Matcha, ginger & cucumber iced tea

Ingredients 1/2 cucumber, 1L water, 1/2 ginger root, 1 tsp matcha powder.

Serves: 5 Preparation: 5 minutes (plus 1 hour for chilling and infusing)

Matcha is a super-concentrated green tea powder, packed with antioxidants and nutrients, available from the mighty Teapigs. When they sent me some for #Foodspiration, I wondered whether I could concoct a super-healthy iced tea which didn't need sweetening to combat the slightly bitter taste of green tea. Cucumber water is one of my favourite summer drinks - so refreshing and cleansing - and it really works a treat here. In place of ginger, the juice of half a lemon or lime works beautifully, as does 25ml of apple juice.

1) Peel the cucumber and slice finely, discarding the tapered end.

2) Peel and finely slice the ginger and add, along with the matcha powder to your drinks container.

3) Transfer the cucumber to your drinks container (I like Kilner bottles because when pouring, the cucumber remains in the bottle, but with a little vigorous shaking and a touch of water, they slide right back out again when it's time to clean the bottle) and top up with water. Shake to disperse the matcha powder and chill in the fridge. Give it a little shake before serving each portion to ensure the powder doesn't settle back to the bottom.

Carrot, apple & cardamom salad

Ingredients 1 Carrot, 1 apple, 1/2 tsp freshly ground cardamom, 1 tbsp olive oil, 1 orange.

Preparation: 5 minutes

To say a salad is supposedly a simple affair for lazy Summer days, the majority that I make involve very little of the "chuck it in a bowl and scoff it" mentality. But whilst life is too short for artfully decorating a plate with blobs of apple gel and dill emulsions at home, I do believe a little marinating goes a long way.
This salad is breathtaking in its simplicity - shaved apple and carrot with a gorgeous, zingy orange and cardamom dressing to bring out the flavour of the carrot and stop the apple from browning (should you wish to brown bag it.)

1) Peel the carrot and apple, discard the skin and then simply carry on peeling! Transfer the slivers of fruit and vegetable flesh into a bowl and set aside.

2) Combine the olive oil with the juice of the orange, season with a tiny smigdeon of salt (no, not a pinch - a smidge!), black pepper and the cardamom.

3) Pour the dressing into the bowl, toss the carrot and apple until the cardamom and pepper is evenly distributed and either serve or set aside until required.

Baby Breakfast Muffins

Ingredients 75g butter/oil, 125ml orange/apple juice, 1 tbsp cinnamon, 2 bananas, 2 eggs, 1 tbsp honey (or agave syrup), 1 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda, 250g self-raising flour, 1 tsp vanilla extract, 100g dried cranberries, 100g mixed seeds.

Makes: 16 Preparation: 45 minutes

OK, so this is not a baby recipe. Shaddap, it's not. It's NOT OK. It's a recipe for muffins which are sugar free and if you want them to be, dairy free. Healthy seeded breakfast muffins that are totally delicious and I just happen to feed to my twelve month old son... 

1) Preheat the oven to gas mark 5/190 degrees and add the cranberries to the orange/apple juice.

2) Add the bananas, vanilla essence and honey to a blender and puree thoroughly. Add the eggs and melted butter/oil and pulse again until completely combined

3) Sift together the flour, cinnamon, baking powder and bicarb of soda, then mix in the seeds.

4) Pour the puree in with the dry ingredients, add the juice and cranberries and mix roughly.

5) Spoon into muffin cases and add to a muffin tin, sprinkling some extra seeds onto the top. Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes until the tops begin to colour and a skewer inserted to the middle cupcake comes out clean.

Peanut butter bread

Ingredients 500g strong white bread flour, 7g yeast, 100ml apple juice, 200ml milk, 2 tbsp peanut butter (I like Whole Earth peanut butter), olive oil.

Preparation: 3 hours minimum

That phrase "the best thing since sliced bread" is such a misnomer. Anyone who makes their own bread will agree that the worst thing to happen to bread was the Chorleywood bread press. Processed bread has no soul and if you care about what you put in your body you will be horrified to read the ingredients on your shop-bought bread and discover that it's not just flour, yeast, salt and water but a whole host of preservatives, rising agents, bleached flours and even bread flavourings! It makes a person wonder if the reason we are the generation of food intolerances that you never heard about from our ancestors is because the food we eat bears such little resemblance to actual food.
But hippie rant over... this recipe makes utterly delicious bread. Fact!

