HAVING a slight fondness for carrot cake, I went in search of tackling a recipe that would be a one hit wonder for me. I like things to be easy and having put the research in, I tweaked a few ideas and landed this little delight n the plate - and i have to say, it is one dish that will deliver and punch far and above its weight. The cake is a take on a classic carrot cake but with the addition and subtraction of a number of ingredients that makes it more like a pudding. Either way, it is in the presentation and accompaniments when serving this that really elevates it to something much more memorable.

THE two recipes that make the cut this week are contrasting in style, taste and origin. Wasabi beef is a really super recipe dish that can lift a steak to another dimension as it adds flavour and substance to the simplest of ingredients while twisting the Eastern heat dial up a fraction with the introduction of the Japanese horseradish. The second is a comfort food dish - in two guises - Italian and very European in style that are born from the one process of making risotto. Smoking some butternut squash is something that I have done before and when pureed, add it to some good quality stock and continue as normal.