I love chocolate, I love coffee – I love brownies and I love tiramisu. What could possibly go wrong combining the two? It makes for the most delicious, decadent and moreish dessert. Think dense, fudgy brownies with a light, coffee flavoured mascarpone cream. They balance perfectly for a dessert you will not be able to stop eating. I saw a similar recipe for this on TikTok but couldn’t find it online, so decided to cobble together my own version. I used my favourite brownie recipe (which is the Bon Appetit tripl chocolate brownies – incredibly dense and chocolatey, with chocolate chunks throughout) but feel free to use your favourite recipe. You just want to bake it in an 8x8inch pan, with baking parchment lining all sides (this makes it much easier to remove from the pan once you’ve added the coffee cream). I then whipped up a classic tiramisu cream but I added coffee, to make up for the lack of coffee soaked lady fingers. And of course, you have to shower the whole thing in cocoa powder. You HAVE to try it!
Tiramisu Brownies
Makes 9 large brownies | 1 hour prep + 30 mins cooking + chill 12hrs or overnight
1tbsp instant espresso powder (more if you want a strong coffee flavour)
80-100g icing sugar (to taste)
1tsp vanilla paste
Pinch of salt
Cocoa powder to dust
Method
Make your choice of brownie recipe in an 8×8 pan lined with baking parchment all the way up each side. Leave brownie to cool completely in the pan. Before adding your cream layer, I recommend removing the brownie from the pan and putting it back in. This will make getting it out later much easier.
Combine the double cream and coffee. Set aside for a few minutes to allow the coffee to dissolve.
Combine the egg yolks and caster sugar in a large bowl. Beat until no longer grainy – you may wish to add a few tablespoons of your coffee cream to help with this.
Add in the mascarpone and beat until smooth.
Add the double cream, icing sugar vanilla and salt, beat until combined. At this point taste for sweetness and coffee-ness – add more as needed. Beat until thickened – it won’t reach stiff peaks but get it as close as you can.
Spread your cream over your brownie and cover with cocoa powder. Chill for 12 hours or, ideally, overnight.
Remove from the tin using the baking parchement sides and cut into 9. Serve and enjoy!
My family and I recently took a trip to Paris, and I was given the great responsibility of choosing all the food. I, of course, took this very seriously. For me, the most important part of a holiday is to try as much local food as possible. So me being me, I made a spreadsheet… I asked for recommendations from friends, on instagram, did a lot of Googling and scrolling through the wonderful Paris by Mouth. I put everything I found on my spreadsheet, researched and ordered it all – and then I put it into a handy Google map so we could see what we were near when we were out and about. All my choices were a major success, my family approved! I thought I’d share them on here so other people can benefit from my research!
Dinners
Les Arlots, 10th ARR (near Gare du Nord)
Left: Pate de campagne, Middle: Sausage & mash, Right: Rice pudding with caramel and hazelnuts
This was dinner on our first night, and one we thankfully booked far in advance as it was completely packed. I found this in my googling spree, on Paris By Mouth. It’s a has a bistrot feel with a slightly more modern twist, and the menu mirrors that. The menu is a chalk board, propped up at the end of every table. The walls are covered in shelves absolutely packed with wines. The waiter just asked us what we like from our wine, and brought us a bottle and I can confirm he absolutely knew what he was doing.
For food, I started with a classic pate de campagne which was so rich and meaty, balanced perfectly with cornichons and a sour chutney that I can’t remember what it was… Absolutely delicious though! For main, the entire table got their iconic and famous dish – the sausage with mash and gravy. And this was the best sausage and mash I have EVER eaten. The mash was so smooth, buttery and creamy; the sausage was meaty and the gravy rich and umami. Everyone was very happy with their choices! Of course after all that, I had to make room for the rice pudding (topped with caramel and roasted hazelnuts). The pudding was soo thick and soo creamy, and the hazelnuts added the perfect texture (I am allergic to hazelnuts, but this was worth the risk…). All in all, this was an absolutely amazing first meal – and one of my favourites from the whole trip
Bistrot Paul Bert, 11th ARR
Left: Scallops with mushroom and butter, Middle: Steak tartare, Right: Grand Marnier Souffle
Now this restaurant came highly highly recommended to me by a good friend who spends a lot of time in Paris. He was backed up by Paris by Mouth. From what I can gather, this place is quite renowned as one of the best Bistrots in Paris – and I completely understand why! This is a place you definitely need to book in advance – we thought we had but there seemed to have been a bit of a mixup. So we decided to brave it no booking, and arrived just as they opened to nab one of the only free tables. So lucky!
