Ruby Tandoh’s recipe for cherry blondies with bay cream

Usually I like to take a recipe straight to its basest form: opera cake? Make that a chocolate sponge. Towering croquembouche? Serve ‘em a nice eclair instead. These blondies are unusual for me, then, because for once I’ve taken something a bit saccharine and naff and made it classier. Brought to life with citrussy cardamom and plump cherries, these avoid the cloying sweetness of traditional blondies, while the bay-infused cream adds a subtle aniseed warmth. They might only be brownies with a wig on, but they taste a million bucks.

Prep 20 mins
Cook 30-35 mins
Serves 12

250g unsalted butter
300g soft light brown sugar
2 large eggs
60ml milk
2 ½ tsp vanilla extract
200g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
Seeds from 5 cardamom pods, finely ground
200g frozen cherries, defrosted and halved
150g white or milk chocolate, cut into small chunks

For the bay cream
300ml double cream
6 bay leaves
2 tbsp soft light brown sugar

Heat the oven to 180C/350F/gas 4 and line a 20cm x 30cm tin with baking paper.

Melt the butter in a small pan over a low heat, stirring constantly. Once it’s melted, let it simmer for a minute or two – watch it like a hawk, ready to snatch it off the heat the moment it begins to foam and darken. It should be a light honey colour and nuttily fragrant.

Pour the browned butter into a large bowl and whisk together with the sugar until thick and smooth. Let the mixture cool for a couple of minutes, then beat in the eggs, milk and vanilla extract.

In a separate bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, salt and cardamom, then add this to the wet mixture and fold together to combine. Spoon the mix into the prepared tin.

Toss the cherries and chocolate chunks in a little flour, just to lightly coat them, then scatter over the batter. Push some fruit and chocolate into the batter, to melt into the sticky cake as it bakes, and leave others daintily perched on top. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until the blondie is golden and cooked, but still very slightly gooey in the middle. Remove and cool.

While the blondie cools, make the bay cream: combine the cream, bay leaves and sugar in a small pan and set over a low heat. Slowly bring to a simmer, giving the bay time to infuse, then take off the heat, pluck out and serve, pouring the hot cream over the still-warm, fudgy blondies.

• Food styling: Emily Kydd, prop styling: Jennifer Kay