Posts tagged ice cream

‘forage in the pantry’ Summer Supper Club

July 17, 2016 Comments Off read Uncategorized

fter a successful first supper club earlier in the year, the excitement, delight and adrenaline of the event left me hungry to plan and host another! And with that, 3 apprehensive months later my summer edition arrived with a spice packed menu to tempt my next set of 30 greedy foodies. And what a sunny and special one this continued to be. Complete with the tuneful soothing and mesmerising sounds of my beautiful singer Doll Duncan…

For this summery occasion the menu was themed around spice from around the world in an original and eclectic mix of flavours and dishes to reflect my style. The sun was beaming as guests arrived to be welcomed with a crisp glass of sparkling Nyetimber to ease us all in to what I hoped to be an evening not to be missed. I began the menu with a fresh colourful starter of warm feta, pea, mint and dill fritters topped with a quenelle of beetroot and walnut humus. Served alongside this, some warm crusty bread and my homemade smoked salt and fennel butter! And who’d have thought, after all the flavours and tastes the evening offered I had more comments and astonished delight at my flavoured butter! On par with my truffles for simplicity, flavoured butter truly is an amazingly simple and easy addition to create which adds a brilliant twist to a meal (recipe to follow). With the taste buds awoken, I followed the starter with a generous oozy and velveting spoonful of my creamy spiced take on a lentil dahl (I did’t hold back on chilli, I’m told….). My ‘hug in a bowl’ dahl was then topped with a curry roasted cauliflower salad flecked with crisp spring onions, chopped mint and coriander. This miniature mountain of flavour was finally topped with a juicy and lovingly warm shredded handful of duck coated in a fresh zesty lime dressing…..

Jess - Dahl and Cauliflower duck

Jess - Butter

Fennel and Smoked Salt Butter

250g unsalted butter (Softened)
1 heaped tsp fennel seed
1 tsp smoked salt

Dry toast the fennel seeds in a pan until fragrant. Leave to cool before grinding in a pestle and mortar.
Tip into a bowl and then grind the salt flakes to a fine powder too.
Add about 1 tsp each of the ground fennel seed and the salt to the butter and stir well to combine evenly throughout. Add a little more fennel or salt dependant on taste.
Spoon the butter onto a piece of cling film in an oblong shape. Roll into a cylinder and tie up the end tightly like a cracker. Place in the fridge to harden before slicing into rounds.

With satisfied tummies, my lovely diners were relieved momentarily from their eating duties digest and embrace the gorgeous and charming sounds of my dear talented friend Doll Duncan who took to the piano like Beyonce to the stage. With a mix of unique covers (including a fantastic version of Billie Jean) and her own thoughtfully written lyrics she captured the room, and all thoughts of food, stomachs and wine were banished as she distracted our senses.

A short moment of sadness followed as she signed off with her last song but souls were comforted with the arrival of dessert! A very English and seasonal affair. A stick sweet ginger and treacle tart topped with a (ironical festively) spiced apple puree and a spoonful of my homemade rhubarb crumble ice cream. Happy diners.

As the evening darkened and many a late night punter strolled past the open windows curiously wondering what they had missed out on, my velvety homemade dark chocolate truffles teased the room only to be accompanied by coffee, teas and late night tipples from Market Porter’s fantastic range. We drank, talked and relaxed into the wee hours…

Hosted once again at the charming Porter at Embassy Gardens, nothing sums up the evening better than the video snapshot above, created and shot by the talented Keith Hammond.

Coconut Blueberry Yoghurt Loaf

June 19, 2016 Comments Off read Sweet Treats

was recently lucky enough to receive a generous bounty (excuse the pun) of The Coconut Collaborative’s tasty products to do some experimenting with. As my close friends will know I love all things coconut. I can’t get enough. So any food based with this creamy exotic flavour is in my good books. While targeted at the dairy free among us, you would not know for the lack of it with it creamy moreish taste. I thought I’d attempt to use their delicious flavoured and non flavoured yoghurts in a cake, dairy free, and packed with fruit. Devine.

