Still got leftovers from the festive season? I discovered some Panettone in one of those lovely tins which I had been gifted and left at the back of the cupboard.  So, together with my new season's batch of marmalade, I made a cunning plan. Instead of using slightly stale bread, I adapted Grandma’s  recipe for Marmalade Bread and Butter pudding to come up with a warming pudding to remind me not just of Spain, where the super Seville Oranges come from, but also Italy with its glorious sweet fluffy bread and especially the city of Milan, where panettone is said to originate. 

Marmalade Bread and Butter Pudding (with panettone)

50g/2oz butter

8 slices Panettone

150g/6oz Marmalade

50g/2oz sultanas

2 tsp cinnamon

Zest of 1 orange

350ml/12fl oz milk

50ml/2fl oz double cream

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 (large) eggs

50g/2oz caster sugar

Nutmeg

Preheat the oven to 180C/355F/ Gas 4. Grease a 1 litre/2 pint pie dish with butter. Spread butter and marmalade on each slice of Panettone. Arrange a layer of panettone, buttered-side up, in the dish, then add half the sultanas. Sprinkle with a little cinnamon and orange zest, then add another layer of panettone, sultanas and cinnamon. Warm the milk and cream with the vanilla extract gently in a pan over a low heat. Beat the eggs in a bowl with the sugar. Add the warm milk and cream mixture and stir well. Pour this over the layers and sprinkle nutmeg on top. Leave to stand for 30 minutes. Place the dish in the oven and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the custard has set and the top is golden-brown. Allow to stand for 5 minutes before serving.

Meryl says :  Don’t let the milk and cream mixture  boil - just heat gently until warm before you add it to the eggs and sugar. Serve with crème fraiche, cream or ice cream as you wish. Delizioso - chocolate and orange - my favourite!

You may also like Grandma’s very popular Marmalade Spice Cake,  Marmalade Flapjack or  Clementine and Ginger Cake all with a kick of ginger to enhance the taste. Let me know which you like best. Enjoy!

It’s Marmalade time

I’ve been making marmalade for over 15 years now. Once the Christmas and New Year celebrations are over, it’s a fixed date on my calendar to check out the arrival of the Seville Oranges in the shops or online and prepare my jam jars ready for my marmalade making session.

I’ve posted about Grandma Abson’s Marmalade recipes with various citrus fruits and my late mother-in-law, Great Grandma Pat who supplied the family with marmalade well into her 80s, using a pressure cooker.

Creating a marmalade recipe

I’ve tried all their recipes and others over the years and finally created my own version. I think I’ve ended up with something easy and reliable to be sure of a winner every time. Nowadays Seville oranges are sold in string bags weighing a kilo, so I’ve adapted the measurements of ingredients to fit this weight. This recipe makes about 6 jars.

Seville Orange Marmalade

What you need…

1 kg Seville oranges

Juice of 2 lemons

4 pints/approx. 2 litres water

2 kgs granulated sugar

How to make ...

Wash the oranges and place them in a large pan with the water and the lemon juice.

Boil and then simmer for between 1½ and 2 hours until they are soft and the peel pierces easily with a fork.

Remove them from the pan with a ladle and leave to cool on a tray or plate.

Cut the oranges in half and scoop out the fruit, pith and pips and return this mixture to the pan, retaining the peel. Boil for 5-6 minutes.

Strain this mixture through a sieve or a muslin cloth. You can press it through with a wooden spoon.

Cut half of the peel into strips – chunky or thin depending on how you prefer them in marmalade.

Add these to the remaining liquid in the pan with the sugar and stir gently until all the sugar has dissolved. This can take between 6-10 minutes. Be careful not to boil the mixture at this stage.

Once the sugar has dissolved, fast boil rapidly for 15 minutes until the setting point is reached. It can take sometimes up to 25 minutes so keep checking.

How to check for the setting point - use the plate/wrinkle test by putting a small amount on a chilled plate and pushing it with a teaspoon - it should wrinkle.

  Leave the marmalade to cool in the pan for around 20-25 minutes and  then pot into sterilised jars.

Tips for marmalade making

·        To prevent too much froth in the liquid as it boils, add a knob of butter at the fast-boiling stage.

·        To sterilise jars, place them in a dishwasher or wash carefully in hot, soapy water. Rinse and place them on a tray in a preheated oven at around 150C for 15-20 minutes to dry.

Love it or not?

