The British royal family is one of the most popular in the world, and is revered by people from across age groups. And so, when it was declared that Queen Elizabeth II of England became the first British monarch to complete 70 years in service, on February 6 this year, the excitement across the globe was quite visible. Her historic reign will be marked with special Platinum Jubilee celebrations from June 2 to 5, and will include a series of public events, community activities and initiatives. But putting everything aside, could any celebration ever be complete without food? If you ask me, I would say no! The royal celebration is no exception. In fact, the official pudding that will represent the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations has also just been selected. Can you guess? It is a Lemon and Swiss Roll Amaretti Trifle! The Duchess of Cornwall recently declared this pudding and its creator Jemma Melvin as the winners of a contest that was hosted nationwide.
Organised by Fortnum and Mason and aired on BBC One, the contest was hosted with the intention to find the right celebratory pudding, cake or tart for the Queen and her 70-year celebrations. As per reports, after getting in approximately 5,000 entries, with age groups ranging from eight to 108, five finalists were shortlisted to compete for the title of 'The Jubilee Pudding', which finally went to 31-year-old Jemma Melvin.
The trifle pudding by Jemma has now become the talk of the town, after Fortnum & Mason's Executive Pastry Chef Roger Pizey said, "I really think we'll be making Jemma's trifle for at least the next 50 to 100 years without a doubt." Claiming to be inspired by her grandmothers, Jemma's trifle is made with layers of lemon curd Swiss roll, St Clement's jelly, lemon custard, mandarin coulis, amaretti biscuits and fresh whipped cream. While all these ingredients can be easily procured from the local supermarket, the art is in the hands of the artist it seems. However, the recipe is said to be simple and just appropriate for not just the Queen, but the entire country. And that is why Fortnum & Mason have also shared the recipe on their website.
Click here for Jemma Melvin’s full recipe of the pudding.
Coming back to the Queen's Platinum Jubilee celebrations, the Lemon Trifle will not be the only dish served at the grand event. Historical dishes such as the Victorian sponge and the coronation chicken will also be part of the menu. For those unversed, the sponge has been Queen Victoria's favourite, and was in fact named in her honour in 1861 after Prince Albert's death, according to BBC. It is made with buttercream and raspberry jam filling, sounds yummy, doesn’t it?
The Coronation chicken on the other hand was created by the Le Cordon Bleu cookery school in 1953, and was also known as 'Poulet Reine Elizabeth' since it was originally made for the Queen's coronation ceremony. The dish's original chef, Angela Wood, revealed the original recipe to AFP and it is all delicious! It involves Chicken poached with a bouquet garni with a sauce made with a reduction of chopped onions, curry powder, tomato puree, red wine and lemon juice. The mixture is then cooled and added to mayonnaise, lightly whipped cream and apricot puree. "It's a strange mixture." Angela told AFP. Well, we think the recipe definitely turns out delicious!
What did you think about the dishes that will be served at Queen's Platinum Jubilee celebrations? Let us know.