LINZER BISCUITS

240g cake flour

20g cocoa powder

200g unsalted butter, cubed, cool

175g caster sugar

200g ground nuts (hazelnuts or almonds, with skin on)

1½ tsp ground cinnamon

¼ tsp ground cloves

1 medium egg

1tbsp kirsch

400g raspberry jam

Egg yolk, for glazing l Put all ingredients into a big bowl. Mix and knead swiftly with your hands until the dough holds together well. Make a ball, wrap in clingfilm, and let it rest in the fridge for at least 2 hours. l Once the dough has rested, preheat oven to 175C fan. Roll out the dough to a sheet, about 5mm thick. l Using the big cookie cutter cut out as many biscuits as possible. Transfer half of the biscuits onto lined baking sheets. Using the small cutter, cut out the centres of the remaining biscuits. Place one of those biscuits neatly on top of each complete biscuit on the baking sheet. l Fill the cut-out centre of the stacked biscuits with raspberry jam. l Glaze the biscuits (not the jam) with egg yolk, if desired. Bake at 175C fan for 20 minutes. Watch the colour of the rim, it should be brown, like milk chocolate. l Let cool on a wire rack. Sprinkle with icing sugar. These biscuits taste great fresh, but they improve greatly over time, stored in an airtight container in a cool place.

KRAUSS was a fan favourite on GBBO 2021.

See Jürgen in the Cake & Bake Theatre on Saturday 3 June at 1.30pm

Serves 4

1 onion, diced

4 garlic cloves, sliced

360g orzo pasta

½ tsp smoked paprika

160g diced tomatoes

125ml white wine

Pinch of saffron threads

About 2 litres chicken stock

Small handful of finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Pinch of dried chilli flakes

Pinch of fennel seeds

200g sliced squid

A couple of handfuls of live mussels or clams, cleaned

A couple of handfuls of prawns

400g firm white fish fillets, such as cod or monkfish, cubed

75g petit pois

A splash of ouzo

Freshly squeezed juice of 1 lemon

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Olive oil, for cooking and drizzling l In a large, deep-sided frying pan, fry the onion in a little olive oil for 5–10 minutes until soft but not coloured. Add half the garlic, the orzo and smoked paprika. Fry the orzo for a couple of minutes before introducing the tomatoes, wine and saffron to the pan. l Reduce the wine until almost gone, season, then add half the stock. Simmer gently, giving it an occasional stir, until the stock is absorbed. Add the rest of the stock in batches until the orzo is cooked through, but has a tiny bit of chewiness; this will take around 20–30 minutes. You may need a little less or more stock depending on the size of your orzo. It will thicken as it cools, so keep some stock by in case you need to loosen it later. Once the orzo is done to your liking, remove it from the heat. Add most of the chopped parsley and the chilli flakes and let it rest. (At this stage, you already have a simple kritharaki that makes a perfect side dish.) l Next, add a little olive oil to a clean pan, add the fennel seeds and the remaining garlic to warm through. Introduce the shellfish and fish to the pan and fry for 1 minute. Add the petit pois and a tablespoon or two of water and cover to cook the seafood for just a few minutes. Remove the lid and let any residual water evaporate, discarding any mussels that do not open. Add a splash of ouzo and reduce until almost gone. Remove from the heat and pour the entire contents into the cooked orzo and fold through. l Add a little more stock if it’s too thick. Taste for seasoning, pour onto a large platter, scatter with the remaining chopped parsley, a drizzle of olive oil and a small squeeze of lemon juice.

THEO MICHAELS is a TV chef, writer and MasterChef semi-finalist. See Theo in the La Española Chefs Theatre on Saturday 3 June at 3pm

Orexi! by Theo Michaels, published by Ryland Peters & Small (£18.99).