And I know recipes do tend to write this a lot but this really (truly, honestly) is the EASIEST cake in the world to knock out. I think it took me a 5 minutes. Mixing bowl, spoon and loaf tin. Minimal washing up…more eating time. No scales needed just a ratio of yog-pots!

Makes 1 loaf

1x 120g pot of ‘The Coconut Colloborative’ blueberry yoghurt (Here is have used this coconut based yoghurt so this is a dairy free loaf! But feel red to use any yoghurt of choice)
2 pots self raising flour
Just under 1 pot caster sugar (dependant on the sweetness of your yoghurt)
1/2 pot of vegetable oil
3 eggs, beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract/ seeds from 1 pod
Pinch salt
150g blueberries

Preheat the oven to 180°C. and grease and line a loaf tin
Place the yoghurt in a large mixing bowl and then add the rest of the ingredients except the blueberries.
Mix thoroughly to combine until you have a smooth batter
Mix in the blueberries
Spoon the mixture into a loaf tin and bake in the own for about 45 minutes until cooked. Bake for a little longer if a knife inserted into the middle does not come out clean.
Leave to cool, dust with icing sugar and serve with extra blueberries and a hearty spoonful of Coconut Ice cream (see here for a dairy free option)

Rum Roasted Pineapple, Coconut Ice Cream, Mint Sugar

May 3, 2016 Comments Off read Sweet Treats

‘m not a dessert person or a sweet tooth, unless it comes to ice cream. And this so happens to be my favourite ice cream recipe! Don’t get me wrong I love making desserts. Planning them, creating them and being able to execute a beautiful creation but I usually never eat them. So with guests for supper this weekend, a fuss free dessert was required. With a fatty hearty main on the cards, a fresh and citrus cleansing after was the perfect match. You can take more time over this as I mention below (see notes) by adding some grated coconut to the ice cream, grilling the pineapple towards the end, caramelising with a blow torch or wonderfully charring on the barbeque but fuss free was the aim here.

I made the ice cream in 5 minutes at breakfast and it was ready and set by dinner time and is just as impressive as a classic recipe. The pineapple is sweet and deliciously roasted and with a depth of flavour from the rum that makes this more than a fruit salad finish to a meal. Sometimes the simple ones are the best and this is no doubt a powerful but humble choice.

Serves 6

Pineapple

1 large pineapple
1 vanilla pod
2 tbsp dark rum
2 tbsp soft brown sugar
6 tsp butter

Coconut Ice Cream

400ml full fat coconut milk
1 can condensed milk
Zest 1 lime
1 fresh coconut, grated/ 150g toasted desiccated coconut (optional)

Mint sugar

Bunch mint leaves picked
2 tbsp granulated sugar

Start on the ice cream. If you’re after a super fast recipe, simply combine the condensed milk, coconut milk and lime zest, whisk to combine then place in a tupperware in the freezer (untouched) for at least 8 hours. For added flavour though you can add in the grated flesh of one fresh coconut or the desiccated coconut but if you’ve ever tried to grate a fresh coconut you’ll know it takes some commitment…
Preheat the oven to 190°C.. Warm the rum gently in a pan and then add the sugar and the seeds of the vanilla pod. Stir to combine.
Top and tail the pineapple and remove the rind. Cut in half lengthways and then cut each half into thirds. Remove the hard centre segment and then place the slices in a large bowl.
Spoon over the rum mixture and let it sit for about 10 minutes.
Line a baking tray and spoon the marinading pineapple onto the tray evenly with any of the leftover rum marinade. Place a tsp of butter on top of each and roast for about 30 minutes until tender. You can stick them under the grill for the final few minutes to char them slightly if you like but again, the aim here is fuss free!
Once ready remove from the oven and set aside. Bash the sugar and mint in a pestle and mortar until crushed and vibrant green
Top each slice of pineapple with a little mint sugar and serve warm alongside a creamy scoop of your coconut ice cream

