Piece of cake
(Serves 8-10) 450g (1 lb) mixed raisins and sultanas; 90ml (6 tablespoons) Scotch whisky; 225g unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus extra for the tin; 210g firmly packed demerara sugar; pinch of salt; 4 eggs; 280g plain flour; ¼tsp ground cinnamon;
INGREDIENTS METHOD:
1. Combine the raisins, sultanas and whisky in a pan on a low heat, stirring once or twice, until hot (10-15mins). Remove from the heat and leave to steep for 2 hours.
2. Preheat the oven to 165°C/Gas Mark 3. Butter the base and sides of a 23-cm (9-inch) round cake tin. Line the base with buttered parchment.
3. In a bowl, beat the butter until smooth, then add the sugar and salt, and beat until fluffy and lighter in colour. Add the eggs, one at a time, together with a spoonful of the flour with the first egg to stop the mix from curdling, beating well after each addition. Beat in the remaining flour and the cinnamon and nutmeg.
4. Using a wooden spoon, stir in the raisins and sultanas and whisky, the ground almonds, marmalade and orange zest until evenly distributed.
Transfer the mixture to the prepared tin, spread evenly and smooth the top. Arrange the whole blanched almonds on top in concentric circles, with the pointed end of each nut directed towards the centre.
5. Bake until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean, one and a half hours to one and three quarter hours. Leave to cool completely in the tin, then invert, lift off the tin and peel off the parchment.
Transfer the cake right side up to a serving plate and serve.
AFTERNOON tea is a treasured English tradition and no-one knows better how to prepare and enjoy a proper tea than the residents of Downton Abbey.
The popular ITV series has helped to rekindle interest in the repast and the Official Downton Abbey Afternoon Tea Book shows how you can recreate the Edwardian favourites and add a touch of 1920s elegance to food.
The cookbook spans sweet and savoury and features many of the cakes that would have made an appearance on Downton Abbey such as madeleines. These seashellshaped French tea cakes were a customary addition to the afternoon tea tray at Downton and were kept in biscuit jars by the beds of sisters Lady Mary, Lady Edith and Lady Sybil for late-night snacking.
They were also a favourite of lawyer and Downton heir Matthew Crawley whose middle-class upbringing showed when, on his first visit to Downton, he loaded up his plate with the small, delicate cake-like madeleines.
Gareth Neame, executive producer of Downton Abbey, has
Violet, Dowager Countess of Grantham and Isobel Crawley are waiting for you to join them in a great British tradition
written a foreward to the book and says: “Few customs are more iconic of England than the afternoon tea. Everything about it – the etiquette, the fine china, the sandwiches and cakes – epitomises some of the very best England has to offer.
“Scenes of afternoon tea are prominently featured in Downton Abbey, all of them reflecting the height of fashion of the era. The word tea had long been used as an umbrella term for a variety of different occasions that involved tea drinking.
“It could be as modest as a cup of tea with a slice of cake at home or a pot of tea and some warm scones shared in a railway tearoom, or it could be a grand tea party held in the grounds of a great estate.
“Downton Abbey gives the viewer a window into the tradition of this afternoon ritual both upstairs and downstairs.”
■ grape, the backbone of Chianti wines, by the Tuscan wine producers Sensi.
One of my favourite white grapes is riesling.
(RRP £14, new to Asda) is crafted from grapes grown in the cool Eden Valley which is home to some of Australia’s oldest riesling vineyards.
The Shortlist shows notes of lime, gooseberry and dried oregano. To taste, notes of lime tingled alongside a zappy, refreshing, crisp acidity.
I’m always in a happy place with a glass of riesling.
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