Norwegian pretzels

As you might have guessed, we made these for Eurovision, which was beamed live via satellite from Oslo. Sadly, Morten Harket didn't make an appearance and the UK was marooned at the bottom of the table. But the pretzels were good. Hurrah!

You'll need:

1 envelope of dried yeast
1/2 cup warm water
1 teaspoon black treacle
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups bread flour
1 egg, beaten (or a little milk)
extra salt flakes

Stick your oven on at about 220 degrees C. Dissolve the yeast in the warm water, and add the black treacle and salt. Stir to create an unholy mess.

Tip in the flour, and mix to a dough. We had to add a little extra water, to get everything to stick together. Knead the dough really well, until it becomes elastic, then divide up into small pieces. Roll each of these out into thin snakes, and then twist into shapes (this was the bit you loved - you were surprisingly brilliant at making hearts).

Place on a baking sheet, and brush with the egg (or milk). Scatter some flakes of sea salt over the top of each.

Bake in the oven for 10 minutes if you like them chewy - a little bit longer (maybe switch off the oven and leave them inside as it cools down?) if you want them crispy.

Treacle tart

I wanted to find the original recipe that Uncle Dom used to make - but Grandma thought she'd thrown out the book with it in. Nigel Slater's recipe was a good substitute (although I've tweaked it slightly to make it more lemony).

Makes enough for 6-8. You'll need:

1 lemon
200g fresh white breadcrumbs
1 small tin (454g) golden syrup (I know - the whole tin!)
180g self-raising flour
90g butter, cut into small cubes
a little cold water

Stick the oven on at about 180 degrees C, and dig out a pie/flan dish (about 20 cm across) - you'll need to grease it, or line with greaseproof paper.

In a food processor, whizz together the flour and butter, until it resembles breadcrumbs. Add a little cold water (2-3 tablespoons), and let it form small pellets in the processor. Tip into a large bowl, and bring together gently into one large blob. Cover with cling film, and leave in the fridge for 10 minutes.

Once the pastry's rested, roll it out, and line your flan dish. Prick with a fork, then stick a sheet of greaseproof paper on top, and use some baking beans (ceramic or just dried beans) to weight it down. Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes, until the pastry is golden.

In the meantime, mix together the breadcrumbs and golden syrup. Zest and juice the lemon, and sling that in there too. Tip this mixture into the pastry case, and then bake in the oven for 30 minutes or so.

Serve with ice cream. In very small portions.

Ketjap manis

Also called Indonesian sweet soy, apparently. We needed it for the Indonesian noodle salad, so Google obliged (hence the American cup measurement).

You'll need:

1/2 cup water
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons dark treacle
1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Stick the water and dark brown sugar in a saucepan, and stir over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved. Bring to the boil, and then keep on a high heat for 5 minutes.

Reduce the heat again, and chuck in the rest of the ingredients. Stir until everything's dissolved, and then simmer for 3-4 minutes.

Decant into a jar - it'll keep in the fridge for 2-3 months. It's rather good as a dipping sauce, and it's even better if you have it with a little lime juice.