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½ small cauliflower (350g), chopped coarsely

2 medium carrots (240g), sliced thinly

2 trimmed celery sticks (150g), sliced thickly

2 small green tomatoes (260g), chopped coarsely

1 large green cucumber (400g), sliced thickly

10 baby brown onions (250g), quartered

1 cup (260g) coarse cooking salt

1.25 litres (5 cups) white vinegar

1 cup (220g) sugar

1 tbsp ground turmeric

1 tbsp mustard powder

½ tsp ground ginger

2 cloves garlic, crushed

2 red Thai chillies, seeded, chopped finely

¼ cup (35g) cornflour

¼ cup (60ml) white vinegar, extra

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Combine cauliflower, carrot, celery, tomato, cucumber, onion and salt in large bowl. Cover; stand overnight.

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Rinse vegetables under cold water; drain well. Combine vinegar, sugar, turmeric, mustard powder, ginger, garlic and chilli in large saucepan; bring to the boil.

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Add vegetables; simmer, covered, about 5 minutes or until vegetables are just tender. Stir in blended cornflour and extra vinegar; stir over heat until mixture boils and thickens.

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Spoon hot piccalilli into hot sterilised container; seal while hot.

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Storage: in refrigerator for about 1 month.

I’m not supposed to eat sugar – although being in the trade that I am – often is the case that I will sample sweet things, desserts and pastries produced at the restaurantsÌý

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This pudding is ‘no sugar’ other than the trace element you’ll need to make the topping with.

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The pudding is a bit like crème brulee, but the crunchy topping is far nicer than the thick crème brulee blow-torched layer of sugar – in my opinion.

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6 medium egg yolks

65g runny honey

600ml whipping cream

2 pinches ground allspice

1 vanilla pod, split

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Topping:

55g caster sugar

200g gingernuts, finely crumbed

½tsp ground cinnamon

½tsp freshly grated nutmeg

a pinch of ground allspice

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Preheat the oven to 140°C/275°F/Gas 4. ÌýLightly grease a 24cm square, 4cm deep baking dish.

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Place the egg yolks and honey in a bowl and gently mix together.

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Meanwhile place the cream, allspice and vanilla pod in a pan and slowly bring to the boil. Once boiling, pour on to the beaten egg yolks and honey, whisk together well, then leave to cool and infuse for 10 minutes.

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Strain the mixture through a sieve; then pour into the prepared serving dish. Carefully place in a deep baking tray, and pour boiling water from a kettle into the tray until the water is halfway up the side of the dish. Cover the whole tray lightly with foil and bake for 30 minutes, or until just set. Remember, the residual heat in the custard will carry on the cooking process for a good 10 minutes or so once it has been removed from the oven.

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Remove from the oven and leave to cool; then chill well.

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Meanwhile, mix the sugar, gingernut crumbs and spices together and gently warm under the grill. Do not burn, just toast lightly, then cool.

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To serve, remove the dish from the fridge, then top generously with the toasted gingerbread.

500g shortcrust pastry

2 onions

3 tbsp semolina

300g ham

450g potatoes

3 tbsp soft brown sugar

2 tbsp plain flour

8 sprigs sage

110ml double cream

Salt and black pepper

110ml dry cider

300g Bramley apples

1 egg

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For the pastry case:

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Preheat the oven to 190°C. Roll out just under three quarters of the pastry until it is 5mm thick. Use this to line a 23cm cake tin leaving enough pastry overhang along the rim.

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Cover the pastry with greaseproof and blind bake with cooking beans for 15 minutes before removing the greaseproof and baking beans. Bake for a further 5-8 minutes until the base is lightly browned.

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Allow to cool and trim off excess overhang. Sprinkle the semolina over the base – this will help to absorb any excess moisture in the filling and stop the pastry base from becoming soggy.Ìý

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For the pie filling:

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Peel and thickly slice the potatoes. Bring them to the boil in salted water. Simmer for a few minutes until just tender. Drain the potatoes and toss with the flour, double cream and seasoning.

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Peel and thickly slice the apples, finely slice the onions, thickly slice the ham and chop the sage leaves.

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Layer the apples, followed by the potatoes, onions and ham. Season these layers with sugar, sage, salt and black pepper. Slowly add the cider.

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Roll the remaining pastry into a 5mm thick circle, large enough to cover the top of the pie. Beat the egg and brush the top of the pie with it. Using your fingers, pinch the pastry around the rim to seal the pie. Place the pie in the oven for approximately 1 hour or until the pie is cooked through and golden on top. Remove and leave to cool slightly before slicing into wedges.

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Serve immediately.