Generally speaking I drink water or fruit tea and not a lot else.  However, when Dan and I go out I usually order a lemonade; more often than not it's nothing special, but sometimes they actually taste like real lemons! In an attempt to improve these lack-lustre-probably-lemon-free-monstrosities I decided to have a go at making it myself, and I have been pleasantly surprised.

Today's recipe is adapted from Darina Allen's in her book Forgotten Skills of Cooking - it's so easy to make and tastes delicious; I urge you to give it a try.

Ingredients:

• The juice of 3 lemons
• 100g caster sugar
• 150ml water for the sugar solution
• 700ml water

Instructions:

1. Heat the sugar and water to make a sugar solution.  Leave it to boil for 2 minutes before removing from the heat and leaving to cool.
2. Put the lemon juice and remaining water into a large jug and stir.
3. Add the cooled sugar solution and stir again,
4. Serve with ice.

The recipe serves 6 and should ideally be drunk on the day of making.

Well the rhubarb in our garden hasn't grown enough yet for a spectacular spring-time pudding, but I can still look longingly out the window whilst baking this with rhubarb from our local farm shop.  It's such an easy recipe, and you can replace the rhubarb with apples, add sultanas or cinnamon, use pears instead... Once you've mastered the basics and found the right bowl, it's easy!

Rhubarb Pudding

Ingredients:

For the cake topping...

2 large eggs (duck eggs are best for baking if you can get them)

• 75g  butter or margarine
• 100g  caster sugar
• 100g self-raising flour
• 2 tbsp boiling water

For the filling...

• A few sticks of rhubarb
• A squeeze of lemon juice
• 20g butter
• 2 tbsp caster sugar
• Splash of water

Instructions:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180°C (356°F).
2. Wash, string and chop the rhubarb into small chunks.
3. Place the rhubarb, lemon juice and water into a pan and heat for a few minutes with a pan lid on.
4. Once the rhubarb is bubbling and starting to soften, add the butter and sugar and stir until melted.
5. Place the filling into an oven-proof dish - the size doesn't matter too much, as long as the fruit covers the base fully.
6. Cream together the sugar and butter for the cake topping.
7. Add a little egg and a little flour at a time to the mixture and carefully fold in.
8. Add the boiling water to the mixture and stir in.
9. Cover the fruit with the cake topping, making sure there are no gaps around the edges.
10. Bake for approximately 30 minutes or until the topping is golden brown.
11. Serve with yoghurt or cream.

This recipe was adapted from http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/evespudding_83911.

Perfect for using local and seasonal produce whilst still satisfying that craving for proper pudding we all seem to still retain at this time of year!

CC x