Strawb-offee Pie by Charlotte Forsyth Waste

Charlotte Forsyth Wastell is a London-based writer, photographer and co-founder of Hands London, a food and tablescaping studio known for its sculptural, design-led approach. Her work spans collaborations with brands like Loewe and Axel Arigato, while her travel photography, often shot on film, captures intimate, atmospheric moments from places like Mexico City and Milan. 

Ingredients

For the base:
100g butter
250g hunter + gathered chocolate
1 packet digestive biscuits

For The Caramel:
150g butter
150g soft brown sugar
1 tin condensed milk (roughly 350g)

For the zabaglione cream
3 egg yolks
75g sugar
50ml masala wine
700ml double cream

Whipped cream
250ml double cream

Strawberries

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. With a bain-marie, melt the chocolate and butter together until fully melted.

2. Whilst the butter and chocolate are melting, crush the biscuits for the base. I like to use a large freezer bag, sealed, and smashed with a rolling pin.

3. Combine the melted ingredients into the smashed biscuits and decant into a lined cake tin. Compress the biscuit base, ensuring that the edges are higher than the centre of the base, like a crater. This is what you will later pour the caramel into.

4. Bake the base for 10 minutes and take it out of the oven to cool completely.

5. Whilst the base is cooling, you want to make the caramel. In a saucepan, melt the butter and sugar together until all ingredients are fully dissolved. As the butter and sugar melt together, you can stir the ingredients in the pan until combined. Don’t be alarmed if the butter and sugar don’t combine at first. Keep stirring and they will merge together in time. Once fully dissolved, pour in the condensed milk and bring to the boil. Once boiling, turn the heat down and simmer whilst stirring until the caramel changes to a slightly darker colour. Once the caramel is at the desired colour, pour onto the cooled biscuit base. Place in the fridge until fully set.

6. Whisk the sugar and the egg yolks together until they have tripled in volume. Fold in the whipped cream and Marsala wine.

7. Lay whole strawberries in a circular pattern around the pie. Continue until the cake is fully covered. Cover the strawberries in the zabaglione cream and place in the fridge to set.

8. Cover the zabaglione layer with a layer of whipped cream.

9.Dust with cocoa powder and/or grated chocolate and serve.