Hands up if you like the sound of “hassle-free entertaining”? Yeah, me too. Especially when you know there will be a lot of other things to worry about like last-minute gift wrapping, keeping an eye on the goose stuffed into your tiny oven or going into labour with your third child… This ice cream cake is the ideal make-ahead dessert and with its tart, refreshing coolness, will round off a heavy Christmas meal perfectly.

Cranberry and pomegranate ice cream cake

Makes one deep 6” or 15cm cake (3” or about 8cm high) and serves 8 – 10

Ingredients for the cranberry compote 

400g cranberries

165ml (2/3 cups) fresh pomegranate juice

65g (less than 1/2 cup loosely packed cup) unrefined dark brown moist sugar or coconut palm sugar

1 vanilla pod, split in half lengthwise

To assemble

1.25 litres vanilla ice cream of your choice (vegan or coconut is fine too)

desiccated coconut

To serve

fresh pomegranate seeds

Method

1. Place the ingredients for the compote in a heavy-based saucepan over a low heat and stir to dissolve the sugar, before turning up the heat and simmering gently for about 5 minutes, or until the cranberries are tender. Allow to cool slightly before blending everything until smooth. If you don’t have a high-speed blender, remove the vanilla pod, scrape out the seeds and return these to the cranberry mix. Discard the pod.
2. Set aside to cool completely, preferably in the fridge.
3. To start assembling the cake, allow 500ml of the ice cream to soften at room temperature.
4. Mix 250ml (1 cup) of the cranberry puree with 450ml of the ice cream until well blended, spoon into a 15cm cake tin, smooth the top and place in the freezer for at least 10 – 15 minutes or until frozen. In the meantime, replace the left-over ice cream in the freezer and leave the next 500ml of ice cream at room temperature to soften.
5. For the second layer, mix 125ml (1/2 cup) of the cranberry puree with 500ml ice cream until well blended. Spoon on top of the first layer, smooth the top and place in the freezer for 10 – 15 minutes.
6. Finally, use as much of the remaining softened plain vanilla ice cream as is necessary to fill the tin to the top and return to the freezer. Leave for several hours or until solidly frozen.
7. About 15 minutes before serving, remove from the freezer and allow to soften.
8. Carefully remove the tin (you may want to run some hot water around the tin or use a blow torch if it is still solidly frozen) and place the cake on your serving plate with the vanilla layer on top. Sprinkle the coconut around the base and on top to create a snowy landscape.  Bring the cake to the table and wait until it is soft enough to cut into slices, before serving with fresh pomegranate seeds.

Traditionally fermented and aged balsamic vinegar from Modena or Reggio Emilia in Italy is a very special condiment indeed. Whole pressed late-harvested grapes complete with juice, skin, seeds and stems (also called grape must) are cooked over a direct flame until reduced by half, then left to ferment naturally for up to three weeks. The concentrate is then matured and further concentrated for a minimum of 12 years in a “batteria,” or a minimum of five successively smaller ageing barrels. The delicious complex and tangy sweet flavour might be ruined if the vinegar is heated and it is most likely also too special (and expensive!) to use in salad dressings. Try drizzling it on gorgeous fresh strawberries or in this refreshingly different ice cream.

Serves 4 – 6

Ingredients

500ml (2 cups) organic goat or sheep yoghurt

2 1/2 tablespoons good quality aged balsamic vinegar plus extra to serve

pinch of coarsely ground black pepper

45 – 60ml (3 – 4 tablespoons) raw honey, or to taste

a large handful of fragrant strawberries per person

Method

1. Mix together the first four ingredients. Freeze in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions, or place in the freezer and whisk (preferably with an electric whisk) ever half hour until firmly frozen.
2. When the ice cream has reached the perfect consistency, serve with sweet strawberries and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar.

