Trusted British chef recipes, tested at home
Mary Berry’s Three Fish Pie with Leeks and White Wine combines 750g of salmon, smoked haddock and fresh haddock in a leek and white wine sauce, topped with mashed potato and grated Gruyère. It bakes at 200°C/180°C fan/Gas 6 for 35–40 minutes and serves 6. Total time is about an hour and 15 minutes. This …
Hairy Bikers spicy fruit loaf is a moist, no-butter tea loaf packed with sultanas, currants, glacé cherries and prunes soaked overnight in strong tea. It bakes at 160°C for 60–75 minutes and keeps for up to 2 weeks in an airtight container. This comes from The Best of The Hairy Bikers, their compilation cookbook. The …
Mary Berry’s Fish Pie with Crushed Potato Topping is made with 400g each of hake and salmon in a dill and lemon white sauce with leek, finished with roughly crushed new potatoes drizzled in olive oil. It bakes at 200°C/fan 180°C/Gas 6 for 30–40 minutes and serves 6. The total time is about an hour. …
Mary Berry’s Victoria sandwich from Mary Berry’s Ultimate Cake Book (2003) is made with soft margarine rather than butter, combined with caster sugar, self-raising flour, four eggs, and baking powder, baked at 180°C/Gas 4 for 25 minutes in two 8-inch (20cm) greased and lined sandwich tins. The Ultimate Cake Book version predates Berry’s switch to …
Mary Berry’s Victoria sandwich cake from her Cookery Course (2015) is the Master Recipe in her baking chapter: 225g each of butter, caster sugar, self-raising flour, four large eggs, and 2 teaspoons of baking powder, baked at 180°C/fan 160°C for 20–30 minutes in two 20cm loose-bottomed sandwich tins. What makes this the “Master Recipe” in …
Mary Berry’s Victoria sandwich with cream from her Classic (2018) is a cream-filled version of the British classic, made with cold baking spread, caster sugar, self-raising flour, and eggs, baked at 180°C/160°C fan for 25 minutes, then filled with whipped cream and jam. In Classic (2018), Berry describes this as “a great British classic” and …
Mary Berry’s Victoria sponge from her Baking Bible is a classic all-in-one cake made with softened butter, caster sugar, self-raising flour, and four large eggs, baked at 180°C/Fan 160°C for 25 minutes and finished with jam and a dusting of caster sugar. In Mary Berry’s Baking Bible (2010), she calls it “the best known and …
Hairy Bikers chicken and spinach curry is a low-calorie saag made with diced chicken thighs, 500g of spinach and tempered whole spices. It serves 4 at just 200 calories each and takes about 45 minutes from start to finish. This comes from The Hairy Dieters: Simple Healthy Food, where Si and Dave note chicken is …
Hairy Bikers mushroom pasta bake is a creamy, oven-finished pasta dish made with mixed mushrooms, mascarpone, white wine, spinach and melted Taleggio cheese. It serves 4 with under 10 minutes of prep and about an hour total including baking. This comes from Our Family Favourites (2024), the tribute cookbook Si King completed after Dave’s passing. …
Hairy Bikers tiramisu layers coffee-soaked sponge fingers and crushed amaretti with a rum-spiked mascarpone custard, finished with shaved 85% dark chocolate. It serves 6 with no oven needed, and takes about 20 minutes of hands-on work plus several hours of chilling. This comes from Our Family Favourites (2024), the book Si King completed as a …
