Pastel de nata

Pastel de nata (or just simply "nata" when you're in a bakery) is the Portuguese name for their legendary custard tarts. Having just come back from Lisbon, I can confirm that they are absolutely delicious (and absurdly good value at less than two euros for a pair of delicious mouthfuls). Best eaten fresh as possible from the oven when the pastry is as crisp as can be and the custard gently warmed. 

Clearly I had to indulge my obsession to the max: a mere two a day (and the rest) was not enough, I had to search out the best!

I went to the two oldest bakeries in Lisbon the Pasteis de Belem and the Confeitaria Nacional both founded in the early 19th century but with the Belem establishment claiming to be the originator of the nata. I had fresh tarts at both as well as taking a half dozen away with me. Let's be clear about this though: these things are not for keeping. They are best eaten as fresh as possible while the pastry is crisp and the inside gooey. Although if you are going to take some home with you, buy them on your last day and warm them in the oven before eating at home.

Now these custard tarts are not an what is known as an English custard tart. You know the dessert with the short crisp pastry and the just set custard served in slices dusted with nutmeg. No, these are made with puff pastry and offer a short, sumptuous, sweet hit, at any time of day.

Natas from Lisbon: On the left from the Confeitaria and on the right from Belem.

The thing is these things are bloomin' lovely. It's a hardly an arduous task to be deciding which of two lovely things is the loveliest. For my money though the Belem edges it. Fresh out of the oven the pastry is impossibly crisp and if you manage not to get any flakes on you, then you're a better person than I. The custard is so rich and only just set. It seems to have a more complex flavour with overtones of caramel. It's entirely satisfying as well as delicious.

Let's face it, if you haven't been to Lisbon them you should. You'll be entirely happy with whichever of these you go to. The Confeitaria is right in the centre of Lisbon if you can't be bothered to get the short train or tram to Belem. Just get yourself to Lisbon and fill your face with as many of these beautiful little delicacies as you can.

One last thing. Don't pretend there's any point in "being good" (or some such similar nonsense) and ordering just a single nata at a time. Quite simply as soon as you've finished the first you will berate yourself for not having ordered another...

Food idioms

A universal preoccupation with food is apparent in the many idioms based on it. Here are just ten:

1. apples and oranges: two things that are inherently different or incompatible. For example, “To compare The Chronicles of Narnia to the Twilight series is to compare apples to oranges.”

2. bad apple: a negative or corrupting influence on others; a troublesome or despicable person. For example, “One official of a national motorcycle organization argued that a few bad apples shouldn’t be allowed to ruin all motorcyclists’ reputations…”

3. bring home the bacon: to bring home the prize, to achieve success.

In American usage “to bring home the bacon” means “to earn the living for a household.” The expression probably originated from the custom/legend of the Dunmow Flitch. A “flitch of bacon” is a side of bacon, salted and cured. Married visitors to the town of Dunmow in Essex who knelt on two sharp stones and could swear that during the past twelvemonth they’d never quarreled with their spouse or wished themselves unmarried could claim a free flitch of bacon. Another possibility is that the expression derives from greased pig contests at county fairs. The contestant who succeeded in catching the pig “brought home the bacon.”

4. chew the fat: originally the expression meant to argue over a point, perhaps because people arguing make energetic mouth movements similar to what is required to masticate gristle.

In British usage, both “chew the fat” and “chew the rag” mean to argue or grumble. In American usage, the expressions mean “to engage in friendly conversation.”

5. cream puff: literally, a cream puff is a shell of puff pastry with a cream filling. In British usage, a “cream puff” is an effeminate person. In American usage, a “cream puff “is a used car in especially good condition.

6. cup of tea: something that suits a person’s disposition

The expression is used in both positive and negative contexts:

“A Mozart concert? Just my cup of tea!”

“A ball game? Sorry, football is not my cup of tea.”

