We’re embracing Christmas cake within the very broadest of phrases. For Christmas desserts with a distinction – from fabulous French canelés to chic Sicilian cassata and perky Portuguese pastéis de nata, by way of trusty espresso and walnut cake – we have raided the recipe archive of Wallpaper’s esteemed entertaining director, Melina Keays. Having devised the scrumptious, the daring and the downright divine for Wallpaper* pictures shoots because the journal launched, Keays is aware of a factor or two about cake. Listed below are the recipes for just a few celebratory candy treats she ready earlier. Dig in…
CHRISTMAS DESSERTS AND FESTIVE TREATS
Cassata
From the December 2018 subject of Wallpaper*. Entertaining Director: Melina Keays. Interiors: Olly Mason
(Picture credit score: Images: François Coquerel)
Cassata recipe, serves 10-12
For the marzipan:
- 80g shelled pistachio nuts
- 80g blanched almonds
- 80g icing sugar
- few drops of inexperienced meals colouring
- 1 egg white, flippantly crushed till frothy (reserve the yolk for the sponge cake)
For the sponge cake:
- 170g plain flour
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- 5 eggs
- 170g caster sugar
- zest of 1 orange
For the filling and syrup:
- 150g caster sugar
- 700g recent ricotta cheese
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ tsp floor cinnamon
- 70g darkish chocolate, chopped
- 70g candied fruit, chopped
- 2 tbs Grand Marnier
To complete:
- 200g icing sugar
- 1-2 tbs lemon juice
- glacé fruits
To make the marzipan, place the pistachios and almonds in a meals processor and chop finely. Add the icing sugar and course of properly. With the motor operating, add the meals colouring and sufficient of the egg white to only convey the combination to a easy dough. Wrap and put aside.
To make the sponge cake, line a 21-24cm springform deep cake tin with baking paper. Warmth the oven to 180°C. Put the flour, baking powder and salt right into a bowl, combine properly, then put aside. Break the 5 eggs into one other bowl., add the reserved yok, the sugar and the orange zest, then beat on excessive velocity for about 5 minutes till pale and fluffy. Fold within the flour combination and spoon the batter into the ready tin. Clean the highest, then bake for half-hour till properly risen and golden, and a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clear. Permit to chill utterly within the tin, then end up onto a wire rack.
To make the filling, put 100g of the caster sugar in a bowl with the ricotta , vanilla and floor cinnamon and beat properly, guaranteeing the sugar is totally dissolved. Fold within the chocolate and candied fruit, then go away to sit back within the fridge.
To make the syrup, put the remaining 50g of caster sugar in a small pan with 30ml water and produce to a simmer over a medium to excessive warmth. Stir till the sugar has dissolved, then take away from the warmth, stir within the Grand Marnier and put aside.
Lower the sponge cake into 1cm-thick slices throughout the diameter. Line a 21-24cm cassata mould, tarte tatin tin or pie dish with sloping sides with clingfilm. Roll out the marzipan on a floor flippantly dusted with icing sugar, to a couple of 1/2m thickness. Slice the marzipan into strips and use these to line the edges of the cassata mould, smoothing and flattening them the place they overlap. Line the bottom and sides of the cassata mould with cake strips, slicing them to suit. Brush the cake floor generously with a number of the syrup. Spoon within the ricotta filling and easy the highest. Cowl the ricotta filling with extra cake slices and brush with the remaining syrup. Wrap tightly with clingfilm and chill for two hours. Mix the icing sugar with sufficient lemon juice, added step by step, to make a easy, thick glaze. Invert the cake onto a serving plate. Pour the glaze over the cake to cowl evenly. Adorn with glacé fruits and chill till set, for a minimum of 2 hours, or in a single day.
