WELCOME TO PHASE Three, hope you’re all enjoying the little bit of freedom we’ve been given and you’re staying safe and well.
Doesn’t it almost feel like an age ago we were in Phase One? And early lockdown? Well, that seems like a lifetime ago. Remember when we couldn’t get enough flour in the shops because you’d all become obsessed with home baking?
Well, if you enjoyed baking during the shutdown, I would urge you to keep at it, don’t let the good hearty homecooked meals go by the wayside. It’s also important that we support our cafes, bars and restaurants where we can. It’s been a rocky road for so many in the past few months.
I’m sharing a few recipes here to keep you in the baking zone. Now that you’re free to entertain your loved ones in the garden or outdoors at a picnic in the park, give these treats a go, they’re lovely summery fresh dishes, and not too sweet.
As a chef, summer is hands down my favourite time of year. Not only do we get a touch more sunshine to enjoy cooking everything outdoors but we get to dust off the BBQ and surround ourselves with all the delicious Irish Summer food, especially berries.
Is there anything nicer than a Summer berry dessert? Yes, a “no-bake” Summer berry dessert, of course. Today I have three of my all-time favourite no-bake recipes to share with you. So throw the oven gloves to one side and don’t even think about switching on the oven.
These desserts can be whipped up well in advance leaving you with all the time in the world to entertain your guests. From pink lemonade ice pops to raspberry cheesecake tarts, they’re light, refreshing and feature all your favourite Summer flavours. After all, it’s a fact that dessert tastes better in the Summertime. Lots more recipes for you on my Instagram. Enjoy!
Serves 5
Ingredients
225g chocolate digestive biscuits
65g melted butter
280g cream cheese
50g icing sugar
dash vanilla extract
2 punnets fresh raspberries
A few sprigs of fresh basil
Method
In a blender, blitz the biscuits.
Melt the butter and add this to the biscuit crumb, mix well.
Take 5 loose-bottom round tart moulds (4.5” x 1”) and divide the buttery biscuit crumb between them all.
Use the back of a teaspoon to press the biscuit into the ring and up the sides.
Chill for 15 minutes.
While the bases are chilling, in a bowl whisk the cream cheese, icing sugar, vanilla and 1 punnet of fresh raspberries (125g).
Spoon this mix into the centre of the tart shells and return to the fridge to firm up slightly.
To serve, carefully remove from the tart shell and top with the remaining raspberries and garnish with some fresh basil.
Top tip: Gingernut biscuits are delicious if you want to play with the flavour combination.
Pink lemonade Ice-pops
Makes 8-10
Ingredients
100g caster sugar
100ml water
225g fresh raspberries
juice 2 lemons
500ml tonic water
Method
In a medium-sized pot, add the sugar, water, raspberries and lemon juice and heat until the sugar is dissolved and the raspberries are soft.
Remove from the heat and allow to cool.
Add the tonic water and mix.
Strain this mixture and pour into your Ice-pops moulds with the stick and freeze overnight.
Simply de-mould and enjoy!
Top tip: To cut down on the sugar, you can use soda water instead of tonic water.
Summer berry brioche pudding
Serves 6
Ingredients
8 slices of day-old brioche
650g mixed Irish Summer berries
1 large orange juice and zest
100ml water
1/2 vanilla pod
60g caster sugar
Method
Line a 2lb pudding mould with clingfilm.
In a pan, heat 200g of berries with the orange juice, zest, water, vanilla and sugar.
Cook until the berries are soft and set aside.
Remove the crusts from the bread and place one slice on the bottom and line the sides with 6 slices remembering to overlap them.
Mix the remaining berries with the compote and spoon this into the centre of the pudding, pressing down and making sure to add all the liquid.
Place another slice of bread on top and cover with the overhanging clingfilm and gently press down.
Place in the fridge overnight.
Serve with fresh berries and whipped cream
Shane Smith has nearly 22 years’ experience working in some of the world’s most celebrated pastry kitchens across the globe. Over these years he has received numerous award from “Best Bakery Manager in Ireland”-Shelf life magazine to “The top 10 best pastry chefs in Ireland” Food & Wine Magazine. Shane also has a regular cookery slot on RTÉ on The Today Show. More at www.chefshanesmith.ie.
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