7. a pretty/fine kettle of fish: an awkward state of affairs; a mess or a muddle. For example, “As the crisis dragged on to the eleventh month, Bishop Segun introduced a pretty kettle of fish to the whole matter when he instituted an ecclesiastical court…”

In researching this post, I discovered that the expression “a pretty kettle of fish” (with the meaning “a fine mess”) seems to be morphing into “a different kettle of fish” or “another kettle of fish” with the meaning “something else entirely.” For example, “Your website needs to be a whole different kettle of fish.”

8. a lemon: something that is bad or undesirable.

Anything that fails to meet expectations can be called a lemon. For example, “Her first husband was a lemon.”

Most often, the term is used to describe a car that has problems from its time of purchase. Individual states have “lemon laws” intended to protect consumers from substandard vehicles. The federal lemon law (the Magnuson–Moss Warranty Act) was enacted in 1975 and protects citizens of all states.

9. full of beans: full of energy and high spirits. For example, this headline: “Hollins still full of beans as he settles in at Crawley Town”

In current usage the expression “full of beans” is so frequently associated with children that it has been adopted as a brand name by child care centers and a children’s clothing store. I’ve always assumed that the expression derived from the idea of a frisky bean-fed horse, but recently I read that at one time beans were considered an aphrodisiac.

10. hot potato: a delicate situation that must be handled with great care. For example, this headline: “Herbert’s ‘Healthy Utah’ Plan Could be a Political Hot Potato”

Orignally posted on Daily Writing Tips

The Bombe?

Last weekend I had a conversation about an alternative to trifle, which lead to the invention of the Swiss-roll, jelly, Angel Delight (or S-JAD) bombe.

Given that I had some time on my hands today and access to all the required elements I just had to give it a go.

Firstly, I covered a large glass bowl in cling film and packed two raspberry Swiss roll-worth of slices tightly in.

Next, I made up a strawberry jelly using just half the recommended amount of water. The jelly was to be the mortar of my cakey igloo, so I needed it to have the requisite structural integrity. This was poured over the Swiss-roll slices.

I swathed a desert bowl in cling film and weighted it down on the jelly, forcing the liquid up the sides of the bowl. I left this in place whilst he jelly set in the refrigerator.

Once the jelly had set, I removed the dessert bowl and poured in a strawberry Angel Delight. Again it was left to set.

I managed to turn the whole thing out onto a serving dish. I was a little disappointed that it didn't quite hold it's shape as well as I has hoped. The first thing that comes to mind is The Blob, obviously.

I'm not sure the end result was quite worth the effort. Quite simply it tasted like jellified Swiss-roll with Angel Delight. Not quite the off-the-shelf gastronomic delight I had dreamed of. Still as they say, "nothing ventured, nothing gained".

Tap Water - know your rights!

I hate having to buy mineral water at restaurants. I'm perfectly satisfied with a glass of tap water.

MoneySavingExpert.com has produced an excellent guide to getting free tap water in restaurants. It seems that

...only licensed establishments (those that serve alcohol) in England, Wales and Scotland must provide free drinking water.

According to Section 136 of the Licensing Act 2003, which came into force in April 2010, all restaurants in England and Wales that serve alcohol are legally required to give customers free tap water (the legislation for Scotland is the same, but it's a different act). Those that don't are under no obligation to do so.

That doesn't mean that they can't charge for the use of a glass!

Tasty Art

Tasty Art specialise in food-based art. That is art featuring, not made of, food.

They specialise in London-based artists and feature photographers and artists. It looks like I finally have a reason to do some interior design...

Ice-cream bread

You know how sometimes someone tells you somehting and you just don't know whether to believe them or not? Well, this is one of those times.

My sister just sent me this link to an article about making bread with ice-cream:

http://www.studentbeans.com/student-money/a/ice-cream-flour-bread-honestly4291.html

Now thinking about it a little, I guess it is a bit like Irish soda bread really, so maybe it's not quite as nuts as it first seems. It just doesn't seem right and I still want to try it.

