Lemon and poppy seed cake

This is a cake that revels in its simplicity (you just mix the sponge ingredients together and bake!) and it tastes wonderful. A very easy crowd-pleaser, it is perfect for so many occasions.

Black garlic bread rolls

A fairly new ingredient to me, I tried my first black garlic just the other day: I just peeled it and ate it as it was. I have to say, I initially had mixed feelings about the flavour:  concentrated balsamic vinegar with a hint of aniseed, with a sweet garlic flavour (more like roasted garlic flavour than raw garlic) just coming through.

Fool-proof bagels

I say fool-proof, but this is a recipe I have used for many years. I also use it when teaching how to make bagels at cookery classes and am always thrilled by the excellent results from the classes.

Multi-grain bread made with smoked flour

A very simple bread with bags of flavour, courtesy of slow rises, a selection of seeds and different flours, with a hint of smoky flavour coming through the smoked flour I used. Mind you, if you can’t get hold of smoked flour you can replace it with standard white flour or wholemeal flour,  for example.

Parmesan and ham tuiles

Insanely simple and quick to make, these are so addictive to eat just as they are or with a glass of wine.