After reading the latest Lickedspoon Substack newsletter by Debora Robertson, I was inspired to make a gluten free version of the simple French chocolate cake recipe she shared. I’m a huge fan of Debora Robertson. Last year I treated myself to her book, Notes from a small kitchen Island. It’s a book I cannot wait to get lost in. Debora is one of my favourite food writers, and I share her love of ALL that is great about food. After giving this nice and easy to make French chocolate cake a whirl and enjoying its rich deliciousness immensely, I felt it was only right to mention it to you, should ..read more

Oh heck, it’s been a while since I brought you a new recipe. But as they say, good things come to those who wait, and I’m convinced that you’ll feel it was worth waiting for this incredibly delicious gluten free berry and marzipan loaf cake. If you’ve been a reader of my blog for a while, you’ll know I’m big on playing around with standard recipes to make them gluten free. On this occasion, the original recipe I used to make this gluten free berry and marzipan loaf cake came from the 2024 Dairy Diary. I’m always thrilled when recipes I test turn out well, and I really couldn’t have been happie ..read more

I always knew, that one day, I’d share a recipe for a gluten free version of the sticky toffee pudding my mum used to make. Well, that day has arrived, and here it is just for you in all its sticky toffee glory!  Sticky toffee pudding is up there as one of my all-time favourite hot puddings. I love the soft, dark, date filled sponge, topped with bubbling toffee sauce. And I especially like it, when served up with a good *vanilla ice cream. I always get slightly giddy, when I spot gluten free sticky toffee pudding on a menu, and unless I’m completely stuffed, it’s a done deal that I will b ..read more

I’m delighted with this gluten free sweet pastry recipe, as not only is the sweet buttery pastry gorgeous, it’s also an absolute treat to work with! The original recipe I used to make this gluten free sweet pastry, came from the marvellous website recipetin eats. If you’ve not yet discovered this wonderful site, I urge you to take a peep, as many of the recipes, if not already naturally gluten free, can be easily adapted to make them so. This recipe for gluten free sweet pastry is yours to keep and use however you wish. It may be that you simply want to make a crisp pastry base to fill with ri ..read more

I love, love, LOVE how apple crumble never goes out of culinary fashion! It’s one of those ever faithful, comforting puds that’s been around for such a long time and when done well, is pure food joy in a bowl! And it appears after a recent lunch out with friends, that I’m not on my own when it comes to being a fan of this yummy pud! After enjoying our main meal, my friend, Carol asked to see the pudding menu, but after giving it the once over, she disappointedly pushed it to one side and said, “I just want something like apple crumble and custard”. So yes, whilst restaurants may feel they have ..read more

Only five ingredients are needed to make this DELICIOUS gluten free chocolate cheesecake. It’s also very easy to make. And, it’s thanks to my wonderful mum that I’m able to share this recipe with you, as it is one of the many tempting things she’d jotted down in her recipe book, which I’m slowly working my way through. I used Schar gluten free digestive biscuits for the cheesecake base. They’re a lovely biscuit and unlike many other gluten free digestives, don’t contain gluten free oats, making the cheesecake suitable for anybody that needs to avoid gluten and gf oats too. Initially when I rem ..read more

It was only when I was well underway with making these delicious gluten free strawberry muffins, that I realised the recipe is very similar to the blueberry muffin recipe I already have on the blog. However, after making the muffins and discovering they’re terrific, I had to crack on and share the recipe with you. These soft, and oh so tasty muffins, studded with a generous amount of juicy strawberry pieces, are nice and simple to pop together and smell divine as they bake. The original recipe for these gluten free strawberry muffins came from the rather splendid website, once upon a chef. If ..read more

Macaroni cheese is one of Neil’s favourite meals and before being diagnosed with coeliac disease it was something I made a lot. However, after being diagnosed, I stopped making it for a while as I felt the sauce didn’t work as well with the macaroni when made with cornflour (I use cornflour when making cauliflower cheese). So for a while, I stopped making it, as it simply hadn’t occurred to me to make it with gluten free flour instead. Thankfully, a few years ago the penny dropped, and I discovered that I could make the most delicious macaroni cheese, entirely gluten free! Neil’s delighted, an ..read more

Years ago, I had the sheer delight of working with my friend Cesca, in the kitchen at The Kirkfield, hotel, Newton Le Willows. Cesca and I go back a long way, as we went to high school and catering college together. We’ve also, drunk a little too much wine, danced on tables and laughed a LOT together, she was one of my bridesmaids and we remain great friends to this day!  It was whilst working at the Kirkfield hotel that Cesca taught me how to make Chicken Jean Bart. Little did I know at the time, that this delicious creamy chicken dish, with its own truly unique flavour, thanks to a yumm ..read more

I can remember years ago making a custard tart and my grandma being so impressed, as the pastry hadn’t popped up through the custard. Well, I’m delighted to say there was no pastry peeking where it shouldn’t have been, when I made these delicious gluten free custard tarts. Perfecting a gluten free custard tart recipe has been a labour of love for me over the past few months. Although, I must be honest there were times I almost gave up. Thankfully, my saving grace was discovering a fabulous ‘no frills’ custard tart/tartlet recipe in my grandma’s Be-Ro Home Recipes booklet. The recipe worked an ..read more