1) Warm the milk gently in a pan, stirring the peanut butter into it until melted, then add the apple juice. If you want to use chunky peanut butter, this will leave you with a bit of texture in your bread - but sieve the chunks from the milk to add back in later.

2) By hand: Sift together the flour and yeast in a mixing bowl and make a well in the centre. Slowly add the milk mixture, stirring with a spoon until a sticky mass has formed. Tip out onto a work surface and rub your hands with olive oil. Work the dough - kneading and stretching out the glutens in the flour until you have a silky, smooth ball of dough that is no longer sticking to the work surface. By processor: add your dough hook attachment and add the ingredients. Personally I still think this dough benefits from being hand manipulated but if you prefer to use a machine that's up to you! If you are using chunky peanut butter, at this stage add the chunks back to the mixture by flattening out the dough a little, tipping them on and then working the dough back into a ball to spread them out evenly

3) Rub your hands and a clean bowl with a little olive oil, stroke the surface of the dough until lightly oiled and then add to the bowl. Cover with cling film or a plastic bag and leave somewhere warm for about 45 minutes or until the dough has doubled in size.

4) Turn the dough out onto a work surface and "knock it back" - this doesn't mean pummel it violently, it means deflate it gently with your fingertips and then form it back into a ball for a second rising in a proving basket.

5) After knocking back the dough, you can leave this for a third or fourth rising (this gives it a better texture and flavour, but honestly this means staying in the house almost all day!) or get baking. Slash the top of the bread twice to allow it to rise, then boil a kettle of water and pour it into a roasting dish. This needs to go on the bottom of your oven to keep it steamy and moist. Now pre-heat the oven to 9 or 10 (basically your highest setting!) with a tray or baking stone in the oven and quickly transfer your ball of dough onto the baking tray/stone and shut the door.

6) After 8-10 minutes, turn down the oven. If a dark crust is forming quickly then bake for 40 minutes at gas mark 3. If it has just begun to colour bake it for 30 minutes at gas mark 4. If the dough looks the same colour then your oven is rubbish (sorry! Buy an oven thermometer and this will really help) and you will need to bake it for 40 minutes at gas mark 6.

7) When your time is up, carefully take the bread from the oven and shut the door to keep the heat and steam in, in case it needs further baking. You'll know it's ready if there is a firm crust on the top and the softer bottom sounds hollow when you tap it. Transfer to a cooling rack and don't be tempted to carve straight into it because you'll squish it and the remaining moisture in the dough will create a soggy layer at the bottom which will never go away. Sad bread. SAD BREAD! Once the bread has cooled for 20-30 minutes and is no more than a little warm to the touch you can dig in!

This makes amazing toast, lovely bacon and fried apple sandwiches but personally I like it spread with a good chocolate hazelnut spread.

Salted caramel apple hummus

Ingredients 1 can chickpeas, 1/4 cup caster sugar, 1/4 cup muscovado sugar, 3 tbsp butter, 1 tsp salt, 1/4 cup double cream, 1 apple, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1 tbsp Rachel's Organic Greek Yoghurt.

Preparation: 20 minutes

My dear friend @Gazpachodragon's husband recently wondered whether sweet hummus would work. My immediate reaction was "it would be like porridge" and actually it kind of is. But a posh porridge and it's actually nice to dunk biscuits or fruit crudites into. Even better - this is perfect with a ham sandwich or with roast pork. It's a bit of a mind fuck but it works!

1) Melt 1 tbsp butter in a pan. Peel, core and dice an apple and add to the pan. Stir through and add the cinnamon. Leave to simmer for 5 minutes.

2) In the second pan, melt 2 tbsp butter and add the sugars. Stir through on a high heat as the sugar boils and begins to caramelise. Add the cream and turn down the heat. Add the apples and salt to taste, but I think 1 tsp is enough.

3) In a third pan, simmer the chickpeas in water for 5 minutes, then strain and set aside. You can shell the chickpeas by hand which I find very satisfying, but to save some time, shake them roughly in a bowl for a few minutes, fill the bowl with water and the shells will float to the top - scoop them off, strain the chickpeas again and you're done!

