To celebrate the birth of the latest heir apparent to the British throne, PG tips has developed a new take on the traditional cuppa to wet the baby’s head – a ‘royal-tea cup’ cocktail.

Working with Rebecca Seal, drinks expert from Channel 4’s Sunday Brunch, the Fruit Cup style cocktail takes inspiration straight from the royal wedding day to combine details from the pair’s nuptials with quintessentially English ingredients, resulting in a rich and refreshing PG tipple packed full of Britishness and served in dainty tea cups.



Ingredients in a PG tips ‘royal-tea cup’ include:

• Strawberries – as a major crop in Cambridgeshire, these summery English berries are perfect to include as part of a royal celebration
• Rose petals – two new rose bushes were named after the happy couple and planted in the grounds of Windsor Castle and sugar roses were used to decorate their eight-tier wedding cake
• Sparkling wine – English sparkling wine was served to guests at the bride and groom’s wedding breakfast
• PG tips The Rich One – like red wine, all tea contains tannins, which gives drinks a wonderfully rich flavour.  We’ve used PG tips The Rich One for its full-bodied taste
• Gin – a quintessentially British ingredient and, according to Rebecca Seal, the botanicals used to make gin (like juniper) perfectly complement the flavours in tea
• Cucumber – from a dainty finger sandwich at traditional afternoon tea
• Apple juice -  from the fruit trees of the great British orchards
• Elderflower – from the hedgerows that line England’s green and pleasant land
• Mint - from English country gardens

A ‘royal-tea cup’ cocktail can be made either with or without alcohol and is perfect for a sunny garden party, to have with afternoon tea or as an aperitif before a barbecue.




PG tips Royal-tea Cup Cocktail Recipe:
To enjoy a very British punch in celebration of a potential future king, the below recipe makes 10-12 teacups or 6-8 longer drinks -

Ingredients:

• 6 British strawberries with the core removed
• A handful of fresh mint leaves, ripped
• 100ml freshly boiled water
• 1 PG tips The Rich One teabag
• 75g sugar
• 50ml freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 1 ½ lemons)
• ½ an unwaxed lemon’s rind, peeled and chopped
• 15ml elderflower cordial
• 100ml English apple juice
• 200-400ml gin
• 350ml soda water or sparkling water
• 350ml English sparkling wine (or cava)

For non-alcoholic punch:
Omit the gin and sparkling wine and use 150ml apple juice and 550ml soda water instead

 

Garnish:

• Lots of fresh ice in big chunks
• Slices of cucumber skin
• Rose petals
• Slices of strawberries  

 

Method:

Step 1: In a pestle and mortar, roughly crush the strawberries and mint leaves together

Step 2: Mix the crushed mint and strawberries with the hot water, PG tips The Rich One teabag, sugar, lemon juice and rind then stir until all the sugar has dissolved. Leave to stand for 8-10 minutes, then strain, reserving the syrup

Step 3: In a large bowl or jug, mix the syrup with the elderflower, apple juice and gin to taste. (The mix can be chilled for a few hours at this point until ready to serve.)

Step 4: When ready to serve, add large blocks of ice, the soda water and sparkling wine. Stir gently to combine

Step 5: To serve, line teacups with a sliver of cucumber skin, shaved using a potato peeler, then fill the cup with fresh ice. Serve using a ladle

Step 6: Garnish with a red rose petal and a slice of strawberry in the shape of a heart



I did the non-alcoholic version of this delightful little tipple and we quite enjoyed! Except for the cucumber skins . . . I thought they added a bitter touch which I didn't like very much, so I got rid of mine . . . so did the Toddster.

Of course, you know we did more than drink.  I had to make something to eat along with our little "tipple," and I baked some beautifully crisp lemon crisp biscuits!  Celebrations always call for something  REALLY special don't they?   And these crisp little biscuits are just perfect for that!



This is a very, verrrrrry old recipe, gleaned from the cardboard covering of a package of margarine many years ago.  My mother had ripped it off and it lay hidden in her red Co-op cookbook for many years.  I cannot remember my mother ever baking these, but I have  baked them many times.



The original recipe called for hard margarine, but I have always used butter.  I figure if they add stuff and chemicals to make margarine hard etc., . . . I don't need it in my veins.   I'd prefer to have natural vein cloggers.



These are a slice and bake cookie.  I've never been able to get them to come out perfectly round, but that doesn't matter.  They are crisp and sweet and buttery . . . with a hint of lemon as well as ginger, which is a perfect combination I think.  I added the lemon sugar garnish a while back.  It just made sense and was the nicest addition I thought.

