COOKBOOKS GALORE

I belong to a French Conversation group, and we had a get together last week with coffee and cakes - French recipes. This is one I made many times in France, but not since I've been back in the UK. Praline chocolate and nougat seemed to be more readily available there, or maybe I haven't been looking in the right places! You need: 60g sr flour and 1 tspn baking powder, 100g praline chocolate, 50g nougat chopped into small pieces, 70g caster sugar, 60g butter  Preheat oven 180C/gas4          Grease and base line a 24cm cake tin. Break the chocolate into pieces, add 5 tbspn of water and melt in a microwave. In another small bowl, melt the butter, and in a 3rd bowl beat the eggs and sugar together till fluffy. Fold the flour and baking powder into the batter, then pour in the melted chocolate and butter. Mix together. Add the pieces of nougat and mix again. Pour into the tin and bake for 35 mins. Cool the cake in the tin . Serve with ice cream, c...

I haven't done much baking lately. Been too hot, and not much fun baking for one! Friends coming for tea so decided to make something my friend in France used to make - a raspberry moelleux. The word moelleux means smooth or creamy, but it's used as a type of dessert too. You need: 180g sr flour, 1 tspn baking powder, 400g raspberries, 160g caster sugar, 1 small pot natural yoghurt ,3 eggs, 100ml vegetable oil, icing sugar Preheat oven 180C/gas4                  Grease a 20cm square tin well and line base. Beat the eggs and sugar together till fluffy. Add the yoghurt and oil and mix in. Fold in the flour and baking powder gently. Spoon into the tin and cover with the raspberries. Press them down gently with the back of a spoon. Bake for 25 mins. Mark the cake into slices then cool on a wire rack. Dust with icing sugar. The 'cake' is lovely and soft; the centre is smooth and a good contrast to the raspberries. Makes a good dessert w...