Bistrot Paul Bert really is a classic French bistrot, but done absolutely perfectly. As I knew I wanted a dessert, my dad and I decided we’d share a starter. We got baked scallops with buttery mushrooms. The scallops were a little overcooked for my liking but the mushroom accompaniment was perfection – especially when mopped up with the fresh bread. For main I went for one of my favourites – steak tartare with chips. Not for everyone, but I love it. The steak was so tender and rich, balanced by the tang of the mix-ins. And the French really know how to do fries! We rounded the meal off with 2 Grand Marnier souffles between 3 of us – they were huge! This souffle was probably the best thing I ate that entire trip, and I’m usually not a dessert person. It was SO light, but the top had the perfect crisp to it. Our bill came with 3 mini caneles – the perfect end! If you only listen to one thing I write in this post, let it be this: GO TO BISTROT PAUL BERT!
Astier, 11th ARR
This restaurant was a last minute find after we realised the mixup with the Paul Bert booking. This meal really polarised the group. I think it was potentially a little too traditionally french for some (we’re talking very rare meat and stinky cheese). I, however, loved it! A very classically french bistrot with a cosy interior. The kind of place I would love to own. In the middle of the restaurant sat their famous cheese trolley.
For food, I started with the pate en croute. This was a special they had on and it was delicious! It was a terrine-like pate wrapped in pastry. For main I went for a french classic – filet de boeuf, peppercorn sauce and potato dauphine (little pillows of fried potato). This was perfect – the meat was rare (as I like it) but still so tender. The sauce was thick, creamy and tasty. The potatoes were crispy but airy in the middle. After all that I didn’t have room for a dessert, but that didn’t stop me stealing some of my brothers roasted figs (delicious) and my mum and sister’s cheese (also delicious). I loved this restaurant, as did my dad and brother – but if you go, make sure everyone in your group is happy with very French food!
Plumb Du Cantal, multiple locations across Paris
Left: Confit dug with aligot, Right: Confit duck with truffade
This restaurant was a recommendation from my best foodie friend Ros. She promised me comforting mountain food – think cheesy carbs – and this place did not disappoint. The decor felt like being in a restaurant in the alps: lots of wood, checked tablecloths, and jam packed! The menu listed a number of classic French proteins like confit duck or sausage, to be served alongside your choice of cheesy potato sides – aligot or truffade (or salad, but who would pick that over aligot). I opted for the confit duck with aligot, and my brother got the same with truffade. We got served plates with just our protein on, and then the waiter comes over with a copper pan full of your potato dish and pour it onto your plate. I’m not lying when you say you get a MOUNTAIN of potato – so if you go here, please come hungry! I was very disappointed with my attempt…
The confit duck was delicious – juicy and tender with perfectly crispy skin. But the real star was obviously the aligot – I mean you can’t go wrong with obscenely cheesy mash! I tasted some of my brothers truffade too – this is thin slices of potato cooked with goose fat and smothered with tom fraiche (same cheese as aligot).
Bakeries, Lunches & Sweet Treats
Breizh Cafe, galettes, Multiple locations
Same galette x 2: Leek fondue, comte, creme fraiche and scallop
This is another recommendation from my good friend who spends a lot of time in Paris (my family got to know and completely trust his recommendations). A cafe specialising in galettes (buckweat pancakes) filled with all kind of delicious things. We headed here for lunch on our first day and then again on our penultimate – it was just that good. I hate to admit it, but I had the same thing both times – but it was SO good I didn’t want anything else! I had a special, which was filled with comte, leek fondue (think buttery, braised leeks), creme fraiche and perfectly cooked scallops. The flavour combination was perfect, all packaged up in a delicious and slightly crisp galette. Other galettes on the menu include the classic comte ham and egg, lobster roll, seaweed butter and more. There’s a definite Japanese influence running through the menu.
Macarons top to bottom: Rose, raspberry and lychee; creme brulee; olive oil; passionfruit and milk chocolate
This is my favourite macaron shop in London, so I knew it was gonna be good, but I wanted to try some from the source. We were not disappointed! I got a selection of 4 for myself including olive oil; passionfruit and milk chocolate; lychee, raspberry and rose; and creme brulee. Pierre Herme is my favourite because of how inventive the flavours are. Olive oil was my favourite – it even had little chunks of green olive in, which I know sounds weird but trust me! The olive oil made for a very rich and creamy flavour, which was cut through nicely by the salty olive. Don’t get me wrong though, every flavour was delicious!
Take a look at their site for all their flavours and locations.