So, what are you waiting for?    Let's get baking!



Rub the sugar and lemon zest together until very fragrant. Cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Beat in the egg and lemon juice to combine.  Whisk together the flour, salt, soda and ginger.   Stir this into the wet ingredients, blending in well.   Shape into two 1 1/2 inch in diameter cylinders.  Wrap well and chill until very firm.

When ready to bake rub the topping ingredients together until fragrant and preheat the oven to 190*C/375*F/ gas mark 5.  Line several baking sheets with baking paper.   Set aside.

Cut the rolls with a very sharp knife into 1/4 inch thick slices.   Place these on the baking trays.  Sprinkle each with a bit of the lemon sugar.   Bake for 6 to 8 minutes until crisp and golden around the edges.   Allow to cool on the baking sheets for several minutes before removing to a wire rack to finish cooling completely. 

Store in an airtight container.

I can remember when Prince William was born and how exciting it was.  I was pregnant the same time as Princess Diana and so Wills was always a bit special to me because he is the same age as our Douglas and I felt the whole way through my pregnancy that Diana was feeling the same way as I did!

I have followed his whole life, and that of Harry's with great interest actually.   I am a Royalist at heart and love all of the Royal Family, warts-n-arl as my late good friend Angie would have said.



I was thrilled beyond measure when he and Katherine Middleton got married in 2011.   It was such a beautiful wedding and they are such a sweet young couple.  I have always wished them all the best.   I was so excited when we found out they were expecting their first child, third in line to the throne and absolutely ecstatic yesterday when Katherine, the Duchess of Cambridge gave birth  to their son!



Once again my life and that of the Royal Family have paralleled each other,  as my youngest daughter was pregnant at this same time as Katherine and just gave birth a few weeks ago to . . . yes, our own little Prince . . . Cameron David, and yes, we are thrilled beyond belief about that as well!  All in all, it is a great time for a celebration!



I can't show you a photo of the little Prince Windsor Mountbatten . . . but I can quite happily show you a photo of our little Prince.   I think he's just the cutest, but then again, I am the Grandmum!  Maybe Charles and I could share our bragging rights together!  In any case, a celebration calls for something spectacular to mark it's occurrence and that is just what this cake does!



In fact I can't think of a nicer cake you could bake to celebrate a special occasion!   This is always my go to for Birthdays and other celebrations.



It's a deliciously buttery sponge, filled with fresh raspberries and baked into two moist layers. Sandwiched together with a lovely vanilla butter cream icing and some seedless raspberry jam, and then drizzled with more sweetness. This is one very moreishly scrummy cake.



Just look at all of that raspberry scrumminess!!  This is a cake I wouldn't hesitate to bake and serve to Royalty . . . not Queens or Kings . . . or little Princes . . . or even Princesses . . .



Bake it for yourself . . . one bite will tell you how very right I am about this delightful cake.   Seriously. It is well worth the price of fresh berries and the time and effort to make it.  I do hope that you will make the effort and then come back and tell me all about it!

Congratulations to Prince William and his Duchess on this most wonderful occasion.  May God bless you all.




*Raspberry Celebration Cake*
Cuts into 12 scrummy slices
Printable Recipe

This is the cake I always bake for summer birthdays.  A light moist sponge, filled with lovely raspberries, butter cream icing and seedless raspberry preserves.  Top with a sweet glaze and serve with more raspberries.

For the Cake:
175g of caster sugar (3/4 plus 1/8 cup)
175g of butter, softened (13 TBS)
4 large free range eggs, separated
100g self raising flour (a scant 3/4 cup)
1 tsp baking powder
100g ground almonds (1 scan't cup)
a few drops of almond extract
125g of fresh raspberries (a heaped cup)

For the buttercream:
75g of butter, softened (1/4 cup approx.)
125g icing sugar, sifted (about 3/4 cup)
few drops vanilla

For the glaze:
100ml icing sugar sifted (1/3 cup approx.)
water to thin



Also about 4 heaped dessertspoons of seedless raspberry jam

Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/Gas mark 4.  Butter two 8 inch sandwich cake tins.  Line the bottoms with parchment paper.  Set aside.

Cream together the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy.  Beat in the egg yolks.  Sift the flour and baking powder over the creamed mixture and then fold in using a metal spoon.   Fold in the ground almonds and exract.  Fold only until all traces of the flour have disappeared.