4) Pulse the chickpeas in a blender with the Greek yoghurt until they have reached a grainy, breadcrumb like consistency. Stir through the caramel sauce and apples.

Spiced apple pudding

Ingredients Cinnamon & raisin malt loaf, bramley apple, cinnamon, muscovado sugar, butter, cinnamon, red wine.

Serves: 2 Preparation: 30 minutes

One of my favourite things in the world is cinnamon and raisin malt loaf. I have such a passion for the toasted cinnamony goodness, dripping with butter. Oh my! I had a flash of inspiration this morning when working on another apple dish and created this to use up the leftover apple and discovered this crispy, melty, spicy little pot of yumminess.

1) Thinly slice the malt loaf and press into a pre-buttered timbale case to form a shell.

2) Peel and core the apple and dice the flesh. Add to a milk pan with a teaspoon of brown sugar, a teaspoon of cinnamon and a teaspoon of butter. Stir through and cook for 5 minutes, add a tablespoon of red wine, cook for a further 5 minutes and then spoon into the malt loaf cases. Butter the malt loaf lid and press it down, butter side facing up.

3) Bake for 15 minutes at 180 degrees and serve hot.

Apple roast vegetables

Ingredients 10 Exquisa potatoes, 2 carrots, 2 parsnips, 2 apples, olive oil, parsley, basil.

Serves: 4 preparation: 1 hour

French, or haute cuisine would have us believe that the success of a dish, depends on the quality of the sauce. Whilst a good sauce can absolutely transform a dish and demonstrate the skill of the chef... it doesn't need to be anything complex to impress. This cooking technique is a combination of Italian-style olive oil roasting and steaming which retains every bit of the flavour of the ingredients and forms a wonderful, tangy apple sauce. Perfect when served with pork as part of a Sunday roast.

1) Slice the potatoes in half, peel the carrot and potato and cut into chunks roughly the same size as the potatoes.

2) Peel and core the apple, then slice into small chunks

3) Toss the apple and vegetables in olive oil, salt, black pepper, freshly chopped parsley and basil, then roast for an hour in a covered dish at 200 degrees. I toss the dish half way through, then again at the end of the hour, causing the softened apple to coat the vegetables like a sauce.

Apple, Fennel & Mozzarella salad

Ingredients 1 Apple, mozzarella, 1 fennel bulb, pork loin, bread, balsamic vinegar, cucumber

Serves: 2 preparation: 10 minutes

First things first - do not even attempt this recipe if you have chilled mozzarella. I know that I say this every time, but mozzarella needs to be at room temperature - chilled mozzarella is rubbery and flavour impaired - room temperature mozzarella is yielding, meltingly perfect and tastes wonderful. This salad works really well with layers of seared pork medallion but I went for layers of lightly toasted bread being a vegetarian and it worked beautifully. The sweetness of the apple, the fragrance of the fennel... gorgeous. This also works really well with a good sharp goats cheese.

1) Remove the core from the apple and slice finely with a mandoline. Mine allows me to slice straight into matchsticks, but if yours does not - slice the slices into matchsticks! Repeat for the fennel and the cucumber and toss together in a bowl.

2) Layer in a circle mould with the cheese and meat/bread - packing the salad down quite tightly.

3) Serve with a drizzle of balsamic glaze

Beetroot, apple & feta tart

Ingredients 2 Beetroots, 100g feta, 1 apple, 1 leek, 3 eggs, 50ml double cream, 4oz plain flour, 2oz butter.

Serves: 6 Preparation: 1 hour

To describe this tart, oh where do I begin!? Is it the salty, creamy tang of feta and leek, the earthy beetroot or the sweetness of the apple that makes it so utterly delicious? Chances are it's all of them! Just trust me when I say that the combination of crisp, buttery pastry and the silky tang of the filling makes this one fabulous autumn treat.

1) To make the shortcrust pastry measure 4oz of plain flour and 2oz of cold butter. Cut the butter into small cubes and drop along with the flour into a food processor until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Drip in 2-3 tablespoons of cold water until the mixture quickly forms a ball. Wrap this in clingfilm and put in the fridge for 15 minutes. Once chilled, roll out and press firmly into a pastry case. Bake blind for 5 minutes and set aside to cool.