L’Eclair De Genie, Eclairs, Multiple locations
Left: salted caramel, Right: pecan and vanilla
This was a suggestion from my sister – she visited before on a previous trip to Paris. They do the most beautiful and interestingly flavoured eclairs. I got 2 to split with my brother, so we could try more flavours! Firstly the vanilla and pecan. The eclair shell was so crisp and light, filled with a luxurious vanilla studded custard and topped with crunchy crystallised pecan. Yum! Next we had the salted caramel – which was my favourite. The same shell as before but filled with a buttery, thick caramel.
Left: Tarte au chevre, Middle: potato cream pastry, Right: Pain aux raisins
Another recommendation from our favourite Ros – so you know it’s good. She said the pain aux raisins was the best pastry she’d ever had – I was dubious as I couldn’t believe a pain aux raisins could ever be the best pastry, but I think she was right! We headed to Stohrer for lunch and grabbed a few savoury pastries and a pain aux raisin and shared them on a bench on the street. We got a tarte au chevre, a pastry filled with potatoes and cream, a meat pasty type thing and a ham & cheese wellington (I’ve absolutely got the wrong names here so I’m sorry). All would’ve been much better warmed up, but still they were delicious. My favourite was the tarte aux chevre – huuuuge chunks of goats cheese! Finally onto the star – the pain aux raisin. And Ros was not lying – this pastry was incredible. So crisp on the outside, chewy in the middle, sweet, tart, vanilla-y, perfect!
The last sweet treat I picked up on the last day of the trip was 4 gauffres from Meert. These are thin waffles sandwiching a sweet cream filling. The bakery itself is gorgeous – very old-Parisian. I got 4 flavours to try with my parents – classic vanilla, pecan, pistachio cherry and caramelised biscuit. Our favourite was by far the pecan – such a strong roasted pecan flavour! Followed by the pistachio and cherry, the cherry really cut through the rich pistachio cream.
I had an amazing time in Paris. Seeing my family, wandering around museums, seeing the sights and (most importantly) eating. I love the French attitude to food, and just how many independent and amazing restaurants there are. We need more good French food in London! If you’re taking a trip to Paris anytime soon, I hope my recommendations can be of use. This isn’t an exhaustive list, but it comes from extensive research – and me and my family approve!
After a bit of a quiet period, I’m back! I’ve been away on a pretty big holiday, for which food updates will be coming very soon… But in the meantime, I thought I’d do a little review of one of the lovely restaurants I’ve been to recently in London. It’ll come as no surprise to you that my partner for this meal was the Ros (as in @rosontour). We spotted Flour & Grape on Tik Tok recently. We’ve been stacking up a list of Tik Tok finds to make our way through, and this was the first we ticked off! I definitely think we picked a good place to start.
Neither of us had really explored Bermondsey before, so we spent the hour before F&G opened just wandering around the streets & into all the cute little shops we found. Can confirm this is a lovely way to spend a Sunday. As F&G is a no-booking situation (you queue through the Walk Up app), we stationed ourselves at a cafe with a view of the F&G front door to make sure we were among the first people to get inside. That is true pasta dedication. We both had an iced chai and stared at the door (I’m not joking). The iced chai was actualy a lovely surprise – one of the best we’d both ever had! As soon as the restaurant opened we were up, I think we were the third table to be seated.
After looking at the menu we strategised – do we do starters and a couple of pastas, do we do all pasta, do we do smaller starters, pasta and a dessert? We were both on the same page – let’s get all pasta, and let’s get 4 pastas (everyone needs a friend like Ros). We got 2 rounds of 2 pastas, to make it feel like a proper meal and less like we’d just ordered 4 mains between 2…
First up we got the pork shoulder tortelloni and the fennel sausage ragu with gigli. I am not being dramatic when I say these were absolute perfection – and I’m not just saying because I was wildly hungover and starving. The tortelloni (spoiler alert) ended up being our favourite of the night – the filling was purely slow roasted pork, it was so tender and so meaty in flavour. Tossed in a simple sage butter – this was absolutely incredible. Don’t get me wrong though, that ragu was also insanely special. Again, very meaty and buttery, but with the addition of the freshness from some greens.
Pork shoulder tortelloni with sage butterFennel sausage ragu with gigli
We polished up both plates and got our next pasta course – the carbonara and the preserved truffle taglierini. Again, both were fabulous! The carbonara came with an extra egg yolk on top to mix in which made it even more decadent, with the salty, meaty, crunchy little pieces of guanciale. A perfect example of a carbonara. We found the truffle pasta really interesting and quite subtly different to your standard creamy truffle pasta. The preserved truffle gave it a little more of a tang which cut through the richness. Of course, we polished off these 2 plates too (apart from 1 mouthful I could not stomach…).