The quality of the water we drink is something everyone ought to give some thought to. Although tap water is, on average, of high quality in the US and in Europe, it often exceeds regulations for nitrates (from agricultural fertilisers and manure) and pesticides. Rather disturbingly, our water also contains increasing amounts of traces of over-the-counter and prescription medications (including hormones). The effect of this on human health has not been measured, but these traces are capable of changing the sex of fish and tadpoles in rivers. See this study if you are interested in learning more about the purification and potential contamination of drinking water.

Bottled water is not the answer, in my honest opinion, as it is environmentally and economically unsustainable, and the quality of the water is often no better than that of tap water. A good home filtration system is probably your best bet. There are many to choose from, depending on your requirements and budget, but whatever you decide to go with, remember to include lots of clean water in your daily diet. I recently worked on some water-based recipes for an e-book published by Kinetico, a supplier of home water systems. This spicy little number is one of my favourites!

Serves 4

Ingredients

250ml (1 cup) water

scant tablespoon chia seeds

250ml (1 cup) cold pressed unfiltered sweet apple juice

1/2 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice

1/2 – 1 teaspoon galangal juice, depending on how spicy you prefer it (to make the juice, use a juicer, or grate and squeeze out with a muslin cloth or nut milk bag)

Method

1. Whisk the chia seeds into the water and allow to soak for at least 10 minutes. Whisk every couple of minutes.
2. When the chia seeds and water have formed a very soft gel, whisk the rest of the ingredients into the mixture and divide between 4 glasses.
3. Serve with thick straws and a slice of lime.

The memories of my primary school years are punctuated by gloriously colourful events, much-loved traditions, lessons learnt the hard way, meaningful moments… And Maike’s mum’s weekly apricot tray bake. It will forever crop up in my mind as the most delicious treat anyone could wish for. It perfectly captured the balance between soft and chewy, tart and sweet.  And it looked and tasted like the summer sun.

Rather than being a cake, this recipe really is more of a nutritious snack that I happily give my children after school and help myself to during busy mornings catching up on admin and work. The end result relies to a large extent on the taste and quality of your fruit, but even so, it is a good way to use up over-ripe, squooshy apricots and plums.

Stone fruit slices

Ingredients

3 medium eggs, at room temperature and separated

80ml (1/3 cup) oil (coconut oil, macadamia nut oil or melted butter)

80ml (1/3 cup) honey

1/2 teaspoon good quality almond extract

pinch of sea salt

finely grated zest of 1 lemon

230g (about 2 1/3 cups) ground almonds / almond flour

750g large apricots and small’ish plums (about 6 of each), halved, stones removed and sliced into eighths

Method

1. Whisk together the egg yolks, oil, honey, almond extract, salt and lemon zest.
2. Stir in the ground almonds and set aside.
3. Preheat the oven to 180°C/360°F.
4. Whisk the egg whites to firm (but not stiff) peaks, and gently fold into the almond mixture.
5. Spread this mixture out in an even layer in a greased ovenproof baking dish (about 30 x 20 cm).
6. Place the fruit slices skin-side up as close together as possible in the thin layer of batter – alternating the fruit as you go along. You could also use apricot halves only, which would be much quicker and easier, but not as pretty.
7. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes, then turn the oven off and leave the cake in the oven for another 15 minutes, before removing and allowing to cool.
8. Cut the cake into squares in the dish, then carefully slide an offset spatula under each row to carefully lift them out.
9. Store in the fridge for several days or freeze.

Ok, full disclosure: I don’t really celebrate Valentine’s Day.

I used to, but that was before I married another Capricorn at the end of January. By the time Christmas, New Year’s Eve, our respective birthdays and our wedding anniversary have been duly celebrated, we are usually ready for a break.

I am a HUGE fan of romantic dates, however. Any time, any place. And if Valentine’s Day happens to be the next available opportunity to spoil your sweetheart, then make the most of it with this easy peasy, super sexy stay-at-home picnic for two. Open fires and games of scrabble optional.