Recipe for ice-cream bread

Ingredients:

2 cups of ice-cream

1.5 cup self-raising flour

Method:

1. Mix the ingredients until combined.

2. Put dough in a loaf tin and bake at 180°C for 45 min.

What a way to start the weekend?

My weekend normally starts off in much the same way: a trip to the gym, followed by coffee and brunch in front of Saturday Kitchen. Just recently this has changed with the launch of the Guardian's new Cook supplement.

One regular feature is the Readers' recipe swap. Each week a particular theme or ingredient is chosen and readers are asked to submit their best recipe. Felicity Cloake (of the "How to cook the perfect..." series) then cooks the most promising and selects a shortlist and winner which are published two week later.

Today my recipe for Sausage Crumble got published! HUZZAH! 

The only thing is that this is only the beginning, The ultimate goal of the series is to find the Guardian's home cook of the year, which means I'm gonna have to submit a recipe every week now having started so well!

That's a pretty good way to start the weekend, don't you think?

Read the article on the Guardian website

50 Idioms About Meat and Dairy Products

Expressions that figuratively to livestock and other animals and animal products abound in English idiom. Here are many such morsels.

1–2. To “bring home the bacon” is to earn money at a job, but to “save (someone’s) bacon” is to help or rescue someone when they are in trouble or risking failure.
3–5. To “beef about (someone)” is to complain or criticise, but “have a beef” with someone is to hold a grudge, while to “beef up” something is to strengthen it.
6. “Where’s the beef?” is a challenge or claim indicating that an idea is without sufficient substance.
7–8. A “chicken” is a fearful person, and to “chicken out” is to opt, out of fear, not to do something.
9. A “chicken-and-egg argument” is a circuitous one.
10–12. “Chicken feed” is an insubstantial amount of money, and “chicken scratch” is illegible writing, while to “play chicken” is to engage in a stand-off to determine who will back down first.
13. To say that “the chickens have come home to roost” means that consequences are imminent.
14. The exhortation “Don’t count your chickens before they’re hatched” cautions one not to act as if a hoped-for outcome has already occurred.
15. One who is “no spring chicken” is not young any more.
16. To “run around like a headless chicken” (or “like a chicken with its head cut off”) is to panic or worry aimlessly.
17–19. To have “bigger fish to fry” is to have more important things to do, but a “fine kettle of fish” is an unfortunate situation, while “a different kettle of fish” suggests something is unrelated to the topic
20–21. To “make hamburger” or “make mincemeat” of someone or something is to defeat or destroy the person or the thing.
22. To be a “meat-and-potatoes” person is to like simple things.
23. A “meat market” is a venue people frequent to seek sex partners.
24. Something that is “meat and drink” to someone is a skill or pastime that they enjoy and that is very easy for them.
25. One who is “dead meat” is a target for harm or punishment.
26. To say that “one man’s meat is another man’s poison” is to say that what one person may like, another may dislike.
27. The “meat of the matter” is the essence of an issue or problem.
28. Something that is “pork barrel” is a government spending project cynically designed to garner support.
29. To “pork out” is to eat too much.
30. To stop “cold turkey” is to do so abruptly.
31. To “butter (someone) up” is to flatter that person.
32. To say that “butter wouldn’t melt in (one’s) mouth” is to imply that they are feigning innocence by looking calm and cool.
33. To “cheese (someone) off” is to anger or disgust someone.
34. A “big cheese” is a leader or somewhat important (sometimes jocularly rendered in French: le grande fromage).
35. To “cut the cheese” is vulgar slang meaning “produce flatulence.”
36. “Say, ‘Cheese!’” is an exhortation to smile for a photograph.
37–38. The “cream of the crop” is the best in its class; the “crème de la crème” is the best of the best.
39–40. A “good egg” is a good person, and a “bad egg” is a bad person.
41–45. To “put all (one’s) eggs in one basket” is to risk everything at once, but to “lay an egg” is to perform poorly, and to have “egg on (one’s) face” is to be left embarrassed or humiliated, while to “egg (someone) on” is to goad someone to something that is generally ill advised. A “nest egg” is a savings fund.
46. To say that one “can’t make an omelette without breaking some (or the) eggs” means that nothing can be accomplished without some difficulty.
47. To “cry over spilled milk” is to dwell over something that cannot be undone.
48. To be “full of the milk of human kindness” is to generously display kindness and/or sympathy.
49–50. To “milk (someone) for (something)” is to pressure the person, but to “milk (something) for all it’s worth” is to exploit something to the greatest extent possible.