NOTE: There are certainly ways to ‘glam’ this up. Grill the pineapple once cooked for a caramelised effect, scorch with a blowtorch for the same effect or beautifully grilled on the barbecue. Add the fresh coconut to the ice cream as mentioned or make a lovely heard of sesame praline (melt caster sugar until golden, add sesame seeds and turn out onto an oiled sheet of parchment). Shortbread would also never go unwanted here.

Matcha Latte Afagatto

February 27, 2016 Comments Off read Drinks, Sweet Treats

remember the first time I had a hand warming bowl of fresh matcha tea. I was on an energy high for the entire day! As someone who doesn’t drink caffeinated coffee its a great alternative energy kick full of caffeine and packed full of antioxidants. I realise that unlike me many won’t have the same apprecaitetion for the bitter flavours of green tea or my favourite 90% dark chocolate. However if you can appreciate the flavour, health benefits and vivid colour of matcha tea then forget your Starbucks ”skinny-soy-hold the cream- add the sweetener and cinnamon sprinkle grande latte (with – correctly written name)…breathe….and get to your local health food shop or teapigs supplier and go make your own! That said, more and more independent cafes are offering this healthy alternative so it is far more accessible for an easy take out than it used to be. It can be made using sweetened milk such as sweetened almond (my personal favourite) of hazelnut to just take off that bitter edge.

For those still curious, matcha tea is essentially organic green tea leaves that have been ground to a fine powder and concentrated into this vibrant ‘gold’ dust. As I say, I like to use a sweeter milk but after a recent lightbulb moment of inspiration I wondered if the after dinner coffee and chocolate pairing could be ‘matched’ (excuse the pun) with an alternative? So, I thought, why not pair super sweet white chocolate with this bitter green and warming tea topped with some camp rose petals?

Think of it as an alternative coffee-free afagatto for your more hipster dinner party guests.

The body is a temple. But only once a month….

NOTE: To get the aerated effect, the best thing to use here if you don’t have a green tea whisk is a milk frother (see here). You can also use a hand blender.

hilst I always use unsweetened versions of dairy free milks such as almond and soy, I find the sweetened ones work better here as an alternative to adding maple syrup or honey. However feel free to use the unsweetened versions, especially for the afagatto where the bitterness is a lovely contrast to the sweet ice cream.

Matcha latte for 1

1/2 tsp match tea powder
200ml milk of choice (almond, coconut, dairy, rice milk, hazelnut etc)

Sieve the powder into a mug so its doesn’t end up lumpy
Warm the milk in a pan until just coming to the simmer and then remove from the heat
Using a whisk or frother add a few tablespoons of the hot milk to the powder and whisk well to combine.
Once combined add the rest of the milk and use the whisk or frother to aerate.

Matcha Afagatto for 4

400ml (sweetened) almond milk (or soya, dairy, coconut, hazelnut….)
2 tsp matcha tea powder
4 scoops white chocolate ice cream
Optional – 2 tsp rose petals

Make the matcha latte as above.
Spoon the ice cream into small deep bowls
Pour over the hot tea and top with rose petals

Cranachan Ice Cream

January 25, 2016 Comments Off read Sweet Treats

o we all know I’m partial to ice cream. However I am not a desserts kind of girl in general. That being said I honestly feel like most desserts can be bettered in ice cream version!? Take my apple crumble ice cream or my carrot cake inventions for example. So with a Burn’s night supper party on the horizon I figured it was time to plan a traditional menu. But with the thought of the a creamy glass of cranachan to polish off a tasty haggis I was having none of it. Ice cream it was.

Serve topped with your honey ‘granola’ and a neat shot of whiskey to warm the cooling ice cream.

