Strawberry & Stem Ginger Crème Brûlée

Time to get cracking...with my take on an impressively easy, classic dessert and a breakdown on the best seasonal produce.

you wouldn't think the summer has been a washout would you?

I spent the day roasting – personally and physically. Of course, the day we are filming outside, it is hotter than the damn sun. So there I was sweating away, cooking off against a Michelin starred chef (yes, the hilarity), all whilst trying to stifle every swear word that was bursting to get out, yap to Ainsley, give orders to the other chef, be adoring, engaging, professional, ignoring the boob and back sweat that was accumulating at an alarming rate and praying that my eyebrows had not started to run down the sides of my face all whilst juggling the fact that THERE WAS AN AUDIENCE. Needless to say, it was an interesting day, and one I am not looking forward to seeing plastered all over the tv.

smiling through the sweat

It honestly blows my mind that I get to call all that work. The sweating. The swearing. The roasting. The cooking. If you had told me 7 years ago that this is how I would spend a sunny Sunday in August, I would have laughed in your face. Not a chance. No way. No interest. No want. No desire. Nothing. My only desire back then was to desperately find a job, give myself some breathing space from an endless whirlpool of anxiety and to stop sleeping on my parents’ sofa as I edged my way towards my 30’s.

It's bonkers to me that the effects of an impulse decision (such as quitting your job after a brief stint of travelling) can ripple through your life for years and lead you to the point of working next to someone who you used to watch every day after school on Ready Steady Cook (team tomatoes all the way). Yes, I had been sweltering in an outside furnace and dosed up to my eyeballs in hayfever tablets so it didn’t look like I was having an emotional breakdown on camera but as I drove away from wonderfully, beautiful Wimpole with my AC blasting in my car, I just thought…thank fuck. Thank fucking fuck, for listening to my gut, for trusting my instinct and for following through with what seemed like a daft, impulsive decision all those years ago.

I am a huge believer in fate and destiny – nothing is done by chance, and everything is a lesson or a blessing (this was a hard pill to swallow as my cake fell over in the tent let me tell you). So whilst I started this post with the intention of writing about my severe lack of geographical knowledge of the UK because I did not realise places like Wimpole even existed and to yap on all about its fruity and veggie delights, it’s somehow found its way to be the most perfectly timed reminder for myself to always trust my gut.

And my gut right about now is telling me to go eat some cake…Soooo, on that delicious note, let’s get back to what you actually came here for. A recipe.

Best of British Breakdown

You’ll find people yap on A LOT about using seasonal produce and all that yap is for good reason. Not only is seasonal food much more nutritious, but it is also tastier, fresher and is often without preservatives and waxes, which are used a) to prolong shelf life and b) to also help lock in their nutrients.

That’s all without touching upon how much cheaper it is to eat seasonally as you aren’t having to dish up the dollars (or pounds in this case) paying a premium for shipping something that has had to be grown in a different country. This reminds me of week 2 on Bake Off, where little old naïve me had practiced my black forest tray bake during a time where cherries were in the shops in abundance. I did not think about how many cherries there were gonna be by the time I actually got round to baking it during filming.

Long story very short, a few days before filming I was told that they were struggling to locate cherries anywhere. They had tried the local shops, local farms, ocado, amazon, online supermarkets, the lot. Nothing. De nada. Not a cherry to be found anywhere.

Luckily I wasn’t the only tool who hadn’t thought about this and with two of us scrambling around, the Home Ecs on the show had to order in 4 kg worth from Spain costing a tidy sum of £68. That’s right, £68. SIXTY EIGHT GOLDEN COINS FOR CHERRIES. And you know what makes it even worse? My signature traybake was a mild disaster where the judges said that whilst it was a great tasting chocolate cake, they couldn’t taste those £68 cherries and it resembled more of a forest floor than a black forest cake. So…yay for me?

an undeniably expensive mess

So here is a rough (and of course, not extensive) guide to the best of the best for each month, so you can keep your baking tasting tip top, whilst not bankrupting yourself.

J A N U A R Y

Fruit : apples, pears.

Additionals : chicory.

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F E B R U A R Y

Fruit : apples, pears, forced rhubarb (if you are lucky)

Additionals : chicory.

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M A R C H

Fruit : Not a lot other than forced rhubarb if you can get your mitts on it. It’s all about veg (in particular wild garlic szn!).

Additionals : chicory.

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A P R I L

Fruit : Edging towards the end of forced rhubarb season but normal rhoobs is good (fyi the veg round about POPS OFF).

Additionals : chicory (now realising that despite it’s abundance, I never really use it??), chives, dill.

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M A Y

Fruit : strawberries (my beloved), rhubarb

Additionals : basil, chervil, chicory, chillies, chives, coriander, dill, elderflower, mint, nasturtium, oregano, parsley, rosemary, sage, tarragon. 

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J U N E

Fruit : apricots, bilberries, blackcurrants, blueberries, cherries, gooseberries, greengages, peaches, raspberries, redcurrants, strawberries, tayberries, rhubarb.

Additionals : basil, chervil, chicory, chillies, chives, coriander, dill, elderflower, mint, nasturtium, oregano, parsley, rosemary, sage, tarragon, thyme.

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J U L Y

Fruit : apricots, bilberries (very similar to bloobs), blackberries, blackcurrants, blueberries, cherries, gooseberries, greengages (they kinda look like a small green plum), loganberries, peaches, raspberries, redcurrants, strawberries.

Additionals : basil, chervil, chicory, chillies, chives, coriander, dill, elderflower, mint, nasturtium, oregano, parsley, rosemary, sage, tarragon, thyme.

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A U G U S T

Fruit : apricots, bilberries, blackberries, blackcurrants, blueberries, cherries, damsons, greengages, loganberries, plums, peaches, raspberries, redcurrants, strawberries. 

Additionals : basil, chillies, chives, coriander, mint, oregano, parsley, rosemary, sage, tarragon, thyme. 

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S E P T E M B E R

Fruit : apples, bilberries, blackberries, damsons, pears, plums, raspberries, redcurrants, strawberries. 

Additionals : chillies, chicory, chives, coriander, mint, oregano, parsley, rosemary, sage, thyme.

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O C T O B E R

Fruit : apples, bilberries, blackberries, elderberries, pears, quince. 

Additionals : chicory, chillies, chives, parsley, rosemary, sage, thyme

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N O V E M B E R

Fruit : apples, cranberries, elderberries, pears, quince

Additionals : chicory, rosemary, sage.

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D E C E M B E R

Fruit : apples, cranberries, pears, quince

Additionals : chicory…and that’s it.

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So with that in mind, this recipe is just about simplicity. Using up what’s good right now to make a deliciously fruit base for an indulgent set custard top. You can easily switch out the strawbs for any other fruit that tickles your pickle, just stick to the quants and you’ll be golden.

The original recipe for this was developed with forced rhubarb at the start of the year and it was a heavenly bowl of comforting yum. I am a firm believer that custard can solve most problems (headache to heartache and everything inbetween) and whether it is dished up to me hot, cold, set, wobbly or pouring, I’ll have it all and I’ll have it in abundance.

a delicious swimming pool of spiced custard

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T H E - G O O D - S T U F F -

I cannot tell you how obsessed I am with that yummy, sumptuous sound of the spoon cracking a set caramel topped custard. The manic glee is unstoppable as the spoon scoops up a mouthful of velvety soft, baked custard spiked with a hint of cardamom that sits on a tart strawberry and stem ginger base. Lordy lord, this is a deeevine recipe. And the best news? It’s stupidly easy to make. Almost….suspiciously easy.

Recipe Serves : 6