The artist here, John F. Francis, was a portrait painter until his 40s, when he turned to still lifes. He soon began painting still lifes exclusively, usually lunch or dessert scenes. He was also known for his attention to detail….
dessert
Apple Pie with Shortcrust Pastry Sheets
I’ve referred before to my belief that frozen puff pastry is the lazy cook’s best friend. Well, frozen shortcrust pastry has just joined the BFF party 🥂 . Hunting around for a simple and quick “apple pie with shortcrust pastry…
Old-Fashioned Rice Pudding
There is never a time in my house when rice pudding is not greeted with cheers. With a little stewed fruit, it’s a creamy, healthy dessert. These days, we make it with lactose free milk. I’ve not yet not tried…
Apple and Sultana (Pantry) Cake
I’m calling this apple and sultana cake a “pantry cake” because it’s excellent for those days when you want to bake, but don’t want to shop. Surely we all have a couple of apples lying around? Brown sugar? Maybe some…
Pineapple Upside-Down Cake
Don’t expect a big, bouncy sponge. The pineapple upside down is quite a flat cake. But what you can expect is a beautifully moist cake with a heavenly syrup. I wrote about the history of the pineapple here, and how…
Heaven Lemon Flan
I can see her in the kitchen,Apron on and sleeves rolled up,Measurin’ spices in a teaspoon,Figs and raisins in a cup. Now she’s throwin’ apple quartersIn that wooden bowl of hers,‘Long with lemon peel and orange,An’ she stirs, an’ stirs,…
My Very Eton Mess
Love that they call these (photo above) meringue nests, as if the meringue are wee, fey creatures of the forest! This is a dessert that falls most definitely under the cbf cooking category (excuse my language!). Unless you’re making the…
Quick Sticks Blueberry Tartlets
Ok, ok, this is another round of my lazy-cook’s puff-pastry, easy-peasy, quick-sticks, oh-no-is-that-the-doorbell desserts! This time, little blueberry tartlets that can be dressed up or down, depending on your care factor. The premise is the same. Puff pastry, jam/sugar or…
Rustic Apple Crumble
I’m calling this apple crumble “rustic” not only because it’s far from being a fancy-pants dish, but also because the photo above shows it served in some rustic pottery I bought from the original potter on a road trip I…
Strawberry Yoghurt Trifle
This strawberry yoghurt trifle recipe is one I wish I had long ago. Ironically, I don’t remember ever having trifles as a kid – they just weren’t part of my cultural kitchen. But for some reason trifle seemed to…
Last Minute Pineapple Puff Pastry Dessert
I’ve lost count of the times, over the years, I’ve thrown puff pastry on to, around, or underneath something. It never fails to make a quick and easy meal or dessert, far greater than the sum of its parts. The…
Let-Them-Eat-Chocolate-Cake Cake
If Marie Antoinette indeed said, “Let [the peasants] eat cake,” she probably meant a kind of brioche, as what we understand as cake, and definitely chocolate cake, wasn’t around yet. However Marie Antoinette did love drinking hot chocolate. I love…
