Tips from professional Chef Tallyrand:

Food tip on use of dried fruit and use of butter

Ever bitten into a fruit cake or scone and nearly broken a tooth on a hard, overcooked currant or raisin? Ever wondered why someone's fruit scones seem moister or more full of flavour than your own?

Easily resolved with just a little forethought, soak the dried fruit in a liquid of your choice for a few hours or overnight. If you are in a hurry, place them in the liquid and bring it to the boil for 1 minute and allow to cool. The amount of liquid required is up to the type / brand of fruit you use, but with a little experimentation you will find the right amount.

What type of liquid to use? Well that is up to what flavour you want to add to the final product: wine, brandy, liquor of choice, orange juice or my favourite for a fairly neutral taste is tea, I like to use up what is left in the pot. But for a true neutral flavour, use a water with a little sugar or honey added . . . naturally you will need to reduce the amount of sugar in the remaining recipe or leave it out all together.

A quick word about butter; most recipes for cakes and the like, call for unsalted butter. The reason for this is so that the sometimes subtle sweetness or flavours of the dish will not distracted by the salt content. Also many salted butters are very salty, so where a dish is highly seasoned anyway it means it will not end up unpalatable.

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Published 26 February 2001