Blog | Sweet Elements | Dessert Recipes (2024)

February beckons, bringing with it whispers of spring while still holding onto the chill of winter. It's the perfect time to explore fruits at their seasonal peak, harnessing their vibrant flavours to create delightful desserts. This month's guide delves into exciting possibilities, showcasing the bounty February offers.

Pesticide Action Network has today (13 December 2023) released its Dirty Dozen list for 2022 (the last year government data is available). This is a list of fruit and vegetables sold in the UK that are most likely to contain residues of 2 or more pesticides.

Modern wheat and heritage wheat (also known as ancient or heirloom wheat) are two distinct categories of wheat that have significant differences. For good reasons heritage grains are having a real resurgence in popularity. Here are five reasons to try using heritage grains:

Cobnuts are a specific variety of cultivated hazelnuts, known for their larger size and sweet, mild flavour. They are typically grown in Europe, particularly in the United Kingdom.

Heritage flours, also known as heirloom or ancient grains, refer to varieties of grains (wheat, corn, rice, etc.) that have been grown and cultivated for generations, often before the advent of modern agricultural practices and mass production.

It's harvest season for grapes in Europe so it would be rude not to make some dessert wine pairing suggestions. There’s almost an endless list of different wines to enjoy with desserts; these are just some suggestions to drink with some of our more popular autumn desserts.

In the world of baking, freshness is paramount. The aroma of freshly baked bread, the delicate crumb of a just-out-of-the-oven cake – these are the hallmarks of a baker's touch. But what if we told you that you can preserve that same level of freshness in your ingredients, even if they're destined for the freezer?

Here is a round-up of some of the places we have enjoyed eating at this summer. Like our cakes and desserts, when we eat out the emphasis is on quality not quantity. We may not eat out that often but when we do, we want to go to good quality places.

It’s a good question! On the one hand it is a very simple cake but on the other it has so much variety which make it difficult to define.

As the world becomes increasingly aware of the impact of human activity on the environment, there has been a growing movement towards sustainability and responsible sourcing in all areas of life, including the food industry. Sourcing ingredients that are sustainable and environmentally friendly is not only important for the health of our planet, but it can also have a positive impact on the taste and quality of the food we eat, and of course this certainly applies to cakes and desserts.

Nuts and seeds are fabulous ingredients. They have a wonderful array of flavours and smells, they can add texture and they can be used as décor. However so often they are used in ways that miss out on their great flavour, smell and colour. For example, how often do we see untoasted almonds sprinkled on a cake or dessert? It should not happen as they don’t look good and they do not add any real flavour.

We are all facing big environmental and health issues relating to what we eat. Clearly it is important that we give a lot of thought and consideration to where our food is coming from, how it is made, its impact on the environment and its impact on our health. With regard to health, there is so much conflicting information out there it can be difficult to determine what one should or should not be eating. So when I came across this article written by Kaki Okumura (and published on Medium in July 2021) it really struck a chord with me.

There is a growing demand for patisserie and in particular classic desserts that have been updated and modernised. Choux pastry is a fantastic example of this in that the traditional eclairs and profiteroles, as well as classics like the Paris Brest or St Honore, have been modernised by pastry chefs, but they still retain the amazing tastes and textures that choux pastry is known for. The basic ingredients remain relatively inexpensive so in a world of rising food prices they are a very attractive product for cafés, bakeries, caterers and restaurants to have on their menus.

Choux pastry has never been so popular. There are many reasons behind this; first and foremost it is a great tasting dessert or savoury, it is relatively simple and inexpensive to make, it can be flavoured and decorated in an almost infinite variety of ways and because it can be decorated beautifully it looks great on social media. Its popularity over the last few years has pushed chefs to create new and wonderful ways to flavour and present their choux pastry, both sweet and savoury.