Mary Berry and judges with the Platinum Pudding finalists. Photo: BBC

Thousands tuned in to watch BBC One’s The Jubilee Pudding: 70 Years in the Baking in May to see Jemma Melvin’s Lemon Swiss Roll and Amaretti Trifle crowned the ‘Platinum Pudding’ for The Queen’s Jubilee celebrations. But some bakers, finding the recipe a little tricky, have been looking for Platinum Pudding hacks and cheat recipes.

When Rachel Cooke tried recreating the winning trifle for The Guardian, she started at 9am and finished around 3pm. She calls it a ‘faff’ and wonders if you’d be better off making a lemon posset, which was served at the Queen’s wedding breakfast and inspired Jemma’s Platinum Jubilee recipe.

Judges showcase the five shortlisted Platinum Jubilee Puddings. Photo: BBC

Platinum pudding recipe cheat

Jemma Melvin’s Lemon Swiss Roll and Amaretti Trifle recipe takes two hours to prep with 35-minutes prep time. There are six components to make from scratch, including a homemade Swiss roll, freshly baked amaretti biscuits, lemon curd, custard, jelly and coulis. But if you don’t have the time or patience to make everything from scratch, try Jemma’s Platinum Pudding recipe hacks.

To cheat your way to the Jubilee trifle, use ready-made versions for most of the components. If you still want to make the Swiss roll and mandarin coulis from scratch, then just substitute the following with ready made versions:

• swap homemade lemon curd for 300g or 10½oz of ready-made lemon curd
• use one packet of lemon-flavoured jelly (make up 568ml or one 1 pint) instead of the St Clement’s jelly
• use 500ml or 18fl oz of ready-made custard
• for the biscuits, use 100g or 3½oz ready made amaretti biscuits
• instead of making the jewelled chocolate bark, finish this trifle with crumbled amaretti biscuits, mixed peel and 50g or 1¾oz white chocolate chunks

Jemma Melvin’s Lemon Swiss Roll and Amaretti Trifle. Photo: David Loftus

Platinum Pudding hack

Instagram baker @cakeontherun has gone on step further to create her cheat version of the official dessert that’s served in glasses instead of a large sharing bowl (the original is designed to serve 20). Easy enough for anyone to attempt, it takes just five minutes. Here’s the recipe:

Ingredients

• a lemon Swiss roll
• a jar of lemon curd
• clementines in jelly pots
• a pot of vanilla custard
• a pack of amaretti biscuits
• fruit coulis
• a pack of meringue kisses
• a small tub of double cream
• a pack of white chocolate chips

Method

1. Slice the Swiss roll into chunks and put a few slices into the bottom of a large glass
2. Add the clementine jelly (if you can only get orange jelly, add a few fresh clementine segments to the glass)
3. Pour over 3-4 tbsp of custard
4. Pop in 2-3 amaretti biscuits
5. Pour over 2 tbsp of coulis, then 2 tbsp of cream
6. Top with meringues, chocolate and an amaretti biscuit

 

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Read more > Britain’s favourite cakes and bakes revealed

The full Platinum Pudding recipe

If you fancy making the whole thing yourself from scratch, here’s Jemma Melvin’s original recipe for the Lemon Swiss Roll and Amaretti Trifle (you can also find a printable PDF version at fortnumandmason.com)…

Ingredients

For the Swiss rolls
4 large free-range eggs
100g/3½oz caster sugar, plus extra for dusting
100g/3½oz self-raising flour, sieved
butter, for greasing

For the lemon curd
4 large free-range egg yolks
135g/4¾oz granulated sugar
85g/3oz salted butter, softened
1 lemon, zest only
80ml/2½fl oz fresh lemon juice

For the St Clement’s jelly
6 gelatine leaves
4 unwaxed lemons
3 oranges
150g/5½oz golden caster sugar

For the custard
425ml/15fl oz double cream
3 large free-range egg yolks
25g/1oz golden caster sugar
1 tbsp cornflour
1 tsp lemon extract

For the amaretti biscuits
2 free-range egg whites
170g/6oz caster sugar
170g/6oz ground almonds
1 tbsp amaretto
butter or oil, for greasing

For the chunky mandarin coulis
4x tins mandarins, around 300g each
45g/1¾oz caster sugar
16g/½oz arrowroot (2 sachets)
½ lemon, juice only