Espresso & walnut cake, and canelés
From Wallpaper* December 2013. Entertaining Director: Melina Keays. Interiors: Benjamin Kempton
(Picture credit score: Images: Tobias Harvey)
Espresso & walnut cake recipe
- 180g plain flour
- 1½ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda
- ¼ tsp salt
- 180g unsalted butter, softened
- 180g caster sugar
- 3 giant eggs
- 1 tbs prompt espresso
- 1tbs prompt espresso dissolved in 1tbs boiling water
- 2 tbs plain yogurt
- 60g chopped walnuts, plus walnut halves to embellish
- 2-3 tbs milk
For the espresso icing:
- 150g unsalted butter, softened
- 300g icing sugar
- 1 tbs prompt espresso dissolved in 1 tbs boiling water
- 2tbs milk
Put together 220cm shallow spherical baking tins by lining their bases with baking parchment. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Sift the flour with the baking powder, bicarbonate and salt, and put aside. Beat the butter with the sugar in a big bowl till tender and fluffy. Beat within the eggs, one by one, including a tablespoon of the reserved flour with every egg to stop curdling. Add the flour, in two levels, ensuring every addition is mixed in earlier than including the subsequent. Beat within the espresso combination, the yogurt, the chopped walnuts, and sufficient of the milk to attain a tender ‘dropping’ consistency.
Divide the batter between the tins, easy the tops and place within the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes till properly risen and golden. A toothpick ought to come out clear. Permit to chill within the tins for five minutes, then run a knife between cake and tin to launch the muffins. Cool on a wire rack.
To make the icing, beat the butter and sugar collectively till pale, tender and fluffy. Stir the milk into the espresso and beat one tablespoon into the buttercream. Proceed with the remainder of the espresso combination, beating in a single tablespoon at a time till you’ve gotten a light-weight and fluffy icing.
Unfold half on one sponge, then place the second on prime and unfold, or pipe, with the remaining icing. Adorn with walnut halves.
Canelés recipe, makes 16
- 500ml full fats milk
- 1 vanilla pod, break up in half lengthways, each halves nonetheless hooked up on the stalk
- 30g unsalted butter, plus one other 30g, melted, to butter the moulds
- 220g caster sugar
- ¼ tsp salt
- 130g plain flour
- 1 egg and a pair of egg yolks
- 3 tbs darkish rum
- canelé moulds
Make the batter the day earlier than. Put the milk, vanilla pod, butter, sugar and salt right into a heavy pan and slowly convey to only beneath boiling level.
Take off the warmth, take away the vanilla, scrape out the seeds and whisk these into the new milk. Reserve the empty pod. Put the flour into a big bowl and pour on a little bit of the new milk, whisking away all of the lumps. When the batter is easy, whisk in the remainder of the milk. Beat within the eggs and rum. Put the vanilla pod again into the batter.Cool to room temperature, then cowl and refrigerate in a single day.
Brush the moulds with melted butter and place within the fridge to sit back. Warmth the oven to 250°C. Discard the vanilla pod. Fill the moulds simply over three quarters full with the chilly batter and bake for 10 minutes at 250°C, and an extra 35 minutes at 190°C. Invert the moulds onto a wire rack to launch the canelés.
Floating islands, and rum babas
(Picture credit score: Images: Benjamin Bouchet)
Prime and above, from Wallpaper* Could 2016. Entertaining Director: Melina Keays. Interiors: Benjamin Kempton
(Picture credit score: Images: Benjamin Bouchet)
Floating islands recipe, serves 4
- 1 litre full-fat milk, plus a little bit additional
- 2 tsp vanilla bean paste
- 300g caster sugar
- 6 giant eggs, separated
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp cornflour
- toasted flaked almonds
Put the milk, vanilla paste and 50g sugar into a big heavy-based saucepan and produce to the boil slowly over a low warmth.
In the meantime, put the egg whites and lemon juice in a big bowl and whisk into tender peaks. Add 120g sugar and whisk till stiff and shiny. Maintain the milk simmering and drop giant spoonfuls of meringue combination into the milk. Poach gently for about 3 minutes, then flip and cook dinner the opposite facet for one more 3 minutes. Depart them to empty on a clear material.
