Easter Baking!

As we edge towards Easter, it’s hard to resist the allure of supermarket aisles filled to the brim with tempting treats - still, nothing can quite compare to delicious, home-baked goods!

We’ve got 3 tasty Easter recipes for you to create using your Legend blends, and believe it or not, these are all chocolate-free, so might provide some sweet relief after over-indulging on the Easter eggs (it turns out there might be such a thing as too much chocolate after all!). Enjoy these Legendary bakes in the build-up to Easter, or share with friends and family over the delightfully long weekend…

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TACO LEGEND EASTER BISCUITS

Easter biscuits are traditionally given as a gift on Easter Sunday - they originate from the West Country, so being a Bristol-based company, we had to feature these! They’re lightly-spiced, studded with dried fruit, and have a crumbly, buttery texture, with a sprinkling of sugar on the top for a sweet crunch. Some traditional recipes originating from Somerset are flavoured with cassia oil, significant because it was supposedly used in the embalming process of Jesus’ body after his crucifixion. Here we’re using our Taco Legend CANELA BLEND, which combines the classic taste of cinnamon (a spice very similar to cassia) with a touch of allspice, aniseed, cloves and bitter orange peel. With the addition of some fresh lime zest you’ve got yourself a marvellous Mexican take on this West Country wonder! This recipe is really easy, so it’s a great one for the kids to get involved with over the Easter holidays, and the biscuits would make a great Easter gift presented in a pretty tin, gift box or cellophane bag. For the classic Easter biscuit look, use a fluted circle cutter.

You need (serves 12, roughly 24 biscuits):

• 1 small lime - zested
• 100g butter
• 2 tbsp milk
• 1 egg - white and yolk separated
• 115g
• 200g plain flour plus extra for rolling
• 75g currants or raisins
• 2 ¾ tsp CANELA BLEND

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas mark 4 and line 2 baking trays with parchment paper (if you only have 1 tray, you can bake the biscuits in batches)
2. Cream the butter with 100g sugar until pale and fluffy then beat in the egg yolk
3. Stir in the lime zest, milk, flour, 2 ½ tsp CANELA BLEND and a pinch of salt until you have a soft and slightly sticky dough, then stir in the currants or raisins until evenly distributed
4. Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface into a circle about 5mm thick. Cut out the biscuits using a 6cm cutter then transfer them to the lined baking trays
5. Bake for 10 minutes or until just beginning to brown
6. Whisk the egg white until slightly frothy, then brush on the biscuits. Sprinkle the biscuits with the remaining 1 tbsp sugar then return to the oven and bake for 2 more minutes.
7. Leave the biscuits to cool slightly on the tray for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Sprinkle with a pinch of CANELA BLEND to serve

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CURRY LEGEND HOT CROSS NAANS

In recent years, supermarkets have come up with all sorts of weird and wonderful takes on that quintessential Easter treat: the hot cross bun. It seems you can hardly move for novelty hot cross buns in the lead up to Easter these days, with everything from chocolate and salted caramel to cheese and marmite buns lining the shelves. We’re pretty sure no-one has created a curry version yet, though… introducing the hot cross naan! This recipe takes the components and flavours of an Indian restaurant classic - the peshwari naan - adds a cross coloured with our Curry Legend HALDI BLEND, then bakes at a high heat to imitate a traditional tandoor oven. The star of the show is the hot mango chutney glaze, which coats the buns in a varnish of sweet, sticky loveliness. The result is so perfectly shiny, you’d be forgiven for thinking they were props nabbed from a bakery’s window display - we can assure you, though, they are not just edible, but quite delectable! Enjoy with generous lashings of butter, or you could even dip it in your curry!

