Eton Mess
Eton Mess is a dessert of English origin consisting of a mixture of strawberries, pieces of meringue and cream, which is traditionally served at Eton College’s annual cricket game against the students of Winchester College. The dish has been known by this name since the 19th century. A similar dessert is the Lancing mess, served throughout the year at Lancing College in West Sussex, England. The word mess refers to the appearance of the dish.
INGREDIENTS
1 Pound Fresh Strawberries
1 Pint Double Whipping Cream
Icing Sugar
12 Meringue Nests (Purchase in a Store)
Keep the ingredients in the refrigerator until needed as this is a dessert best served cool. Break up the meringues into bite sized irregular chunks. Forget baking your own meringues, it is far too much trouble and the store bought ones are as good quality as home baked meringues.
Remove the strawberry stalks and cut them in half or into thick slices if they are large. Place half of the cut strawberries and all of the icing sugar into a blender and blend for 20 seconds to make a puree. Whip the cream until it starts to thicken, but hasn’t turned solid. Add the meringues to a large bowl and pour in the cream & the strawberries. Add half of the puree and stir it all together gently with a spoon. The goal is to get a red and white marbled effect rather than a pink all over color. Spoon into serving dishes and drizzle over the remaining strawberry puree. Keep refrigerated until serving. Serves 4
Victoria Sponge
The Victoria Sponge Cake was named after Queen Victoria, who favored a slice of the sponge cake with her afternoon tea. A traditional Victoria Sponge consists of raspberry jam and whipped double cream or vanilla cream. The jam and cream are sandwiched between two sponge cakes. The top of the cake is not iced or decorated.
INGREDIENTS
8 Ounces Unbleached Flour
2 Teaspoons Baking Powder
8 Ounces Sugar
8 Ounces of Soft Butter
4 Large Eggs
½ Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
Filling:
4 Ounces Raspberry Jam
5 Ounces Double Cream – Whipped
Preheat the oven to 375° F. Beat the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. In a small whisk the eggs just to mix. Slowly add the eggs to the butter and sugar mixture. Make sure that each addition is well mixed in before adding more. Sift the flour and baking powder, then gently fold into the egg mixture with a spatula. Use baking parchment to line a 9 inch round cake pan with a removable bottom. Line the side of the pan with a separate strip of parchment. Pour in the cake mixture. Bake for 30 minutes or until done. Cool on a wire rack. Remove the cake from the pan and cut into two equal layers using a bread knife. Spread jam on the cut surface of one layer and whipped cream on the other cut surface. Sandwich together. Serve sprinkled with confectioner’s sugar is you like. Serves 8
Bakewell Tartlet
The Bakewell Tart is a traditional English baked dessert tart of cake. It is a distant cousin of the original “Bakewell Pudding.” The Bakewell Tart consists of a shortcrust pastry shell, spread with jam and covered with a sponge-like filling enriched with ground almonds (Frangipane). The Derbyshire town of Bakewell claims to be the home of the authentic Bakewell Pudding. The tale told to tourists is that the tart was an accidental invention of the 1860’s, which occurred when a nobleman visiting the White Horse Inn (now called The Rutland Arms) at Bakewell and ordered a strawberry tart. The cook, instead of stirring the egg mixture into the cake, spread it on top of the jam.
INGREDIENTS
For The Pastry:
1 ¼ Cups Unbleached Flour
1/3 Cup Confectioner’s Sugar
½ Teaspoon Salt
10 Tablespoons Chilled Unsalted Butter (Cut into Pieces)
2 Lightly Beaten Egg Yolks (Plus 1 Tablespoon Water)
For The Filling:
8 Tablespoons Unsalted butter
1/3 Packed Almond Paste
½ Cup Sugar
3 Lightly Beaten Eggs Plus 1 Egg White
1/3 Cup Plus 1 Tablespoon Cake Flour
1 Cup Strawberry, Raspberry or Sour Cherry Jam
For The Icing:
1 1/3 Cups Confectioner’s Sugar
2 Tablespoons Water
Garnish:
6 Halved Candied Cherries
To make the pastry: In a food processor combine flour, confectioner’s sugar and salt. Pulse to mix. Add the butter and process in short pulses until pea-sized crumbs form . Do this for 25 seconds. While pulsing, add the egg yolk mixture and process to form large, moist crumbs (pulse 15 seconds more). Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, shape the dough into a ball and divide it in half. Shape each half into a flat 5” dish and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate at least 1 hour.