It’s true to say that love it or hate it, marmalade is a firm favourite as part of a traditional British breakfast with a wide variety of textures to suit all tastes. Seville Oranges are only around at this time of year between late December and early February so don’t delay.

Start the year and banish the January Blues

Now I’ve made my marmalade, I’m ready to take on 2026 and bake my favourite recipes to banish those January blues. Wishing everyone a Happy New Year 2026!

Marmalade Spice Cake

Marmalade Bread and Butter Pudding

This is a shorter version of my January 2026 article In praise of homemade

 Marmalade for Yorkshire Bylines.

What a difference an O makes?

 

When it comes to macarons and macaroons, I know exactly which I prefer and it’s not those smooth round, coloured meringues, exquisite though they are. I’m more a fan of old fashioned macaroons, having grown up tasting Grandma Abson’s Coconut Macaroons, baked to a golden brown, a bit rough at the edges but always topped with a bright red glace cherry.

More marvellous macaroons

I met June at a funding raising even over the summer. She had brought a tray of Saffron Macaroons which proved very popular.  Her mother-in-law, Francesca was a great Italian cook and she passed on her family recipe for this delectable treat.

Saffron Macaroons.

Ingredients

Large pinch of saffron

1 tbsp hot water

2 large egg whites

240g icing sugar

240g ground almonds

2 tsps almond extract

¼ tsp baking powder

Method

·        Crumble the saffron in the hot water and set aside until deep yellow.

·        Whisk the egg whites to stiff peaks.

·        Sift the icing sugar and set aside 30g.

·        In a large bowl, mix together ground almonds, baking powder and saffron water.

·        Stir through the egg whites. (Don’t worry about knocking out the air - the finished dough should be dense and sticky.)

·        Line a baking tray with baking parchment.

·        Use 2 spoons to shape walnut size pieces of dough into balls. Then roll them in the reserved icing sugar, coating them generously like snowballs.

·        Space well on a baking tray and flatten the balls slightly. Leave at room temperature for an hour to form a slight shell.

·        Preheat the oven to 170C (150C Fan) gently squeeze the macaroons at the sides to crack the surface.

·        Bake for 20 mins.

June says : Leave to completely cool to dry on a tray. They will keep in a tin for around a week or more. Their squidgy centres are perhaps even better a day after baking. You can put candid peel on top before cooking or you could put an almond or almond flake.

Whilst we are on the subject, here’s the lowdown on marzipan and almond paste. Marzipan has a higher ratio of sugar to almonds whereas Almond Paste generally has equal quantities of ground almonds to sugar. Grandma made her own almond paste as a base cover for her Christmas cake before topping with royal icing or glace fruits.

I’ve been busy with homemade Christmas baking this week and already made Francesca’s wonderful Saffron Macaroons for family and friends to enjoy alongside our favourite homemade  Mince Pies.

Wishing everyone a very happy Christmas!

How to become a Billionaire …

I’ve always loved Millionaires’ Shortbread and have tried several recipes to achieve that rich and decadent taste. Sheila, a friend from Derby, sent me her recipe 10 years ago and I’ve been using it ever since. 

Sheila’s Millionaires’ Shortbread

Pre-heat the oven to 160C (fan) 180C/Mark 4.  Line a 11 x 8 inch/28 x 20cm) Swiss roll tin with baking paper.

Shortbread base

4oz/110g butter

2oz/50g caster sugar

6oz/175g plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

Add the sugar to the flour and baking powder. Rub in the butter until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs. Knead the mixture until it forms a dough then press into the lined tin. Prick the dough with a fork. Bake in a moderate oven for about 20 minutes until golden brown and firm. Allow to cool in the tin.

Caramel filling

4oz/110g salted butter

4oz/110g light muscovado sugar

1 tbsp golden syrup

1 small tin condensed milk (397g)

1/2 tsp vamilla extract

Put all the ingredients into a pan and heat gradually until the sugar has dissolved. Bring to the boil, stirring all the time for about 5 minutes until the mixture has thickened. Allow to cool slightly then pour over the shortbread. Allow to cool completely.

Chocolate topping

8 oz/200g milk or dark chocolate

Melt the chocolate slowly over a pan of hot water or in a microwave on a low setting (600). Pour over the caramel and allow to set.  Cut into squares or bars as you wish with a hot knife.

 Turn it into Billionaire’s Shortbread

If you want to go the whole way to achieve super rich status, convert your stash into Billionaire’s Shortbread with a topping of gold leaf. That’s one way to plug that missing billions gap!