Photography by Mowie Kay © Ryland Peters & Small

Serves 2-3

240g skinless chicken breasts or 300g tofu, cut into 2.5cm chunks

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 onion, diced

3 garlic cloves, minced

3 tbsp Thai red curry paste (how much curry paste you use will depend on which curry paste you use, so taste before adding)

1 tbsp freshly grated ginger

700ml vegetable or chicken broth

400ml can coconut milk

1 red pepper, diced

1 courgette, cut into semicircles

2 large handfuls of spinach

120g rice noodles

1 tbsp fish sauce

Salt and pepper

For the toppings

4 spring onions, thinly sliced

Fresh coriander leaves

Fresh lime juice l If you’re using chicken, bring a pan of water to the boil and add the chicken breasts. Cook for 15 minutes, then remove from the water and use two forks to shred the chicken. Set aside. l Meanwhile, heat some extra virgin olive oil in a large pan over a medium heat. Add the onion and tofu (if using) and cook until the onion is translucent and the tofu has started to brown, about 4 minutes. Then add the garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 1 minute. l Stir in the red curry paste and ginger and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. l Stir in the broth and coconut milk. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until reduced. l Add the red pepper and courgette, and cook for 5 minutes. l Next, add the chicken (if using), spinach, rice noodles and fish sauce, give everything a good stir and bring to a simmer. Cook for about 5 minutes until the noodles are tender. l Remove from the heat and top with the spring onions and coriander. Squeeze over the lime juice and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Then you’re ready to serve.

JENNIFER MEDHURST is the Imperfect Nutritionist. See Jennifer in the La Española Chefs Theatre on Saturday 3rd at 5pm

The Imperfect Nutritionist: 7 Principles of Healthy Eating by Jennifer Medhurst, published by Octopus Publishing Group (£25).

©Octopus Publishing Group

Makes 16

For the nut filling

80g unsalted butter, melted

100g pistachios

100g walnuts

40g caster sugar

2½ tsp ground cinnamon

20g honey

For the flapjacks

5 tbsp sesame seeds

350g rolled oats

210g unsalted butter

60g light soft brown sugar

3 tbsp (60g) golden syrup

3 tbsp (60g) honey

1/4 tsp fine sea salt

1½ tsp cinnamon

3 tsp rose water

For the glaze

8 tbsp (160g) honey

Juice of 1 lemon

6 tsp rose water

1 tsp rose petals, to decorate

1 tsp crushed pistachios, to decorate l Preheat the oven to 170°C fan and line a 20cm square baking tin with baking paper. l First make the nut filling. Place 2 tbsp of the melted butter in a large bowl with the

CRYSTELLE PEREIRA is a writer and GBBO finalist. See Crystelle in the La Española Chefs Theatre and Cake & Bake Theatre on Sunday 4th pistachios and walnuts and toss to coat. Transfer the nuts to a baking tray and roast for 10 minutes until lightly golden and fragrant. Once roasted and cooled, very finely chop half of these (a food processor works best), and then chop the rest into small chunks. Place all the nuts in a bowl and mix together with the caster sugar and cinnamon. Stir the honey into the remaining melted butter until smooth and pour this over the nut mixture. Stir until well combined and set aside. l In a large dry frying pan, toast the sesame seeds over a low heat for about 5 minutes until golden and fragrant, then transfer to a bowl with the oats and mix together. l In a large saucepan over a low-medium heat, place the butter, sugar, golden syrup, honey, salt and cinnamon and melt, stirring, until everything is combined. Turn off the heat and stir through the rose water, then gradually add the oat mixture and mix well. l Pour half of this into the baking tin and flatten down with a spatula, then spread the nut mixture in a layer on top, again flattening out with a spatula. Finally, spread the rest of the flapjack batter over the nuts and press down well until flat. Transfer to the oven and bake for around 25 minutes until firm and slightly browned around the edges. l Meanwhile, make the glaze. In a small bowl, mix together the honey, lemon juice and rose water. Once the flapjacks are baked, brush this glaze all over the top. Allow the flapjacks to cool completely; first at room temperature, and then in the fridge for at least 2 hours, until completely cold. l Turn out of the tin and cut the flapjacks into diamondshaped pieces (like baklava) – first slicing vertically in 2cm strips, and then slicing diagonally across. Decorate with pistachios and rose petals if you like.

Flavour Kitchen by Crystelle Pereira, published by Octopus Publishing Group (£22). ©Octopus Publishing Group

TOM LODGE is chef-patron of The Muddy Toad in Pontypool. See Tom in the La Española Chefs Theatre on Friday 2nd at 5pm