the oven for 10–12 minutes until a pale golden colour. Remove from the oven, allow to cool slightly, then break up into pieces.
6 To serve, divide the the cream and rhubarb pieces among 6 bowls. Top with the jelly and shortbread pieces.
MARCUS’ TIP:
Make a double batch of shortbread and freeze half of the dough, ready to bake another day.
Eton mess, said to have originated from Eton when a tray of meringues was dropped on the floor, is a great summer pudding. This is more of a ‘make your own mess’ pudding – the presentation is neat and tidy then you create your own mess by smashing it. All the fun’s inside but you can’t initially see it. The mint gives the dish a freshness which helps cut through the sweetness of the meringue.
SERVES 4 | PREP TIME: 25 MINUTES | COOKING TIME: 1 HOUR
350g strawberries, hulled
25ml vodka
2 tbsp strawberry jam
200g double cream, lightly whipped
12 mint leaves, finely sliced
FOR THE MERINGUE
1 lemon wedge
4 egg whites, at room temperature
110g caster sugar
110g icing sugar, sifted
1 Preheat the oven to 120°C/100°C fan/gas ½ and line a large baking sheet with non-stick baking parchment. Draw 4 × 10cm circles on the paper.
2 To make the meringue, rub the lemon wedge around the inside of a clean mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer. Add the egg whites and whisk on high speed until they form stiff peaks. Decrease the mixing speed to medium and gradually add the sugar, whisking continuously. Increase to high speed and whisk for 5–10 minutes until you have a stiff meringue and all grains of sugar have dissolved. Add the icing sugar and whisk until well combined.
3 Place the meringue into a piping bag, and pipe into the centre of each circle on the parchment-lined baking sheet to form a dome. Create 3 more domes.
4 Bake in the oven for 40–50 minutes until crisp on the outside, but still soft in the centre. Turn off the oven and leave the door ajar until the meringues are cool to touch. Very gently, scoop out the soft meringue with a spoon, leaving the shell intact. Set the soft meringue aside.
5 Take 200g of the strawberries and blend together with the vodka. Pass through a fine sieve. Chop the remaining 150g of strawberries and add to the soft meringue. Fold in the strawberry jam, whipped cream and finely sliced mint.
6 Divide the strawberry sauce between 4 bowls then carefully fill the meringue shells with the cream mix. Gently place a meringue in each bowl, on top of the sauce. Allow your guests to then make their own mess by smashing the meringue shell with their spoons!
When my dad was a young boy, gooseberries were one of his favourite fruits. Gooseberries tend to grow like weeds, and are a great fruit to just pick and pop in the freezer, whole, to save for a rainy and not so warm day. You can use frozen or tinned berries in this recipe, or try them in a crumble. The addition of basil in this recipe brings a slightly savoury note to the fool and creates an even richer floral aroma. You can make these fools up to a day ahead, if you wish.
SERVES: 4 | PREP TIME: 15 MINUTES | COOKING TIME: 30 MINUTES, PLUS SETTING
150g caster sugar
400g gooseberries, topped and tailed
200ml double cream
FOR THE CUSTARD
160ml milk
16 large basil leaves
2 egg yolks
1 tsp custard powder
30g demerara sugar
1 Put the caster sugar in a large saucepan. Add 200ml of warm water and bring to a simmer. Add the gooseberries and simmer gently for 5 minutes, then remove a fifth of the berries and set them aside. Keep cooking the remaining berries for about another 10 minutes until soft. Transfer to a blender or food processor and blitz until smooth.
2 To make the custard, put the milk and half of the basil leaves in a small saucepan and bring just to the boil, stirring frequently.
3 Put the egg yolks, custard powder and sugar in a heatproof bowl and whisk until well combined. Slowly pour in the hot milk mixture, whisking continuously. Return the mixture to the pan and cook over very low heat, stirring constantly, for about 5 minutes or until the custard coats the back of a wooden spoon (take care not to boil the custard as the egg yolks will scramble). Strain through a fine sieve into a clean container, cover the surface of the custard with clingfilm (to avoid a skin forming) and chill in the fridge.
4 Lightly whip the double cream.
5 Once the custard is cold, whisk it well then fold it into the lightly whipped cream. Fold in the gooseberry purée. Thinly slice the remaining basil leaves and fold them through the mix.
6 Divide the fool among 4 glasses. Halve the gooseberries you cooked and set aside, and arrange them on top of the fools. Place in the fridge for at least 1 hour, until set.
Caramelised Honey-roasted Pears with Mascarpone and Filo
One of the wonderful discoveries of Melfort Farm was the honey I inherited. The floral taste is quite remarkable and I found myself wanting to use it in a lot of my cooking. This discovery coincided with the pears ripening too, so it was a no-brainer to combine the two.
SERVES: 4 | PREP TIME: 20 MINUTES | COOKING TIME: ABOUT 30 MINUTES
8 tbsp runny honey
4 ripe (but not too soft) pears, peeled, quartered and cored
6 sprigs of thyme
20g butter, melted
pinch of sea salt
7 sheets of filo pastry
200g mascarpone
100ml double cream
25ml brandy
1 Preheat the oven to 210°C/190°C fan/gas 7.
2 Place the honey in a roasting tray just large enough to fit the pear quarters in a single layer (about 20 × 20cm). Put the dish in the oven for 5 minutes to warm the honey, then add the pear quarters and thyme and return to the oven for 15–20 minutes, until the pears are golden and cooked through. Remove from the oven, carefully lift out the pears and set them aside. Scrape the honey into a bowl, removing the thyme sprigs and set it aside, too.
3 Add 2 tablespoons of the baked honey to the melted butter in a bowl, along with the salt, and mix well.
4 Take one sheet of filo pastry and brush it with the honey butter. Repeat with the remaining sheets and lay them on top of each other. Cut the large rectangle into 8 equal squares and gently scrunch up the edges of each layered piece. Place them on a baking tray and bake for 8–10 minutes until golden and crisp.
5 In a large bowl, whisk the mascarpone until smooth. Add the double cream, brandy and 2 tablespoons of the baked honey and whisk together until stiff.
6 To