Pressure the milk right into a measuring jug, prime as much as the 1 litre degree, pour again into the pan and return to simmering level. Place the yolks, cornflour and 30g of sugar in a big bowl and whisk till pale and fluffy. Slowly add the new milk, stirring consistently. Pour again into the pan over a really low warmth and stir till the custard is thick sufficient to coat the again of a spoon. Depart to chill, stirring often.
To make the caramel, place the remainder of the sugar and three tbs water in a pan over a low warmth and go away to bubble gently till golden. Pour custard right into a shallow bowl and float the meringues on the floor. Dribble over caramel, then chill. Scatter with almonds.
From Wallpaper* Could 2016. Entertaining Director: Melina Keays. Interiors: Benjamin Kempton
(Picture credit score: Images: Benjamin Bouchet)
Rum babas recipe, serves 6
- 250g plain flour
- 30g caster sugar, plus additional for the moulds
- 70ml milk
- 7g prompt yeast
- 2 medium eggs, at room temperature, crushed
- 100g butter, softened
- 250ml double cream, whipped, to serve
For the syrup:
- 250g caster sugar
- 100ml darkish rum
Put the flour, salt and sugar in a big bowl and stir properly. Heat the milk, add the yeast and stir till dissolved. Add the eggs and milk combination to the flour bowl and stir properly, then knead on a floured floor for 10 minutes till easy. Work within the butter, kneading for five minutes till you’ve gotten a shiny, elastic dough. Place in a big bowl, cowl with clingfilm and go away to rise for a minimum of 1 hour till doubled in measurement.
Grease and sugar six 6cm tall dariole moulds. Prove the dough and knead briefly to knock it again. Divide into six and place within the moulds. Warmth the oven to 180°C.
Permit the babas to show once more till nearly on the prime of the moulds, then bake for 20 minutes till golden. Permit to chill barely earlier than rigorously releasing from the moulds and inserting on a wire rack.
To make the syrup, put the sugar, rum and 200ml water in a pan and produce to the boil. Simmer for 3 minutes, then take away from the warmth and go away till simply heat. Place the babas in a bowl, break up in half and pour over the syrup. Serve with whipped cream.
Pithivier
(Picture credit score: Images: Benjamin Bouchet )
Prime and above, from Wallpaper* Could 2016. Entertaining Director: Melina Keays. Interiors: Benjamin Kempton
(Picture credit score: Images: Benjamin Bouchet)
Pithivier recipe, serves 8
- 140g unsalted butter, softened
- 140g caster sugar
- 3 medium eggs
- 2 tbs darkish rum
- grated zest of 1 orange
- 140g floor almonds
- 20g plain flour
- 1 tbs double cream
- 500g butter puff pastry
Place the butter and sugar in a bowl and beat till pale and fluffy. Beat in two of the eggs, one by one, then the rum and zest. Fold within the almonds and flour.
In a clear bowl, beat the remaining egg with the cream to make an eggwash. Line a big baking sheet with baking paper. Lower the pastry into two items, one barely bigger than the opposite. Place the smaller piece on a flippantly floured floor and roll right into a circle about 28cm in diameter, then switch to the baking sheet. Roll out the bigger piece of pastry to the identical diameter.
Unfold the almond combination onto the pastry on the baking sheet to inside 3cm of the sting. Brush the uncovered pastry with eggwash, place the second pastry circle on prime and press the perimeters firmly collectively. Chill within the fridge for half-hour. Warmth the oven to 200°C.
Take a flat plate, roughly 25cm in diameter, and centre it on prime. With a small sharp knife, minimize the uncovered pastry to create a scalloped border. Glaze evenly with eggwash, then rating the floor flippantly with curving diagonal strains. Bake for 25-35 minutes till puffed and golden. Serve heat.