2) To prepare the beetroot, wash it and slice off the stalks and leaves. Roast in the oven for 30 minutes. Carefully peel the beetroot with the nick of a knife and set aside to cool.

3) Slice the leeks and peel, core and dice the apple. Sautee in a little butter for 5 minutes until soft, then spoon onto the pastry case and spread evenly.

4) Slice the beetroot and feta into even chunks and arrange over the leeks and apples.

5) Whisk the eggs and cream and pour over the other ingredients, then bake for 12 minutes on a medium heat. Serve hot and cold.

Beetroot, apple & cheddar fritters

Ingredients Beetroot, apple, rice flour/ polenta, eggs, cheddar, poppy seeds, sesame seeds

Preparation: 40 minutes

Fritters are traditionally a sort of savoury doughnut, but thin like a pancake full of stuff, but like potato cakes - I like to make mine a bit thicker. Beetroot and apple are a fabulous and virtuous combination, and cheddar goes perfectly with both so this crispy yet juicy fritter with a melting centre makes and excellent vegetarian version of a burger, and by using rice flour or polenta it's great for those with intolerances too!.

1) Wash the beetroot and slice off the stalks and leaves. Roast in the oven for 30 minutes. Carefully peel the beetroot with the nick of a knife, then once it's cool, grate into a bowl.

2) Peel and core the apple, then grate the apple into the beetroot. Add the polenta/rice flour a little at a time along with the poppy and sesame seeds, until the mixture is a little more dry.

3) Whisk an egg and stir into the mixture.

4) Form a patty around a chunk of cheddar and drop onto a lightly oiled pan. Sizzle for 2-3 minutes on each side then serve, or bake in the oven for 5-8 minutes.

apple & cucumber salsa

Ingredients White onion, cucumber, apple, fennel, radish, lime, white wine vinegar

Preparation: 15 minutes

It's no secret that I LOATHE onions. Nothing on this earth could induce me to eat them raw, or to eat something that is intentionally onion flavoured. They are a base ingredient, not a flavour in their own right as far as I'm concerned.
Salsa, to me manages to escape the curse of the onion due to the chilli and in this case, the onions take a back seat to the sweetness and freshness of the other ingredients. A great summer salsa, try it in a wrap with soured cream, melted cheese and BBQ'd chicken.

1) Finely dice the onion and pour over a tablespoon of white wine vinegar and the juice of 1 lime. Leave to rest for 10 minutes.

2) Finely dice the cucumber, apple, fennel and radish and stir into the onions.

3) I like to drain off most of the juice, but this is entirely a matter of taste.

Apple & pancetta crumble

Ingredients 1 Bramley apple, pancetta, butter, soured cream, oats, flour, parmigiano

Serves: 4 preparation: 20 minutes


Pig and apple is a combination I have demonstrated many times on this blog -  from burgers to bakes and rice salad to cannelloni it doesn't have to be as traditional as pork and apple sauce. Savoury crumbles are wonderful - toasty oats and the sharpness of parmeggian topping roast vegetables and cheese is a particular favourite of mine and one I will be sharing in coming posts. This mini crumble makes a wonderful starter with a dollop of soured cream in place of a custard.


1) Core, peel and dice the apple before sauteeing in a little butter. Add the pancetta after 2-3 minutes and sizzle, stirring until the apple has begun to soften.




2) Spoon into ramekins and set aside.


3) Mix 2 tablespoons of flour to 1 tablespoon of porridge oats, add a teaspoon of parmeggian and rub in a teaspoon of butter until fine crumbs form.


4) Spoon onto the top of the apple and pancetta and bake in the oven for 5-10 minutes, until the crumble topping has turned golden brown


5) Serve hot with a dollop of soured cream

Baked apple with apricot & goats cheese

Ingredients Bramley apple, goats cheese, dried apricots

Serves: 2 preparation: 30 minutes

I can remember clearly my very first cookery lesson at school. We made a baked apple.
It was stuffed with sultanas and butter and it looked like a bizarre sort of baked potato.
I hated the texture, hated the taste, hated the smell and the ugly yellowish brown of the skin. I can honestly say I have never had a baked apple since - until today when I had a craving for apple and thought I would experiment with this old nemesis... the sticky sweetness of the apricot goes perfectly with the creamy, soft goats cheese. This is absolutely lovely but it's not going to win any beauty awards.

