Clementines with Moya Lothian-McLean
Festive friands and food at Gatwick
Happy December! I have a few Christmas recipes coming for you which I’m quite excited about. There are many who don’t like the classic Christmas sweets of mince pies, cake and pudding. Me, I love them. But it’s not all about me. So this week’s recipe is My First Friand, a sweet clementine treat, made with those who dislike dried fruit in mind. In The Interviews this month I’m speaking to the brave and brilliant journalist Moya Lothian-McLean, who you may have seen on Novara Live and Sky News among other places. We spoke about food at Gatwick Airport, Morrisons, and Moya revealed a shocking Babybel-related truth…
It’s the first week of December which means my boyfriend Charles’ Christmas playlist is on, and Christmassy recipes are here. I think this time of year is fun because you can make your own traditions. For instance, as I march further into adulthood, I’m determined to make making sausage rolls a thing I do for Christmas, despite that never having been a thing in my family. Because I can!
For a whole year I’ve been longing to experiment with clementines in the kitchen and these friands are one of the results. Easy, quick and necessitating few ingredients, they are a treat that feels festive but with none of the intensely syrupy flavours Christmas sweets can bring. Light, comforting and most importantly citrusy – they are everything I like in a cake. I’ve added a bit of cream to the recipe which isn’t customary but seems to make them a little extra fluffy, and we deserve it. More new Christmas traditions to come, watch this space…
If you don’t have a bundt tin or a friand pan (who does, really?) you can make these in a muffin tin just fine. You have the option to take them a bit further in the oven (to the full 20 minutes) if you prefer a crunchier exterior, as you can see below – baker’s choice. I hope you’ll give them a go, and dust them with icing sugar or drizzle with the optional clementine icing in the recipe. Can I please get three cheers for sugar?