Original post: 50 Idioms About Meat and Dairy Products

25 Idioms About Bread and Dessert

Wheat — the staff of life — and the baked products derived from it invite many idiomatic associations. Here are references to bread and other flour-based products in phrases and expressions.

1. “Bread and butter” refers to the basics in life.
2. “Bread and water” refers to the bare minimum of food and drink, based on the traditional punitive prison diet.
3. “The greatest thing since sliced bread” is something considered revolutionary and indispensable.
4. “Half a loaf is better than none” means that one shouldn’t complain about not having everything, because it is better to have something than nothing.
5. “Half baked” means “incomplete” or “not thoroughly planned or conceived.”
6. To know “which side (one’s) bread is buttered on” is to recognise what is advantageous.
7. To “sell (something) like hotcakes” is to be very successful at selling something.
8. To “separate the wheat from the chaff” is to distinguish what is useful or valuable from what is not.
9. Something that is “as flat as a pancake” is extremely flat.
10. Something “as warm as toast” is very warm and comforting.
11. To “have your cake and eat it, too” is to have or accomplish something more than one way; the phrase often refers to an unrealistic expectation.
12. Something “as easy as (apple) pie” is very simple to do or understand.
13–14. To “have (one’s) finger in the pie” is to be involved, but to “have (one’s) fingers in too many pies” is to be committed in too many endeavours, thus reducing one’s effectiveness.
15. “Icing on the cake” is an additional benefit.
16. An activity that is “like taking candy from a baby” is very easy.
17. Something that is “pie in the sky” is unrealistic.
18. Something that is “a piece of cake” is extraordinarily easy.
19. To get “a piece of the pie” is to be among those who earn an advantage or reward.
20. To “sugarcoat” something is to put it into a deceptively or inaccurately positive light.
21. Something that “takes the cake” is significantly better or worse than other comparable things; the phrase often refers to an action or comment that is audaciously irritating.
22. “That’s the way the cookie crumbles” means that what is referred to is an expected or typical outcome.
23. Someone or something “as nutty as a fruitcake” is crazy or ridiculous.
24. Something “as slow as molasses (in January)” is very slow.
25. Something “as sweet as honey” is very appealing.

Original post: 25 Idioms About Bread and Dessert

2012 MenuWatching Infographic

Have happened upon this interesting infographic from thefoodpeople, which examines menu trends in 2012.

One thing to bear in mind is clearly that the "popularity" means that the restaurants are offering, not that people are buying it. Although they probably wouldn't offer it if people weren't buying it. Hmmmm, a logical catch-22. I do wonder just who the hell does have ice-cram as pud when eating out though...

Chocolate log cabin

I spent most of my Sunday making a log cabin from chocolate Fingers and Buttons and much melted chocolate.

7.5 man-hours to create a festive house fit for a Lego lumberjack. Sounds like time well spent to me...

Get me - guest blogging!

As part of taking part in the £ood Waste Challenge, I wrote a guest blog piece for the Mayor's blog. Here's a sneaky peak:

A tribute to my food waste hero

…

If I had only had one word to describe my food waste hero it would be dependable. Whatever the weather, through wind, rain, sunshine and snow, he’s always there in the corner of the kitchen silently protecting and preserving at a chilly -18°C.

He’s the MacGyver of my kitchen always ready, willing and able to help at a moment’s notice: maybe a little chopped chilli (put into stasis before it went off) to add a spicy kick, a few parsley stalks (otherwise destined for the bin) for the stockpot, or some baked item ready to be toasted straight-away and slathered in butter for an instant satiating hit.