For the jewelled chocolate bark
50g/1¾oz mixed peel
1 tbsp caster sugar (optional)
200g/7oz white chocolate, broken into pieces

To assemble
600ml/20fl oz double cream

 

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Method

1. To make the Swiss rolls, preheat the oven to 180ºC/160ºC fan/gas mark 4. Grease and line the two Swiss roll tins with baking paper. In a large bowl, beat the egg and sugar together with an electric hand whisk for approximately 5 minutes or until light and pale. Using a metal spoon, gently fold in the flour. Divide between the two tins and bake for 10–12 minutes or until the sponges are lightly golden and cooked through.
2. Sprinkle some extra caster sugar on two sheets of baking paper then turn the sponges out onto the sugared paper. Peel off the paper from the underside and, while still warm, roll them both up from the short end into a tight spiral using the paper to help. Leave to cool.
3. To make the lemon curd, place the egg yolks, granulated sugar, butter, lemon zest and lemon juice in a glass bowl over a saucepan of simmering water (don’t let the bowl touch the water). Whisk until combined and whisk continuously as the curd cooks until thickened. This should take about 15 minutes. Pour into a clean bowl and set aside to cool.
4. To make the St Clement’s jelly, soak the gelatine leaves in cold water for 5 minutes to soften. Using a vegetable peeler, peel 6 strips from a lemon and 6 strips from an orange and put these into a saucepan with the sugar and 400ml/14fl oz water. Bring to a simmer over a medium heat, stirring occasionally until the sugar has dissolved. Remove from the heat and discard the peel. Squeeze the water out of the gelatine and stir into the pan until dissolved then leave to cool. Squeeze the lemons and oranges, so you have 150ml/5fl oz of both lemon and orange juice. Stir into the pan then strain the jelly through a fine sieve into a jug and chill until cool but not set.
5. To make the custard, place the cream in a saucepan over a gentle heat and bring it up to simmer, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon. In a bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, sugar, cornflour and lemon extract, then gradually pour the hot cream into the bowl whilst whisking continuously. Immediately return the whole lot back to the saucepan and continue whisking over a gentle heat until the custard is thick and smooth. Pour the custard into a jug or bowl, cover the surface with greaseproof paper and leave to cool.
6. To make the amaretti biscuits, preheat the oven to 180ºC/160ºC fan/gas mark 4. In a large bowl, beat the egg whites until firm. Mix the sugar and almonds gently into it. Add the amaretto and fold in gently until you have a smooth paste.
7. Place some baking paper on a baking tray and lightly brush with butter or oil. Using a teaspoon, place small heaps of the mixture approximately 2cm/¾in apart, as they will expand during cooking. Bake for approximately 15–20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
8. To make the chunky mandarin coulis, strain two tins of mandarins. Discard the juice and put the fruit into a saucepan with the sugar and heat gently until broken down. Remove from the heat. In a small bowl, slake the arrowroot with 2 tablespoons cold water then add to the warm mandarins. Add the lemon juice and mix well before pouring into a large bowl. Strain the remaining two tins of mandarins and add the fruit to the bowl then leave to cool completely.
9. To make the jewelled chocolate bark, if the peel feels wet or sticky, roll in the caster sugar to absorb any moisture. Melt the white chocolate in a bowl sitting over a saucepan of gently simmering water. Pour the white chocolate onto a baking tray lined with baking paper and scatter over the mixed peel. Leave to set then break into shards.
10. To assemble, unroll the cooled Swiss rolls and spread with the lemon curd. Roll back up again and slice one into 2.5cm/1in slices and place upright around the bottom edge of the trifle dish so the swirl is visible. Slice the other Swiss roll into thicker pieces and use these to fill the bottom of the dish, ensuring the top is roughly the same level as the slices that line the edge. Use off-cuts of sponge to fill any gaps.
11. Pour the St Clement’s jelly over the Swiss roll layer and set aside in the fridge to completely set. This will take approximately 3 hours. Once set, pour over the custard then arrange a single layer of amaretti biscuits, keeping a few back for the top. Pour over the mandarin coulis. In a large bowl, whip the double cream until soft peaks form then spoon this over the coulis. Crumble over the reserved amaretti biscuits and decorate with the chocolate bark shards.

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