Pretend you've spent a lot of time in the kitchen just for your guests: Make them feel special.

I like my dessert to be interesting, to have minutely variant textures that marry together and work. I want them to look like I have spent a lot of time labouring in the kitchen (when I haven't). I want my guests to be left wanting more, to take time eating and savouring every spoonful (not to slosh it all in one go because they just want it done with.

It's even more fun when I'm getting help from the kids, having them suggest and decide what else should be included in our meals. Tonight with the help of my seven year old son this is what we came up with: vanilla and white chocolate creme brûlée served with rolled tuille biscuits (both recipes can be found in previous posts) and a flared strawberry and strawberry coulis.
(My blow torch has run out of gas so I improvised by placing the creme brûlée under a grill)

Cold weather pudding

The beautiful thing about cold weather is that I get to eat all these delicious yummy puds without a shred of guilt and I have started early. It also means that I don't have to cook or make them everyday as these desserts are made in bulk: bread pudding; sticky toffee; rice puddings (endless list).

So I made this sticky toffee, moist, light and the sauce makes it sticky and moreish. I mus admit though that I tend to reduce the sugar quantities on the sauce otherwise it will be sickly, but drizzle a little bit of cream on top when I'm eating yum yum.

For the pudding:
60g unsalted butter
60g caster sugar
150g dates pitted and chopped into small pieces
1teaspoon bicarb
150g self raising
2 eggs
250ml warm water

Toffee sauce:
200g butter
200g dark muscovado sugar
400mls double cream
1tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 180C
Instructions:
Add bicarb to the water then the chopped dates and leave to soak for 10 minutes
Pour the date mixture into a food processor and blitz for about 2 minutes
Whisk butter till soft, add sugar and whisk again then add the two eggs
Add the flour then the blitzed date mixture and fold until all is incorporated
Pour into a small loaf tin and bake for 35-40minutes

Add the sauce ingredients and cook on medium heat for about 5minutes stirring all the time ensuring the sauce doesn't burn
Pour generously over pudding on serving or pour over and allow the sauce to soak in.
(Recipe from Nigel Slater)