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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

to think this is the most complicated recipe in the universe?

107 replies

intwrferingma · 04/06/2022 09:36

www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/lemon_swiss_roll_and_42467
What a faffadoodledo. Over two hours it says. More like over two DAYS! Please share the recipes you wish you'd never started, just to make me feel less of an idiot for embarking on this kitchen odyssey.

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6
MintyCedricRidesAgain · 04/06/2022 12:50

I did a take on individual Platinum Trifles (very much a cheat's version!). There's only 3 of us so not worth doing a huge one.

Used ready made lemon Swiss roll
Orange jelly made up with the mandarins and their juice
Lemon custard...I used a pack of Green's Lemon Meringue pie filling mix, made up with whole milk instead of water.
Whipped cream
Melted white choc sprinkled with toasted almonds (absolutely no chance of getting amaretti!), silver sugar balls and candied peel.

I liked it, but thought it could have had a bit more vavavoom tbh...perhaps I should made the full version not a chance

to think this is the most complicated recipe in the universe?
CaptainMyCaptain · 04/06/2022 12:57

AmaryIlis · 04/06/2022 11:49

This makes me quite cross. The criteria for that competition were specifically that it should be something that people could and would do at home, along similar lines to Victoria sponges and coronation chicken. Obviously no home cooks is going to try to make that from scratch, life is way too short. It seems to me that it short-changes all the people who put time and trouble into sending entries in for that competition that complied with the published criteria - if this was what the judges wanted, those people were simply wasting their time.

Sure, you can do it with shop bought ingredients, but then that's bog-standard trifle, isn't it?

Obviously no home cooks is going to try to make that from scratch, life is way too short.
And yet many people did and didn't have a problem with it.

MrsToothyBitch · 04/06/2022 13:05

@Fizbosshoes yesss I've had it with other chefs too, but my Tom Kerridge book seems to have a higher proportion of ingredient or technique grenades than others! And always SO fiddly or hard to buy.

Agree with the Pp about JO being within the time specified once you really know the recipe- think this goes for a lot of them tbh. I've just got Nigel Slaters 30 min book to try- he's pretty light on instructions though so it could go either way...

5foot5 · 04/06/2022 13:58

intwrferingma · 04/06/2022 11:56

@5foot5 ooo can you share your daughter's recipe? I'm intrigued..

Not sure where the original recipe is written down but it was a White Chocolate and Rose Pannacotta. Dead quick to make.

She read somewhere that the Queen likes floral flavoured chocolate and we thought this was the sort of pudding that would slip down easily and be digestible for a lady of 96

UtterlyUnimaginativeUsername · 04/06/2022 14:12

I once did a Heston recipe for apple and gingerbread trifle. As with this, every single element was made from scratch. It was utterly delicious but I never made it again.

intwrferingma · 04/06/2022 16:48

Ta dahhhh

to think this is the most complicated recipe in the universe?
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intwrferingma · 04/06/2022 16:49

@5foot5 it sounds lovely. And a lot blimmin easier!

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Antarcticant · 04/06/2022 16:50

Wow! Impressive!

CorpusCallosum · 04/06/2022 16:51

Wow that looks so great! Well done 👏

Spottyphonecase24 · 04/06/2022 17:01

I made it for yesterday. I learnt new skills (making jelly) and I enjoyed the process.

BUT it’s not the best to be honest. I couldn’t taste anything individually - it all tasted of citrus and just nearly all the same texture. DH loved it but I still prefer a good ol Birds trifle.

intwrferingma · 04/06/2022 17:02

I added amaretto into the cream. I find cream on its own a bit errrr creamy! I hope I've improved it rather than ruined it!

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HettySunshine · 04/06/2022 17:04

I made it! It did take two days.

It is extremely delicious!

I bought the custard.

to think this is the most complicated recipe in the universe?
Gasp0deTheW0nderD0g · 04/06/2022 17:26

I made it, but not entirely from the recipe. It didn't take me two days! What was everybody else doing for it to take that long? Maybe it's because I halved the quantities.

I made the Swiss roll and that was actually quite quick. It didn't rise as much as I'd hoped. On balance I prefer trifle sponges, which I usually buy ready made, but then you wouldn't get the nice visual of slices of Swiss roll visible through the glass bowl. Not a dealbreaker for me.