Serves about 6

1 can condensed milk
300ml single cream
1 vanilla pod, seeds scrapped
Splash whiskey (optional)
250g frozen or fresh strawberries/raspberries (or a mixture)
1 1/2 tbsp caster sugar
150g oats
50g flaked almonds
4 tbsp runny honey
Knob butter
Whiskey and extra honey to serve

If using fresh strawberries, cut into quarters. Place the fruit in bowl and sprinkle with the caster sugar and set aside for 5 minutes.
Whisk the condensed milk, cream, whiskey and vanilla seeds in a jug and pour into a tupperware container.
Fold in the fruit, place a lid on the box and freeze.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180.
Mix the almonds and oats in a bowl.
Melt the honey and butter and pour over the oats and combine well until thoroughly covered.
Spread out on a lined baking tray in a thin layer and toast in the oven for 15minutes, turning twice duinrg cooking.
Leave to cool completely and crisp up.
To serve, spoon generous helpings of ice cream into a bowl, scatter with the toasted oats and drizzle over and extra honey. Serve with a neat shot of whiskey!

Affogato

January 1, 2016 Comments Off read Sweet Treats

ts a brand New Year. Without sounding cynical and old before my time I’ve always hated the pressure that comes with this shiny promising New Year and the new ‘you’ that will suddenly look and feel better and hopefully get a pay rise? Whilst its a great starting point for change and ambition January 1st is just another day and sadly your problems will follow you here and continue to exist in 2016 so its time to tackle and importantly embrace these!

But it is the perfect time to write down those ambitions, resolutions, plans or even bad habits with a permeant pen and a piece of real paper. I stress this because for me 2015 was filled with Macs, iPhones, technology, contactless payment, more technology, digital memories and even more technology. However with such reliance on this new digital age to hold our memories what happened to the good old paper ones that will no doubt last a lifetime, don’t need an expensive external hard drive for back up, cannot be deleted at the click of a button (I’m talking about you resolutions) and are more personal than ‘Times New Roman’. So one of my resolutions this year is to get back to using the pen and paper for recipe ideas, food styling, menus, ideas and thoughts.

Being a New Year, many use this time to kick start their diets. Whatever the diet purpose i’m sure we’ve all learnt from 2015 that the diet will probably involve less refined sugar? Which can only be a good thing? I personally don’t have a sweet tooth so you’ll rarely catch me gorging on a cake however this hasn’t always been the case. When younger I could devour bowl upon bowl of cereal, manufactured cheesecake or sweet sugary chocolate. It wasn’t until overdosing on chocolate one Christmas that I kicked off Easter lent without it. And in an unprecedented turns of events I didn’t touch the stuff for 7 years (rest assured I do now). But the point I’m getting at is that even 40 days with no sugary chocolate and very little sugar, my body began to crave it less and less to a point where I no longer needed or wanted it at all. Sugar addicts out there are probably rolling their eyes at this well used cliche but you only have to persevere to realise the truth here.

However, this be said, if you are a sugar addict and have planned on changing your diet you may not want to cut sugar out completely if you are that way inclined. Try reducing your intake bit by bit until you no longer feel the need to take sugary tea or to go back for that double helping of dessert. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all about moderation within a diet. They should include sweet special delights and rewards but special they should be and for that you need an element of rarity. So in an attempt to help inspire, this little recipe will satisfy any post-dinner sugar cravings. Bitter, warm, earthy black espresso coffee poured lovingly over ice cold velvetly cinnamon ice cream. It is a perfect cleansing low sugar finish to a filling meal providing a satisfying hot and cold feel and to hit the sweet spot kindly and the stomach gently.

‘ll admit this hardly calls for a recipe and is more an assembly but use it here for inspiration. Ice cream flavour is obviously open to taste. I have used my left over Christmas Cinnamon Ice Cream (found here). You’ll be pleased to know a sweeter ice cream works well here to balance the bitterness of the coffee.