1) Slice the top from the apple and remove the majority of the core, leaving a little base to retain the filling. Hollow the apple out further until about 1/3 of the apple flesh has been removed.

2) Stuff the apple with layers of apricot and goats cheese and sit the top of the apple back onto the top. Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes at 200 degrees.

Apple & lavender crumble

Ingredients  1 tbsp lavender, 1 Bramley apple, 100g rice flour, 25g ground almonds, 50g butter, 50g caster sugar.

Serves: 2 Preparation: 20 minutes

As some of you may have seen from Twitter this evening, I have just eaten an entire crumble to myself. This crumble to be precise.
Apple and lavender is an absolutely luscious combination of flavours - fresh, sweet, juicy fruit - the exotic perfume of the lavender complimenting the tartness of the apples. I cannot recommend this enough. And don't worry - for those of you who struggle with white flour, this combination of rice-flour and ground almonds make a light, tummy friendly crumble.

1) Add the lavender to 150ml water and bring it to the boil. Remove half of the lavender and discard.

2) Peel, core and dice the apple, then add it to the lavender water along with 1 tsp caster sugar. Simmer for 5 minutes and strain the lavender and apple from the water.

3) Cut the butter into small cubes and either blitz in a blender with the rice flour, ground almonds and caster sugar or rub the butter into the dry ingredients with your fingers until rough crumbs have formed.

4) Spoon the apple and lavender into a baking dish and sprinkle over the crumble. Bake in the oven for 8-10 minutes until the topping has turned golden brown.

Allergic to eggs? Instead of custard, why not serve with Rachel's Organic Greek Yoghurt

Carrot, feta & spiced apple salad

Ingredients  1 Carrot, 1 apple, allspice, cinnamon, cumin, muscovado sugar, feta cheese, watercress, pea shoots, ginger hummus

Serves: 1 Preparation: 10 minutes

I never understand why people think that salads are boring, or somehow something to be endured. For me they're one of the only types of food that one can put just about any other type of food into. Bread, potato, pasta, cheese, fruit, vegetables, nuts, herbs, eggs, flowers... you name it!
This is a rather new concoction of mine to showcase the spiced apple slices and ginger hummus that I have quickly become very fond of.

1) Core the apple and slice into crescents. Sprinkle the crescents with a dusting of brown sugar, cumin, allspice and cinnamon and toast under the grill for 5 minutes, turning half way through.

2) Peel the skin from the carrot, then peel the carrot into ribbons. Toss with the watercress and peashoots, and crumble over the feta.

3) Add the apples and drizzle with ginger hummus before serving.

Pork & apple burgers

Ingredients 400g Sausage meat, 1 apple, sage, 1/2 white onion, butter

Serves: 6 preparation: 20 minutes

Making burgers is so quick and simple that I refuse to entertain the idea that there is any excuse for the kind of specimens that come under the category of "convenience food" and "fast food". They're unhealthy, low quality and truly no faster. Pork, apple and sage are such classic flavour combinations - give this a try as a fun BBQ alternative to beef.

1) Peel and finely dice half a white onion, peel, core and dice the apple and and fry both together in a little butter with some chopped sage for 2 minutes.

2) Combine the onions, apple and sausage meat - you could use a blender but I prefer to leave the apple chunks intact and use my hands. Season with  a pinch of salt and pepper first.


3) Form patties with your hands, packing the meat quite tightly and either BBQ, grill or bake in the oven.  For best results, sizzle the outside of the burger first using the juices from the onion, apple & sage pan.


I served with fresh lettuce from the garden and ketchup in a burger bun

Easter bake

Ingredients 1 hot cross bun, 1 egg, marscapone, pancetta, 1/2 apple, parmigiano, butter, 1/2 leek.

Serves: 1 preparation: 20 minutes


Easter is, to me - a non religious person, time for indulgence. Chocolate, hot cross buns... what could be better!? The leftover hot cross buns make the most perfect base for a bake. Leek, bacon, apple, cheese... *drools*


1) Slice the hot cross bun in half, and then cut each half into 3 strips. Lightly butter the top side and alternate the top strips butter side down in a baking dish with the bottom strips (unbuttered) up.


2) Finely dice the leek and apple and sautee in a little butter until soft. Remove from the heat and stir in the pancetta.


