The Botanical Kitchen
Recipes, travel and the occasional rant
This recipe is by the fabulous Eric Lanlard who I met at a masterclass organised by the lovely people at Neilsen Massey Vanilla. It’s a wonderfully rich sponge which holds itself very well with the velvety smooth creme mousseline. You’ll need For the sponge 350g unsalted butter, softened 350g golden caster sugar 5 medium eggs, […]
I love mangoes. Especially Indian ones. They so so sweet and perfect in puddings. To be honest I could eat them on their own but I couldn’t resist making this super quick tart with some that my lovely friend Kavey from KaveyEats gave me. You’ll need 1 pack of puff pastry 200g Greek style yoghurt […]
We’ve had our blueberry plants for a few years now. They were some of the first we ever grew from seeds. Such a labour of love growing the seedlings on the windowsill, transplanting them into bigger and bigger pots and then finally seeing the fruit. They didn’t yield much fruit at all for a couple of […]
I love frangipane based tarts but sometimes I don’t have the time or energy to make pastry so I just pop the frangipane mixture into some loose bottomed tart tins with whatever fruit or nuts I have lying around. If you’re making them for breakfast, sprinkle some oats on top The timing will vary depending […]
This is such a classic dessert and very simple to make. The pastry cases keep in an airtight container for a couple of weeks so you can make them through the strawberry season. Of course you can also top with whichever fruit you like. You’ll need For the pastry 200g plain flour 100g cold unsalted […]
These look very complicated to make but actually are very, very easy. It’s a basic fairy cake, rolled in hazelnuts and then topped with a wonderful, velvety frosting which goes so well with the sweet strawberry. You’ll need For the cakes 175g caster sugar 125g soft unsalted butter 2 eggs 3 tbsp milk 3 tbsp […]
This is a super simple, super quick frittata recipe. I’ve used it for my girls in their school picnicsand I thought I’d post the recipe up to honour Italy’s win over England in Euro 2012 Quarter Finals. You can make all sorts of substitutions with whatever fillings you like. You can also pour the mixture […]
Well it’s been picnic week in the UK this week. Still no idea who sets the agenda on these but interestingly enough it has coincided with my daughters switching to packed lunches at school. I’m sad about this. Sad because the school meals were one if the key reasons we chose their school. Sad that […]
I made this cake for the WI tent at the Diamond Jubilee Pageant in Battersea Park on 3rd June 2012. It was part of a 12 ft tower of a 1000 cakes. Lovely to have been a part of these amazing celebrations in this way. It’s an easy sponge recipe and you can adapt the […]
This drink was created by Erik Lorincz of The American Bar at The Savoy in London and is being served from the hotel’s fountain at their Jubilee Street Party on 3rd June 2012. I just love all the edible flowers in it! You’ll need 30ml Bombay Sapphire 30ml home-made orange & grapefruit sherbet (150g caster sugar, 1 […]
I do love sunny, summer days – if only to sip wonderfully cooling long drinks like this one which uses the new Sipsmith Summer Cup. You’ll need 1 part Sipsmith Summer Cup 3 parts lemonade or prosecco works well too! Sprig of mint A few slices of cucumber and/or some other summery fruits Ice To […]
This is a wonderful, zesty martini – just perfect for a summer evening in the garden. You’ll need 125ml vodka 1 Kandula Earl Grey tea bag Zest and juice of a lime 3 tbsp sugar syrup Ice cubes 4 tbsp sugar Edible flower garnish To make 2 glasses Infuse the vodka with an Earl Grey […]