With an ambition for 2016 to buy those ingredients I’ve ‘always wanted to try’ or try that new technique I aim to make my own match latte (authentic green tea for those unaware). Being partial to a matcha latte takeaway treat I am salivating now just thinking of the perfect combination of warm velvety, bitter and creamy green tea poured lovingly over some sweet white chocolate ice cream!

Ice cream of choice (I have a modest list of homemade (cheat and non-cheat) ice cream recipes in the archive
Hot dark coffee (espresso is traditional)

Ball the ice cream into deep bowls
Pour over a shot of your hot dark freshly brewed coffee

Galette des rois and Cinnamon Ice Cream

December 27, 2015 Comments Off read Sweet Treats

alette de rois probably combines some of my most favourite ingredients yet criminally I’ve never made it!? Puff pastry, almonds, frangipane, a cheeky splash of booze, not much else says Christmas like that for me. And not only is it a sweet comforting crowd pleaser its a festively appropriate one too….in France anyway. Traditionally eaten on Twelfth night to welcome those famous Kings around the festive season it is normally the hiding place for two figurines that when found by the lucky eaters crown them Kind and Queen for the day and the chance to make a wish. I had many wishes this year that I can’t confess its just a shame I forgot the figurines!

Eaten a little early I’ll agree but neither are we in France! Accompanied by homemade cinnamon ice cream and a warm spoonful of spiced apple compote this went down a treat. And you can barely call this cooking as it simply involves a round of shop bought pastry and a quick frangipane.

NOTE: You can spoon some of the apple jam onto the base of this pastry as an alternative to apricot jam or serve alongside as I did.

Serves 10

Galette

1 x block 500g puff pastry (I recommend you don’t use the ready rolled version – it doesn’t ‘puff’ and rise as much in my experience)
100g caster sugar
100g ground almonds
100g softened unsalted butter
50 g flaked almonds
2 eggs, beaten and 1 extra for glazing
1 tbsp/large splash cognac or dark rum
1-2 tbsp apricot jam

Cinnamon Ice Cream

1 can condensed milk
300ml single cream
1 tbsp ground cinnamon
1 vanilla pod, seeds scraped (reserve the pods for using to infuse a jar of caster sugar)

Spiced Apple Compote/Jam – recipe here

Start with the ice cream. Heat the single cream until just about to simmer then remove from the heat. Add the scraped seeds from the vanilla pod and whisk the cinnamon in thoroughly.
Whisk in the condensed milk and leave to the mixture to cool completely.
Freeze the ice cream in a tupperware container or dish. This is a non-churn ice cream but you may need to whisk after 3-4 hours when the ice cream should be nearly set but still loose to distribute any ground cinnamon that has risen to the surface. Freeze until set
For the galette, cut the pastry block in half and roll out each into a square about 25cm x 25cm. Use a plate or dish around 23cm in size (approx.) and cut out two discs. Place them on a parchment lined baking tray and chill in the fridge.
Meanwhile make the filling. Whisk the butter and sugar until combined, soft and fluffy in a food processor or using a hand blender.
Slowly add in the beaten egg and mix until combined followed by the cognac/rum.
Fold in the ground and flaked almonds until combined. Chill in the fridge for about 15 minutes.
When ready to cook remove all elements from the fridge. Spoon the apricot jam (or apple compote) onto the bottom of one of the pastry rounds leaving a 2cm border. Spoon on the frangipane, again leaving a 2cm border, slightly heaping the mixture in the centre.
Brush the 2cm border with beaten egg and place the second pastry round on top.
Press the edges together well to seal.
Using a knife, nick little slices into the edges to seal the pastry together and create a rough pattern. Finally score the top as seen in the pictures in a wheel affect.
Brush the galette with beaten egg and chill for 20 minutes in the fridge.
Meanwhile preheat the oven to 200°C. After 20 minutes, brush again with beaten egg for a golden coating and then cook in the oven for about 30-35 minutes until golden and cooked through.
Leave to cool slightly before dusting with icing sugar and serving alongside some creamy and festive cinnamon ice cream.

