Let's get fruity

EAT IN: Citrus fruits and berries both marry well with this shortbread recipe

MAKING SHORTBREAD ISN’T one of those things about which I would ordinarily say “you’ve got to try this”, but when I found two desserts that benefited from a little biscuit crunch, then it only seemed fair that I give somebody’s ultimate shortbread recipe a go.

So out came all the big hitters: Gordon, Gary and Heston, followed by Delia, Rachel and Nigel. But finally I settled on a Marcus Wareing recipe, namely because it was described as “perfect”, albeit by Marcus himself. I know, I know, self praise and all that, but it had a really interesting methodology.

You have to freeze the butter the night before and grate it into the flour. You end up with a very dry and short mixture that doesn’t feel like it will come together as it feels far too dry. But the lack of man-handling meant that the end product was absolutely superb. Crisp, short, buttery and delicious.

The other trick is to cut the biscuits while they are still warm, and then leave them to cool on a wire rack. We devoured some, but froze the rest. As well as being perfect fodder for the freezer, they also made a brief appearance in both these desserts, as well as an impressive accompaniment to a cup of tea. A good multi-tasker, I’d have to say.

I loved these caramel, orange and lemon cream pots. They could be rather too sweet unless you get the caramel to quite a dark colour. You really need to get that dark, amber bitterness in there. It was one of those desserts that could have benefited from a little booze in it. I’m not much of a fan of boozy desserts (they remind me of horrific bowls of instant packet sherry trifles, courtesy of the odd scary relative, we’re all forced to endure as children) but this is one dessert that a splash of Cointreau or similar could have worked in the caramel oranges, simply to cut through the sweetness.

The Knickerbocker glory dessert is a real throwback to 1970s fun. By making a quick coulis, buying a few chocolate flakes and some delicious ice-cream, and making or buying some shortbread, plus some chunks of fruit, you have a fun dessert that will keep kids happy concocting their own creations, and will send grown ups down memory lane. I have to say, that despite not having much of a sweet tooth, I absolutely loved all these desserts. Great fun and easy, perfect for big crowds or smaller affairs.

Lemon butter shortbread

Makes about 20 pieces

Make sure you freeze the butter the night before you want to cook these.

200g flour

40g ground rice

75g caster sugar

Zest of 1 lemon

175g butter, frozen

Preheat an oven to 140 degrees/gas 1. Sieve the flour into a bowl and add the ground rice and caster sugar and mix well along with the lemon zest. Then grate the butter into the flour. Mix lightly and quickly. It will resemble dry, grainy breadcrumbs. Press into a 20-centimetre square baking tin, which you’ve lined with parchment paper. Chill in the tin for an hour, then bake for 40 minutes. Remove from the tin, sprinkle with some extra caster sugar and leave to cool on a board. When they’ve cooled a little, cut them into squares or rectangles, then leave to cool fully on the board or a wire rack. Freeze, use or keep airtight for a few days.

Caramel, orange and lemon pots

This is based on Lucas Hollweg recipe.

Serves 4

4 oranges

Pinch cinnamon

100g granulated sugar

100ml water

Lemon cream

450ml double cream

100g caster sugar

Juice and zest of 2 lemons

Zest, segment and finely chop the oranges and set them aside. Put the sugar in a small saucepan and heat gently with only 50ml of water until it starts to melt and turn into caramel. Don’t stir under any circumstances, but if you need to do a bit of gentle swirling, then that’s allowed. Stay with it as it’s a small quantity and you need to watch it. When it’s on the cusp of smoking and starts to turn dark amber, take it off the heat. Add the remaining 50ml water, but be careful as it will splutter and bubble. Then add the orange segments and zest and leave to cool. Chill until ready to use.

Make the lemon cream by heating the double cream, caster sugar and lemon zest (not the juice). Let it simmer for a few minutes and then remove from the heat and stir in four tablespoons of lemon juice. Let it cool down and as it does, it will thicken up nicely. Put the caramel into four glasses, top with the thickened lemon cream and then chill it down fully until you are ready to serve. This is lovely with the shortbread.

Knickerbocker glory

Serves 4

300g vanilla ice cream

200g frozen berries, slightly defrosted

2 tbsp icing sugar

Splash lemon juice

4-8 shortbread biscuits

100g strawberries or raspberries, roughly chopped

4 chocolate flakes

In a blender, whizz the frozen fruit with the icing sugar and lemon juice. A bit of water will loosen it if necessary. In glasses that have been chilled in the freezer, start with a spoonful of fruit coulis, then some crushed shortbread, then ice-cream, then fresh fruit, and repeat. Stick a flake on top and serve.

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