New Year, New Deliciousness
Starting off strong with my White Chocolate, Strawberry & Mint Meringue Loaf, - Peanut Butter, Banana & Chocolate Protein Bites, Chocolate & Coconut Oaties & a classic Victoria Sponge.
Hello lovely people! Happy New Year to you all – I truly hope you all had a great christmas break and a lovely start to the new year? SO SORRY for being massively delayed in saying that to you, I am only just about getting back to normality after a trip away to New York left me with a rather delicious bout of food poisoning which decided to strike ON new years eve. Oh yes folks, I saw in 2024 with my head down the toilet so yay for me, yay for James who spent a lot of money and time planning this trip away and yay for CVS for keeping me stocked up on pedialyte.
I DO have a tonne of New York food recommendations (despite having to miss out on 95% of the, boo hoo for Rubes) so will make sure I share them with you here and also over on instagram for anyone planning a trip or heading over there soon. If you are one of those lucky ones, please eat extra for me – I currently cry myself to sleep thinking of all the goodness I had to pass up on because my stomach had other plans BUT in the first two days, I did manage to eat quite possibly the best taco’s I’ve EVER eaten in my life (Los Tacos No.1), have some incredibly good coffee and cookies (Culture Espresso over Levain), finally try the Banana Pudding from Magnolia (huge yes) and the most flakey, buttery, crisp pastry you could imagine from Librae (WOW).
I’m gonna keep the generic fluff to a minimum for the first newsletter back because
A) I am already late as hell sending this to you,
B) substack is already telling me the newsletter is too long for email before I have even written the intro and
C) I read some stat online that says no one cares for the recipe intro’s and everyone just skips to the recipes anyway so feel like…this could all be a waste of time? Happy to hear your thoughts on whether we keep the fluff or not – and don’t worry I won’t get offended. After the barrage of messages I’ve received after dismissing a Victoria Sponge on social media yesterday, I can just about take anything…!
ps. I apologise if this newsletter is littered with spelling and grammatical errors - my spell check isn’t working on my laptop for some reason and I feel horrendously exposed rn. So, soz. x
Alright so I know I said I don’t believe in this whole new year, new me business but I respect the fact that for some people, that codswallop floats a few peoples boats. And because I am nice and thoughtful and considerate and caring and want you ALL to have yummy food this January, not every recipe this week is gonna be full of sugar. Whether you are on a health kick, trying to incorporate more protein into your daily gobbling or following the ‘do what makes you happy’ diet like me, I have a little something for everyone this week.
Is this me over committing to everything at the start of the new year like eveyone does? Maybe. But maybe it has a little to do with feeling guilty over not sending you any deliciousness to your inboxes over the last two weeks. For that I am truly sorry but I am here for the forseeable and ready to ruin any health kicks with the outrageous filth I have lined up over the course of the next few months.
This week we have:
Peanut Butter, Banana & Chocolate Protein Bites. A no bake, one bowl wonder delight.
Chocolate Protein Oaties. Cookies but not really cookies but really as delicious as cookies (a lie but when you’re being healthy, these will taste like the bees knees)
This weeks ‘Around the World’ bake, a classic Victoria Sponge. Does this need an intro? In case you live under a rock, it’s two sponges sandwiching a raspberry (or strawb) jam and whipped cream and finished with a dusting of icing sugar. Is it mindblowing? Not particularly but it’s a classic for a reason with its no fuss, no frills, low maintenance approach to cakey goodness.
White Chocolate, Strawberry & Mint Meringue Loaf. My take on a viccy sponge. Is it better than the OG? Don’t be daft, OF COURSE IT IS. My take uses a chiffon sponge (think a cloud-like, softer than air sort of sponge) soaked in a vanilla bean sugar syrup, layered with a mint spiked white chocolate whipped cream, a roasted strawberry jammy compote and covered in crisp, perfectly baked meringue. Perfectly light, perfectly balanced and perfectly perfect for a dreary Jan.
We are going to jump straight into it today to avoid a mammoth newsletter to start us back so first up, I am sharing with you a super simple recipe that I am confident you could do with your eyes closed. If your level of baking/cooking peaks at ‘pro at burning toast’, this one is for you.
My recipe for my Peanut Butter, Banana & Chocolate Protein Bites is a crowd pleasing, post workout, pre workout, any time of the day, little sweet treat which will help to satisfy the need for a sugar boost when that slump hits. The best thing about these is that not only are they are super easy to make (a bowl and a fork is pretty much all you need) but they are dairy free, gluten free, a good souce of protein, B12, omega 3, fibre and healthy fats.
I know – sounds too good to be true doesn’t it?
