FtLion Awards 2017: Best Dessert of the Year?

Harem’s Baklava – 3 pieces, 1 scoop of vanilla ice cream, £5.95

Kilikya’s in St. Katherine Dock in London swore by their in-house made Baklavas. And for good reason too as it transpired, for this dish turned out to be the best of the lot! Just look at the number of layers lining that pastry! Nothing like the dense and stodgy premade, shop bought versions, saturated as they almost always are in that overly sweet and sickly sugar syrup. Instead, these were light, with a crispy and positively flaky pastry top, and a perfectly balanced, chewy baklava bottom. The ice cream was an interesting touch, though didn’t quite work in our opinion, and the pistachio crumb garnish was more show than anything else.

Home Made Sorbet Selection: Blood Orange (left); Apple, Basil & Blacksalt (right) – £6.50 each

These Home Made Sorbets by Grand Trunk Road is their third category nomination (starters & mains), and were, both in terms of originality of flavours and execution, mind blowingly good. In terms of texture, these were perfectly set and thus smooth in consistency. The Apple, Basil & Blacksalt was sharp and refreshing, with the fruit materialising first in a rich burst of tangy apple green freshness, followed a short while later in roughly equal measure by the salt and basil. As for the Blood Orange, then this was a powerful combination of sweet and zingy sour (though we were fairly certain that there was more to this than just merely blood orange given its strength) that tantalised our collective taste buds. Essentially, what set these apart from the rest is not only the distinct layering of complementary flavours, but the incredible manner in which they came through on the palate; so clean and precise in fact that these are undoubtedly some of the best we’ve encountered.

Tirilice £5.50

Up for an award in the Best Main of the Year award, Laz Camden is now up for this stunning dessert that was utterly different to what we’ve had at other Turkish eateries. The star of this smartly presented Tirilice was, of course, the soft and delicate sponge in the middle. This was beautifully saturated in milk and covered in a subtly sweet caramel glaze that was well tempered by the sharp sweetness of the raspberry sauce and droplets decorating its circumference. A gorgeous and well balanced dessert.

That’s the Way the Cookie Crumbles – Surrounded by biscuit crumbs, a vanilla ice cream blended with cookie dough & salted caramel, topped with homemade banana cake, whipped cream & cookies, £4.99

Rickshaw Rick’s in Leicester has already acquired a reputation for its Dirty Shakes and we couldn’t have left without one. ‘That’s [why] the Way the Cookie Crumbles’ had to be on our list. Let’s take a moment and appreciate how amazing the cookies were here. Inhouse made by the owner’s mother, these were by far the best cookies we’ve had, with a crumbly-cum-crunchy texture that was most satisfying. There was also a tasty triangular-shaped one that was drizzled in chocolate sauce, as well as a well made cookie sandwich that was filled with whipped cream. The shake itself was a blend of vanilla ice cream, cookie dough and salted caramel, and was ice-cold, with a hint of saltiness to it, and was topped with a moist inhouse-baked banana cake, which wasn’t too heavy, and married with the entire dessert. Very good dessert and worth getting for those inhouse made cookies and cake.

Black Gajar Halwa – Heritage black carrots & salted peanut brittle, £3.75

First up, the Black Gajar Halwa by Talli Joe in London’s Covent Garden which deservedly earned a spot in Time Out’s Top Ten Dishes of 2016, and has also been shortlisted in the Best Mains of the Year award. Do not be fooled by its unassuming appearance; this is a really well conceived and executed dessert. What we had was simply heritage black carrot topped by salted peanut brittle. That’s it! In return, however, the earthiness of the soft, sticky-crumbly carrot mixture, which had just a hint of sweetness to it, worked so well against the salty-sweetness of the crunchy brittle. Doesn’t sound much, but we can assure you that this is the best Gajar ka Halwa we’ve had. Very original.

Lebanese Rice Pudding With Rose Molasses – served with vanilla ice cream, £5.50

The Lebanese Rice Pudding With Rose Molasses by Zenobia in London’s South Kensington was by far and away the best dessert dish, and, quite possibly, the dish of the evening! The strong honey syrup on top sprinkled with almond flakes provided that initial kick of sweetness, that was cleverly counteracted by the rose water, to allow one to enjoy the subtle sweetness of the soft and creamy, large-grained rice. Uniquely different and absolutely delicious!