Gizzi Erskine

Chocolate log is great as it is, but this recipe is extra Christmassy – I’ve pimped the ordinary chocolate cream filling and swapped it for a velvety chestnut cream with hints of salted caramel, then covered it in broken-up chocolate flakes to make it look even more like a real log. The imperative snow look […]

SERVES 10–12 PREPARATION TIME: 1 HOUR, PLUS COOLING COOKING TIME: 30 MINUTES FOR THE PASTRY; 1 HOUR FOR THE PIE   For Brits, pumpkin pie sounds a bit on the “weirdy-woos” side, but in America, pumpkin pie is as standard as apple pie is to us. Pretty much every American household will have it for […]

I’m not going to pretend that organization is my strong suit, BUT avoiding stress is the key to enjoying the festive period – the idea is to have a good time, not a nervous breakdown. With a bit of forward planning things will go a whole lot smoother, so here is a breakdown of steps […]

’Nduja is an Italian meat purée that’s highly spiced with paprika. You can buy it from Italian delis or online, but if you can’t find it you can use 300g (10 ½ oz) of cooking chorizo, casing removed, blitzed in a food processor with 1 teaspoon of smoked paprika and 1 teaspoon of olive oil. […]

Carving a pumpkin this Halloween? Whether you’re after an iconic spooky lantern or want to dazzle the neighbours with a custom glitter creation, you’ll find inspiration in Gizzi’s Season’s Eatings. SPOOKY PUMPKIN LANTERN You will need: 1 HUGE Pumpkin a marker pen pumpkin cutters or a thin sharp knife a spoon tea lights I find […]

Where’s the buffet gone? It agitates me that we only really have them during the winter festive period. How did we get here? I guess we went through a stage of embracing formal dining. With the popularity of celebrity chefs and cooking shows on TV, people are bringing the things even I find ludicrous in […]

  SERVES 10–12 Preparation Time 20 minutes, plus chilling Cooking Time 50 minutes Ingredients 250g unsalted butter, chopped into cubes, plus extra for greasing 250ml chocolate stout or Guinness 100g plain chocolate (70% cocoa solids), broken into pieces 35g cocoa powder 400g golden caster sugar 2 eggs 142g natural yogurt 1 tablespoon vanilla extract 275g plain flour 2½ teaspoons […]