These beautiful little frozen ice cream bombes took a little while to perfect. A lovely treat to finish a summer supper party, we enjoyed them last weekend along with a glass of dessert wine for a socially distanced supper.  This recipe is based on the same no-churn ice-cream recipe we spent weeks ...

We make this pretty floral cake every year to mark the midsummer solstice and it's one of our favourite bakes of the season. So simple to whip up, with a lovely unpolished finish, it's the sort of cake that fits in perfectly for the provincial village fete and puts everyone happily in mind of ...

We use our ice cream maker all the time and wouldn't be without it, but completely appreciate it may seem a waste for some to invest in a large, expensive machine if they're only going to use it a handful of times in the summer - so this no-churn recipe has you covered if you'd rather not splash ...

“Oh, dear, no. We must have French chocolate and ice cream, besides. The girls are used to such things" Alcott, Louisa May. Little Women  We've made so many different chocolate ice creams in search of one we're really thrilled with and none passed muster until now as texture is vital and harder to ...

"Bushels of peaches, peaches white and peaches yellow, brandied and eaten with ice cream, the greatest treat of all." Henry James, The Young Master If you've been searching for the perfect sweet, velvety, homemade vanilla, and if you have an ice cream maker handy (this recipe does require an ice ...

"We took the brown sugar biscuits from the aga and poured a jug of cold milk. Sugared strawberries and blueberries filled the blue china bowls. Linen bunting fluttered at the window and all the silverware sparkled once more." Anon. There are few sweeter comforts to sit down to than a cup of tea and ...

“Let's face it, a nice creamy chocolate cake does a lot for a lot of people” Audrey Hepburn   A flourless chocolate cake. Sounds curious to anyone who does (or watches their spouse do) only sporadic baking and knows enough to know flour to be a crucial staple in a cake. But flourless is becoming ...

Doctor Johnson proposed to define the word ‘oats’ thus: ‘A grain which in England is generally given to horses, but in Scotland supports the people.’ And I replied: ‘Aye, and that’s why England has such fine horses, and Scotland such fine people.’  The Life of Samuel Johnson, James ...

"the sun shone on tender green leaves and the hedgerows were dappled with wild roses" Green Darkness, Anya Seton My husband first stole my heart with a large black tea rose and love note left in my pigeon hole just after we met. I still have it, pressed between the pages of an old Latin ...

"a cask of the best brandy for the party and plum puddings" Anya Seton, Devil Water Every season is special here in England, but there's always a restorative joy in the return of crisp cooler days, the nights drawing in, and the promise of winter ahead as the landscape begins to change. The days ...