is one of my favourite things to cook with. Un-forced rhubarb is a little all or nothing seasonally. My Mum's allotment is, almost overnight, swamped with giant elephant leafed rhubarb, and it's a race to harvest it all before it gets tough and woody.

That's why the irony wasn't lost on me as I found myself bulk buying reduced rhubarb in Sainsbury's last week. It seemed a little alien to buy the stuff, but I can never resist ripe and reduced fruit. There are so many things you can do with a glut of ripe fruit - jams, cordials and curds all call for high quantities of fruit, and are the perfect way to preserve all the taste and beauty of seasonal produce.

Rhubarb usually ends up in my rhubarb vanilla jam, but this bundle was so fresh and pink that it seemed a shame not to try something new. Rhubarb sorbet is crazy easy to make and, while it will make your life easier, you don't need an ice cream churner to make this work.

The recipe leaves you with a delicious rhubarb purée that doesn't make it into the sorbet. You'd be mad to throw this away - cover with crumble, mix into custard tarts, or snaffle as a delicious cook's treat while your sorbet is freezing. 

What are your favourite rhubarb recipes? 

THE INGREDIENTS

400g rhubarb

1 lemon 

150g caster sugar

150ml water

THE RECIPE

Begin by placing an ice cream container in the freezer. I use a loaf tin.

Chop up your rhubarb, and add to a large saucepan with the sugar, water and juice of the lemon. Cook on a medium heat for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the rhubarb has tenderised and completed broken down. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool for 10 minutes.

Place a sieve over a bowl, and carefully pour the rhubarb mixture into the sieve. Push the mixture through the sieve firmly, continuing until you are left with just a thick mixture in the sieve. Discard this, but keep it for a crumble, tart, or to eat with greek yoghurt.

Stir the strained mixture so that the consistency is even.. If you are using an ice cream maker, churn it following the machines instructions, then transfer to the freezer. If you don't have a churner, transfer the mixture to your frozen dish. Leave it to freeze for a couple of hours, then remove from the freezer and blend using a blender or hand blender. Return to the freezer, and repeat this process two or three times. 

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RHUBARB AND CUSTARD KISSES

 Life is what happens when you are busy making plans

I don't wish to start another blog post with a complaint about being busy, but I am sorry that I've been a little neglectful. My excuses are boring, although I will say that our long, cold January evenings have a lot to answer for when it comes to the never-ending pipeline of birthdays that I've been celebrating lately.

That said, I know I am not the only person juggling and, without any offspring or animals relying on me, I need to learn to manage my time better. "I have nothing going on at the moment" said no person ever, after all.

I have had the best few weeks and, despite being 23 and evidently barely albe to care for myself, I did manage to hot foot it down to the BBC Bakes and Cakes Show in Angel a few weeks ago. I took my Mum along for the ride, and we had the best time floating from one demo to the next, and spending all our pocket money on gorgeous kitchenware from the likes of Lakeland and Simply Vintage. Thanks so much to the lovely girls at Good Food for inviting us - we had the best time.

This weekend I've finally had a chance to get back in my kitchen, and I couldn't be happier. Grand plans of smugly presenting recipes for Halloween and Bonfire Night proved immaterial, so instead here is a recipe that won't require a special shop, and can be whipped up in less than an hour.

You don't need to make your own jam at all, and of course you can use any flavour that you like.

 

THE INGREDIENTS

biscuits

120g soft butter

25g icing sugar

25g custard powder

100g plain flour

jam

250g rhubarb

250g caster sugar

1 lemon

THE RECIPE 

If you are making your own jam, start this first. Put a small plate in the freezer, then chop up the rhubarb, then add to a saucepan with the sugar and lemon juice. Heat through on a medium temperature until the rhubarb begins to breakdown, then boil for ten minutes. 

If you're using a thermometer, watch for the jam to come to 150C. If not, judge by eye. When you think the jam is ready, spoon a small amount onto the frozen plate and leave it for a minute or so. Push it with your finger, and if the surface wrinkles the jam is ready. Transfer to a sterilized jar, and allow to cool before you use it.  

For the biscuits, preheat your oven to 180C, and line two baking trays with parchment. Beat the softened butter until it's creamy, then add the custard powder and icing sugar and beat until well mixed. Add the flour, and mix for 1-2 minutes. Spoon the mixture into a piping bag fitted with a star nozzle, and pipe into small swirls. Bake in your preheated oven for 10 minutes, until the edges are just turning golden. 

Allow the biscuits to cool on the tray for ten minute, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely - take care, as they're delicate little souls. Once the biscuits are cooled through, sandwich two together with a good dollop of jam. 

 

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RHUBARB ANGEL FOOD CAKE

Rhubarb is a bit of a middle child to the baker's larder. Unfairly sidelined on the grounds of watery school crumbles from way back when, it's easy to forget that there are a lot of reasons to love rhubarb. Pretty in pink and beautifully British, rhubarb is deliciously tart and pretty darn resilient too. And I speak from a youth of experience - it was the only thing that survived Mother's gardening during my younger years.

If you're willing to give rhubarb another go, then this angel food cake is an absolute must. Lighter than light and full of vanilla-rich creme pat, this is the perfect way to give rhubarb a bit of a makeover. After all, don't we all have a few fashion-skeletons in our closets we'd rather forget?

THE INGREDIENTS

200g pink rhubarb

4 eggs

40g cornflour

40g butter

300g  vanilla caster sugar

50g plain flour

100g icing sugar

THE RECIPE 

Begin by making the creme pat according to this recipe. When it comes to the classics, I'd trust Paul with my life. 

Preheat your oven to 140C. Cut the rhubarb into batons, and pack into a roasting tin. Try and squash them in, so that they can hold their shape while roasting. Sprinkle over 75g of the caster sugar, then roast in the oven for 1 hour. Remove from the oven, and turn the temperature up to 180C.

While the rhubarb is cooling, whisk up the egg whites until thick and frothy. With the whisk still going, add 125g of the sugar a teaspoon at a time, until you have a meringue mix which holds it's shape, and is thick, glossy and glittery. Add the flour, then carefully fold through using a metal spoon. Place a disk of greaseproof paper in the base of a 6 inch tin, but do not grease the sides. The cake needs to be able to 'climb' the sides as it rises in order to hold its shape. Place in the centre of the oven, and bake for 30-40 minutes, until golden and cooked through. 

Remove from the oven, and turn upside down onto a wire rack, leaving the cake in the tin. Leave to cool for an hour or so, then gently tip the cake out of the tin. Once completely cool, slice in half, and brush with the rhubarb syrup which has formed in the roasting dish. Next, spread with the creme patissiere and then a layer of rhubarb, placing in a clockface pattern so that the cake cuts easily when served. Sandwich with the rest of the cake, then mix the remaining rhubarb syrup with the icing sugar. Drizzle over the top, then decorate with more rhubarb. 

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