Beat the egg whites until they just hold their shape.  Fold them in gently, by thirds, being careful not to overmix and lose the lightness of the whites.  Lightly fold in the berries.  Divide between the two prepared cake tins and level off carefully.

Bake in the heated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, just until they test done.  A toothpick inserted in the centre should come out clean and they should spring back when lightly touched on top.

Remove from the oven.  Let cool in the tins for five minutes, then tip out onto wire racks, peel off the baking paper and allow to cool completely.

Make the buttercream by beating together all the ingredients until smooth and creamy.

Place one cake, bottom side up on a cake plate.  Spread completely with all the buttercream.  Spread the raspberry jam over top of the buttercream and then top with the other cake layer, placing it right side up.  Whisk together the icing sugar for the glaze and enough water to make a smooth drizzable mixture.  Drizzle decoratively over the top of the cake.  Allow to set, then dust with more icing sugar if desired.



Oh, and in case you haven't seen them  (Like what planet are you on if you haven't!)   here is the lovely trio.   I think they're such a sweet family and colour cor-ordinated too, and BLUE for the little Prince!  

A delicious cherry pie with a filling made from scratch and baked in an almond pastry, topped with a delicious oat and almond crumble topping.

For the pastry:
For the filling: two 16 oz jars of pitted Morello cherries (sour)
1 1/2 cups of caster sugar
3 TBS cornflour (corn starch)
 2 TBS all plain flour pinch salt
10 drops red food coloring, optional
 1/8 tsp almond extract
1 TBS butter
 the finely grated zest of one un-waxed lemon

For the Crumble Topping:
2/3 cup old fashioned oats
1/2 cup plain flour
1/2 cup soft light brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup ground almonds (almond meal)
4 TBS cold butter
few drops almond extract



Drain the cherries, reserving the juice. Whisk the sugar, corn flour, plain flour and salt in a saucepan.  Whisk in 1/2 cup of the cherry juice.   Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly until the mixture boils and thickens.   Cook, stirring for a further minute.   Add the almond, butter, lemon zest and food coloring if using.  Stir in the drained cherries and set aside to cool.

Whisk the flour, salt and almonds together in a bowl.  Drop in the vegetable shortening and cut it into the flour mixture using a pastry blender until the pieces are the size of small peas.   Using a fork, toss the mixture together with the water, until the flour mixture is all moistened and the mixture begins to form a ball, using only as much as you need to use.  Shape into a flat disc. 

Roll the disc out on a lightly floured surface which is large enough to line a 9 inch pie pan, leaving some overhang.   Trim it to 1 inch overhang all the way around, fold under and then crimp all around the edge as you like.  Set aside. Preheat the oven to 190*C/375*F/ gas mark 5.   Line a rimmed cookie sheet with foil. Measure the oats, flour, sugar, salt and almonds into a bowl for the topping.  Drop in the butter.  Rub it into the flour mixture until the mixture begins to clump, adding a few drops of almond extract.  You will have more than you need for this recipe, but it can be frozen for later use in a tightly covered container. Using a slotted spoon, scoop out the cherries from the saucepan into the prepared pie crust.  Pour over only as much of the liquid as you need.  You should just barely see it through the cherries.   Sprinkle as much oat topping as desired over the top.  Place onto the lined baking sheet. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, until the crust is golden brown and crisp on the bottom and the crumble is crisp on top and the juices are bubbling through.   Allow to cool completely before serving.  Cut into wedges to serve.

Several months ago I was contacted by McArthurGlen (Designer Outlet) and asked if I would like to participate in the Le Creuset Cast Iron Challenge.  Of course I jumped at the chance.  I just love Le Creuset cookware, and I love a challenge!  Win/win!

My gift for participating, a 20cm round Le Creuset Casserole Dish in my favourite colour Cerise!  Just call me a happy camper.  Beginning May 13th, people will be able to vote for my recipe via this link on the McArthurGlen website!  Here is the link!  The winner of the challenge will win £250 gift voucher for Le Creuset products, and each vote via twitter will be put into a draw for a £50 gift voucher.

The recipe I have developed for this challenge is Pot Roasted Loin of Pork with a Prune, Apricot and Ginger Stuffing.  I have been doing a Prune Stuffed Loin of Pork for years, which is very flavourful, easy to do, and impressive.   I have updated it a bit for this challenge.



First of all I decided to remove the rind from the roast.  I then butterflied it, which is very easy to do.  I give some very precise instructions in the recipe.