The Ruby Noir

Makes 2 cocktails

Ingredients

60ml (1/4 cup) 100% pomegranate juice, chilled

30ml (2 tablespoons) damson, plum, blackberry or sloe vodka

1 teaspoon sweetened lime juice (squeeze out half a lime and stir in 1 teaspoon honey)

Champagne or sparkling wine, chilled

1 teaspoon pomegranate seeds

2 small and fine rosemary twigs (optional)

Method

1. Mix the pomegranate juice, vodka and lime juice, then divide between two champagne flutes, pouring through a funnel if you want to keep it extra neat.
2. Top up with Champagne, by carefully pouring the bubbly into the glass over the back of a metal spoon to “float” it on top of the pomegranate mix.
3. Carefully float a few pomegranate seeds on top and finish with a rosemary twig, if you like.

Spiced rye crackers with figgy goat’s cheese

Ingredients for the crackers

Makes about 18 small crackers, but feel free to double or triple the recipe – they keep well

50g (1/3 cup) stoneground rye flour

pinch of salt

pinch each of caraway seed, aniseed and cumin

10g (about 2 teaspoons) cold butter, cut into small cubes

15ml (1 tablespoon) or thereabouts milk of your choice (I used almond milk)

Ingredients for the figgy goat cheese

Enough for 2 people

70g (1/3 cup) soft goat cheese

1 large soft dried fig, finely chopped

1 teaspoon finely chopped parsley, leaves only

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

aged Balsamic vinegar to serve (optional)

Method

1. For the crackers: preheat the oven to 220°C / 420°F. Line a small baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Whisk together the flour, spices and salt. Using your finger tips, rub the butter into the flour until it resembles fine bread crumbs.
3. Add the milk and knead the dough until it comes together in a soft ball – not too sticky, and not crumbly.
4. Roll the dough out thinly and use a cookie cutter to cut out shapes. Place these on the prepared sheet.
5. Bake for roughly 10 minutes, or until the edges have turned golden, then remove from the oven and allow to cool on a cooling rack.
6. For the goat cheese: while the crackers are baking, mix all the ingredients for the cheese in a bowl, adjust seasoning and set aside.

Scallop pops with avocado aïoli

What can be more seductive than nibbling on a sizzling scallop lollipop? These guys are the perfect mess-free picnic food and add just the right amount of spice to wake up the senses. Serve with a plate of gorgeous roasted mixed beets.

Ingredients for the marinade

handful of fresh coriander (cilantro), finely chopped

1 small red chilli, finely chopped (deseeded and membranes removed if you prefer it milder)

1 large garlic clove, thinly sliced

splash of olive oil

For the pops

6 large or 8 small scallops

knob of butter, preferably organic

4 to 6 wooden skewers

Ingredients for the avocado aïoli

1 small ripe avocado, mashed

1 – 2 tablespoons garlic aïoli or mayonnaise, preferably home-made

squeeze of lemon

sea salt

Method

1. Mix all the ingredients for the marinade and rub it into the scallops. Set aside for at least half an hour.
2. While the scallops are marinating, mix together the ingredients for the avocado aïoli and refrigerate.
3. When you are ready to fry the scallops, pick out the garlic slices, as they burn too easily, and heat the butter in a heavy bottomed skillet or pan over a medium heat.
4. Fry the scallops for a minute or two on each side – do not overcook them! – then slide one to two onto each skewer. Season with sea salt and serve with the avocado aïoli.

Chocolate-drizzled pear and raspberry lollies

For me, a romantic dinner has to be delicious, yes, but definitely not too filling. Who wants to feel stuffed and uncomfortable on a date? These refreshing, yet luscious lollies will hit the spot.