Coffee and Walnut Brownies

May 3, 2015 Comments Off read Sweet Treats

Leftover Easter eggs. Still you cry! Yes, as a dark chocolate lover you don’t need much hence why I have a vat of the stuff still sitting patiently in the pantry. Brownies anyone?

Without doubt the best, most trusty brownie recipe and one I’ve always gone back to time after time. My only concern each time I make it is the sugar content. But we are talking about brownies here which come with a certain set of health flaws anyway. Courtesy of Green & Blacks but highly adapted here to reflect one of my favourite cakes, walnuts for crunch and coffee beans for surprise.

Makes about 20

200g unsalted butter
100g dark chocolate (70%) Green & Blacks
350g dark brown soft sugar
4 eggs, beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract
200g self raising flour
1 tbsp instant coffee granules
Pinch salt
100g chopped walnuts
2 tbsp coffee beans, ground into chunks in a pestle and mortar

Preheat the oven to 180°C and line a 28cm x 18cm brownie tin with parchment (or a similar size)
Melt the butter and chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water until melted and combined. Remove from the heat and leave to cool slightly.
Stir in the sugar and instant coffee granules until combined.
Whisk the eggs and vanilla well in a bowl and then whisk these continuously into the chocolate mixture until well combined and glossy.
Gently fold in the flour and salt.
Finely, stir in the chopped nuts and crushed coffee beans.
Bake for 25-30 minutes until crispy on top but still soft inside. The edges may cook quicker leaving the middle pieces gooey and dense.
Leave to cool completely (yes I know…amuse yourself here) until cold. Then cut into enormous pieces. Serve with some cool creamy ice cream.

Gingerbread Latte Ice Cream, Salted Pistachio Brittle

April 10, 2015 Comments Off read Sweet Treats

Its Easter, a foodie occasion so I cannot forgo a dessert menu without this icey sweet delight. Coffee is such a crowd pleasing and moresih dessert flavour (if you’re a caffeine lover) as it naturally tops off a dinner and satisfies those bitter fans and the sweet toothed. From tiramisu to coffee cake I love it. But in ice cream….well need I say more. With the subtleyly of the ginger and cinnamon it makes for a ironically warming flavour in this cooling ice cream. Acoompanied with a warm lava centred chocolate fondant it was the perfect finale to Easter lunch.

Ice Cream (Serves 6 modestly)

300ml single cream
1 can condensed milk
2 tbsp coffee granules
1 tbsp ground ginger
1 heaped tsp ground cinnamon

Heat the cream until just coming up to the boil. Add the coffee and spices and whisk until all combined off the heat.
Leave to cool.
Whisk in the condensed milk until thoroughly combined and transfer to a container or tupperware to store int he freezer.
Freeze until set! You can remove it from the freezer about 5 minutes before serving to make it easier to serve.

Salted Pistachio Brittle

Very general measurements and method here! If in doubt use a sugar thermometer.

200g caster sugar
160g roughly of golden syrup
3 tbsp water
60g pisatchios, crushed
1 tsp malden salt
1 tbsp unsalted butter

Line a baking tray with non stick parchment (grease with oil if you want)
Crush the nuts and mix with the salt and set aside.
Mix the sugar, syrup and water in a pan. Heat on a medium high heat but do not be tempted to stir. Allow it to melt and begin to caramelise and bubble. Leave for 5-10 minutes or so bubbling away until the syrup beings to turn golden. Watch very closely here as you don’t want it to catch and burn or turn too dark. When a golden brown colour add the butter and remove from the heat and quickly pour onto the baking tray.
Immediately scatter over the salty nuts evenly and leave to set. It will harden quickly, within 10 minutes! Once poured out and still soft though you can move the tray around to make it thinner if required by tilting.
Once set, peel from the parchment and break carefully into shards for each guest