He’s versatile too. I’ll take some mince or chicken thighs, say, preserved before the use by date, cook up a risotto, pilaf, hash or pasta meal then put the extra portions back in. He’s full of tubs and funny shaped bags filled with my own ‘ready-meals’. He’s a safety net for the ‘2 for 1’s and BOGOF’s that sometimes slip into my trolley but not my belly. There’s no way I’ll ever go hungry when he’s around.

I don’t look after him quite as well as I should. From time to time there’s maybe a little too much ice on his back. For that I apologise and I’ll try and do better.

He’s the cornerstone of my strategy for avoiding food waste and I simply couldn’t do without him. Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you my food waste hero: my freezer!

...

For more info on how to use your freezer to help reduce your food waste visit: http://england.lovefoodhatewaste.com/content/freezer-advice-and-facts.

Sign up for the £ood Waste Challenge on the Recycle for London website.

50 Idioms About Fruits and Vegetables

Food, one of the necessities of life, figures often in traditional expressions. Fruits and vegetables, specifically, account for some of the most familiar idioms, including the following.

Fruit

 

1. To compare “apples and oranges” is to uselessly compare unlike things.

2. The “apple of (one’s) eye” is a favorite or well-like person.

3. To say that “the apple never falls far from the tree” is to suggest that a person’s personality traits are close to those of the person’s parents.

4. “As American as apple pie” means that something is quintessentially representative of American culture or values.

5. “(As) sure as God made little green apples” suggests certainty.

6–12. To be a “bad apple” or a “rotten apple” is to be a bad person. Meanwhile, to say that “one bad (or rotten) apple spoils the whole bunch (or barrel)” implies that one flawed element or person can undermine an effort or a group, and to be “rotten to the core” is to be thoroughly bad or worthless.

13–14. “How do you like them apples?” (or “How about them apples?”) is a neutral or taunting comment, depending on the context, that refers to an undesirable state or situation.

15–16. To “polish (one’s) apple” is to flatter someone; a flatterer is an “apple polisher.”

17. To “upset the apple cart” is to ruin plans.

18. A “banana republic” is a weak or corrupt country.

19–20. A “second banana” is a subordinate, and the “top banana” is the leader.

21–22. To “go bananas” is to become excited or crazed, and “to drive (someone) bananas” is to annoy or irritate someone.

23. Something in “cherry condition” is excellently maintained or restored.

24. To “cherry-pick” is to select carefully.

25. “Life is a bowl of cherries” means that life is easy.

26. To “not give a fig” is to be unconcerned.

27. A “lemon” is a flawed or worthless item; the idiom often refers to a vehicle.

28. “Melon” is sometimes used as slang for head or, vulgarly, for large breasts.

29. To say that someone or something is a “peach” means that they are beautiful, excellent, or sweet.

30. When everything is “peaches and cream,” life is going well.

31. A “plum” assignment or job is a highly coveted one.

32. One is said to have “sour grapes” when one belittles something one covets but cannot obtain.

Vegetables

 

33–36. To be “full of beans” is to talk nonsense, and to “not know beans” is to be ignorant or uninformed. To be “not worth a hill of beans” is to be worthless, and to “spill the beans” is to tell a secret.

37–38. To “dangle a carrot” before someone is to encourage them with an incentive, and the carrot in “carrot and stick” is an incentive or reward. (The stick is the punishment.)

39. A “carrot top” is a red-haired person.

40. Someone “as cool as a cucumber” is very self-possessed under pressure.

41. To “pass an olive branch” is to make peaceful or reconciliatory overtures.

42. A “pea-brained” person is stupid.

43. Fog or something else very dense can be described as being “as thick as pea soup.”

44. To be “like two peas in a pod” is to be very close with or similar to someone.

45. To be “in a pickle” is to experience complication.

46. A “couch potato” is someone who spends an excessive amount of time seated watching television or playing video games.

47–48. A “hot potato” is a controversial or difficult issue, but to “drop (someone or something) like a hot potato” is to abandon the person or thing.