Makes 4 small or 2 large lollies

Ingredients for the lollies

teaspoon of coconut oil

2 pears, peeled, cored and quartered

1 teaspoon molasses sugar or dark brown muscovado sugar

80g (1/2 cup) frozen or fresh raspberries, plus a few extra

60ml (1/4 cup) milk of your choice (I used almond milk)

Ingredients for the chocolate drizzle

10g / 10ml (2 teaspoons) coconut oil

20g (about 6 squares) dark chocolate, broken into small pieces

Method

1. For the lollies: heat the coconut oil in a heavy based saucepan until hot, then lay the pear quarters down, sprinkle over the sugar and do not turn until they’ve developed a lovely golden colour and the sugar has melted (about 5 to 10 minutes).
2. Turn over and fry on the other side for another 5 minutes.
3. Now blend the pears, raspberries and milk until smooth. Stir in the remaining raspberries (crush them if they are frozen) and fill the ice lolly moulds.
4. Freeze for at least 4 to 5 hours.
5. For the chocolate drizzle: put them coconut oil in a small saucepan and heat over a low heat until melted.
6. Add the bits of chocolate and continue to warm over a medium heat until melted.
7. Give it a quick whisk, then set aside to cool slightly.
8. Run hot water over the moulds to remove the lollies. Using a spoon, drizzle some chocolate sauce over each and give it half a minute or so to set.

Take a look at my guest post on the Natural Gourmet Institute’s blog for instructions on how to make these guys… Oh – and happy 2015 everyone!

Our time in South Africa is almost at an end, and as usual I feel rather blue at the prospect of catching a flight back to a very wintry London. We met a charming Roman yesterday who relocated his entire family from Italy to make and sell delicious artisanal gelato in the Cape. He couldn’t quite understand why we had left paradise for greener pastures. They recently opened their first shop in Stanford, a sleepy little town near Walker Bay in the south. It happens to be where my grandmother farmed ostrich and sheep until she was deep into her eighties, so it holds a special place in my heart.

Now a popular weekend destination, the town also boasts some excellent restaurants, most notably Mariana’s, where we have had many a fabulous lunch on the vine-covered terrace. Our most recent meal ended with a trio of berry ice creams. They were all lush and delicious, but it was the Cape Gooseberry ice cream that impressed me most. Here is my very modest attempt at recreating it. It is a no-churn version, which means it is very easy to make, but also rather rich.

Cape Gooseberry Ice Cream

Cape gooseberries, also called strawberry tomatoes, golden (goose)berries, or Chinese lanterns, and “apple sweethearts” in Afrikaans, are filled with tiny seeds and have a natural tart flavour.

Serves 6 – 8

Ingredients

300g de-husked cape gooseberries, roughly chopped

80 – 100g unrefined brown sugar

500ml (2 cups) heavy cream (48-50% fat content), preferably pastured and unpasteurised

freshly squeezed lemon juice to taste

Method

1. In a small saucepan, gently heat the berries with the sugar until the sugar has dissolved and the berries have softened, stirring occasionally.
2. Turn up the heat and simmer the berries for a couple of minutes before using a stick blender (or blender) to puree.
3. Add enough lemon juice to give you a very tangy mixture, then set aside or stir over an ice bath until completely cool.
4. Use a whisk to incorporate the cooled berry mix into the cream. Whip until it thickens and holds soft peaks, then spoon into a shallow container, cover and freeze until firm (about 5 hours).
5. Serve in wafer cones or with crisp thin biscuits. If the ice cream is too firm to scoop, leave it at room temperature for 15 minutes or so and try again.

The Christmas cheer usually overwhelms me right around the beginning of December. We get out the cherished decorations, adorn the front door with a wreath, and start building the anticipation with advent candles and calendars. For me, Glühwein (mulled wine) or Rumpunsch (rum punch) are as much a part of the festive season as Lebkuchen (gingerbread) and St Nicholas Day on the 6th of the month. Feeling somewhat cheated, my son asked me last year to make a special Christmas punch for the little ones. This recipe makes four cups and will keep the youngsters happy. At least for another few years…

Ingredients

750ml (3 cups) boiling water

3 teabags of fruit tea or, to stave off winter colds, berry and echinacea tea

1 cinnamon stick

1 star anise

5 cloves

strips of orange peel

250ml (1 cup) freshly squeezed orange juice (about 3 – 5 oranges, depending on their size and juiciness)

Method

1. Put all the ingredients, apart from the orange juice, in a small pot and simmer for at least 30 minutes.
2. Either strain the tea or scoop all the bits out with a slotted spoon.
3. Divide the orange juice equally between four cups and top up with hot spiced tea.