Bolos de arroz, and pastéis de nata
(Picture credit score: Images: Oskar Proctor)
Prime and above, from Wallpaper* December 2022. Entertaining Director Melina Keays. Interiors: Hannah Jordan
(Picture credit score: Images: Oskar Proctor)
Bolos de arroz (rice muffins) recipe, makes 8
- 200g rice flour
- 60g plain wheat flour
- 1½ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- 100g butter, at room temperature
- 180g caster sugar
- 4 eggs
- juice and zest of 1 lemon
Grease eight cupcake tins and line the edges with 20cm x 5cm strips of baking paper. Warmth the oven to 180°C.
Combine the flours, baking powder and salt and put aside. Beat the butter and sugar collectively till fluffy, then beat within the eggs one by one. Stir within the lemon juice and zest, then the flour combine. Spoon the batter into the tins (about two-thirds as much as the highest of the paper edge) and sprinkle with extra sugar. Bake for 25 minutes till properly risen and golden. Cool on a wire rack.
(Picture credit score: Images: Oskar Proctor)
Pastéis de nata (custard tarts) recipe, makes 12
- 4 egg yolks
- 110g white sugar
- 2 tbs cornflour
- 100ml single cream
- 300ml milk
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 lengthy strip lemon zest, taken from an unwaxed lemon with a peeler
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 250g puff pastry
Place the yolks, sugar, cornflour, cream and milk in a heavy-bottomed pan and whisk to mix. Add the cinnamon and lemon zest and place over a low to medium warmth. Deliver the combination slowly to a boil, stirring consistently with a wood spoon till you’ve gotten a easy thick custard.
Take away from the warmth, stir within the vanilla and permit to chill, stirring often. When chilly, take away the cinnamon and lemon zest.
Roll out the pastry to an approximate 15cm x 30cm rectangle. Roll this rectangle tightly right into a cigar from the quick finish. Lower the cigar into 12 items. Flatten every spherical with the palm of your hand after which roll out thinly to a diameter of roughly 10cm. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with the rolled-out spirals.
Preheat the oven to 200°C. Spoon the custard into the pastry shells and bake for 20-25 minutes till puffed and golden.
Spiral biscuits
From Wallpaper* October 2019. Entertaining Director: Melina Keays. Interiors: Olly Mason
(Picture credit score: Images: Metz & Racine)
Spiral biscuits recipe, makes 18
- 170g plain flour, plus 40g
- ¼ tsp salt
- 150g chilly unsalted butter, minimize into chunks
- 100g caster sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp vanilla paste
- 40g cocoa powder
- 50g icing sugar
- 1 tbs lemon juice
- a whole bunch and 1000’s
Put the 170g of flour, salt and butter into the bowl of a meals processor and pulse to the feel of fantastic breadcrumbs. Add the sugar, egg and vanilla paste and course of till the dough comes collectively.
There shall be roughly 480g of dough. Take away half (roughly 240g) from the processor and put aside. Add the remaining 40g of flour to the half that continues to be within the processor and pulse till the dough comes collectively. Take away and wrap in clingfilm.
Place the reserved dough and the cocoa powder within the meals processor and pulse to a easy dough. Wrap in clingfilm and place each doughs within the fridge to agency up for half-hour.
Roll the plain dough out on a flippantly floured floor till it’s about 25cm lengthy and 20cm extensive. Do the identical with the chocolate dough, then lay one on prime of the opposite. Frivolously roll the floor a few times with the rolling pin simply to press them collectively. Straighten the perimeters, and thoroughly roll up the rectangle from one of many quick edges to make a decent spiral. Wrap in clingfilm and chill for a minimum of 1 hour or in a single day.
Warmth the oven to 170°C. Line two trays with baking paper. Take away the chilled dough from the fridge and minimize neatly into 18-20 slices. Place these on the baking trays, spaced about 3cm aside. Place within the scorching oven for 18-20 minutes till solely simply starting to show golden. Take away from the oven and place on wire racks to chill.
Combine the icing sugar with sufficient of the lemon juice to make a unfastened paste. Pour the a whole bunch and 1000’s right into a shallow bowl. Unfold icing onto the perimeters of the biscuits, dip into the a whole bunch and 1000’s, and go away to set.
Supply: Wallpaper
