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Four tasty and tantalising treats to make for your mum this Mothering Sunday

NORMALLY you might take your mum out for a meal on Mothering Sunday to show how much she means to you. That obviously won’t happen this year – but it doesn’t mean that you can’t spoil her all the same. We’ve rounded up some showstopping recipes that you can rustle up to ensure your mum feels special this Mother’s Day, perhaps even more so once she realises the effort that you’ve put in.

DARK CHOCOLATE BROWNIES FROM PIZZA GEEKS

If you don’t live in the same household as your mum, you might be struggling to think of something you can cook that won’t be spoiled by the time you drop it off at her door. Fortunately, these brownies from Edinburgh restaurant Pizza Geeks will taste just as good a day or two after they’ve been baked. The ideal doorstop surprise for Mother’s Day morning…

Ingredients (to make 16 brownies)

245g unsalted butter (cubed)

245g dark chocolate

335g caster sugar

4 large eggs

115g plain flour

55g cocoa powder

½ tsp sea salt

Method

Preheat the oven to 160C (fan oven) or gas mark 4 and line an 8×8in square tin. Heat butter and chocolate in a saucepan over a low heat until melted and leave to cool. Sieve the flour, cocoa powder and salt into a bowl and set aside.

Whisk the eggs and sugar together until pale, thick and creamy. Pour the cooled chocolate and butter mixture into the egg mix and gently fold in until mixed. Gently fold the flour and cocoa powder into the bowl with the other ingredients, being careful not to overmix. Pour the mixture into the lined tin and smooth out with a spatula.

Bake for around 40 minutes, turning the tin halfway through until the top has a papery crust with no wobble when you shake the tin. You can also check this with a skewer, which should come out sticky but not runny. Let it cool in the tin and then slice into 16 brownies.

Pizza Geeks is about to open its third branch in Edinburgh

STICKY TOFFEE PUDDING WITH CAOL ILA WHISKY BUTTERSCOTCH SAUCE FROM PAUL WEDGWOOD

A family favourite that’s popular across the generations, sticky toffee pudding is the perfect finale to a Mother’s Day lunch. This recipe, from esteemed chef Paul Wedgwood, offers a new take on an old favourite with the addition of a gourmet butterscotch sauce.

Ingredients (serves four) Sticky Toffee Pudding

115g soft dark brown sugar

35g unsalted butter

2 whole eggs

140g self-raising flour

Pinch of baking powder

Pinch of bicarbonate of soda

100g pitted dates chopped

120ml boiling water

1/2 espresso

Coal Ila butterscotch sauce

45g unsalted butter

60g demerara sugar

60g soft dark brown sugar

70g golden syrup

200ml double cream

15ml Caol Ila whisky

Method

Place the dates in a large bowl, add the bicarb and boiling water and set aside. Cream together the butter and sugar, add the eggs and combine. Sift baking powder and flour into egg mix, add the espresso. Add dates and water to the bowl and mix thoroughly until the flour is completely mixed. Pour into a cake tin and bake in the oven for 45 mins at 180C.

For the butterscotch sauce, put the butter, sugar and golden syrup in a heavy based pan and boil until thick. Add the double cream and then whisky and bring back to the boil, reducing until the mixture is at the correct thickness.

Slice your pudding into four servings and place in your serving bowl. Pour over the hot butterscotch sauce and finish with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Paul Wedgwood is chef owner of Wedgwood the Restaurant in Edinburgh

TURKEY AND SMOKED BACON KOFTE WITH SUMAC ONIONS FROM BABA EDINBURGH

If your mum has exotic tastes, she will love this turkey and bacon kofte with the addition of sumac onions. Widely used in Middle Eastern cooking, sumac can be used as an alternative to citrus in just about everything. You can sprinkle it on hummus or add to your next meat marinade to cut through the fattiness of the meat and give your dish a bright, citrus flavour. In the Middle East it’s quite common to season dishes with sumac upon serving, just as you would with salt and pepper. Ingredients (serves five)

For the sumac onions:

20g lemon juice (about half a lemon)

600g red onion, thinly sliced

40g pomace oil

7g sumac

Pinch of ground coriander

Fresh parsley to taste

For the kofte:

40g red chilli

20g ras-el-hanout

6g chilli flakes (smoked, if you can find them)

10g salt and black pepper

30g peeled garlic

200g bone marrow

60g peeled shallots

20g parsley

20g coriander

500g turkey mince

300g smoked bacon mince

To finish

25g barberries

50g smoked almonds

500ml smoked tomato salmorejo

Method

For the sumac onions, mix the lemon juice, red onion, pomace oil, sumac, coriander and parsley together in a large bowl and refrigerate for two hours to marinate. For the kofte, add the spices, red chilli, salt and garlic into a food processor and blend.

Then add 100g of the bone marrow, the shallots and the herbs, and blend again. Roughly chop the remaining bone marrow and combine in a large bowl with the turkey and bacon mince, and ingredients from the food processor. Mix with a wooden spoon until just combined, then roll (using your hands) into five 200g logs.

Grill or barbecue the kofte until fully cooked through (about 12 minutes). Serve with the salmorejo, sumac onions, barberries and smoked almonds.

Baba is located at Kimpton Charlotte Square Hotel in Edinburgh.

GRILLED LANGOUSTINES WITH LEMON AND GARLIC DIP FROM LOVE SEAFOOD

Looking to really push the boat out? Fresh langoustines will undoubtedly do the trick. The best place to get them is at your local or online fishmonger, where they can talk you through the langoustines and how to prepare them. Once you’ve got your fish, this recipe from Love Seafood for grilled langoustines with a lemon and garlic dip is bursting with colour and can be whipped up in less than half an hour.

Ingredients (to serve four)

20 fresh langoustine (not live) 100g butter, at room temperature

2 garlic cloves, minced

Handful of flat-leaf parsley leaves, finely chopped

Salt and pepper

Leafy salad to serve

For the dip

2 tbsp reduced fat mayonnaise

200ml low fat Greek yoghurt

Pinch of smoked paprika

Juice of ½ lemon

Zest of ½ lemon

2 garlic cloves, minced

Method

Add all the dip ingredients to a bowl, stir and place in the fridge until ready to serve. To make the garlic butter, add the soft butter, chopped parsley and garlic to a small bowl. Season with salt and pepper and mix well with a fork or spoon. Set aside.

Next, using a large flat-edged knife, cut along the centre of the langoustine, from head to tail. Laying the halved langoustine flat, using a teaspoon remove all elements of the langoustine that are brown or dark-coloured, keeping the white meat. Repeat with each langoustine.

Preheat your grill to medium-high. Place the langoustine on a large roasting tray and spoon over the herb butter.

Grill under a medium-high heat for 3-4 minutes, or until the langoustine are golden and the butter is melted. Serve with a leafy salad and the lemon and garlic dip.

More recipes are available at www. loveseafood.co.uk