I have a book in my possession called ‘The Man Catcher’s Manual’, which offers all sorts of advice about finding a sugar daddy. The only piece I remember is that one should always carry an uncrushable jersey day dress in their handbag so one doesn’t have to be seen at 10am the next morning in last night’s cocktail frock. Alas, I have had little use for this piece of information, but have found it extremely handy to always have a very simple dessert recipe in my apron pocket. I haven’t attracted the attention of any wealthy benefactors with it yet, but this can only be a matter of time…
Lemon Posset
We have Jill Dupleix to thank for this tremendous recipe (and my sister Marion, who first alerted me to it). Jill Dupleix is one of my favourite writers – not least because I emailed her once when she wrote about quinces in The Times and she replied about 10 minutes later – and her recipes are brilliant. You should really go and buy one of her books. (Marion’s recipes are great too, only she hasn’t written any books. Yet.)
This is velvety, creamy and tangy all at once. Use Yen Ben or another acidic variety of lemon for best results.
450ml cream
125g caster sugar
60ml (4Tbsp) lemon juice
Pour the cream and sugar into a small pot. Heat gently, stirring to dissolve the sugar, and bring to the boil. Let simmer very, very gently for three minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon juice. Let cool for 10 minutes, then pour into four ramekins or little coffee cups. Chill for a few hours before serving. Serves four.
Have a sweet weekend, everyone, and don’t forget to enter The Kitchenmaid’s fab birthday giveaway!
That book sounds a right laugh ;0)
Love posset, so if this is within its pages it gets my vote!
Is your sister likely to write a cookbook? How exciting would that be?
Your lemon posset looks very good.
It's always lovely when someone responds like that. I will look out for her books now that I know she is a nice person.
oh i'd love to flip through a book like that!! although…in my single days I always have a toothbrush in my handbag…lemon posset looks excellent and inviting! 🙂
What a nice thing to try:) Thanks;)
Love the uncrushable jersey dress idea. Big handbag required though and any man who actually cares what you look like the next day is not worth having! Lemon Posset is a much better idea as we all know that the way to a man's heart is through his stomach 😉
hey lucy, my mouth is watering imagining the tang of that lemon posset, yum-oh!
just wanted to say a belated happy birthday to the kitchenmaid and that i love reading your blog ; )
also, i recall you saying you had yet to find a good vegan frosting for your cupcakes, i'm happy to say i reckon i've found a pretty amazing one, which i will share with you just as soon as i can find it again…lost down the back of a drawer i think
hope you're all well
x maree
I always keep an uncrushable jersey dress in my handbag… always.
Despite the fact that I have the man of my dreams (and two of his sons) I'm buying that book!
Super posset, it's just such a wonderful pudding.
Jude x
ps congratulations on your Blogaversary.
It looks gorgeous, such a sunny, cheery colour. I can't say I've made many Jill Dupleix recipes but I might keep an eye out now!
I'm definitely a Jill Dupleix fan and this does look particularly good. Can't quite decide on the colour of jersey dress for tomorrow's handbag. When I was single I always carried a slightly needy and crushable expression on my face, I think.
Not sure about the man-catching advice but I do love Jill Dupleix. I have her book New Food in which she dispenses lots of really good advice such as "when in doubt add champagne". And I do.
Thanks for your kind comment on my blog, Lucy. I am full of admiration for you having blogged your way past year one – as well as holding down a job and mastering the art of toddlers. Congrats.
your fabulous little book made me laugh, uncrushable jersey dress! The lemon posset sounds delicious and easy – perfect.
This is one of my favourite recipes – I found a version of it (not Dupleix's) in a Cuisine magazine in 2003 and must've made it hundreds of times since. I haven't made it in a long, long time though – am so ready for a revisit after reading this though!