Spaghetti carbonara with an egg yolk and crispy guancialePreserved truffle taglierini
All in all, this was a really fantastic meal and it has definitely cemented itself as one of our pasta favourites. Every dish was fantastic – nothing disappointed! But for educational purposes, so you know what to get when you visit, we’ve kindly ranked the dishes from our favourite to least favourite.
Meg’s Rankings
Pork shoulder tortelloni
Carbonara
Sausage ragu
Truffle taglierini
Ros’ Rankings
Pork shoulder tortelloni
Carbonara
Truffle taglierini
Sausage ragu
We both definitely recommend a trip to Flour & Grape, absolutely worth a queue! If you do take a trip, let me know what you think in the comments!
I love burgers. 95% of the time I get a Deliveroo it’ll be Bleecker, Burger & Beyond, Salt Shed, Black Bear or Shake Shack. But, despite my deep love of burgers, I’ve never mastered making my own – until now. And let me tell you, making an incredible burger could not be more simple. It all comes down to the meat you use – the quality and the fat content. This burger itself is literally just salt & minced beef, so as you could imagine you really want a delicious, high quality mince to bring the flavour. The other thing you need is at least 20% fat – this will bring with it yet more flavour and juiciness. The rest of the toppings are up to you & how you like to eat your burgers. I like mine super simple – onions and American cheese. I don’t like to overpower that delicious patty.
These burgers were inspired by a recent trip to the George Motz x Bleecker burger pop-up. This was his 1 UK stop on his burger tour and my friend Ros & I were lucky enough to get one (after a 3 hour queue, and I would do it again). Motz did smash burgers with onions – you make these but putting a ball of meat on the grill, sprinkling on some raw, sliced, white onion, seasoning it and smashing it down using a spatula. Smash burgers are meant to be thin with slightly rugged and crispy edges – but they’re still juicy af in the middle. I never thought I’d be able to make a burger that came close to the ones I order but this recipe will get you pretty damn close! The burgers are crisp on the edges, but so juicy in the middle. The cheese melts & mixes in with the fat and the bread soaks up any drippage. And did I mention they literally take under 15 mins to coo? Yeah, you have to try these.
Onion Smash Burgers
Serves 2 | Cooks in 15 mins
Ingredients
320-360g high quality 20% fat mince meat
4 slices American cheese
2 burger buns
1/2 white onion, thinly sliced into half moons
Veg oil & butter for cooking
Salt for seasoning
Method
Divide your meat into 80-90g portions and roll into a ball.
Melt a knob of butter in a cast iron pan over medium high heat. Add the buns cut side down and toast until lightly golden. Set these aside
Wipe out the pan to get rid of any bread crumbs, coat the bottom of the pan in veg oil and turn the heat to medium high.
Once the pan is very hot, add a ball of mince meat. You’ll need to work very quickly – season very generously with salt, and top with a quarter of the sliced onion. Place a wide metal spatula on top of the ball, and press down using the end of another spatula. You want your meat to be <1cm thick – we want crispy edges!
Cook on one side for 1-2 mins until the meat is caramelised and a little crispy. Flip the patty and add the cheese on top. Cook for another 1-2 mins until the cheese is melted, the bottom of the patty is caramelised and the onions have taken on some colour.
Repeat this for the remaining 3 patties.
Stack 2 patties per bun & serve with your choice of sauce/pickles. Let me know in the comments how you have your burgers!
2 friends and I have been making a real effort to try a lot of local Hackney restaurants to make the most of our area and, most importantly, to avoid getting on a tube. Next on our list was Elliot’s – another one that I’ve heard great things about through the grape vine but never got round to going. They have 2 locations, one in Hackney right by London Fields, and one in Borough. I’ve only visited the former, but I image the Borough counterpart is just as good. The restaurant feels very laid back and cool with a huge list of natural wines to choose from. Very Hackney in the best way!
Before choosing anything we spent a good 10 mins asking questions trying to work out which dishes we needed to try and what other dishes those went with. Our waitress was really helpful and helped us to pick out a really amazing meal. But first off, wine! We were feeling fancy so went for a sparkling – we asked for a recommendation of a dry wine that wasn’t too expensive (this left us with a lot to choose from!). Sadly I really cannot remember the wine but I know the words ‘tinc’ and ‘sec’ were in the name somewhere… Very unhelpful, I’m sorry.