Gingerbread Ice Cream, Lemon Apple Tart

December 26, 2014 Comments Off read Sweet Treats

Gingerbread! Not only is it a festive crowd and stomach pleaser but its also an adored treat in the Wardlaw household! So what could be better than gingerbread and ice cream combined for a festive spicy Christmas lunch dessert this year. I think I’ve gotten a little carried away with the gingerbread theme recenty (see here for gingerbread latte macaroons and here for gingerbread scotch pancakes). And those that know me know that ice cream is my achilles heel (see here for some inventive creations).

We’re probably in the minority in terms of food ethos on Christmas day. While many people might not think twice about their pudding choice I like to choose something that leads on from the indulgent main event that leaves people feeling happy and not sick and queezy. Don’t get me wrong, we’re a family with healthy appetite but a modest one. So, I always create something fresh and clean to cleanse the greasy remains of the turkey lunch so this zesty fresh tart is perfect.

This is a really old and long used tart recipe which could not be more simple to knock out! If you’re not making your own pastry it can be ready to go in under an hour!

Serves 6

Gingerbread Ice Cream

Although you could just flavour the ice cream base with gingerbread spices, I thought some added crumbled gingerbread would be a nice addition. Gingerbread is characteristcally mosit so I dried and crisped mine up beforehand to provide some texture to the final snowball scoop.

1 can condensed milk
300ml single cream
1tsp ground ginger
1tsp ground cinnamon
200g gingercake (I used Jamacian ginger loaf)

Preheat the oven to 200°C. Crumble the ginger cake onto a baking tray and bake for about 15 minutes or so, keeping an eye on it, until it begins to crisp a bit or loose some of its moisture. Remove from the oven and leave to cool. Don’t worry – once its cooled it will crisp up more.
Mix the condensed milk and cream together thoroughly in a jug then add the spices and mix.
Churn in an ice cream maker until thick but not too set. Alternatively you can pour it into a tupperware box and leave to set in the freezer until thicker and no longer sloppy.
Once the ice cream is the right consistency and the cake crumbs have cooled, stir them into the ice cream so it is distributed evenly and then freeze until hard.

Lemon and Apple Tart

Shortcrust Pastry (enough for 2 tart cases)

125g unsalted butter
250g plain flour
Zest of 1 lemon

Filling

1 large cooking apple
2 large eggs, whisked
1 lemon, zest and juice
100g caster sugar
50g melted butter

Start with the pastry. I like to use plain shortcrust as the ice cream and filling are sweet enough. Mix together the butter and flour in a food processer until it forms a breadcrumb like texture and then grate in the lemon zest and mix.
Keep adding a few tbsps of cold water bit by bit and mix until you form a soft smooth dough.
Form gently into a dough and shape into a disc. Wrap in cling film and leave to rest in the fridge for about 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180°C and line and grease a 20cm loose bottomed tart tin.
Once rested, roll the pastry thinly on a floured surface and line the tart tin pushing the pastry into the edges neatly. Use a fork to prick 4-5 wholes across the base to stop it puffing up while cooking. Line with a sheet of baking parchment and fill with baking beans. Bake the tart case blind for about 15-20 minutes until it has a light straw colour and is mostly cooked.
Remove the beans and parchment and return the case to the oven to cook the base for about more 5 minutes. Finally brush with a little beaten egg to cover the wholes and seal the pastry.
Leave the case to cool while you make the filling.
Whisk the eggs, sugar and lemon zest and juice in a bowl.
Melt the butter and add to the mixture, whisking as you go.
Grate the apple into the eggs too.
Fill the tart case with the mixture and bake in the oven for about 35-40 minutes until just set and golden on top.

Serve the tart dusted with icing sugar and with a snowball of gingerbread ice cream!