49. Something that is “small potatoes” is insignificant.

50. “Salad days” refers to the youthful period of one’s life.

 

Fruits and vegetables figure occasionally in figurative references to color, such as “beet red” (the color of embarrassment), or descriptions of specific hues, like “cherry red,” as well as other comparisons, including “pear shaped.” The words fruit and vegetable themselves appear occasionally in idiomatic phrases, including the following: 

• To “bear fruit” is to produce results.
• “Forbidden fruit” is something attractive but not allowed.
• The “fruits of one’s labors” are the results of the person’s efforts.
• To “become a vegetable” is to be rendered physically disabled or to virtually cease physical activity.

Original Post: 50 Idioms About Fruits and Vegetables

Food anagrams

I have to thank the William Curley newsletter for pointing out that "stressed" is an anagram of "desserts". (To be fair it's not even an anagram, it's just backwards).

This got me thinking about other food-related anagrams (obviously) and thus a Google search was only mere moments away. Here are some of the best:

And Enchanted Learning takes a rigorous almost academic approach. What's not to like there?

Bored.com takes a phase approach to its food anagrams which is really quite fun:

Cornish charter pie: Protein rich search

Walnut and fig tart: Fatal rat dung twin

Rhubarb crumble: Rubber club harm

Cinnamon and honey wafers: Arson now enhanced infamy

Garlic mussels: Salesgirl scum

Stuffed sardines: Disaster snuffed

Fried noodles: Defines drool

Baked sweet potatoes: Wastebasket too deep

Bass Draught Ale: Head sugar blast

There's a pretty easy quiz on ManyThings.org

So essentially, there's loads of food type anagrams. I'm not sure the world is any better for me finding out about this, or telling you, but it was a diverting 10minutes. However, let me leave you with one last thought, is there anything more perfect than:

An anagram of one fruit into another. Utter joy.

News

Here are a few things that I have come across recently and had completely forgotten to share:

• Leith's are running a food styling course. It's seven weeks long and could very much help improve the readability of m'blog, well, the photos anyway. Only problem is it's nearly £500.
• Burgerac is a razor-sharp blog about all burgers and burger-related matters. Great to browse, especially if you're in need of a burger in London-village.
• Apparently bread can be made without kneading: http://theitaliandishblog.com/imported-20090913150324/2010/2/26/amazing-artisan-bread-for-40-cents-a-loaf-no-kneading-no-fus.html. Clearly I am going to have to conduct my own experiment.
• I went to the Cake & Bake Show at Earl's Court a few weekends ago and was thoroughly under-whelmed. I'm not sure if that's because I only had an evening ticket, or not. Mind you, I did pick up a shiny new cake turntable!
• It's my work anniversary soon, so I think a cake will be in order. Thing is I've got to live up to the last one. [Although the batch of brownies I took in recently did go down well. People were surprised that they merely have to ask for a cake and I'll probably make it...] I'm thinking of a cake that has been on my mind for quite some time (well ever since it featured on week 9 of the ICCHFC): a malteser cake. 

That is all.

PS http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UoIGcXcRiGQ

Fluffernutter

The subject of Marshmallow Fluff came up in conversation the other day.

This substance is, well, I struggle to describe it. Let me start with what it's made with: corn syrup, sugar, dried egg whites and "flavouring". Clearly a recipe for a taste sensation.

It's a white spread that is unlike anything else, except maybe wallpaper paste. It's like the cream inside a Twinkie. It does taste faintly of marshmallow but that's only after you get over the wave of uber-sweetness. You can feel the enamel being stripped from your teeth as soon as the stuff passes your lips.

Unsurprisingly it's an American "treat". I suspect it came about as excuse for using copious amounts of corn syrup (the stuff which is responsible for the sweetness of the American diet).

Anyway, you've got to try these things at least once. Apparently a Fluffernutter is an iconic snack in the old U.S. of A. Essentially it's a peanut butter and Fluff sandwich. What a balanced and nutritious treat, I hear you cry.

