The reissue of Diana Henry’s first award-winning book is full of delicious treats
Chocolate, hazelnut and sherry cake with sherry-raisin cream
Serves: 8
Preparation
Butter a 22cm (8 inch) diameter springform cake tin and line the base with greaseproof paper.
Put the butter, chocolate and sherry in a heatproof bowl and set it over a pan of simmering water, making sure the bowl does not touch the water.
Heat until everything has melted, stirring from time to time to help it along. Let this cool.
Preheat the oven to 170°C fan (350°F), Gas 4.
What you’ll need
75g (2½oz) unsalted butter, plus more for the tin
150g (5oz) dark chocolate
125ml (4fl oz) dry fino sherry
6 eggs, separated
160g (5½oz) caster sugar
150g (5oz) hazelnuts, toasted and coarsely chopped
55g (2oz) self-raising flour, sifted
55g (2oz) cocoa powder, sifted
Pinch of sea salt flakes
Icing sugar, to dust
For the cream
250g (9oz) raisins
250ml (9fl oz) oloroso sherry
300ml (½ pint) double cream
4 tbsp Greek yogurt, or fromage frais
4 tbsp icing sugar
Method
Whisk the egg yolks with the sugar until glossy.
Add the cooled chocolate mixture and 70g (2oz) of the hazelnuts.
Beat the egg whites until fairly stiff.
Using a large metal spoon, loosen the chocolate mixture with 1 big spoonful of egg white, then fold in the rest with the flour, cocoa and salt.
Pour into the prepared tin and bake for 40 minutes.
Test the cake with a skewer and, if it comes out clean, it’s done; otherwise leave it for another 5–10 minutes, but keep checking with a skewer, as it’s easy to overcook this cake.
Leave it to cool in the tin for 30 minutes before turning it out.
In a small saucepan, heat the raisins in the sherry.
When the sherry is just under boiling point, turn the heat off and leave the raisins to plump up for 30 minutes and cool.
Whip the cream and stir in the yogurt or fromage frais and icing sugar.
Add the raisins with their soaking liquid and check the sweetness.
Dust the surface of the cake with a little icing sugar, then scatter the rest of the chopped hazelnuts on top.
Finish with another light dusting of icing sugar and serve with dollops of the cream.
4 tsp dried lavender buds, or flowers from 8 fresh lavender sprigs
250g (9oz) caster sugar
Finely grated zest and juice of 2 oranges
4 eggs, lightly beaten
200g (7oz) self-raising flour, sifted
55g (2oz) blanched almonds, freshly ground
For the icing
300g (10½oz) curd cheese
70g (2½oz) icing sugar
Finely grated zest of 1 orange
For the candied peel
2 large oranges
100g (3½oz) caster sugar
For the frosted lavender (optional)
Flowers from 8 fresh lavender sprigs
1 egg white, lightly beaten
Caster sugar, sifted
Method
Preheat the oven to 170°C fan (350°F), Gas 4.
Butter a 22cm (8in) springform cake tin and line the base with greaseproof paper.
Put the lavender and sugar for the cake in a coffee grinder (or a food processor, though you won’t get such a fine powder) and process to a powder.
Cream the butter and lavender sugar together until light and fluffy, then add the orange zest and juice and the eggs.
Beat until well amalgamated, adding a spoonful or 2 of the flour if the mixture begins to look curdled.
Fold in the flour and the ground almonds.
Pour the batter into the prepared tin and bake in the oven for 40 minutes.
Test if the cake is cooked by piercing it with a skewer: if the skewer comes out clean, it is ready.
Let the cake cool in the tin for 15 minutes, then turn it out on to a wire rack.
To make the icing, mix the curd cheese with the icing sugar and orange zest.
Refrigerate until needed.
For the candied peel, use a sharp knife to cut the zest from the oranges in strips.
Remove any white pith left on the zest and cut the zest into fine julienne strips, about the length of your little finger.
Squeeze the juice from both oranges and make it up to 225ml (8fl oz) with a little water if you need to.
Put the juice in a pan with the sugar.
Heat gently until the sugar has melted, then add the strips of zest and let them simmer; they need to cook until the liquid has nearly evaporated (about 30 minutes).
Scoop the pieces of zest out with a fork, and, gently separating them, lay them on a piece of greaseproof paper to dry.
You can only frost fresh lavender.
If you want to do this, simply brush each sprig with a little egg white, then sprinkle with caster sugar, covering it well.
Set on a wire rack in a warm place to let it dry and set.
Top the cake with the curd cheese icing and decorate with the candied peel and the frosted lavender sprigs, if using.
If you can’t be bothered with candying and frosting, then use a zester to remove the zest from the oranges and sprinkle it, while still moist, with a little caster sugar, before scattering it round the border of the cake.
Diana Henry’s Crazy Water, Pickled Lemons
Extracted from Diana Henry’s Crazy Water, Pickled Lemons (Aster, £26). Photography by Jason Lowe.