L: Cheese croquettes, R: Calabrian anchovy toast
The food menu is split into 4 sections: snacks, small plates, pizzas and wood fired oven (plus sides). We asked for a recommendation of numbers of plates from each section. We decided to skip the wood oven entirely as we found the other sections a bit more exciting. Snacks first! We went for the cheese puffs and Calabrian anchovy toast and these were both genuinely some of the top dishes of the nights. The cheese puffs are indescribable, like a croquette-ish type thing – a thin crust on the outside with a warm, gooey cheesy middle. I could eat these forever. No exaggeration! And the anchovy toast – high quality bread, some sweet fried onions, a big curl of quality butter and a salty, oily anchovy. The perfect bite. Both of these dishes are an absolute must.
L: Seabass crudo, R: Potato flatbread with trout roe in the background
From the small plates we chose the sea bass crudo; king oyster mushrooms with wild garlic and an egg yolk; smoked ox tongue with beans, capers and horseradish; and trout roe with a potato flatbread. We were also recommended to get some focaccia to soak up the sauce from the mushrooms and ox tongue. These were all exceptional! I think my top 2 were the super fresh and buttery sea bass, and the trout roe. The roe dish came with a little potato pizza type thing, with a separate bowl of roe and sour cream to spoon on top. The mushrooms were also very delicious – really rich and creamy owing to that egg. I loved the ox tongue too, but this was a bit more polarising in the group (I think the context of it being a tongue). We were really glad we got the focaccia so as not to waste all the yummy sauces.
L: King oyster mushrooms, R: Smoked ox tongue
Next up we got 2 pizzas: the brown butter, taleggio & sage, and the beef ragu with parmesan. We also got a size of fried maris pipers (aka the crispiest, fluffiest chips in the world) with a HUGE serving of alioli – great for those pizza crusts. Both pizzas were absolutely incredible. I was glad to have one white and one red as they balanced well. The taleggio pizza was very rich and nutty from the brown butter. The beef had a bit more tang from the tomato and that beef was absolutely perfectly cooked.
L: Taleggio and brown butter pizza, R: Beef rag and parmesan pizza
We were told they had great desserts, but sadly by this point we were just waaaay too full. Instead we headed across to Netil 360 for another bottle of sparkling wine… All in all we had an absolutely incredible meal, every dish was seriously impressive and delicious. I think my faves were the snacks, the roe, that beef pizza and the fries. I wholeheartedly recommend a visit to Elliot’s for some really high quality and exciting food. Next on my list is to visit the Borough location!
Find them at 121-123 Mare Street, Hackney, London E8 3RH
Or their borough location 12 Stoney Street, Borough Market, London SE1 9AD
This is one of my go to comfort, hangover dishes. We’re talking cheesy carbs with a real punch of herby, tomatoey flavour. This dish was inspired by one of my fave Chrissy Tiegen recipes – her pasta alla norma. I really liked what she called ‘mozzarella bombs’ – her dish and this one have chunks of mozzarella studded throughout the pasta that get all melty and stretchy as the pasta bakes. When your fork hits a mozzarella clump its like the best treasure discovery you’ve ever experienced. I mean just look at the cheese pull in that pic. The portion sizes on this dish are quite large, because I’m basing it on what I’d eat on a very hungover Sunday (which turns out to be enough pasta for a 2 person standard serving). So be warned when you’re making this – I would say it serves 2 high appetite people, or 3-4 regular appetite.
Cheesy, Tomatoey, Sausage Pasta Bake
Serves 2-3 (2 very hungry) | 1 hour + 40 mins baking
Ingredients
1tbsp olive oil
1tsp butter
1 white onion, sliced crossways into thin half moons
Heat the oil and buttere in a large saucepan or casserole over low heat. Once melted, add the onions with a pinch of salt and cook with the lid on, stirring often, until it partially caramelises (~15-20 mins).
Once the onions are ready, push to one side of thee pan and splash a little oil in the other. Turn the heat to medium/high. Add the sausage meat – don’t stir for the first minute or 2. You want to form a nice caramelised crust. At this point start to break up the sausage into large chunks. Cook until caramelised all over and a nice fond has formed. Stir through with the onions.
Add the garlic and good for a minute or two until fragrant.
Add the tomato puree, stir and cook for another few minutes until slightly darkened in colour.
Add the tomatoes and about half a tin of water, crush the tomatoes into smaller chunks with a spatula. Add the herbs. Bring to the boil and then immediately turn the heat to low.
