Rewinding again to Christmas, if you can remember that far back, here’s a recipe for a classic lemon tart. It’s basically a piece of cake (or rather tart), particularly if you use shop bought pastry, which I’d recommend unless you’ve got the time to make your own.

I’ve not managed to work out how patisseries manage to get that glossy finish on their tarts, so I cheated and added a festive twist by glazing mine with a bit of raspberry jelly.

This recipe was made in a 30cm / 12″ tart case to serve around 8-10 people, if you’re making desert for less use a 20cm / 8″ case and half the quantities. Lets begin.

Ingredients

500g all butter shortcrust pastry

10 free range eggs

8 lemons, juiced

380g caster sugar

500 ml double cream

Zest of 4 lemons

4 tablespoons of raspberry jelly for the glaze, optional

Method

Get your oven on to 200c and then take your pastry out of the fridge (it’s much better to work pastry when it’s cold) and roll it out big enough to comfortably fit over the tart case (NB. use a non-stick case with a loose bottom). Lift the pastry with your rolling pin and drape it over the case, and then gently press it down into the sides trying not to make any holes (patch them up with spare pastry if you do).

You’re now going to ‘blind bake‘ the pastry, so first off cut off some of the excess pastry off the side, leaving a little overhang as it will shrink in the oven. Now gently prick the base all over with a fork, you don’t want to go through to the base, just make indentations in the surface. Then cut a piece of greaseproof paper big enough to line the base and then fill with baking beans or rice and then pop in the oven.

Cook the pastry for 15 minutes, then take out the case, remove the greaseproof paper and beans, and then  return to the oven to bake for a further 5 minutes until the pastry is light golden colour. Whilst this is going on, prepare the filling.

Crack the eggs into a bowl, add the sugar and mix the two together. Now zest 4 of the lemons, and set the zest aside before juicing all of the lemons, and then add to the mixture along with  the cream. Mix everything together until smooth, but try and avoid whisking and making the mixture bubbly.

You’re now going to sieve the mixture to remove any lumps or inconsistencies. If you’ve got one to hand, do this into a jug as it’s going to make it easier to pour the filling into the pastry case. Once you’ve done this, add the zest and mix in. By now the pastry should be ready and waiting to be filled. But before you do, turn the oven down to 150c and trim the edge of the pastry so it’s flush with the edge of the case.

Now pour the filling into the case. A good tip is to pour half the mixture in, and then place the case on the oven shelf before adding the rest. This should mean your kitchen floor remains clean. Now close the oven door and cook for about an hour until the filling is just set (it should wobble a bit when shaken).

Remove from the oven, and set aside to cool.When cooled, and if you fancy it, you can give the tart a glaze. Dissolve the raspberry jelly in a saucepan on a medium heat with a couple of teaspoons of water. When the jelly has turned to liquid, pour it over the top of the tart, tilting it gently so the glaze covers the entire surface. Set aside somewhere cool to let it set.

When you’re ready to get stuck in, serve generous slices with a scroll of clotted cream, or a drizzle of double cream.

P.S. Sorry for the quality of the finished article and the photography, I think I may have partaken in a bit too much Christmas cheer by the time I made this one. Ho Ho Ho.

But thanks to my introduction to banana bread in Australia, those spotty old fruits finally have a use. This recipe uses four of the buggers, and a little kick of rum for background flavour.

Ingredients

4 medium sized ripe bananas (spotty with soft flesh)

250g plain white flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

250g golden caster sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

125g unsalted butter

2 eggs

2 tablespoons dark rum

Method

First up, set your oven set to 175 c and then grease a medium sized (19 x 11 cm) loaf tin with unsalted butter.

Now peel the bananas, discarding any strips of skin, and mash them up in a large bowl until pulped. Mix the butter into the bananas, ensuring it is warm and soft before you do. Next mix in the sugar, vanilla extract, rum and two lightly beaten eggs. You’ll be left with a lumpy, slightly odd looking mixture.

Place a sieve over the bowl and sift the flour and baking powder into it. Stir in gently, being careful not to over mix it, and then pour the batter into the loaf tin.

Pop into the oven, and cook for an hour and fifteen minutes. The reason for the long cooking time is that the mixture is rather wet. This also means that when the loaf is done, the outside will be a pretty dark brown, looking almost burned. Don’t be alarmed, this is how it should be.

After the hour and fifteen, take the tin out, and run a knife into the centre of the loaf. If it comes out clean, it’s ready. If not, pop it back in the oven for another 10 minutes.

If done, leave the banana bread in the tin on one side for 10 minutes or so, and then turn out onto a wire rack to cool. The loaf will sink a bit during cooling, and firm up so it slices better.

The Aussies like to eat if for breakfast toasted and sliced with ricotta, but you can eat it at any time of the day really. I prefer it with just some butter, or maybe a bit of Marscapone.

As I’m sure I’ve mentioned before, I’ve learned quite a lot from my mother in cooking terms over the years. For the most part its been a case of me picking up stuff by watching her at work, but every now and then I’ll steal a recipe or two off her too.

This cake is one of those firm family favourites, and it even gets the royal seal of approval from my very sweet, but ever so fussy niece, Ksenia. It’s a bit tangier than most lemon drizzle cakes because of there’s more lemon juice in the glaze, and that’s how we like it.

Ingredients

For the cake

125g unsalted butter

175g self-raising flour

175g caster sugar

2 large eggs

Zest of 2 lemons

4 tablespoons of milk

A pinch of salt

Butter for greasing your loaf tin

For the ‘drizzle’

The juice of 2 lemons (about 6 tablespoons)

Zest of 1 lemon

100g icing sugar

Method

You’re going to bake this cake in a loaf tin, so first up, prepare and line it. Use a half kilo tin, smear it with butter, and then line with greaseproof paper. Now set your oven to 180 c to get it up to cooking temp.

