Ingredients

2 bunches lovage
500g butter
500g sugar
500g self raising flour
20g baking powder
1 punnet grade 1 kent strawberries
Freeze dried strawberries
Freeze dried yuzu flakes
1 litre double cream
400g malt extract
2 cucumbers
500ml water
500g sugar
1 punnet borage leaves
1 punnet viola flowers
2 oranges
10 eggs
citric acid
4 limes
4 lemons
2 bunches mint

Method

For the lovage cake
Add 500g of butter and 500g of sugar to a blender, blitz until butter cream, add 1 bunch of lovage and blitz.
Add 8 eggs and blitz, add a small spoonful of baking powder and blitz, add 500g of self raising flour and blitz drizzling in a small out of milk until consistency you require is reached.
Pour onto a baking tray and bake for 22 minutes at 170c. When done leave to cool down and remove the top.
For the Cucumber Sugar Syrup
Add one whole cucumber sliced to 500g sugar and 500ml water and boil until thick enough. Pass and chill
For the Citric Acid and Orange Meringues
Add 3 egg whites to 300g of sugar and mix on a high speed until still peaks are formed. Add citric acid and blitz for 10 more seconds.
For the malt cream
Add 4 table spoons of malt extract to 400g double cream and whisk until stiff peaks, Add to piping bag.
For the candied lemon peel
Remove peel from lemon, add to equal parts water and sugar. Boil until no longer bitter. Roll in caster sugar.

In these challenging times…

The Staff Canteen team are taking a different approach to keeping our website independent and delivering content free from commercial influence. Our Editorial team have a critical role to play in informing and supporting our audience in a balanced way. We would never put up a paywall and restrict access – The Staff Canteen is open to all and we want to keep bringing you the content you want; more from younger chefs, more on mental health, more tips and industry knowledge, more recipes and more videos. We need your support right now, more than ever, to keep The Staff Canteen active. Without your financial contributions this would not be possible.

Over the last 12 years, The Staff Canteen has built what has become the go-to platform for chefs and hospitality professionals. As members and visitors, your daily support has made The Staff Canteen what it is today. Our features and videos from the world’s biggest name chefs are something we are proud of. We have over 500,000 followers across Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and other social channels, each connecting with chefs across the world. Our editorial and social media team are creating and delivering engaging content every day, to support you and the whole sector - we want to do more for you.

A single coffee is more than £2, a beer is £4.50 and a large glass of wine can be £6 or more.

Support The Staff Canteen from as little as £1 today. Thank you.