I promise you they don’t taste like dust or cardboard or like a lame consolation prize treat. These little bites have been on regular rotation for me for years now and are versatile in what you can fill them with. I go for banana chips but have used freeze dried raspberries, medjool dates (mega yum) and dried cherries before and they all work incredibly well.
Recipe Makes: 10 Servings
Y O U – W I L L – N E E D -
Base
65 g Coconut Flour
50 g Vanilla Protein Powder (banana also works nicely)
10 g Maca Powder (optional)
15 g Chia Seeds
60 ml Coconut Milk
3 tbsp Peanut Butter
To Fill
Handful of Dried Banana Chips
To Coat
80 g Dark Chocolate
M E T H O D -
Place all the ingredients for the base into a bowl and mix well using a fork until smooth.
Divide the mixture by 10, add a banana chip (or whatever your choice of filling is) to the middle of each, roll into balls and refridgerate until set – this should take about 15 minutes.
Melt the chocolate over a bain marie or in the microwave, dip each ball in to coat and place onto a lined baking tray to firm up. Repeat until each protein ball is covered.
Place the tray into the fridge for another 15 minutes or so until set.
These will stay good in a sealed container for up to a week (I personally haven’t tried how they taste over a week because they never last that long).
As someone who has quite the sweet tooth, I know a thing or two about trying to eat a little cleaner whilst also enjoying a treat here and there (by here and there, I mean daily, duh). These Choccy Protein Oaties allows you to have your cake and eat it. They are packed full of goodness, protein, healthy fats, omega 3 and antioxidants, all whilst not scrimping on the yum.
They are chewy, they are crunchy, they are chocolatey and scrumptious. You can make these as little biscuit rounds as suggested or you could bake it like a streusel/crumble topping and add it on top of fruit, a compote, yoghurt, as an alternative biscuit base for cheesecakes, baked pies or a layered traybake.
I tend to make double the batch of these cookies as I inevitably end up eating at least 3 whilst they are warm, so if you want to make like me, freeze half the rolled amount before baking and leave in your freezer for up to 3 months for an emergency batch of healthy-ish treats.
Recipe Makes: 10 Cookies
Y O U – W I L L – N E E D -
100 g Coconut Oil
2 tbsp Maple Syrup
1 tsp Vanilla Bean Paste
50 g Buckwheat Flakes, ground (you can sub for oats/GF oats)
50 g Buckwheat Flakes, whole (you can sub for oats/GF oats)
35 g Ground Almonds
15 g Cacao Powder (you can sub with cocoa)
15 g Protein Powder (a neutral flavoured one works best)
40 g Flaked Almonds
40 g Raisins
30 g Crystallised Ginger, finely chopped
5 Medjool Dates, destoned and chopped
15 g Flaxseeds
15 g Chia Seeds
0.5 tsp Bicarbonate of Soda, sifted
M E T H O D -
Preheat oven to 160°C Fan/180°C/Gas Mark 4, line a tray with baking paper and leave to one side.
Into a medium sized saucepan, add the coconut oil, maple syrup and vanilla bean paste and place over a gentle heat.
Give everything a good stir and allow it to warm for about 5 minutes.
In the meantime, add all the remaining ingredients to a large bowl and mix to combine.
Once the coconut oil is hot, pour into the ingredients bowl and use a fork to mix everything together.
Allow the biscuit mix to cool slightly before using your hands to squish together golf ball sized rounds until smooth(ish) before placing them spaced well apart on the tray.
Once they have all been rolled, use the palm of your hand to gently press down.
Transfer the tray to the oven and bake for 14 minutes.
Remove the tray from the oven and leave to cool for 30 minutes before carefully moving them onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Once cooled, they are good to gobble. Pop them into a tupperware box and these will stay good for up to a week.
The next cake in my ‘Around the World’ series is that British classic - a Victoria Sponge. I know how much people love this cake – and whilst nothing tastes better than nostaligia and familiarity, this cake in comparison to all the others I have made so far, sits a little underwheming. I have always enjoyed the ones you get in the shop. You know the small ones which says feeds 6 but in reality feeds just 1 Rubes. The caster sugar topping, the cream and jam middle and that soft, moist, almost maderia like sponge, washed down by a cup of coffee or tea? Bingo.
But the top rated recipe I followed from online? Not so much bingo, more like no go.
I could tell the sponge was going to be dry from just the mere 6 or so ingredients it had listed and not a single liquid in sight. But I blindly followed thinking the 1000+ ratings must mean something. The below recipe I have tweaked from the one I used to stay as traditional as possible without completely altering what a Victoria Sponge is. From the masses of instagram comments and people up in arms about my not-so-gentle critique on their beloved cake, it’s a classic for a reason.
That being said, there’s still a few things which aren’t listed below that I would add in order to achieve a better bake.
