Three afternoon tea recipes from Great British Bake Off's Peter Sawkins

Peter Sawkins, the winner of the Great British Bake Off 2020, has come up with a collection of recipes that are perfect for an afternoon tea.

He collaborated with Bottlegreen for an array of delicious bakes and drinkable desserts - and we have three of them for you to try (complete with tips to make them gluten-free) below. 

There's a bramble bakewell tart, an easy rhubarb and ginger crumble traybake and, for something a little different, a rich and creamy ginger and lemongrass cheesecake. 

Bramble bakewell tart

This tart is filled to burst with juicy blackberries, with the addition of Bramble Cordial complementing the notes from the apples, sloe and elderflower. Combined with the delicate frangipane and bramble flavoured icing, this showstopping centrepiece will have everyone reaching for a second slice.

Tip: homemade pastry is best, but if you’re short on time shop-bought works just as well. 

Ingredients

For the shortcrust pastry:

• 200g plain flour (switch for gluten-free plain flour plus ½ tsp xanthan gum)
• 100g butter, cold and cubed
• ½ tsp salt
• 30g icing sugar
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1 tbsp water

For the bramble jam:

• 120g blackberries
• 100g jam sugar
• 4 tbsp bottlegreen Bramble Cordial
• 1 tsp cornflour

For the frangipane:

• 100g butter, softened
• 100g sugar
• 75g self-raising flour (switch for gluten-free self-raising flour)
• 2 large eggs
• 125g ground almonds
• 2 tbsp bottlegreen Bramble Cordial
• 25g flaked almonds
• 9 blackberries

For the icing:

• 50g icing sugar
• 2-3 tsp bottlegreen Bramble Cordial

Method

Make the pastry

1. Preheat the oven to 180C fan. Make and blind bake the pastry.
2. Using a food processor or your fingertips, rub the butter into the flour until it resembles fine breadcrumbs.
3. Stir through the salt and icing sugar followed by the egg yolk and water. Stir through until the mixture begins to clump together then work it into a ball of dough with your hands. Cover in clingfilm or baking paper, flatten into a round and chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
4. Roll out the chilled pastry on a lightly floured surface until just less than 3mm. Gently rest your tart tin (8” or 9” round) over the pastry and trim the pastry to about 2.5cm wider than the tin. Roll the pastry back over the rolling pin then unroll and drape over the tart tin. Press the pastry into the edges of the tin and leave overhang around the edge.
5. Prick the base of the pastry all over with a fork. Chill in the fridge for at least 15 minutes.
6. Line the chilled pastry with oven-safe clingfilm or scrunched baking paper and fill with baking beans or dry pulses. Bake for 15 minutes.
7. Remove from the oven and use a sharp knife to trim the excess pastry away from the tin. Lightly brush the inside of the pastry with the reserved egg white and place bake into the oven for a further 5-10 minutes or until the base appears dry. Remove from the oven and set aside. Reduce the oven temperature to 160ºc fan.

Make the bramble jam

1. Stir together the blackberries, jam sugar, bottlegreen Bramble cordial and cornflour over a high heat. Bring to a boil then reduce the heat and simmer for about 5 minutes or until it registers 105C on a sugar thermometer if you have one.
2. Remove from the pan and leave to cool to room temperature.

Make the frangipane

1. Cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
2. Add in the flour, eggs, ground almonds and cordial and mix until combined.

Assemble and bake

1. Spread the cooled bramble jam over the base of the pastry case. Top this with the frangipane and level off. Press the blackberries into the frangipane and scatter over the flaked almonds. Bake in the oven for about 35 minutes. Remove from the tin to cool on a wire rack.
2. Make the icing by mixing the icing sugar with the bottlegreen Bramble Cordial until a thick fluid consistency. Drizzle the icing over the top of the tart with bold strokes.

Rhubarb and ginger crumble traybake

This traybake modernises the traditional, heavy crumble and makes it a lighter alternative for any social gathering.

"Forced rhubarb is vibrant and pink and grows earlier in the season. Later season rhubarb doesn’t have the same colour and is a little harder and less sweet," Peter says. "Late season rhubarb still tastes great, but sometimes you just need to cook it out a little longer and add in a touch more sweetness."

Ingredients

• 200g rhubarb, chopped
• 5 tbsp bottlegreen Rhubarb and Ginger Cordial
• 50g caster sugar
• 10g cornflour

For the sponge:

• 150g butter, softened
• 130g caster sugar
• 4 tbsp bottlegreen Rhubarb and Ginger Cordial
• 2 large eggs
• ½ tsp ground ginger
• 150g self-raising flour (switch for gluten-free self-raising flour)
• 75g ground almonds
• ½ tsp baking powder (ensure gluten-free if making gf)
• ½ tsp salt

For the crumble topping:

• 100g plain flour (switch for gluten-free plain flour)
• 30g rolled oats (switch for gluten-free oats)
• ½ tsp ground ginger

Method

1. Make the rhubarb and ginger filling:
2. Preheat the oven to 160ºc fan. Grease and base line a 8” x 10” traybake/roasting tin.
3. Stir together the chopped rhubarb, bottlegreen Rhubarb and Ginger Cordial, caster sugar and cornflour in a pan over medium heat.
4. Bring the mixture to a simmer for about 5 minutes or until the rhubarb is beginning to break down and the mixture looks jammy.

Make the sponge batter

1. Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add in all the remaining ingredients and stir through until combined.

Make the crumble topping

1. Rub the cubed butter into the flour and ginger using your fingertips until it looks like a breadcrumb consistency.
2.  Stir through the oats, sugar and salt followed by the bottlegreen Rhubarb and Ginger Cordial encouraging it to form clumps.

Assemble and bake

1. Spread about ¾ of the sponge batter into the lined tin and level off. Top this with the rhubarb filling and spread out.
2. Dot the remaining sponge batter over the top of the rhubarb filling and spread out; it will look a little marbled and mottled with the rhubarb.
3. Cover the entire cake with the crumble in an even layer. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until the crumble is golden and a skewer comes out with no cake batter sticking to it.

Ginger and lemongrass cheesecake

Serves 4

This dish packs a flavoursome punch and is the perfect serve for warm summer days. "It is a very rich and creamy dessert so it’s best to serve small quantities and almost treat this like a liquor," Peter says.

Ingredients

Make the cheesecake mix:

• 60g cream cheese
• 180g vanilla ice cream
• 3 tbsp bottlegreen Ginger and Lemongrass Cordial

To assemble:

• 6 ginger nut biscuits
• Lemon wedge
• Fresh ginger
• Fresh lemongrass

Method

Make the cheesecake mix

1. Combine the cream cheese, ice cream and bottlegreen Ginger & Lemongrass Cordial in a food processor or blender and blitz until smooth.

Assemble the drink

1. Crush two ginger nuts into a powdery consistency. Rub a lemon wedge around the rim of your serving glasses to moisten the rim. Press the rim into the ginger nut crumb.
2. Serve the drinks over ice and garnish with fresh ginger and lemongrass.

Recipes courtesy of Bottlegreen