You need (serves 4, makes 8 small buns):

• 130ml milk (any type)
• 100g natural yogurt (full fat is best)
• 375g plain flour plus extra for rolling
• 4 tsp sugar
• 2 tsp dried yeast (a standard-size sachet)
• 4 tbsp mango chutney
• 25g raisins - finely chopped
• 25g ground almonds
• 25g desiccated coconut
• 1 tsp HALDI BLEND
• 2 tsp JEERA BLEND
• 1 tsp METHI BLEND

Method:

1. Warm the milk to a hand hot temperature then stir in the yeast and 2 tsp sugar. Leave in a warm place for 10 minutes or until the milk is starting to froth
2. Stir the milk mixture until the yeast is fully incorporated then stir it into 300g flour with the raisins, ground almonds, desiccated coconut, yogurt, 2 tbsp oil, 2 tsp JEERA BLEND, 1 tsp METHI BLEND and ½ tsp salt to a soft dough (add a small splash of water if the dough is too dry or a small amount of flour if too sticky and difficult to handle)
3. Knead on a floured surface for 2 minutes until smooth then cover and leave in a warm place for 45 minutes (or up to 2 hours) or until the dough has increased in size.
4. Preheat the oven to 200°C/gas mark 6 and line 2 baking trays with parchment paper
5. Divide the dough into 8 pieces. Roll each piece into a ball then place on the lined baking trays. Cover with a clean, damp tea towel and leave in a warm place for 15 minutes or until the dough has increased in size
6. Mix the remaining 75g flour with 1 tsp HALDI BLEND and 5 tbsp water (adding 1 tbsp at a time) to make a thick paste. Place in a piping bag
7. Pipe a cross on top of each bun then bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown
8. Heat the mango chutney until it becomes slightly runny, then sieve (discarding any chunks of mango)
9. Brush the buns with the sieved chutney, then return to the oven and bake for 2 more minutes. Leave to cool

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 MEZZE LEGEND CARROT CAKE

Carrot cake is the perfect Easter bake, and this one makes a stunning centrepiece on a table of chocolate-heavy Easter treats - it was met with wide eyes, big grins and a chorus of ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’ when we served it up alongside our afternoon cup of tea at Spicery HQ! The cake itself is light, sumptuously spongy and perfectly moist, spiced with our Mezze Legend QARFA BLEND which features fragrant allspice, green cardamon, rose petals, nutmeg, long pepper and cloves, replacing (and giving greater depth of flavour than) the typical mixed spice. To give it a real Middle Eastern feel, the classic cream cheese frosting is combined with tahini for a rich, sophisticated nuttiness, and the whole thing is topped with crushed pistachio nuts. We recommend decorating with sugar carrots (which are available in the baking sections of most large supermarkets) as these add just the right amount of sweet Easter novelty to what is otherwise an elegant looking and tasting cake, and the pop of orange contrasts beautifully with the green of the pistachios. We predict that your guests will be asking you for this recipe, whilst simultaneously reaching for another slice…

You Need (serves 12):

• 300g carrots - peeled and grated
• 1 orange - zested
• 110g butter - at room temperature
• 180g cream cheese
• 2 eggs 
• 45g tahini
• 50g raisins
• 100g pistachios - roughly chopped or crushed
• 200g self raising flour
• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 175g brown sugar
• 225g icing sugar
• 150ml oil (sunflower or vegetable oil is best)
• Sugar carrot decorations (optional)
• 3 tsp QARFA BLEND

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas mark 4, then grease and line a 20cm square cake tin with baking parchment
2. Whisk the eggs with the oil and brown sugar until fully combined then stir in the carrots, orange zest, raisins and 25g pistachios
3. Stir in the bicarbonate of soda, 3 tsp QARFA BLEND and ¼ tsp salt, then finally add the flour and mix until just combined
4. Pour the batter into the tin and bake for 30 minutes or until the top is golden brown, bounces back when pressed and when you insert a skewer into the centre it comes out clean. Transfer the cake to a wire rack and leave to cool completely
5. To make the tahini cream cheese frosting, whisk the tahini with the butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add the icing sugar and a pinch of salt and whisk until the frosting is thick and fluffy
6. Top the cake with the tahini cream cheese frosting, then sprinkle over the remaining pistachios and place on the sugar carrot decorations (if using)