Simmer for 20-25 mins. Meanwhile, cook the pasta in heavily salted boiling water until al dente.
Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan
Once the sauce is cooked, stir through the ricotta and add salt, pepper and parm and taste for seasoning. Add the pasta and 3/4 of the mozzarella chunks – stir to combine and transfer to your baking dish.
Bake in the oven for 30-40 mins until bubbling and the mozzarella is nice and melty. Leave on the side for 5 mins and serve!
All of you who have read my How To Host A Wedding Cake Tasting will know I’m making the wedding cake for my lovely cousin Bryony & her now-husband Lush. Well, the big day has now happened and I can reveal there were no cake-related disasters! But above all that, it was the most beautiful day watching the best couple getting married. I started sobbing the moment I saw Bryony walking down the aisle and didn’t stop until the ceremony was over. I love weddings, and this was a really, really special one!
As much as I could talk about the wedding for the entire post, you’re all here for the cake. As I said in the last post, they chose 2 flavours, one for each tier:
Bottom Tier: Chocolate cake, dark chocolate ganache, crumble and miso caramel
Top Tier: Vanilla cake soaked in passionfruit syrup, white chocolate ganache (for structural support), mascarpone cream, passionfruit curd, crumble and passionfruit caramel
You’re probably wondering how on earth did I manage this with a full time job, when I live in London & the wedding was in Suffolk & cook all the components at the right time so they wouldn’t go off by the wedding? The answer is a spreadsheet. I could not have done it without my spreadsheet.
This is my trusty spreadsheet – the table at the top shows what I need to make, the recipe, how much to make and the date I cold make it. The small table at the bottom shows my plan for the week of the wedding
On this spreadsheet I listed my components, recipes, quantities of each recipe & how far ahead of the event I could cook it. I used that to work out my ingredients and to put together a cooking calendar for the week before. The caramel and syrup I was able to fo a few weeks ahead, but everything else was done on the week of and that was limited to the Tuesday, Wednesday & Friday as I had dinner plans on Monday and was travelling back home on the Thursday to head to Suffolk with my family on Friday. The days I did the cooking, I was cooking util 11-12 at night… It was definitely hard after my usual 9-5, and I cannot promise you I wasn’t talking to my mixer and swearing at Siri at one point. On Tuesday I did the ganache and crumble, Wednesday I did the cakes and Italian meringue frosting, and on Friday I made the mascarpone frosting, mixed up my caramels and syrups (just added miso or fresh passionfruit juice), rewhipped all my ganaches/frostings and assembled the cake.
I chose to make all the components ahead of time and transport these to Suffolk to assemble in our cottage there. This seemed a lot easier and less risky than transporting a full wedding cake. I stacked both cakes on a cake board 1cm larger than the diameter of the cake (to give some space for frosting), then chilled each for ~30mins until the ganache set:
Bottom Tier: I levelled the chocolate cakes. Spread a layer of the dark chocolate ganache over the whole cake and piped a ring around the edge – this stops the other fillings oozing out. Then I covered the ganache with miso caramel, keeping it inside the ring, and sprinkled over crumble. I stacked the next cake and repeated. I like to stack my last cake upside down as this leaves a really level surface on top. I made sure to smooth the edges of the cake first where any ganache oozed out, and also filled in any gaps before chilling.
Top Tier: I levelled the vanilla cakes and spooned over the passionfruit syrup – this keeps the cakes nice and moist (sorry). I piped a ring of white chocolate ganache around the edge of the cake and a splodge in the middle – this gives some structural support as the fillings for this are quite soft. Inside the ganache ring I spread a layer of mascarpone frosting & rippled through some passionfruit curd and passionfruit caramel. Then I sprinkled over some crumble. Stacked the next cake and repeat, again stacking my last cake upside down. As before I smoked out the ganache and filled in any gaps.
Inside of the chocolate layer: Miso caramel, dark chocolate ganache and crumble
Once these were set, I crumb coated each with a thin layer of Italian meringue frosting. I made sure to keep this as smooth as possible and the corners as crisp as possible. If you need tips on this, give How To Cake It a watch – she is the icing master. I set the crumb coat in the fridge until it was dry to the touch, then did the final coat. I double made sure this was smooth and perfect as the cake design was super simple – plain frosting with a few flowers. I left these to set in the fridge overnight.
