Making pastry is one of my favourite activities, especially if I have a little spare time and the kitchen to myself. It is a very tactile process and one that works best if I am surrounded by peace and quiet. This is when the kitchen feels most therapeutic to me – it is no longer work, just pure and utter joy. Kneading dough is a relaxing experience and I often find myself day-dreaming as I work, which is impossible for me in the restaurant environment, where we are constantly working to a deadline, vying for worktop and oven space, knowing that within an hour or so, 100 people will walk through our door and the mania of service will begin.
Nothing is nicer than the comforting smell of baking pastry – and very few things are better than these scones, wonderful when eaten still warm with lashings of butter; or more nostalgic than this beautiful lemon meringue pie.
Skye Gyngell is head chef at Petersham Nurseries, Church Lane, Richmond, Surrey, tel: 020 8605 3627, www.petershamnurseries.com
Fruit scones
Makes 12 scones
45g/2oz lightly salted butter
2 tbsp caster sugar
1 whole egg
250g/8oz self-raising flour
A pinch of salt
120ml/4 fl oz milk
175g/6oz mixed dried fruit – raisins, sultanas and finely chopped dates
Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, add the egg and beat until well-incorporated. Lightly fold in the flour and salt with the milk and combine until just mixed. Now stir in the fruit, making sure that it is evenly distributed. Heat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas6. On a floured surface, roll out the scone mixture until it is one inch in depth. Using a small biscuit cutter, cut the dough to form 12 scones. Space the scones well apart on a baking tray and place in the oven. Bake for 10-12 minutes. The base should be hollow-sounding when tapped. Cool slightly on a wire rack before eating.
Lemon meringue pie
A delicious old-fashioned dessert, intensely sweet and sharp at the same time.
Serves 10
For the pastry
250g/8oz plain flour
15g/1/2oz sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
125g/4oz cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
1 whole egg
For the lemon curd
The juice and zest of 3 lemons
6 egg yolks
160g/51/2oz sugar
180g/6oz unsalted butter, cut into cubes
For the meringue
3 egg whites
A pinch of salt
100g/31/2oz caster sugar
First make the pastry. Place the flour, sugar, vanilla extract and butter into a blender and pulse until it becomes the texture of wet sand. Add the egg and continue to pulse until a ball begins to form. Remove to a work surface and knead once or twice, then cover in clingfilm and place in the fridge for half an hour. As the pastry chills, make the lemon curd.
Place the lemon juice and zest into a bowl, whisk in the egg yolks and sugar to combine, pour into a heavy-based medium saucepan and place over a very low heat. Stir continuously with a wooden spoon as the mixture begins to warm and thicken. Once the curd is thick enough to coat the back of the spoon, begin to add the butter cube by cube, stirring all the while. It is very important that the mixture should not boil, as it will curdle. Once all the butter has combined, remove from the heat and pour into a bowl to cool down.
Remove the pastry from the fridge, flour your work surface, and using a rolling pin, roll the dough until it is an eighth of an inch thick. Line a 10-inch tart tin with a removable bottom with the pastry, prick the base well all over with a fork and return to the fridge for a further 30 minutes.
Heat your oven to 180C/350F/Gas4, place the tart tin on the middle shelf and bake for 20 minutes; the pastry should be a light golden-brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly, then spoon in the curd. Smooth the surface with a wooden spoon to ensure that the curd is spread evenly and return to the middle shelf of the oven for a further 10 minutes. Once again, remove the tart.
Now place the egg whites, salt and sugar into a clean bowl and whisk until stiff peaks form. Spread the meringue on top of the tart, turn up the oven to 200C/ 400F/Gas6 and return the tart to the oven for 2-3 minutes or until the peaks of the meringue are slightly brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely before slicing and serving. It needs no other accompaniment.
Savoury tart with Swiss chard, roasted tomatoes and crème fraîche
This tart is good served either warm or at room temperature. It's great for picnics, as it is easy to eat with your fingers.
Serves 6-8
250g/8oz plain flour
A pinch of salt
100g/31/2oz cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes
For the topping
1 large bunch of Swiss chard, destalked
20 little tomatoes, roasted in the oven until the skins have just burst
5 tbsp crème fraîche
100g/31/2oz grated Parmesan cheese
50ml/2fl oz extra-virgin olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Place the flour, salt and butter into a food processor and pulse until it is the texture of sand. Add a little water and blend until crumbly. Remove and place on a floured surface, and knead the dough until it forms a cohesive ball, then rest in the fridge for an hour until firm. Meanwhile, blanch the chard: immerse it in boiling water for 2 minutes, refresh it in iced water and then drain well.
Heat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas6 and flour a large flat baking tray. Roll out the pastry on top of the baking tray until it covers the tray evenly – it should be fairly thin (no thicker than an eighth of an inch). Prick the base well with a fork. Cover the pastry with a baking tray of the same size, so essentially the pastry is lying in the middle. Place in the oven and bake for 20 minutes; the pastry should be almost cooked and beginning to brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly for five minutes or so. Scatter the chard and roasted tomatoes over the base, season with salt and pepper, spoon over the crème fraîche and scatter over the Parmesan. Return to the oven and cook for a final 10 minutes. Drizzle over the olive oil as the tart comes out of the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes before slicing.
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