Real Food Family Cook Off

Cheat's lemon curd syllabub with coconut wafers

Siobhan Kennedy-Hall revives the popular family dessert with a combination of delicate flavours and crisp coconut wafers.

Cheat's lemon curd syllabub with coconut wafers

Serves: 4 - 6
To prepare: 15 minutes
To cook: 12 minutes


50g (2oz) unsalted butter, softened
50g (2oz) caster sugar
1 tbsp (15ml) golden syrup
2 tsp (10ml) lemon juice
50g (2oz) plain flour
25g (1oz) desiccated coconut
Zest of one lemon, unwaxed
1 jar lemon curd
½ pint (300ml) double cream
250g (8oz) meringue nests, broken into pieces


For the coconut wafers

  1. Preheat the oven to 180C and cover two heavy baking sheets with non stick baking parchment.
  2. In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, then beat in the golden syrup. Add the lemon juice, flour and coconut, and mix well to form a wet dough.
  3. Drop teaspoons of the mix onto the baking sheets, setting them well apart to allow them to spread while baking.
  4. Bake for 10 – 12 minutes, until the edges of the wafers are golden brown and the middles lightly coloured. Remove from the oven and cool slightly before transferring to a wire rack.

For the syllabub

  1. Spoon a small amount of lemon curd into the bottom of 6 serving dishes, sundae glasses, wine glasses or large shot glasses are ideal.
  2. Pour the cram into a large bowl and whip until the cream holds soft peaks. Add the crushed meringues to the bowl and carefully fold them into the cream.
  3. Add a layer to the serving glasses. Keep alternating the layers of lemon curd and cream until the glasses are full. Garnish the tops with lemon zest.
  4. Ideally chill until they are set, then serve with the wafers on the side for dipping.