Clearly I had to make a Fluffernutter. Now this is where my lack of photography ability kicks in and I can only apologise. How on earth do you make a picture of a sandwich interesting?

The peanut butter is clearly the dominant flavour. The Fluff takes the sweetness to another level and also introduces a most unwelcome occasionally gritty texture. Another problem is that ration of bread to filling is all wrong and it's just really quite dry.

I think I can safely say that I won't be recommending a jar of Fluff as a store cupboard staple.

In fact, if you want the remains of my leftover jar, just let me know...

Fungi Forays

Autumn if fast approaching and with it the mushroom season, so I was a little bit excited when I came across Fungi Forays, who offer "wild mushroom safaris in the woods of Wales".

The idea of going and finding fresh wild mushrooms then cooking them up is really quite appealing as they're just do hard to get hold of (unless you go to Borough Market or somewhere particular).

They are based in the Elan Valley, so it's a bit of a trek from Londinium but the two day trip would work...

http://www.fungiforays.co.uk/

What's the difference between a cake and a sponge?

Apparently the difference (according to Campden BRI) is that a cake uses fat to stabilise the cake whereas sponge uses air. Technically it's a Victoria cake, then. There's only a few "true" sponges; these are the fatless one like flan cases.

Amazing what you find out on training courses for work.

Apologies if you were expecting a joke.

Easter egg

*Post alert*

There are some pictures at the end but don't look until you've read the words for maximum effect. I should have taken photos as I went. Unfortunately for us all , I didn't.
*Post alert*

It being Easter and having seen a suitable mould in Abraxas (the great local cookshop in Banbury), I thought I would have a go at making Easter eggs for the traditional family get-together.

It all seems pretty straight forward. Melt some chocolate, pour it into a mould and let cool. Easy. (I couldn't be doing with all this tempering malarkey). For a little bit of interest I thought I'd do a milk outer layer, white middle layer and a thin dark inner layer. Then decorate with a little icing.

However, I'm not sure the phrase "easier said than done" has never found a more apt use. Needless to say, things didn't quite go to plan.

I'd done a little bit of research on the interweb and it was clear that it would be necessary to take it step by step and build up the egg in stages to avoid the chocolate just pooling in the middle resulting in a very thick centre and very thin walls.

It all went well with the outer milk chocolate layer. I took my time and took great care to only add a small amount of melted chocolate, moving it around the mould to get an even covering, (although building up the sides was tricky) then leaving it to cool. Before repeating the process.

It was when I started on the white layer that it all went Pete Tong. As soon as I put the first spoonful of white chocolate in, it started melting the milk layer. Then it all just started to pool in the bottom. I guess I must have had the chocolate slightly too hot. I left it to set and tried again with slightly cooler chocolate. Same result. And the white chocolate had started to get through to the surface somehow.

I decided that my three distinct layer of different chocolates was not going to happen. Instead I just melted the dark into the white and layered up as I had done with the original milk chocolate layers.

One half down, I melted all the chocolate together and produced a reasonable second half. A little melted chocolate was used to sandwich the two halves together and I left the whole egg in the freezer overnight to set.

What I took out of the freezer seemed reasonable and I set about decorating with very thick icing. However, it didn’t occur to me that as the thing defrosted, moisture would gather on the surface thus wash away the icing.

All in all a catalogue of errors. Mainly down to my lack of patience, I reckon. Not sure I’ll be in too much of a hurry to repeat. Although eating the leftover warm chocolate was very nice…

Food Cycle

Food Cycle is a charity that

combines volunteers, surplus food and a free kitchen space to create nutritious meals and positive social change in the community

The food surplus comes from food retailers which is then used to feed those in need in the local community.

Since 2008 nearly 8000 kg of food has been collected and turned into over 14000 meals.

It's a brilliant concept that simultaneously address a number of vital issues in today's society. just the type of thing to get involved with. You can volunteer at any one of four locations in London and in another nine cities around the UK and I would urge you to do.