Jubilee Bake Off: Elderflower Syllabub with Lemon Curd Biscuits

With only two weeks until the Jubilee celebrations, it is time to get baking for Queen and Country.

Ohh, I feel like James Bond. Except less shaken and stirred. And more mixed and stirred.

And just as I was thinking what to bake, the lovely people at Forman and Field got in touch to ask if I would like to take part in their Jubilee Bake Off.

I said yes quicker than Her Majesty would say yes to one thousand boats travelling in a great big flotilla down the Thames in a Diamond Jubilee Pageant.

I was sent a Mystery Box of Ingredients. I'd really, really hoped it may contain the crown jewels. It didn't. But it did contain the following:

• Dove's Farm Flour
• Longman's Unsalted Farm Butter
• Forman and Field Lemon Curd
• Creme Anglaise
• Elderflower Liqueur
• Original Beans Cru Virunga 70% Dark Chocolate
• Mulled Pears 

I soon discarded the idea of Mulled Pear and Elderflower pancakes, with a Chocolate and Creme Anglaise sauce with Lemon Curd drizzle. 

And, after much deliberation, choose instead to bake dainty, lemony melt-in-your mouth biscuits which I hope perfectly accompany a delicate, fragrant creamy Elderflower Syllabub. 

During seventeenth, eighteenth and nineteenth century England, Syllabub was very popular dessert during festivities and celebrations. Which makes it highly befitting for Jubilee celebrations. Traditionally made with whipped cream, white wine, egg white, sugar and lemon I've omitted the egg white and substituted the white wine for the Elderflower Liqueur.

Elderflower Syllabub with Lemon Curd Biscuits

(Serves 2)

For the Lemon Curd Biscuits

100g softened butter

75g golden caster sugar

1 egg yolk

0.5 tsp Vanilla Extract

Zest 1 lemon

150g sifted plain flour

10 tsps lemon curd

Juice of 1 lemon

60g sifted icing sugar

For the Syllabub

150ml double cream
2-3 tbsps Elderflower Liquor
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tbsp sifted icing sugar

To decroate
Grated zest of 1 lemon

1. For the biscuits: Mix together the butter, sugar, egg yolk, vanilla extract and lemon zest in a large bowl. Add the flour and mix to form a smooth, soft dough. Using your hands, form the dough into a ball, wrap in clingfilm and place in the fridge for twenty minutes to chill
2. Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan/Gas Mark 6. Roll out the chilled dough on a lightly floured work surface to a thickness of a £1 coin and, using a 4cm round cutter, stamp out the biscuits. You should be able to stamp out approximately twenty biscuits. Bake for approximately ten minutes until lightly golden in colour. Allow to cool on a wire rack
3. To make the Syllabub, combine the liqueur, lemon juice and icing sugar in a large bowl. Slowly and gently whisk in the cream using either a balloon whisk or an electric whisk until it reaches soft peaks. Spoon into two ramekins and chill for one hour.
4. When ready to serve, sandwich together two biscuits with a teaspoon of Lemon Curd. Mix together the lemon juice and icing sugar and drizzle over the biscuits. Grate the lemon zest over the biscuits and the chilled Syllabubs. Serve together and enjoy a Jubilant Jubilee!

Baker's notes...

• When whisking the double cream for the Syllabub aim for soft, layered folds of cream and ensure the whisk reaches the cream right at the bottom of the bowl
• The biscuit recipe will produce ten biscuits, plenty of leftovers to enjoy or feed to the corgis
• A full list of the eight other bloggers taking part in the Forman's Jubilee Bake Off can be found here- I was delighted to see three good blogging friends of mine, Working London Mummy, Fabulicious Food and Lavender and Lovage are taking part!
• With many thanks to Forman and Field for inviting me to take part in the Jubilee Bake Off and for sending the ingredients listed above. The competition closes on 31st May 2012 and the winner will be announced shortly afterwards. Follow the hashtag #Formansjubileebakeoff on twitter for all the updates!