Wedding cake stacked and iced, ready for flowers
The next morning, we took the cakes, a cake stand, dowels, and all my cake equipment to the venue. Here I inserted a dowel into the bottom tier, measured and cut flush with the cake. I repeated this to total 5 dowels. I stuck the bottom tier to the cake stand using a small splodge of frosting. Next, the nerve-wracking part: stacking. I put a splodge of icing on the bottom tier and lifted the top tier (my cake spatula came in SO handy) and placed it on top – I was able to centre it with my hands. Next I went over with my leftover frosting and filled any gaps, and my sister (my cake assistant) cleaned up the stand. We had some leftover flowers that my sister and I arranged after wrapping the stems with floral tape. After 2 attempts at flower arranging, we finally had it! I put it in the fridge and sighed a HUGE sigh of relief. My first wedding cake done!
The bride & groom absolutely loved it, and everyone who tasted it told me it was delicious! I actually wouldn’t know as I didn’t taste any of it… Too busy drinking & dancing. All in all, my first wedding cake was a huge success, and I’m so happy Bryony & Lush loved it too! I have 2 more wedding cakes in the books, and I think that’ll be me done for a good few years!
In this instalment of the foodie adventures of Ros & Meg we took a trip to this Shoreditch fondue house. Neither of us can remember exactly how it started but we’ve both been chatting to Bistrot Walluc on insta for quite a while and we’ve been so keen to go since. We decided it would be the perfect setting for our reunion after our 3 week separation (Ros is never allowed on holiday again). Bistrot Walluc is right by Shoreditch Highstreet, on the same road as some other incredible restaurants including the BAO noodle bar (click to read my review) and Smoking Goat. We were greeted by the amazing Luca – he does both front of house & the kitchen – and taken to our table. The restaurant itself is so much fun and so eccentric. There were kitschy trinkets everywhere and the music was coming from an old record player in the corner.
Bistrot Walluc do a set menu which consists of cheese & charcuterie to start, followed by a fondue or gnocchi for main, and then a limoncello shot to round it all off. As the cheese lovers we are, we went for the fondue of course. But before all that, we both got a shot of amaretto which is something I would never normally drink straight, but I definitely will be again!
Cheese and charcuterie plate
Now for our starter. We got a lovely selection of meats (including some salami, mortadella and a cured ham), cheeses (manchego, and a floral honey goats cheese), a salad with the most delicious sundried tomatoes I’ve ever had on, cornichon and some bread. This is already one of my favourite things – I love tearing up the meat and trying different combinations with the cheese on bread. But if that wasn’t enough the wonderful Luca also brought us over some extra bits to try, including a delicious n’duja that we just spread on bread and a salami coated in red wine. I hadn’t tried the wine salami before – the red wine formed these sweet, dark flakes. It was all amazing. Nothing beats some very high quality charcuterie & cheese.
L: N’duja, R: red wine salami (with more n’duja)
Next up was our fondue. But before this, we spent a bit of time chatting to Luca about his life and how he came to own a fondue restaurant in Shoreditch. Luca is from Italy, but has also lived in France – where he mastered the fondue. When he came to open his restaurant he initially thought Italian food, but shifted to fondue. His fondue isn’t a typical french or Swiss fondue – he’s made his own version. He uses gruyere & comte which makes for such a delicious fondue. Both cheeses add quite a strong flavour, and you can taste both. You can definitely tell this isn’t your standard fondue, it has a much greater depth of flavour. We dipped both bread and potatoes into our fondue and polished off the whole thing.
L: Our fondue setup with bread & potatoes, R: The cheese pull from heaven
We rounded off the meal with some limoncello and some brilliant magic tricks from Luca (there is nothing he can’t do). I cannot recommend this place strongly enough, from the delicious food, the super fun interior to the brilliant Luca – everything about Bistrot Walluc is fantastic. We both had so much fun and left very satisfied. I have not stopped raving about it since! They also host live music & comedy nights which I will definitely be returning for, give them a follow on insta to keep up with the schedule. You absolutely have to give Bistrot Walluc a go. Whether with friends, family, a date, even solo you will not find a more fun or authentic place than here. To book head to their insta, click on the link in the bio and drop Luca a Whatsapp!
This is a dirty but delicious breakfast/brunch recipe – absolutely nothing refined about it. That makes it another great option for a hangover breakfast, like my best ever breakfast muffin recipe. In fact, the two recipes are pretty similar but this swaps the muffin for American pancakes, and doubles up on patty count. It’s cheesy, salty, carby, and super tasty owing to seasoning of that sausage patty. I like to use American cheese for this as, for some reason, I think it’s delicious but feel free to swap it for something a little higher quality. I just love the creamy texture of American cheese. The beauty of this recipe is you can pretty much add whatever you’d normally have in a breakfast sandwich or whatever you’ve got in your fridge – bacon, hash browns, avocado – the list is endless! Let me know in the comments what combos you try. I’m always looking for new variations!