I adapted my stuffing to include not only prunes, but dried apricots, some garlic, ginger root and thyme, all of which bring out and enhance the flavour of pork beautifully and add a wonderful moistness.  As pork loin is a very lean meat this is important.



I spread the stuffing over the cut surface of the pork and then rolled it up.  Not too tightly as you want to leave a bit of room for expansion and you don't want the stuffing to leak out.  Then I tied it with bakers twine to hold it all together.



I then created a lovely rub, using  powdered ginger, fine sea salt, black pepper and thyme which I rubbed all over the surface of the meat.  Don't forget the ends!  They benefit from the rub as well.



I place the stuffed and rubbed pork loin on a bed of sliced onion in the casserole dish, added some beef stock, covered it and then roasted it for about half an hour.  I then removed the lid and roasted it for a bit longer,  about 45 minutes for a two pound pork loin.



The end result was a perfectly cooked pork loin, filled with fabulous flavours, and presenting beautifully . . . you have a ring of succulent, moist pork, long with a beautifully bejewelled ring of delicious fruity stuffing.  The drippings were used to make a tasty gravy/sauce to go along with the meat.  (Again very easily cooked in the casserole dish.  That's what I love about Le Creuset . . . Stove top to oven, and vice versa!)



I served it along with some steamed new potatoes (Jersey Royals are in season now), along with some oven roasted carrots, parsnips, swede and sweet potato.  Yumm!!



I think you will agree that this is a meal that would be fit for serving to company.  It's so easy to make, and quick to put together, and the best thing about that is the presentation is so beautiful they will think you slaved all day over a hot stove to do it.  They don't need to know you didn't. ;-) It can be our little secret.



*Pot Roasted Loin of Pork with a Prune, Apricot and Ginger Stuffing*
Serves 6
Printable Recipe

Delicious loin of pork, butterflied,  stuffed with a savory fruited stuffing, rolled and roasted.  Tender, delicious and filled with flavor.   This is not so hard to do as you would think.  Soon to become a family favourite.
Something deliciously different for the Sunday Lunch crowd!

1 (2-pound) boneless pork loin
salt and black pepper

For the Stuffing:
12 dried apricots, chopped
12 dried pitted prunes, chopped
1 tsp of finely chopped fresh ginger root
1 fat clove of garlic, peeled and finely chopped
1/2 tsp fine sea salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 tsp dried thyme

For the rub:
1 tsp powdered ginger
1 tsp fine sea salt
1/2 tsp fine black pepper
1/2 tsp dried thyme

1 medium onion, peeled and sliced

500g beef stock (about 3 cups)
3 TBS plain flour
pinch ground ginger
125ml milk or white wine (1/2 cup)

The first thing you will have to do is to butterfly the pork.  This is very easy to do.   Remove any of the string which it has been tied with and discard.   Carefully, using a sharp knife, remove any crackling rind and discard.  Working very carefully begin cutting through one side of the loin about 1 inch down and working from right to left, almost all the way to the other side, stopping about an inch from that edge.  Turn the meat around and cut down about 1 inch and then begin cutting back to the side you started at, again stopping about an inch from the edge.  You should now be able to open it up flat.  Open it flat and sprinkle it lightly with some salt and pepper.

Combine all of the ingredients together for the stuffing.  Spread it out evenly over the cut surface of the meat.  Roll it up tightly and then tie it at even intervals with some butchers twine to hold it together.  Don't tie it too tightly.

Mix together all of the ingredients for the rub.   Rub mixture all over the pork, remembering the ends.

Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4.   Have ready a large flameproof casserole dish.  Place the sliced onion in the bottom of the casserole.   Place the stuffed pork roll on top.  Pour the beef stock into the casserole dish.  Cover with the lid.  Roast in the heated oven for 30 minutes.   Remove the cover.  Return the casserole to the oven and roast, uncovered for an additional 35 to 40. minutes.  The roast should by that time be cooked through and nicely colored.  Remove the roast from the pan and set aside on a plate to rest.  Cover lightly with foil and keep warm.

Place the casserole on top of the stove and add the white wine.   Bring to the boil and boil for about 5 minutes,  Reduce to a simmer.   Whisk in the flour and ginger, working quickly and whisking constantly to help prevent lumps. Taste and adjust seasoning as necessary.  Strain into a gravy boat.

Remove the butchers twine from the pork and cut into slices to serve.  Pass the gravy at the table.  I like to serve this with some boiled new potatoes and roasted root vegetables.  Delicious!