The autumn colours, sights and sounds stir a certain longing in most cooks to bake. For many North Americans this means pumpkin pie – a dish almost synonymous with the autumnal Thanksgiving celebrations. In South Africa, we grew up eating pumpkin fritters doused with cinnamon sugar alongside our Sunday roast, so a sweet dish with pumpkin as its star is no stranger to me. In my pie recipe, however, the pumpkin (or butternut squash) shares centre stage with some gorgeous persimmons.

Persimmons vary in colour from golden yellow to burnt orange and red, and can be round or oval. Persimmon trees carry either astringent fruit (whilst unripe) or non-astringent fruits. The astringent cultivars (such as Eureka, Hachiya, Saijo, Tamopan, Tanenashi, Triumph, etc.), are high in tannins and must be allowed to ripen fully until the flesh attains a consistency akin to jelly. The non-astringent kinds (Fuyu, Gosho/Giant Fuyu/O’Gosho, Imoto, Izu, Jiro, Maekawajiro, Okugosho, Suruga, etc.) contain less tannins and can be eaten when still crispy.

Persimmon fruit, originally from East Asia, has a sweet, succulent flesh that holds several health promoting benefits. Persimmons contain flavonoid poly-phenolic anti-oxidants such as catechins and gallocatechins in addition to an important anti-tumour compound, betulinic acid. Catechins are known to have anti-infective, anti-inflammatory and anti-hemorrhagic properties. Fresh persimmons also contain other anti-oxidant compounds like vitamin A, vitamin B, vitamin C, beta-carotene, lycopene, lutein, zea-xanthin and cryptoxanthin. Together, these compounds functions as protective scavengers against oxygen-derived free radicals and reactive oxygen species that play a role in ageing and various disease processes. Fresh persimmons also contain minerals like potassium, manganese, copper, and phosphorus.

Pumpkin and persimmon pie

Makes one 28cm pie

Ingredients for crust

115g (about 1 cup) wholemeal spelt flour

60g (about ½ cup) stoneground rye flour

25g (2 tablespoons) date sugar or unrefined brown sugar

large pinch of sea salt

110g cold butter, cut into pea-sized pieces

15 – 30ml (1 – 2 tablespoons) ice cold water

Ingredients for filling

850g peeled and cubed butternut squash (about 1 medium butternut), roasted (should yield 360g or 1 ½ cups mashed roasted flesh)

flesh of 4 ripe persimmons (cut in half horizontally and scoop out with a spoon)

100g (about ½ cup) date sugar or unrefined brown sugar

60g (1/3 cup) unrefined brown sugar

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 heaping teaspoon ground ginger

generous grating of nutmeg (about 1/2 a nut)

¼ teaspoon allspice

pinch of salt

125ml (½ cup) milk of your choice

125ml (½ cup) organic double (heavy) cream

3 large eggs

Method

1. Grease a 28cm (or 11 inch) loose-bottomed tart form.
2. For the pastry: put the flours, date sugar, salt and cold butter in the bowl of a food processor and blitz until it looks like coarse sand. This step can also be done by hand by rubbing the butter into the flour with your finger tips.
3. With the motor running, add 1 to 2 tablespoons ice cold water or until the dough starts coming together. Or if you are doing it by hand, just keep sprinkling cold water on the dough until it starts to come together.
4. Tip the pastry out into a bowl and knead very briefly until you have a smooth (not crumbly or sticky) ball of dough.
5. Roll out thinly between two pieces of greaseproof paper, then fold it over your rolling pin and lay it across your greased tart form. Press the pastry into the edges and up along the sides, trimming where necessary. Refrigerate for at least half an hour.
6. Preheat oven to 180°C / 360°F.
7. When the pastry is completely firm, remove from fridge and place on a baking sheet. Partially blind bake in the hot oven for 10 minutes.
8. To make the filling: in a food processor, puree the roasted squash, persimmon flesh, date and brown sugars, and spices until very smooth. Scrape the filling into a little pot and, stirring continuously, cook over medium heat until the mixture starts to bubble (about 5 – 7 minutes). Set aside.
9. Whisk together the milk, cream and eggs, then whisk the pumpkin mixture into the egg mixture.
10. Carefully pour the filling into the pastry shell and bake for 30 minutes or until filling is lightly cracked around edges and still a tiny bit wobbly in the centre. Allow to cool completely before slicing.
11. Serve with Greek yoghurt, soured cream or crème fraîche.