Meryl says : This is a recipe which needs dedication and care so take time between each stage to chill – the shortbread and yourself! And don’t be stingy with the chocolate – we all like a thick topping.

My singing friend, Heather, made Millionaire’s Shortbread for cake duty at our choir rehearsal last week. It was amazing. We sang our hearts out with even more gusto after indulging in her luscious treat!

This is a shorter version of a recipe article I did for Yorkshire Bylines

Enjoy! 

The cake that never fails?

 

Faced with a recipe called ‘Cacen BythYn Methu’ (The cake that never fails), I was intrigued to find out if this was the philosopher’s stone of baking. Had I hit the jackpot for the ultimate cake?

Too much sugar?

I took one look at the amount of sugar in this recipe and decided to not to add any at all. I’m going along in Grandma Abson’s tradition of following your instincts when it comes to baking. For me, the amount of dried fruit alongside the pineapple would seem to make it sweet enough. I used the pineapple juice to make the mixture a little softer. But, if you feel the need for a sugar kick, the original recipe says 60z (175g) soft brown sugar. Add it to the fruit mixture when you are melting the butter in the pan. Here’s my version:

Cacen BythYn Methu (heb siwgr)

4 0zs (110g) glazed cherries

4 ozs (110g) butter

2 eggs

1 small can (220g) pineapple (crushed)

12 ozs (350g) mixed dried fruit

8 ozs (220g) self-raising flour (sifted)

1.      Preheat the oven to 170C, 325 F or Gas Mark 3).

2.     Chop the cherries (I washed and dried them first) and put them in a large pan with the pineapple (chopped or crushed into smaller pieces), butter and dried fruit.

3.     Heat to melt the butter but DO NOT BOIL.

4.    Leave this mixture to cool.

5.     Beat in the sifted flour and eggs.

6.    Add enough pineapple juice to make the mixture less stiff.

7.     Put in a lined baking tin (I used a 20 cms x 30 cms tin). Bake in the oven for one hour until firm. Remove and place the tin on a rack to cool before removing the cake from the tin.

Meryl’s other tips

·        I’ve tried this recipe adding other types of dried fruit such as cranberries and apricots in the mix and a chopped apple. They all worked well. It’s a very versatile recipe.

·        Use a thin cake tester to stick in the cake and check if the cake is baked. I checked after 55 minutes. There should be no trace of the mixture when the cake tester is taken out, but if traces of the mixture remain, then it needs a little more baking time.

A recipe for success

I ‘ve never made a fruit cake with pineapple before but it turned out very well. I wrapped it up and took it on a walk with my Railway walking group friends when we tackled the renamed Suffragette line (formerly Overground) in north London. It proved a real treat – perfect for a picnic too!

   Bench dedicated to the last Suffragette 

Annie Clara Huggett from Barking

This is a shorter version of a piece I've written for Yorkshire Bylines about this intriguing recipe. 

It's only words ... but no cake!

 Here's a link to my September article for Yorkshire Bylines  with a recipe for Grandma's Family Fruit Loaf:

It's a real challenge playing Scrabble in French but what's missing is a a beak for tea and cake.

Plum crumble bars for a picnic treat

 

Plums are just in season and I’ve been trying out different recipes with plums to take on days out. We all like a crumble when there are gluts of fruit and flapjacks and oat bars are popular for picnics. Here’s a recipe which combines both for a perfect treat.

Plum Crumble bars

Base and topping

225g butter

225g oats

175g plain flour

150g light brown sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

Filling

300g Plums (sliced)

50g light brown sugar (optional)

1 tbsp cornflour

1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 180C. Grease and line a baking tray (approx. 20-21 cms – can be rectangle or square)

Make the base and topping : Cut the butter into small cubes and rub into the oats and flour until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs. Add the sugar and cinnamon and mix well. Press half of the mixture into the baking tray and bake in the oven for about 10 minutes.

Make the filling : Mix the sliced plums with the sugar (if used), cornflour and vanilla extract.

Remove the baking tray with the base from the oven and spread the plum mixture on top of the warm base. Then cover this with the rest of the oat mixture as a topping. Bake in the oven for a further 30 -35 minutes until golden brown.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a cooling rack. Cut into squares or slices to serve when cool.

There are lots more recipes with Plums :

Yorkshire Drop

Plum and Almond Tarte

Plum & Ginger Cake

Plum Crumble as for Rhubarb Crumble

Or simply stew the Plums in a pan in a little water or eat them as they come!

Make the most of them while they are at their best! Have you a favourite recipe with Plums?