Move the oven rack into the center of the oven and preheat to 400° F.
Working with one piece of dough at a time, roll out to 1/8 inch thickness. Using a 3 inch round cookie cutter, cut out 12 rounds of pastry. Transfer a round to each well of a 12 well mini tart tin or you may use individual mini tart tins. Using your fingers, press the pastry to fit into the well. Refrigerate until ready to bake.
To make the filling: In a large bowl beat the butter until light and creamy with an electric mixer. Add the almond paste and sugar. Beat until smooth and creamy. While beating, add the eggs one at a time. Blend well after each addition. Reduce the speed to low and fold in the cake flour until just blended and no lumps of flour remain. Spoon 1 heaping teaspoon of jam into each tart shell to make a thin layer ¼ inch deep. Spoon the filling into each shell, filling it just to the top. Bake in a preheated oven until (on the middle rack) the tartlets are golden. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Repeat until you have finished up making all tartlets.
For the icing: Sift the confectioner’s sugar into a bowl. Combine with 2 tablespoons of water until smooth. Spoon the icing over the cooled tartlets and tope with candied cherry half. Makes 24 tartlets
English Custard Pudding 
INGREDIENTS
1 Ounce Sugar
10 Ounces Boiling Milk
1 Tablespoon Vanilla Extract
2 Large Egg Yolks
Beat the egg yolks in a small bowl. In a large bowl combine the sugar, vanilla and the beaten yolks. Pour in the boiling milk whisking while you pour. Put the custard into a saucepan and over LOW heat. Stir until the right consistency is obtained. DO NOT let the mixture boil or you will end up with scrambled eggs. Remove from heat and either serve immediately or allow to cool. Once cooled it should be covered and kept in the refrigerator for 2 days. Do not reheat once chilled. Serves 4
Spotted Dick
Some would rather call this dessert “Spotted Dog Pudding.” The spotted part refers to the currants in the dough and the word dick is a colloquial word for pudding.
INGREDIENTS
8 Ounces Self-Rising Flour
4 Ounces Shredded Suet
8 Ounces Currants
2/3 Cups Cold Water
1 Ounce Sugar
1/8 Teaspoon Salt
Mix together the flour, sugar, salt, suet and the currents. Keep mixing and add a little water at a time until the whole becomes firm dough. Roll into a long cylindrical shape that is about 8 inches long. Carefully place the rolled pastry into a small pan that is close to 8 inches diameter as possible. On top of the stove, place this smaller pan into a larger pan that is filled with boiling water. Do not fill so that the water spills into the smaller pan. This is to make a steamer to “steam” the pudding. Put on the lid to the larger pan and steam for about 2 ¼ hours making sure that the water is topped up in the outer pan with boiling water. If you would rather steam in the oven you can wrap in roil and bake at 400° F for 1 ½ hours. Serve with custard. Serves 6
Crème Caramel
INGREDIENTS
Custard:
1 Quart Whole Milk
1 ¼ Cups Plus 3 Tablespoons Sugar
5 Jumbo Eggs
3 Jumbo Egg Yolks
2 ¼ Teaspoons Vanilla Extract
Caramel:
½ Cup Plus 1 Tablespoon Sugar
3 Tablespoons Light Corn Syrup
3 Tablespoons Water
First arrange 8 (1 Cup) ramekins in a large roasting pan and set aside. To make the caramel: in a small saucepan, bring the sugar, water and corn syrup to a simmer over medium heat. Stir lightly to dissolve the sugar. Simmer for 25 minutes or until a rich, amber caramel amber caramel forms. Pour an equal amount of hot caramel into each ramekin. If the caramel gets too hard, gently reheat it. Preheat the oven to 300° F. To make the custard: In a large saucepan, bring the milk and sugar just to a simmer over medium heat. Stir for 5 minutes to dissolve the sugar. Let cool until warm. In a large bowl, whisk the whole eggs with the yolks. Slowly whisk in the warm milk mixture and then the vanilla. Strain the custard and pour into the prepared ramekins. Add enough hot water to the roasting pan to reach halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Cover the pan with 2 layers of plastic wrap. Bake the custard for 1 hour or until they are set, but still slightly wiggle in the center. Remove the hot custards from the water bath and let them cool on a rack until they are room temperature. Cover and refrigerate the custards overnight. To serve pour 2 inches of extremely hot water into a small bowl. Dip the ramekin in the hot water for 10 seconds and then run a thin knife around the edge of the ramekin to loosen the custard. Invert the crème caramel onto a serving plate. Repeat with the remaining crème caramels and serve. Serves 8
Strawberry Tart
This is such an easy dessert recipe. Feel free to substitute the strawberries with your favorite berry.
