Food & Drink with Suzanne James. This article first appeared in the December issue of SE22 Magazine.

Ingredients

You will need a 12inch deep round tin & parchment to line it.

For the CakeFor the Frosting
230g self raising flour1tsp baking powder1.5tsp cinnamon powder1 teaspoon ground nutmeg1tsp mixed spice200g caster sugar100g walnuts chopped3 eggs150ml sunflower oil400g grated parsnips*100g grated apples**(Squeeze in a tea towel to remove all juice)2 oranges zested 1x 200g tub cream cheese (light preferably)250g unsalted butter200g icing sugar1 tsp vanilla extract Plus chopped walnuts to decorate!

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 1500C.
  2. Sieve together the self-raising flour, baking powder, cinnamon powder, ground nutmeg & mixed spice.
  3. Sprinkle in the caster sugar.
  4. Chop the walnuts and add to the mixture.
  5. Beat the eggs and sunflower oil together to emulsify and add to the mixture.
  6. Grate the parsnips and apples and squeeze through a tea towel to remove all the juice, then fold into the mixture.
  7. Add the zest from two oranges to the mixture and fold in.
  8. Line your 12inch deep round tin with parchment & pour the cake mix in.
  9. Bake 25 – 30 minutes at 1500C.
  10. Combine the frosting ingredients – cream cheese, butter, icing sugar and vanilla extract.
  11. Beat until smooth.
  12. When the cake is cool pour over the cake and then pop the chopped walnuts on the top.

In season at this time of year; 

Vegetables;

Jerusalem Artichokes, Beetroot, Broccoli, Brussels Sprouts, Cabbage, Carrots, Cauliflower, Celeriac, Celery, Chicory, Garlic, Kale, Leeks, Mushrooms, Onions, Parsnips, Potatoes, Pumpkin, Red Cabbage, Shallots, Spinach, Swede, Turnips.

Fruit & Nuts;

Apples, Pears (late – Concorde, Doyenne du Comice, Conference and Winter Nellis), Rhubarb (forced), Walnuts

Meat:

Duck (end of season), Guinea Fowl, Hare, Partridge, Venison

Fish & Seafood:

Brill, Clams, Cockles, Haddock, Halibut, Hake, John Dory, Lemon Sole, Salmon (coming into season), Monkfish, Mussels, Oyster, Plaice, Turbot