The moment you start changing your eating habits by steering clear of processed foods, refined sugar and white flour, your taste buds begin to transform. Suddenly, overly salty or super sweet food does not do it for you anymore, and you automatically adjust the way you cook, like adding less sugar to cake batters because you know it will still be sweet enough… Anyone who has discovered the joy of dark chocolate will know what I mean. Milk chocolate will never again be your first choice.

Every now and then, however, even I can appreciate the pleasure of a toe-curlingly sweet treat. After a long park run on a cold morning, or with a gorgeous cup of tea and your favourite book. It is for moments such as these that I usually keep a few of the buckwheat crispie bars in the freezer. They are crunchy and syrupy, and a honey bee’s dream.

Ingredients

80ml (⅓ cup) liquid coconut oil

125ml (½ cup) organic smooth peanut butter

125ml (½ cup) runny honey, preferably raw

large pinch fine grain sea salt

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

zest of 2 medium organic oranges

200g (about 2 cups) rolled oats

140g (about 1 cup) sprouted buckwheat groats* (dehydrated or dried in low temp oven)

100g walnuts, chopped (yields about 1 cup)

160g dried organic apricots, chopped into small chunks (yields about 1 cup) dried sour cherries for a less sweet bar

60 – 80g (about ½ cup) mixed seeds (chia, sunflower, pumpkin, sesame, hemp)

30g melted dark chocolate to garnish (optional)

Method

1. Ensure all the ingredients are at room temperature.
2. Whisk together the peanut butter, honey, coconut oil, salt, cinnamon, ginger and orange zest until well mixed.
3. In a large bowl combine the oats, buckwheat, walnuts, apricots or cherries, and seeds. Ensure the apricot pieces are separated and coated in oats. buckwheat and / or seeds – use your fingers to do this.
4. Pour the dry ingredients into the peanut butter mixture and stir well.
5. Line a Swiss roll pan with greaseproof paper, allowing for an overhang on the long side of the tin.
6. Spoon the mixture into the pan, pressing down firmly with the back of the spoon or your fingers until it is very tightly packed all the way into the corners.
7. Now refrigerate the tray for at least 2 to 3 hours or place in the freezer for roughly 1 hour.
8. When firm, lift the granola mixture out of the tin and onto a chopping board by grabbing hold of the greaseproof paper.
9. Cut the slab into small bars or squares. If you are using chocolate, place the sheet with the bars back in the Swiss roll tin.
10. Spoon the melted, slightly cooled, chocolate into a small sandwich bag. Twist the top and then snip off one tiny corner. Use like a piping bag to drizzle chocolate over the bars.
11. Return the bars to the fridge until the chocolate has set, then store in an airtight container, preferably in the fridge or freezer.

Note: *To sprout raw, un-roasted buckwheat (not kasha), soak 2 cups of groats in three times the amount of fresh water for 12 to 18 hours, changing the slimy water once during this time. Then drain, rinse off any sliminess, and leave in a sprouting jar, mesh bag or sieve, loosely covered with a kitchen towel or cloth for a day or two, rinsing well twice a day. Once most of the grains have started sprouting (you will see a little tail forming), spread them all out on a tray or baking sheet and dry in a dehydrator or at a very low temperature (about 65°C) in the oven until crisp (usually this takes 12 to 24 hours). This low temperature is essential to preserve the enzymes in the sprouts, but if you are pressed for time, you could increase the temperature, thereby reducing the baking time.