Banoffee Pie

This timeless classic is one of the simplest and most popular puddings ever! Mix & Munch cooks absolutely love making and eating it and the parents are lucky if they get a smidgen!

Children and adults love it and its always the first pudding to be finished at any dinner party!

Use different flavour biscuits - biscoffi/oaties/gingernuts/richtea/bourbons for a different base.

Life is too short to make the caramel from condensed milk - the ready bought caramel is excellent and just as good as the home-made version.

Makes 1 small banoffee pie in a ramekin dish

2 digestive (or ginger) biscuits

5-10g unsalted butter

Pinch of cinnamon

Pinch of ginger

1/3 of a banana sliced

1 tbsp. of Carnation ready-made toffee

1 tbsp. of whipped double cream

1. Bash the biscuits in a small plastic bag with a rolling pin (or use a blender)

2. Melt the butter and add to the biscuits along with the cinnamon and ginger and put into the ramekin and flatten with the back of a spoon. Put into a fridge or freezer (depending on time available) until the base is firm.

3. Meanwhile whip the double cream and slice the banana

4. When the base is firm take it out of the fridge/freezer and add the chopped bananas on the base, then add the toffee and top with the whipped double cream

5. Decorate with sprinklings/gratings of chocolate/edible gold and/or silver spray or powder drinking chocolate.

6. Chill in fridge (or freezer if in a rush)

A ramekin is a perfect portion of pudding and looks very stylish - or you can make a large banoffee by multiplying the above ingredients by 8 and using a large pie dish

Quinoa salad with Feta, Pomegranate and Fresh Herbs

Salads have become a little more interesting over the years with the use of fruit, nuts and different kinds of grains. I like to do a bit of an interesting salad with our BBQ food to bring some refreshing flavours to the sometimes heavy BBQ meat and this one we have used a lot - its an adaptation of a Mary Berry recipe.

This is delicious on its own - or as a side dish at a BBQ. It can be kept in the fridge for 2-3 days.

Quinoa Salad with Feta, Pomegranate and Fresh Herbs

Serves 8

Packet of quinoa and/or mix with packet of ready cooked lentils/bulgar wheat or pearl barley

Vegetable stock

3 spring onions

1 block feta cheese

7 stalks of coriander leaves

7 stalks of mint

7 stalks of parsley

1 pomegranate - seeds

3 lemons - juices

4 tbsp olive oil

Salt & Pepper

Handful of Olives halved - optional

Red pepper - diced - optional

1. Cook the quinoa with the stock and allow it to cool

2. Cut the feta into 1/2cm blocks and add

3. Take out the pomegranate seeds and add

4. Cut the spring onions into 1/2 pieces (add the diced peppers, halved olives if desired) and add

5. Remove the stalks from the herbs and finely chop the herb leaves (mint, coriander & parsley) and add

6. Squeeze the lemon juice and mix with the olive oil and salt and pepper

7. Gently mix all together and mix through the salad dressing

You can substitute the pomegranate for half slices of clementine and increase the mint

Take out the quinoa or grains and add watermelon for a more fruity salad

Coffee Semifreddo

Ice-cream/semifreddo/affogato are my most favourite desert dishes - I can eat ice-cream any season, any time, from the tube, or a cone, or a cup or a dish, and although rather late to the party, last year I started making ice-creams & semifreddo's and have been reluctant to buy any shop ones since!

Whenever we have made this for dinner-parties -  the guests always want the recipe! A simple, easy (takes 15 minutes to make by my 10 year old daughter!) and delicious dish

Coffee Semifreddo

Serves 8

1 tbsp instant coffee

1 tbsp Tia Maria or brandy (or 2 tbsp Baileys)

4 large eggs, separated

100g golden caster sugar

300ml pot double cream

100g pack of Crunchie/Toblerone/Mint or Orange Matchmakers (broken into pieces - however big or small you wish!)

Chocolate flake pieces to decorate (or chocolate coffee beans) and sieved cocoa powder

1. Line a 1-litre loaf tin with greaseproof paper.

2. Put the coffee, alcohol, egg yolks and sugar in a bowl and stir to dissolve the coffee then beat until thick and leaving a trail.

3. Put the egg whites in a large bowl and beat until stiff with an electric whisk.

4. Beat the cream until it holds its shape. 6. Fold the cream into the coffee mixture, then carefully fold in the whites.

7. Fold through the chosen pieces of chocolate and tip the mixture into the loaf tin.

8. Lightly cover the surface with cling film.

7. To serve, unwrap and turn onto a platter - 15-20 minutes before eating. Take off the cling film and greaseproof paper and serve topped with flakes of chocolate or small sparklers!

Add any chocolate to this that you (or your guests particularly enjoy) - smarties/pieces of flake/chopped pieces of snickers/dark chocolate orange....

You can spray edible gold spray on the greaseproof paper on the inside of the loaf tin before adding the mixture or even silver/gold small edible balls.