3) Whisk the egg with a tablespoon of marscapone and pour over the hot cross bun strips. You can leave this to rest for up to an hour if you wish to allow the bread to soak up the egg, but just make sure to add a little extra before baking. Layer with the leek, apple and bacon mix, then add a layer of grated parmeggian.


4) Bake in the oven for around 10 minutes or until the cheese begins to bubble and turn golden brown.

Cheddar & apple soup

Ingredients 1 potato, 4 apples, 1 pint vegetable stock, 100g cheddar, 1/4 leek, butter

Serves: 2 preparation: 30 minutes


Whilst The Boy was away recently, I spent a week eating cheddar and apple sandwiches. I could not get enough of this flavour combination which evolved into this thick, comforting, DELICIOUS soup. I promise you won't be disappointed. It's almost as good as Rick Stein's delicious looking dick...


1) Finely chop about a quarter of a leek and sautee with just a little knob of butter.


2) Peel and dice the potato and apples, discarding the cores and add to the pan along with a pint of vegetable stock.


3) Simmer for 20 minutes, until the potato is soft enough to mash in the pan, then pass the mash and liquid through a sieve (discarding the leek) and back into the pan.


4) Grate the cheddar into it and season well with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Serve hot, with crusty bread.

Mince pies

Ingredients450g plain flour, 1 tsp baking powder, 240g unsalted butter, 1 tbsp caster sugar, 140ml orange juice, zest of 2 oranges, 3 roses, 250g cranberries, 100g sultanas, 100g raisins, 2 apples, 1 tbsp allspice, 1 tsp cinnamon, 100ml brandy, 20g brown sugar.

Serves: 24 Preparation: 2 hours (plus overnight)


I love mince pies - the crumbly texture of all butter pastry with a hint of orange, the heady, boozy fruit in the centre and that dollop of thick cream. Mmmm. Nothing is more Christmassy and they're so easy to make.


To make the mincemeat: 


1) Pour the sultanas and raisins into a bowl and cover with brandy. Leave to soak overnight.


2) Wash the roses thoroughly, remove the petals and cover the petals with the brown sugar. Leave overnight.


3) The next day, peel, core and dice the apples, then add to a pan with the cranberries, rose petals and sugar. Add a little water and allow the mixture to come to the boil. After about 5 minutes the fruit should be macerated and most of the liquid evaporated. Add the brandy, sultanas and raisins, allspice and cinnamon.


To make the pastry:


4) Cut the butter into small cubes and add to a food processor with the flour and sugar. Pulse until it becomes the consistency of breadcrumbs.


5) I like to use clementines for this because they're the Christmassiest oranges! Zest two, then squeeze the juice of about 5, giving you about 140ml of juice. Add the zest of the oranges into the food processor, then the juice in a steady stream until the pastry begins to form a ball.


6) Remove from the blender - if it's sticky, add a little more flour - roll up in clingfilm and put in the fridge for an hour to firm up.


7) Roll out the pastry (you shouldn't need a floured surface - if the pastry is sticky then you have used too much liquid) to about 1/2 a centimetre thickness and cut out circles of dough. I like to use a large circle on the bottom and a smaller circle for the top but you could use a dough shape like a star or a tree if you like for the top.


8) Press the large circles of dough firmly into your baking tin and add about a teaspoon and a half of the mincemeat. Add the tops and bake for 20 - 25 minutes at 200 degrees.


I like to eat these hot, served with a generous dollop of champagne cream.

Apple & cinnamon French Toast

Ingredients Wholemeal bread flour, cinnamon,   baking soda, eggs, vegetable oil,    apple sauce, muscovado sugar, vanilla essence, icing sugar, maple syrup, butter

Serves: 1 Preparation: 10 minutes

After making my apple & cinnamon bread I knew there was only one way to serve this... and it turned out to be one of my more perfect recipes.


1) Slice the apple & cinnamon loaf to about 1.5 cm thickness and dip in whisked egg.


2) Melt half a teaspoon of butter in a frying pan and drop the slice of bread into the pan.


3) Toast the bread, turning frequently. When you notice the steam puffing out the bread a little you will have achieved the fluffy yet crispy texture that makes French toast so glorious.


4) Serve dusted with icing sugar and drizzled with maple syrup