I made the lemon curd. First time ever doing that. The end result was good but frankly no better than good quality bought lemon curd, so I don't think I would bother doing that again.

I made the jelly. Not convinced it actually set, but that didn't matter, as it soaked into the Swiss roll and tasted very good.

First departure from the recipe was that because I halved the quantities I didn't have a huge amount of Swiss roll to fill up the bottom of my glass bowl so I put in a layer of cantucci biscuits, which was what Ocado suggested for this recipe. They didn't have amaretti biscuits and I copped out of making them as I thought I had ground almonds in and it turned out I didn't. The flavour of the cantucci with everything else was lovely and the texture was great. They're so hard they'd break your tooth if you try to eat them straight from the packet but in the trifle they softened up nicely.

Then I used a different recipe for the custard, as I thought custard made with double cream would be incredibly rich with whipped cream as well.

Finally, I also copped out of making the mandarin coulis as I couldn't see the point of it and couldn't face dirtying yet another pan, so I put my remaining cantucci biscuits on top of the custard and then my whipped cream, and decorated the top with drained tinned mandarins, which I happen to love and often use in trifle.

Didn't bother with the chocolate bark as I didn't like the sound of it, so that saved a lot of time and faff.

End result was lovely, but frankly not noticeably better than my normal trifle, which is basically the way the women of my family have always made trifle: trifle sponges, a little sherry, tinned fruit, packet of jelly, custard, whipped cream, and it took a lot longer than that much simpler approach. So I probably won't bother again, except to add cantucci or amaretti, as we did all like that for both flavour and texture.

intwrferingma · 04/06/2022 18:16

I like yours @HettySunshine . I should have put more candied peel in the chocolate except I hate-peel

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Hopeful16 · 04/06/2022 18:17

@intwrferingma good work!
Did you say the same as me, never again?!?!?

TokyoTen · 04/06/2022 19:11

Thank you @StarTwins that's actually really useful. No way would I make it from scratch but your version is far more manageable!

AmaryIlis · 04/06/2022 21:16

CaptainMyCaptain · 04/06/2022 12:57

Obviously no home cooks is going to try to make that from scratch, life is way too short.
And yet many people did and didn't have a problem with it.

Well, a few did, granted. Do we really think they are going to continue to do so in the way people still make Victoria sponges and coronation chicken?

AmaryIlis · 04/06/2022 21:19

MrsRinaDecker · 04/06/2022 12:45

She was on the one show on Thursday, and they gave lots of tips of pre-made stuff you could sub in. The clip is probably still on iplayer.

I wonder what would have happened if the original recipe had been submitted on the footing that the ingredients were pre-made stuff? Would it even have been shortlisted?

Motorina · 04/06/2022 22:06

@5foot5 that sounds delicious. Seriously, would love that recipe and (unlike the trifle) would actually make it.

Bimblybomeyelash · 04/06/2022 22:14

I think it looks impressive, but was a poor choice for a winning pudding, as it’s far too complicated to ever become
a classic. I am thinking about attempting an Eton mess style version though, with lemon curd, whipped cream, crushed amaretti and mandarin segments all folded in together in a glass. And I’ll call it a ‘Windsor mess’ in honour of the royal family.

BobbinThreadbare123 · 04/06/2022 22:17

I'm a decent cook, I've got time and the money to make absurd puddings, but I won't be making this. It's practically an Ottolenghi-level faffington.

WGACA · 04/06/2022 22:27

Antarcticant · 04/06/2022 09:45

'faffadoodledo' is my new favourite word.

Ditto!

I knew it would be this recipe too before I clicked it open.

Everyone’s trifles look fab. I wanted someone to make this for me to try because no way was I going to bother!

AmaryIlis · 04/06/2022 23:35

My favourite trifle comes from Delia's How to Cheat at Cooking. IIRC, it consists of booze-soaked cake, tinned custard, tinned mandarins, bananas and lots of cream. You can put jelly in if you insist. Delicious.

fibrecruncher · 05/06/2022 02:21

@intwrferingma Kitchen oddysey 😂😂Well done to you for trying. The closest we got to marking the event in our menus was fish & chips takeaway on the Fri & bangers & mash today!

WhereDoesThisToiletGo · 05/06/2022 05:00

I considered trying to make it but realised that I don't possess a glass bowl so used that as an excuse. So did the easier tiramisu with a raspberry and blueberry Union Jack on top instead