Chocolate mess
Chocolate mess (recipe by Lotte Duncan)
This has been named Chocolate mess, perhaps because it’s not the prettiest of puddings. What it is though, is a tribute to store cupboard ingredients and the ability to make grown men weep with joy when they eat it!
As it’s so quick to make, you don’t really need to assemble it in advance but it will keep quite happily for a couple of hours if you want to be organised and make it ahead of time.
Serves 8
200g/7oz dark chocolate, broken into pieces
200g/7oz milk chocolate, broken into pieces
1kg carton readymade (county next to Cornwall!) custard
250g bag amoretti biscuits, crushed
4 tablespoons dark rum, amaretto or Tia Maria (optional)
570ml/1 pint double cream
2 milk chocolate flakes, broken up
Place the dark and milk chocolate pieces in a heatproof bowl and melt it in the microwave or over a pan of simmering water. Leave to cool for 5 minutes.
Warm the custard gently in a saucepan and stir in the melted chocolate and mix well.
Using individual serving bowls crumble a few amoretti biscuits in the bottom of each bowl. Drizzle with a good dash alcohol. Add a layer of chocolate custard over the top. Add another layer of crushed biscuits (reserving a few for the top), more rum and then the rest of the custard.
Lightly whip the cream to the same consistency as the custard. Using a large metal spoon, gently fold half the crushed chocolate flakes into the cream. Spoon this over the custard.
Sprinkle with the remaining chocolate flakes and the remaining crushed amaretti biscuits.
Macaroni Cheese
Serves 4
225g/8oz macaroni
40g/1½oz butter
4 tablespoons plain flour
570ml/1 pint semi-skimmed milk
a pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
1 tablespoon wholegrain mustard
1 teaspoon English mustard
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
200g/7oz mature Cheddar cheese, grated
50g/2oz Gruyère cheese, grated
salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 tomatoes, sliced, to garnish
crusty bread and green salad, to serve
Preheat the oven to 200ËC/fan oven 180ËC/gas mark 6.
AGA 4/3/2dr Grid shelf on the floor of the roasting oven.
Cook the macaroni according to the packet instructions and then drain it well.
Melt the butter in a medium, non-stick saucepan, remove from the heat and stir in the flour, mixing well. Now gradually add the milk, stirring all the time until it is completely incorporated. If it’s a bit lumpy, get a whisk to it!
Return the pan to the heat and bring the sauce to the boil for 1 minute over a medium heat, stirring continuously with a wooden spoon, until it thickens.
Remove the pan from the heat again and stir in the nutmeg, mustards, Worcestershire sauce and seasoning. Go easy on the salt though as there is plenty in the cheese. Stir the cheeses into the sauce, reserving 1 tablespoon of the Cheddar.
Stir the cooked macaroni into the sauce to coat it thoroughly. Spoon the macaroni cheese into a 1.2 litre/2 pint ovenproof dish. Place the sliced tomatoes on top and sprinkle with the reserved Cheddar cheese. Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes until golden and bubbling.
Serve with crusty bread and a green salad.
MATT’S RECIPES FOR MADE WITH LOVE…..
Hollywood’s Kiss and Tell Martini:
3 parts Champers
2 parts vodka
1 part Pom pomegranate juice
Squeeze of lime.
In a shaker mix ice, along with vodka, lime and Pom juice. Shake vigorously so it froths. Pour into martini glass. Top with a little champagne and garnish with a pomegranate seeds
Can be poured into a flute if you like the look of it instead.
Spice things up Crabcakes
1 pound crabmeat
50gm bread crumbs
2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley
pinch of salt and pepper
1/2 tablespoon ground dry mustard
1 egg
1 1/2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 splash of hot pepper sauce
watercress or mixed salad to serve
Lime Mayonnaise or Chipotle Mayonnaise to serve
Mix crab, bread crumbs, parsley, salt and pepper.
Beat together egg, mustard, mayo and pepper sauce combine with other ingredients. Form into patties. Broil 10 to 15 minutes.
Watch Lotte and Matt lovingly prepare these recipes and more in their ‘Made With Love’ short films on Food Network UK this Valentine’s Day; on Freeview channel 49, Sky Channel 262 and Freesat 405! Or visit www.foodnetwork.co.uk for more recipes and lifestyle tips.
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