A simple syrup. I would drench the sponges in a mix of 150 ml water, 125 g Caster Sugar and zest of 1 lemon bought to boil and left to simmer for 10 minutes once the sponges have baked and cooled. Using a syrup is the easiest way to revive a dry sponge you could crack in two or use as a frisbee. It’s always a great way to introduce another flavour to the party. Adding the lemon zest will bring that bit of zing to freshen up the sponge and give it a little bit of life.
With a Victoria Sponge, allow your eggs to dictate the weight of your butter, sugar and flour. Weigh all your eggs in their shell and use that total weight to tell you how much you need of everything else. This way you ensure you have enough fat to compete with dried goods for a lighter sponge.
Some people hated this when I mentioned it on instagram, but for butter based sponges, I will always go for a baking margarine as opposed to a block of butter. I had people crying over missing the flavour of butter (what flavour???) but the reason why I use baking margarine is because it has the best of both butter and oil in it meaning a light, fluffy and moist sponge.
Recipe Makes: 2 x 8 inch / 20 cm sponges
Y O U – W I L L – N E E D –
Sponge
200 g Unsalted Butter, diced & room temp
200 g Golden Caster Sugar (you can sub for normal)
1 tsp Vanilla Bean Paste (or powder, extract is just meh)
25 ml Vegetable Oil
4 Medium Eggs, room temp (never keep your eggies in the fridge)
150 g ‘00’ Flour, sifted (you can sub for Plain or AP)
50 g Potato Starch, sifted
2 tsp Baking Powder, sifted
50 ml Buttermilk, room temp
Filling
140 g Raspberry Jam (you can pass through a sieve to deseed but I personally like seeds)
250 ml Double Cream
0.5 tsp Vanilla Bean Paste
5 g Icing Sugar, sifted
To Finish
Icing Sugar, to dust
M E T H O D -
Preheat oven to 190C/170C Fan/375F/Gas Mark 5 and grease and line 2 x 20 cm / 8 inch cake tins.
Add the butter, caster sugar and vanilla bean paste into a bowl and beat well using a paddle attachment till its light and fluffy. You want to work this until the butter has lightened in colour so give it time to do it’s thing.
Pour in the vegetable oil and give it another good mix until combined.
Beat in the eggs one at a time, ensuring you mix well between each addition. Give each egg about a minute or two before you add the next.
In a separate bowl, mix together the plain flour, potato starch and baking powder before adding to the main bowl and gently mixing through. Do not overmix as this will result in dense crumb so keep it light until there are little to no flour streaks remaining.
Add the buttermilk and fold through using a rubber spatula until just combined.
Transfer the batter between the two tins and pop in the oven to bake for 20 to 22 minutes.
Once baked, remove from the oven and leave to sit in the tins for 5 minutes before turning out and leaving to cool on a cooling rack for another 5. Whilst the sponges are still warm, wrap them in clingfilm/saran wrap and leave to completely cool. TIP: I like to leave them to cool sitting upside down to flatten any domed tops.
When cool, place one sponge on your serving plate. Generously slather over the raspberry jam on top.
Pour the double cream, icing sugar and vanilla into a bowl and mix until you reach medium peak. You want this to be a velvety smooth consistency without being too stiff.
Dollop the cream on top of the jam and place the remaining sponge on top.
Liberally dust the top with icing sugar and pop in the fridge for 30 minutes before serving.
Okay so we all know, I BLOODY LOVE A LOAF CAKE. I don’t know what’s up with these or why it seems to taste different to a normal cake but that first slice, the sound of it slapping the plate is just *heavenly*. It’s almost like the flavour and intensity of yum is doubled, despite it being half the size of a standard cake. So, there you have it folks, good things really do come in small packages after all.
To top it all off, the meringue crumb on this cake is just INSANE. It gives each slice the perfect level of texture and that crisp crumb works perfectly with the jammy strawbs and super light chiffon sponge.
This is my White Chocolate, Strawberry and Mint Meringue Loaf aka my take on a Victoria Sponge. Is it anything like a traditional viccy sponge? Absolutely not, which is why my version is superior in every single way. It starts off with a lighter than air chiffon sponge base which is soaked in a vanilla bean sugar syrup, topped with a mint spiked white chocolate whipped cream, a roasted strawberry jammy compote and finished with a crisp meringue crumb.
If you want to save yourself the hassle of making it into a layered affair, you can use all the same components but turn it into an elegant swiss roll instead. The sheet sponge on this cake is just *perfection* - no notes from me on how to get this any better. I’ve finally worked this to a point of where I would tell Paul Hollywood to do one if he tried to ever give me critique on it. Bold, yes. Brave, incredibly. But accurate? Completely.
She’s elegant, she’s low key and she’s a soon to be fan favourite (ps. you are the fan).
Recipe Serves: 6
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