IN 'knead' of some baking tips, Taste heads for a very jolly masterclass with TV chef and raconteur Rosemary Shrager
"One thing I can't bear is standing on ceremony," beams Rosemary Shrager, as she ushers me into her Kent cookery school. "There's none of that here."
She's right of course. Warm, approachable and lively - if slightly nutty - company, Shrager is ever the show-woman. I've been invited along for a baking class, and no sooner has she doled out smiley introductions, coffee and pastries, she's grilling me on the nitty-gritty of my bread-making skills.
Having worked with top chefs Pierre Koffmann and Jean-Christophe Novelli, appeared on Hell's Kitchen, hosted countless of her own cookery series and helped whip some unpolished young women into shape on Ladette To Lady, Shrager isn't about to stand on ceremony when it comes to cajoling me into baking better bread.
"Come on now, turn, roll, push," bellows the 64-year-old, who regularly performs cookery demonstrations at food roadshows, pops up in pantomimes and in 2012, was even a contestant on I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here!, as I weakly slide the dough around the work surface.
But my kneading skills clearly aren't cutting the mustard.
"TURN! ROLL! PUSH!" Shrager repeats in her best panto Fairy Godmother voice, as she bustles over to show me how it's done.
"There, that's better. Isn't it lovely cooking with people?"
And yes, with Shrager at the hob, it is a pleasure cooking with people.
"I just love it, I just love kneading bread," she enthuses. "You need to treat food with reverence... like a baby."
And while Rosemary's bready babies are baking away, we gossip about her famous cookery school alumni (both Paul Hollywood and Janet Street-Porter have been), and then make a rich tomato soup to accompany our bakes.
As the delicious aroma of baking bread fills the room and the soup simmers away, Shrager is in her element, regaling the room with stories of being pulled over by the police when she first passed her driving test for having part of the engine missing, and then going into a robust rant about her dislike of slow road-users.
"I just love cooking," she says. "I love the whole feel about the products, the freshness, how they should taste, and I love working with the latest whatever it is and learning what to do with it."
And the cook, who recently took her grandchildren to Italy (they had great fun picking olives together), has a set idea on what makes a good cookery teacher - somebody just like her!
"I wish I'd had a me to take me to where I am today," she says, smiling.
Once the rolls are out of the oven, we sit down on a big table and break the bread together, feeling right at home.
If you fancy making some homely bakes, here are three recipes from Shrager's Bakes, Cakes And Puddings...
BANOFFEE PIE
(Serves 6-8)
80g unsalted butter
75g caster sugar
200ml caramel-flavoured condensed milk
3 large bananas, sliced
50g pecans, roughly chopped
For the base:
200g digestive biscuits
50g pecans
80g unsalted butter, melted and cooled
For the topping:
250ml double cream
65g icing sugar, sifted
For the chocolate sauce:
100g dark chocolate (60-70% cocoa solids), broken into pieces
25g unsalted butter
1tbsp double cream
Line the sides of a 22cm loose-bottomed tart tin with baking parchment.
To make the base, crush the digestives and pecans into fine crumbs, then stir in the melted butter.
Spoon the mixture into the tart tin and press evenly over the base and slightly up the sides. Chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, make the filling. Slowly melt the butter with the caster sugar in a saucepan, stirring all the time, and bring to the boil. Continue boiling until it becomes a caramel colour, then fold in the condensed milk and take off the heat.
Fold the bananas and pecans into the caramel sauce, then spread the mixture over the biscuit base.
Chill in the fridge for one hour.
To make the topping, whip the cream to soft peaks and fold in the icing sugar. Spoon this mixture over the banana filling.
To make the sauce, melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water (make sure the bowl does not actually touch the water). Fold in the butter, then stir in the cream. Drizzle the sauce over the pie and serve.
CARROT CAKE WITH MASCARPONE ICING AND CONFIT ORANGE
(Serves 6-8)
250g runny honey
100g carrots, finely grated
180g dried stoned dates, chopped
1tsp ground nutmeg
2tsp ground cinnamon
100g unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing
200ml water
200g plain flour
2tsp bicarbonate of soda
100g walnuts, roughly chopped
3 eggs
For the icing:
200g mascarpone
200g icing sugar
1tsp vanilla extract
200g thick creme fraiche
Zest of 1 orange
For the confit orange:
Zest of 3 oranges, cut into very fine strips
150g granulated sugar
200ml cold water
Place the honey, carrots, dates, spices, butter and water in a saucepan and heat until the butter has melted. Simmer for five to seven minutes, then set aside until lukewarm.
Put the flour, bicarbonate of soda and walnuts into a large bowl. Beat the eggs into the honey mixture, then pour into the flour mixture and mix well.
Butter a 20cm springform or loose-bottomed cake tin, then line the base with baking parchment. Pour in the cake mixture, level the top and bake in an oven preheated to 180C/Gas 4 for 45 minutes, or until firm to the touch. Cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack until cold.
To make the icing, put the mascarpone in a bowl and sift in the icing sugar. Add the vanilla and beat until smooth. Fold in the creme fraiche and orange zest.
To make the confit, place the orange zest in a heatproof bowl and cover with fresh boiling water. Leave for 30 seconds, then drain and refresh in cold water. Repeat twice more, using fresh boiling water each time. Put the sugar and cold water in a small saucepan, bring slowly to the boil, then add the orange zest and simmer for 15-20 minutes, until translucent. Drain and leave to dry.
To serve, spread the icing over the cake and garnish with the confit orange.
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