INGREDIENTS
9 Inch Pie Crust
8 Ounces Softened Cream Cheese
1/3 Cup Sugar
2 Tablespoons Milk
1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
3 Cups Washed & Hulled Whole Strawberries
Bake the pie crust until golden brown. If you are using a frozen pie crust then follow the package directions. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
In a mixing bowl, beat together cream cheese, sugar, milk and vanilla until smooth. Spoon the filling into the cooled pie crust. Spread the mixture evenly in the shell. Arrange the strawberries on top of the filling. Some people like to arrange the strawberries with the bottoms up, but arrange however you wish. Chill for 1 hour before serving. Serves 6
Lemon Sugar Cookies
INGREDIENTS
1 Cup Softened Butter
1 Cup Sugar
1 Cup Confectioners’ Sugar
1 Cup Vegetable Oil
2 Eggs
1 Teaspoon Lemon Extract
4 ½ Cups Unbleached Flour
1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
1 Teaspoon Cream of Tartar
Additional Sugar
In a large bowl, cream together the butter, sugars and oil. Beat in the eggs and extract. Combine the flour, baking soda and cream of tartar. Stir into the creamed mixture. The dough will be stiff. Roll the dough into 1 inch balls and place 2 inches apart on parchment lined baking sheet. Press the dough ball with the bottom of a glass that has been dipped in water and then in sugar. Bake at 350° F for 10 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned. Makes about 11 dozen cookies.
Almond Pound Cake
INGREDIENTS
1 Teaspoon Plus ¾ Cup Softened Butter – Divided
2 Teaspoons Confectioners’ Sugar
1 Cup Slivered Almonds
1 Cup Sugar
2 Eggs
1/3 Cup Sour Cream
1 Tablespoon Grated Lemon Peel
1 Cup Unbleached Flour
1 Teaspoon Baking Powder
¼ Cup Lemon Juice
Grease the bottom and sides of a 9 inch round baking pan or a loaf pan with 1 teaspoon butter. Sprinkle with confectioners’ sugar and set aside. Place the almonds and sugar in a food processor. Cover and process until finely ground.
In a small bowl, cream the remaining butter and beat in almond mixture until combined. Add the eggs one at a time. Beat well after each addition. Stir in the sour cream and lemon peel. Combine the flour and baking powder. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture alternating with the lemon juice. Pour into the prepared pan of your choice. Bake in a preheated 350° F oven for 40 to 45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Invert onto a wire rack to cool completely. Sprinkle cake with confectioners’ sugar. Serves 6
Butter Sponge Cake
Serve this Butter Sponge Cake with a good quality Darjeeling tea.
INGREDIENTS
¾ Cup Softened Unsalted Butter
¾ Cup Sugar
3 Large Eggs
1 ½ Cups Unbleached Flour
1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1 ½ Teaspoons Baking Powder
Raspberry Jam
Confectioners’ Sugar For Dusting
Preheat the oven to 350° F. Butter and flour an 8 inch round cake pan. In a medium sized bowl cream the butter and sugar, using an electric mixer, until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, adding 1 tablespoon of flour with each egg, and beating after each addition until well combined. Stir in the vanilla. Sift the remaining flour and the baking powder into a medium sized bowl. Stir the dry ingredients into the butter mixture until blended. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, spreading it evenly. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Invert the cake onto the wire rack and let it cool completely. Using a serrated knife, cut the cake horizontally into two layers. Spread the raspberry jam over the bottom layer, and then top with the remaining layer. Place a doily over the cake and sift a dusting of confectioners’ sugar over the top. Remove the doily and serve. Serves 6
