Jemma Melvin’s trifle beat 5,000 desserts to become the official Platinum Jubilee Pudding
Credit: Clarence House
A lemon Swiss roll and amaretti trifle has been named the official pudding of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.
Amateur baker Jemma Melvin’s creation beat 5,000 other desserts to be crowned winner of the Platinum Pudding competition.
Fortnum & Mason, the famed grocer to the Royals hosted this event. Narrowing 5,000 wonderful entries down to just five finalists was tricky, but choosing a single victorious baker and recipe from a final quintet of talented bakers was almost impossible.
The BBC One special The Jubilee Pudding: 70 Years in the Baking. brought together the five finalists and was judged by “doyenne of baking” Mary Berry, it consisted of Michelin-starred chef Monica Galetti, baking influencer Matt Adlard, cookbook author Jane Dunn, winner of 2018’s Great British Bake Off Rahul Mandal, dessert historian Regula Ysewijn, and Fortnum & Mason executive pastry chef Roger Pizey.
While fit for a Queen this recipe is quite ambitious and feeds 20. For shortcuts, focus on just making the swiss roll and mandarin coulis and buy the rest and assemble.
THE Platinum Jubilee Pudding
How to make the lemon and amaretti trifle that won the Platinum Pudding competition on the occasion of the Queen's Platinum Jubilee
Equipment
- 1 Triffle Bowl
- 1 swiss roll pan
Ingredients
Swiss Roll
- 4 large eggs free-range
- 100 g caster sugar plus extra for dusting
- 100 g self-raising flour sieved
- Butter for greasing
Lemon Curd
- 4 large egg yolks free-range
- 135 g granulated sugar
- 85 g salted butter softened
- 1 lemon zest only
- 80 ml fresh lemon juice
St. Clement's Jelly
- 6 leaves gelatine
- 4 large lemons unwaxed
- 3 medium oranges
- 150 g golden caster sugar
Custard
- 425 ml double cream
- 3 large egg yolks free-range
- 25 g golden caster sugar
- 1 tbsp cornflour (cornstarch)
- 1 tsp lemon extract
Amaretti Biscuits
- 2 large egg whites free-range
- 170 g caster sugar
- 170 g ground almonds
- 1 tbsp amaretto
- Butter or oil for greasing
Chunky Mandarin Coulis
- 4 tins mandarins 298 g
- 45 g caster sugar
- 16 g arrowroot 2 sachets
- 1 half lemon juice only
Jewelled Chocolate Bark
- 50 g mixed peel
- 1 tbsp caster sugar optional
- 200 g white chocolate broken into pieces
To Finish
- 600 ml double cream
Instructions
Make the Swiss Rolls
- Preheat the oven to 180C/160C fan/Gas 4. Grease and line the two Swiss roll tins with baking paper.
- Beat the eggs and sugar for the Swiss rolls together with an electric hand whisk for about five minutes, or until light and pale.
- Gently fold in the flour with a metal spoon.
- Divide the mixture between the two tins and bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the sponges are lightly golden and cooked through.
- Sprinkle some extra caster sugar on two sheets of baking paper and place sponges onto the paper. Peel the paper off and roll the sponges into a tight spiral, starting from the short side, then leave to cool.
- Place the egg yolks, granulated sugar, butter, lemon zest and lemon juice for the lemon curd into a glass bowl over a saucepan of simmering water, and do not let the water touch the bowl. Whisk for about 15 minutes so that the mixture is combined, cooked and thickened. Then pour into another bowl and leave to cool.
Make the St. Clement's Jelly
- Soak the gelatine leaves in cold water for five minutes to soften.
- Peel six strips from a lemon and six from an orange and put these into a saucepan with the sugar and 400ml of water. Bring it to a simmer and stir it occasionally until the sugar has dissolved.
- Remove the mixture from the heat and remove the peel, then squeeze the water from the gelatine and add the gelatine to the pan. Let it dissolve and then leave the mixture to cool.
- Squeeze the lemons and oranges so you have 150ml of both lemon and orange juice. Stir this into the pan then strain the jelly through a fine sieve into a jug and chill until cool but not set.
Make the Custard
- Place the cream for the custard into a saucepan and simmer it over a gentle heat, stirring occasionally.
- Whisk egg yolks, sugar, cornflour and lemon extract, then gradually add the hot cream to the bowl and continue whisking. Return the mixture to the pan, continue whisking over heat until the custard is thick and smooth, then pour it into a bowl or jug and leave it to cool with greaseproof paper placed over the top.
Make the Amaretti Biscuits
- Preheat the oven to 180C/160C Fan/Gas 4 for the amaretti biscuits.
- Beat the egg whites in a large bowl until they are firm, then gradually mix the sugar, almonds and amaretto in, to create a smooth paste.
- Place some baking paper on a baking tray and lightly brush with butter or oil, then place small mounds of the mixture onto the tray using a teaspoon, keeping them around 2cm apart. Bake for about 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown, then set aside to cool.
Make the Chunky Mandarin Coulis
- Strain two tins of mandarins, get rid of the juice and add the fruit to a saucepan with sugar. Put over heat until the fruit has broken down, then remove from heat.
- Slake the arrowroot with two tablespoons of cold water and add to the mandarins. Mix in with lemon juice and add to a large bowl. Add the remaining tins of strained mandarins to the bowl and leave to cool.
Make the Jewelled Chocolate Bark
- Dab the peel for the jewelled chocolate bark in caster sugar if it feels wet.
- Melt the white chocolate in a bowl sitting over a saucepan of simmering water, then pour it onto a baking tray lined with baking paper and add the peel. leave it to set and then break it up into shards.
Assemble
- Unroll the Swiss rolls and spread lemon curd on one side, then roll them back up. Slice one into 2.5cm thick slices. Place these slices upright around the bottom edge of the trifle dish so the spiral is visible from the outside. Slice the other Swiss roll into thicker pieces and use these to fill the bottom of the dish, ensuring the top is roughly the same level as the slices that line the edge. Use off-cuts of sponge to fill any gaps.
- Pour the St Clement’s jelly over the Swiss roll layer and set the trifle aside in the fridge for about three hours to allow the jelly to completely set.
- Once set, pour over the custard then arrange a single layer of amaretti biscuits, saving a few for the top. Then pour over the mandarin coulis.
- In a large bowl, whip the double cream until soft peaks form, then spoon it over the coulis.
- Crumble the remaining amaretti biscuits over the top and decorate the trifle with the chocolate bark shards.
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