SWEET SENSATION:
dessert queen Charlotte Rees shares recipes from her new cookbook
Lemon cake with raspberry buttercream SERVES 12
250g unsalted butter, at room temperature
360g caster sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste
4 large eggs, at room temperature
250ml buttermilk finely grated zest and juice of 2 lemons
750g self-raising flour
50g freeze-dried raspberries
RASPBERRY BUTTERCREAM
250g fresh raspberries
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons caster sugar
350g unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste
500g icing sugar, sifted
FILLING
400g full-fat ricotta, at room temperature
400g mascarpone, at room temperature
1.2 litres thickened cream, plus 3 tablespoons extra
1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste
250g fresh raspberries
1 Preheat the oven to 180°C. Grease and line two 22cm springform tins with baking paper.
2 Place the butter, caster sugar and vanilla in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and beat until light and creamy. Add the eggs and beat well. Add the milk, lemon zest and juice and flour and mix to combine. Divide the batter between the prepared tins and smooth with a spatula.
Bake for 40 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean, swapping the cakes halfway through to ensure even baking. Set the tins on baking trays and leave to cool.
3 RASPBERRY BUTTERCREAM Puree the raspberries, lemon juice and caster sugar in the bowl of a food processor until smooth. Pass the mixture through a fine sieve into a bowl, pressing on the solids to extract as much liquid as possible.
4 In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the butter and vanilla on high speed until pale and fluffy. Reduce the speed to medium and add the icing sugar in three batches, beating well after each addition and scraping down the side of the bowl as needed. Add the berry puree and beat until combined. Set aside.
5 FILLING Process the ricotta and mascarpone in a food processor until smooth. Whip the thickened cream and vanilla in the bowl of the stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Add the ricotta mixture and the extra thickened cream and beat until combined.
6 To construct the cake, cut each cooled cake in half horizontally, trimming the top of each cake to create four flat, even layers. Place the base of one cake on a serving platter over your lazy Susan. Top the base with one-third of the filling and a sprinkling of fresh raspberries. Repeat with two more layers and the remaining whipped cream and raspberries, then place the final cake half on top.
7 To ice the cake, dollop a large spoonful of buttercream onto the cake and smooth it with a palette knife. Spread the icing around the side of the cake and smooth with the palette knife. Decorate with the freeze-dried raspberries. You can add a splash of colour by placing fresh flowers on top as we have done here – but note that these are not edible. Store leftovers covered in the fridge for up to 2 days.
Shortbread caramel slice SERVES 18
225g plain flour, sifted
115g rice flour, sifted
120g caster sugar pinch of sea salt
200g salted butter, at room temperature TOPPING
150g salted butter
150g caster sugar
80ml golden syrup
400g can sweetened condensed milk
½ teaspoon sea salt, or more if you are a salt fiend like me
200g dark cooking chocolate (70% cocoa), roughly chopped
1 Preheat the oven to 150°C. Grease and line a 30cm x 20cm x 3.5cm baking tray with baking paper.
2 Combine the flours, sugar and salt in a bowl. Rub the butter in with your fingers until a crumble begins to form. Place in the tray and flatten out evenly with the back of a wooden spoon. Bake in the oven for 40 minutes, or until golden. Remove from the oven and prick the shortbread with a fork. Allow to cool completely in the tin.
3 TOPPING Place the butter, sugar, golden syrup, condensed milk and salt in a wide, heavy-based saucepan and heat gently, stirring to melt the butter. Bring to a simmer and continue to simmer for about 10-15 minutes, stirring constantly to stop the mixture sticking to the bottom of the pan and burning. When the caramel is thick and fudgy, pour it over the shortbread and smooth out with a palette knife. Leave to set for 30 minutes.
4 Melt the chocolate in a double boiler, or in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water (ensuring the bowl doesn’t touch the water). When melted, spread it evenly over the set caramel. Leave for 2 hours to set, then turn out and cut into 18 pieces. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.
For extra indulgence, add some caramel popcorn to the top of the Shortbread Caramel Slice, if you like.
Vanilla cake with ricotta icing and roasted peaches SERVES 8
185g self-raising flour
170g caster sugar
125g unsalted butter, at room temperature 2 large eggs, at room temperature
80ml full-cream milk
1½ teaspoons vanilla extract edible flowers, optional, for decorating
ROASTED PEACHES
3 peaches, halved
1 tablespoon honey
1 vanilla pod, split
ICING
250g full-fat ricotta, at room temperature
250ml thickened cream, at room temperature
100g icing sugar, sifted
1 Preheat the oven to 180°C. Grease a 20cm springform tin and line the base with baking paper.
2 Place the flour, sugar, butter, eggs, milk and vanilla in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat on low speed until combined (about 30 seconds). Increase the speed to high and beat for 2–3 minutes, or until thick and pale. Spoon the batter into the prepared tin.
3 Bake for 45 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tin for 5 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely. 4 ROASTED PEACHES Arrange the peaches cut-side up on a baking tray sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon of water, the honey and scraped vanilla seeds and add the vanilla pod to the baking tray. Bake for 30 minutes, or until soft. Remove from the oven and leave to cool completely.
5 Once the cake and peaches have cooled, prepare the icing.
6 ICING Beat the ricotta, cream and icing sugar until thickened and combined. Spread the icing over the top of the cake.
7 Just before serving, arrange the roasted peaches over the icing and drizzle any additional syrup over the top. Finish with some edible flowers, if you like.