Winter is here, the pumpkins have been carved and cleared away and attention now turns to nutritious food to sustain us through the coldest time of the year.

Here, at Saturday Serving, TV chef and baking expert, Mary Berry shares three recipes from her new book, Love to Cook.

After years at the helm of Bakeoff, Mary has been busy building a new set of recipes guaranteed to brighten up any winter servings:

Mary’s recipes

Nordic Seed and Nut Loaf 

Nordic seed and nut loaf by Mary Berry

Makes 1 × 900g (2lb) loaf

Ingredients

Butter or oil, for greasing

4 large eggs

3 tbsp olive oil

50g (2oz) soft dried dates, finely chopped

5g (1/8oz) sea salt

75g (3oz) pumpkin seeds

75g (3oz) sunflower seeds

150g (5oz) pecan nuts, finely chopped

50g (2oz) sesame seeds

3 tbsp chia seeds

Method

Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/Gas 4. Grease the base and sides of a 900g (2lb) loaf tin and line with non-stick baking paper.

Break the eggs into a bowl and beat with a fork until combined. Add the remaining ingredients and mix well using a wooden spoon.

Pour the mixture into the loaf tin and bake for 45–50 minutes, until golden brown and firm in the centre.

Leave to cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then loosen the edges with a palette knife, remove from the tin and place on a wire rack to cool completely.

Slice into thin slices to serve.

Mary’s tips 

• Can be made up to a day before.
• Freezes well.

Vegetable Noodle Soup Bowl 

Vegetable noodle soup bowl by Mary Berry

Serves 6

Ingredients 
1.8 litres (3 pints) good vegetable stock

5cm (2in) fresh root ginger, peeled and grated

1 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped

6 spring onions, sliced

1. tsp Chinese five spice powder

1 tbsp light muscovado sugar

1 tbsp sweet chilli sauce

1 tbsp soy sauce

150g (5oz) shiitake mushrooms, sliced

50g (2oz) fine egg noodles

1 pak choi, sliced

Juice of ½ small lime

Small bunch of coriander, chopped

Method

Pour the stock into a large saucepan and bring up to the boil.

Add the ginger, chilli, spring onions, Chinese five spice powder, sugar, sweet chilli sauce and soy sauce, reduce the heat and simmer gently for 5 minutes.

Add the mushrooms and noodles and simmer for 3–4 minutes until the noodles are cooked. Stir in the pak choi and lime juice and check the seasoning. Simmer for a further 2 minutes.

Ladle into bowls and sprinkle with coriander to serve.

Mary’s tips 

• Can be made up to a day ahead – add the noodles and pak choi just before serving.
• Not for freezing

Paradise Chocolate Cake 

Paradise chocolate cake by Mary Berry

Serves 8

Ingredients

120g (4½oz) Bournville dark chocolate, broken into pieces

30g (11/4oz) cocoa powder, sifted

4 tbsp boiling water

200g (7oz) baking spread, straight from the fridge, plus extra for greasing

3 large eggs

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100g (4oz) caster sugar

100g (4oz) light muscovado sugar

175g (6oz) self-raising flour

2 tbsp milk

2 tbsp apricot jam, warmed

Ganache Icing

200g (7oz) double cream

200g (7oz) Bournville dark chocolate, broken into pieces

To Decorate

100g (4oz) Bournville dark chocolate

200g (7oz) Belgian continental white chocolate

Icing sugar, to dust

Method

Preheat the oven to 160°C/140°C fan/Gas 3. Grease and base line a 20cm (8in) deep cake tin and place a piece of non-stick baking paper on a baking sheet.

To make the cake, place the chocolate in a bowl set over a pan of gently simmering water, making sure the base of the bowl does not touch the water. Stir gently until the chocolate has just melted. Set aside to cool.

Place the cocoa powder in a large bowl, pour in the boiling water and mix to a smooth paste. Add the baking spread, eggs, sugars, flour, milk and melted chocolate and whisk using an electric whisk for 2 minutes, until light and smooth.

Spoon the mixture into the tin and level the surface. Bake in the oven for 1–11/4 hours, until well risen and coming away from the sides of the tin. Expect a crack on the top like a brownie. Leave to cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then carefully remove and finish cooling on a wire rack.

To make the ganache icing, measure the cream into a saucepan and heat until simmering. Remove from the heat and add the chocolate. Stir until melted, then set aside in a cool place to thicken to a spreadable consistency.

Brush the top and sides of the cake with the warmed apricot jam, then spread the ganache over. Use a palette knife to smooth the edges. Leave to set for about 2 hours.

To make the decoration, break the dark chocolate into one bowl and the white chocolate into another. Set each bowl over a pan of gently simmering water, making sure the base of the bowls do not touch the water. Stir gently until just melted.

Spread the white chocolate on to the prepared baking sheet and use the back of a spoon to make a thin rectangle about 25 × 18cm (10 × 7in). Using another spoon, drizzle the dark chocolate over the white chocolate to make a zig zag pattern. Place in the fridge to chill for 30 minutes.

Once the chocolate is hard, slice into wedges and stand them vertically on the cake. Dust with icing sugar to serve.

Mary’s tips

• Can be made a day ahead and iced on the day.
• Un-iced cake freezes well.

Mary Berry is a food writer, chef, baker and TV presenter. Extracted from Love to Cook by Mary Berry (BBC Books). Out now.

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