Now cream together the butter and the sugar in a large mixing bowl; it makes life a whole lot easier, and the process faster if your butter is at room temperature. Creaming basically means beating the butter and the sugar together until it attains a ‘creamy’ texture. You can do this with a wooden spoon, but a hand whisk will save your arms.

Next add the two eggs and the lemon zest and beat them well into the butter and sugar mixture. Now fold in the flour and the salt. You want to mix in all the flour, but you don’t want to beat the hell out of the mixture, so do it gently with a spatula or something similar. Finally mix in the milk, which loosens the mixture a tad.

Pour the mixture into the loaf tin, shake from side to side so it levels out, and then pop onto the middle shelf of the oven. The cake is going to cook for around 45 minutes. When ready it will have risen, and the outside will be a dark golden brown.

When the cake is almost ready, make the drizzle. Put the lemon juice, icing sugar and zest into a small saucepan and heat until the sugar has dissolved. The syrup shouldn’t boil, but will be hot.

When you think the cake is ready, slide a sharp knife into the centre. If it comes out clean, it’s ready to come out, if not put it back in for another 4 or 5 minutes. As soon as you’ve taken the cake out of the oven, perforate it’s surface all over with a toothpick by sticking it in about half way. You’re doing this to help the syrup sink into the sponge whilst it’s still warm, and it’s well worth taking the time to make sure the top is properly peppered with holes.

Now pour the drizzle all over the top, trying to make sure it is absorbed evenly. The cake will have risen more at the centre so the syrup will naturally run towards the edges, so make sure you keep spooning it over the middle.

Now the hard bit, you have to wait until the cake is completely cooled before cutting it or it will crumble. When it is finally ready to eat, serve with a nice cuppa, or as a pudding with some Greek yoghurt ever so slightly sweetened with maple syrup or honey.

One of the other dishes I was thinking about for the previous post was this omelette for two. I thought it could work quite well in that it combines seaside ingredients with the romantic nature of Lou and Liam’s retreat. However, fish for brekkie isn’t to everyone’s tastes, so this is the kind of dish you can enjoy at any time of the day.

There’s only one mackerel fillet in the mix so the flavour isn’t too strong, and  I use a bit of zero fat Greek yoghurt in the eggs to help keep the omelette moist in the middle. The little bit of  sharpness the yoghurt gives also works well with the oily fish.

Ingredients

4 large free range eggs

2 tablespoons 0% fat Greek yoghurt

1 mackerel fillet (around 70g)

1/2 medium onion, chopped

2 tablespoons chopped chives

2 tablespoons chopped flat leaf parsley

Handful of grated Parmesan

Salt and pepper to taste

Olive oil and butter for frying.

Method

First up, get your grill on full and then put a frying pan on the heat. When it’s really good and hot, pop in your mackerel. Fry it for about a minute or so on each side. This gets some of the oil out of the fish, but also brings out it’s flavour and makes it easy to flake. I also like the tasty brown caremelised crust it makes on the outside.

When done, set aside the mackerel, wipe down the pan with some kitchen paper to get rid of the excess fish oil. Then turn down the heat, add a little olive oil and then gently fry off the onion. You want it translucent as opposed to brown, and when it is, set aside with the mackerel.

Next crack your eggs into a bowl, season with a small pinch of salt, and a good few grindings of black pepper. Mix in the yoghurt to the eggs, and whisk thoroughly getting rid of the lumps. Now add the Parmesan, onion, chopped chives and parsley to the eggs. Flake the mackerel fillet in too, and then mix together.

Get 20 cm diameter  frying pan on the heat (a different one to the one you fried your fish in preferably). When it’s nice and hot, add a nob of butter, coat the inside of the pan and then add the egg mixture. Leave for a minute or so, and then go around the outside of the pan with a spatula to make sure it’s not sticking.

You want the base of the omelette to be golden brown before transferring to the oven to brown the top, keep checking by turning up the edge with the spatula. When ready, slide into the oven.

As the top of the omelette is cooking, it will puff up as it browns. This will happen at the edges first, and then work it’s way into the centre of the pan. You want the omelette to be moist, so pretty much as soon at the centre is brown, whip it out of the oven and turn it out onto a plate.

Serve with a peppery salad of rocket, chard and thinly sliced radishes with a lemon, dijon mustard and olive oil dressing.

Give it a try.

Anyway, breakfast fast became our favourite meal of the day, and right here are out top four breakfasts from the trip.

Huevos Rancheros – literally ‘eggs ranch style’. Mexican style eggs (in this case scrambled with ham) served up on flour tortillas smothered in spicy tomato sauce, topped with black beans and avocado, with a side of home fries. Ay carrumba

Huevos Rancheros at The Crepevine, San Francisco

Hash & Eggs – despite the name, probably the poshest breakfast of the trip, but totally amazing. Spring onion, bacon and potato hash topped with a couple of poached eggs. The breakfast of champions.

Hash & Eggs at Rose's Cafe, San Francisco

Granola Waffles – I’m not a massive fan of majorly sweet stuff for breakfast, but these were insane. They were part of the make your own breakfast buffet at the place we stayed at in The Big Sur. When making the waffles you toss in a handful of the home made granola. Proper ying and yang business.

Granola Waffles with Banana, Nectarine and Maple at Treebones, Big Sur

Cornbread Egg Muffin – I know this looks like some kind of Scotch Egg disaster (not that there’s anything wrong with a Scotch Egg), but these took us by surprise. A slightly sweetened corn bread muffin, a touch of chili and a boiled egg in the middle. Awesometown.

Cornbread & Egg Muffin at Sweetcakes, Chicago