4 slices American cheese (or cheese of your choice)
2 eggs
Maple syrup to serve
Method:
Make the pancake batter. Heat a small amount of butter and oil in a pan over medium heat – you want just enough to cover the bottom of the pan but very little excess.
Once hot, add a large spoonful of your pancake mix to the pan aiming for ~10cm diameter. Cook on one side until bubbles start to form in the mix and it’s started to set on top, it should also be golden brown on the bottom. The cooking time is really dependent on your pan and hob. Flip and cook on the other side until golden brown. Cover in foil & keep in the over at a low temperature to keep warm. Repeat with the remaining batter, re-oiling the pan as needed.
Next, combine all the sausage patty ingredients in a bowl and mix until combined. Form the mix into 4 thin patties, slightly larger in diameter than the pancakes as this will shrink when cooked.
Coat the bottom of a skillet or frying pan with vegetable oil and heat over high heat. Once hot, place the patty into the pan and cook for 1-2 mins until the bottom is browned & caramelised – check after 1 min as this will burn quickly if left unattended. Flip the patty and leave for 30-60seconds, then add the cheese on top. Put a lid or plate over the frying pan and leave for another 30-60 seconds until cooked through (no pink left) and the cheese is melty. Cooking time will depend on the patty thickness, the pan and hob. Set aside & cover with foil.
Crack the eggs into the sausage pan still over high heat and cook to your liking. I like mine over easy but still runny.
To serve, place 1 pancake on a plate followed by a sausage patty, the egg, another pancake, another sausage patty and then a final pancake on top. Drizzle with maple syrup and enjoy!
We visited this pancake house as part of my best foodie friend Ros’s birthday celebrations. You should all be very familiar with her by now so you’ll understand why this is a perfect celebration for Ros. Made even better by the fact that it was preceded by puppy yoga. So our Saturday went from being swarmed by tiny puppies to pancakes – I can confirm there is no better way to spend a Saturday. Where the pancakes are is in Southwark. The restaurant has loads of outdoor seating making it a great summer brunch spot, and the indoor area also feels very light and airy.
Before the food, I ordered a Spanish latte which is quickly becoming my favourite way to have coffee – a latte but sweetened with condensed milk (I would happily drink a tin of condensed milk). As usual, Ros & I couldn’t possibly just have 1 dish each – there was so much good stuff on the menu and we wanted to to try as much as possible. So we went for 2 dishes and shared – one sweet and one savoury.
First up savoury. We got the pulled beef pastrami – this dish consisted of 2 fluffy American pancakes, pulled beef, cheddar, sauerkraut, 1000 island sauce, kale slaw and pickles. This was absolutely insane, I’ve never had pancakes like this. Firstly, the pancakes themselves were incredible – so light and fluffy. The pancakes were the perfect vessel for the toppings – a little lighter than bread, but with more richness. Secondly, all the toppings were absolutely perfect – salty pastrami, rich cheddar, creamy sauce cut through by the pickles and sauerkraut. I never would’ve expected a pancake restaurant to make such amazing and tender pastrami – my only criticism would be that I wanted more pastrami! Ros & I are both savoury lovers, so we absolutely demolished this dish.
Next up for our sweet dish we got 2 American pancakes topped with poached pears, thyme caramel and whipped cream. I think this may have been taken off the menu as I can’t see it on their site which is such a shame because this dish was fantastic! It used the same pancakes as the pastrami one – so very light and fluffy American pancakes. As I said, Ros & I are definitely more savoury than sweet people but both absolutely loved this dish. It wasn’t too sweet at all, the caramel was thick and almost bitter rather than being overly sweet. Thee thyme added a herbal note to the dish. The sweet sharp pears worked perfectly and stopped this dish feeling too rich and sweet. All of that topped with some super light, fluffy whipped cream and toasted almonds – the perfect bite. This one we didn’t quite finish, but that had nothing to do with the dish and more to do with the fact that we were so full from the first dish.
Pear, thyme caramel and whipped cream pancakes (where the pancakes are)
Ros & I were both so impressed with everything we ate. The pancakes were perfect, but also so were the toppings. The flavours & textures were really well balanced and thought out. I’d love to go back and try more of the menu, including the dutch baby pancakes! I really recommend this place as a weekend brunch spot, there’s such a huge variety on the menu for a place that just serves pancakes. Let me know in the comments what you think if you go!
Bakes By Meg 