In honour of the Australian release of her latest book, Jane's Patisserie: Celebrate!, we caught up with Jane Dunn. Learn about her most-used ingredient, favourite food memory and more.
Which ingredient/s do you enjoy cooking with the most?
I won’t lie, it has to be chocolate – I am just obsessed! But when you balance that with fresh fruit like raspberry, it’s even better!
What is your ultimate comfort food?
By far the best thing for me is a bowl of super crispy roast potatoes – maybe drizzle with a deliciously rich gravy and oh my days YUM!!
Which utensil do you use the most?
A spatula – one of my biggest hates is when too much cake mix is left in the bowl, so I scrape every last bit of it out of that bowl!
If you could choose your last meal, what would it be?
At the moment, I am obsessed with all things pasta and I would LOVE that to be my last meal!
What are five essential ingredients you always have on hand?
Butter, eggs, flour, sugar and CHOCOLATE!!!
What is your most commonly used ingredient?
I would have to say in almost every bake is sugar – everything sweet is delicious!
What is your favourite food memory?
Baking for my friend’s little girl’s first birthday is my most recent favourite – but generally, I love every memory with food – they’re all so delicious!
What is the best way to elevate an ordinary meal?
This may sound like a weird answer, but do not overthink it – just have fun with whatever you are cooking and baking, and it’ll elevate it sky-high!
What is the one life-changing cookery hack you were taught?
To weigh every single ingredient accurately – especially in baking – is SO important for the best and most delicious results!
What is the best and the worst cooking advice you’ve ever received?
The best advice is to follow the recipe – I know it sounds obvious, but don’t wing everything as it may end in disaster! The worst advice I’ve received would be “oh it doesn’t matter if we leave that ingredient out… I’m sure it will be fine” – it’s never fine!
Love baking? Then you need to try Jane's mini lemon meringue pies.
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A lemon meringue pie is one of the most fresh and zingy bakes you can make and my classic recipe features on my blog, but for this book I wanted to improve it if I could and that’s when I came up with individual Mini Lemon Meringue Pies.
I am obsessed with all things ‘blondie’ and these Cinnamon Blondies hit the spot.
I find that a quiche is one of those bakes that lends itself well to lunchtime, dinnertime or even as part of a mid-afternoon snack.
Jane's Patisserie takes a classic dense, spiced ginger cake and reinvents it in loaf form, complete with a spiced icing. We love to bake this recipe throughout the winter months but it's particularly perfect for the festive season.
We love to bring these simple savoury muffins from Jane's Patisserie on a picnic, or to pack them into lunchboxes for a tasty lunch on the go. Studded with feta and fragrant garlic, they're full of flavour.
With their snowy icing sugar tops, crinkle cookies have an unmistakably festive feel to them. This simple recipe from Jane's Patisserie is incredibly easy to make so it's ideal for a Christmas baking session with the kids.
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