Five quick and easy dessert recipes for students

Why not treat yourself to a nice dessert sometimes? We've gathered some recipes for you to try out if you want to impress...

Flapjacks are a quick and easy snack or dessert - it might not come out looking quite as perfect as this, though (Steven Lilley)

Have you read our five quick and easy main meal recipes for students? Of course you have! Not enough for you? - We've picked out some excellent quick recipes to make something sweet for afterwards. You'll be sure to impress friends at uni when you turn up at their house with, say, some delicious flapjacks. They don't have to know it didn't take much time or effort...

Apple Crumble

Ingredients
For the crumble:
300g plain flour, sieved
Pinch of salt
175g unrefined brown sugar
200g unsalted butter, cubed at room temperature
Knob of butter for greasing
For the filling:
450g apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1cm pieces
50g unrefined brown sugar
1 tbsp plain flour
1 pinch of ground cinnamon (optional)

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180c/350F/gas 4
2. Place the flour and sugar in a large bowl and mix well. Taking a few cubes of butter at a time, rub into the flour mixture. Keep rubbing until the mixture resembles bread crumbs.
3. Place the fruit in a large bowl and sprinkle over the sugar, flour and cinnamon. Stir well, being careful not to break up the fruit.
4. Butter a 24cm ovenproof dish. spoon the fruit mixture into the bottom, then sprinkle the crumble mixture on top.
5. Bake in the oven for 40-45 mins until the crumble is browned and the fruit mixture bubbling.
6. Serve with thick cream or custard

Sticky toffee pudding with toffee sauce

Ingredients
600ml water
400g pitted dates
115 butter, softened
350g dark brown sugar- preferably muscovado
4 eggs
1 tbsp bicarbonate of soda
400g self-raising flour
1 tbsp treacle
1 tbsp golden syrup
For the sauce:
500ml double cream
175g demerara sugar
175g butter
1 tbsp golden syrup
1 tbsp black treacle

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 190C/gas 5. Line a roasting pan with baking parchment.
2. Bring the water to boil in a saucepan. Remove from the heat, add the dates and leave to soak for about 10 minutes.
3. Put the butter and sugar in a large bowl and beat together until smooth.
4. Stir in the syrup and treacle, then the flour, mixing well.
5. Break the eggs one by one into the bowl, stirring well after each addition
6. Stir the vanilla extract into the date mixture. Blend with a stick blender until thick and soupy.
7. Add the bicarbonate of soda to the date mix, then pour this mixture into the flour mixtutre. Beat well to blend.
8. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Put in the oven immediately, and bake for 35-40 minutes until well-risen and springy.
9. To make the sauce, put the cream in a saucepan and heat gently. Add the sugar and butter and whisk until melted. Whisk in the syrup and treacle.
10. Serve the pudding in bowls with the sauce poured over the top.

Quick tip: Toffee sauce can also be melted in hot water and poured over the pudding mixture to be baked together. You’ll end up with the sticky toffee sauce at the bottom of the pudding which can be scooped while serving

Speedy Shortbread

Ingredients

125g butter
55g caster sugar
180g plain flour

Method

1. Heat the oven to 190C/375F/Gas 5.
2. Beat the butter and the sugar together until smooth.
3. Stir in the flour to get a smooth paste. Turn on to a work surface and gently roll out until the paste is half an inch thick.

Fast Flapjacks

Ingredients
175g butter
125g Demerara sugar
2 tbsp golden syrup
275g rolled oats

Method

1. Pre-heat the oven to 160C
2. Put butter and sugar in a sauce pan and wait for the butter to melt
3. Add the oats and mix them in
4. Add the golden syrup and mix some more

5. When it has been mixed well, put the mixture into a greased tin and put in the oven for 30-35 minutes.

Molten Chocolate Cakes

Ingredients
125g butter
1 bar good quality plain chocolate (100g)
2 eggs
2 egg yolks
4 tbsp caster sugar
2 tsp plain flour

Method

1. Preheat oven to 230C/Gas 8. Butter and dust (with flour or cocoa powder) 4 ramekins
2. Heat the butter and chocolate in a double boiler until the chocolate is almost completely melted. (Don’t have a double boiler? No worries, you can improvise with a homemade one)
3. Use a hand-held electric mixer (or your hands, but it’ll take longer!) to beat the eggs, egg yolks, and sugar together, until light-coloured and thick.
4. While still beating, slowly pour the chocolate mixture into the egg mixture, then quickly beat in the flour and mix until just combined.
5. Divide the mixture between your 4 ramekins and bake for 6-7 minutes. The centres of the cakes will still be soft. Turn the ramekins out on serving plates, let them sit for about 15 seconds, then unmould.
6. Serve immediately with fresh cream.