Lemon Posset

Ingredients

• 600ml double cream
• 150g caster sugar
• 3 lemons, zest and juice
• 1 vanilla pod, seeds scraped (optional)
• ½ tsp flaky sea salt
• 200g digestive biscuits, crushed
• 75g unsalted butter, melted
• 1 tbsp icing sugar (optional, for dusting)
• 150g fresh raspberries
• 6 mint sprigs (optional)

Method

1. Set out six small glasses or ramekins. Tip the crushed digestives into a bowl and stir through the melted butter until the crumbs hold together when pressed between your fingers. Press a spoonful firmly into the base of each glass and chill while you make the posset.
2. Combine the double cream and caster sugar in a medium saucepan with the split vanilla pod and scraped seeds, if using. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat, stirring so the sugar dissolves and the cream stays silky.
3. Let it bubble steadily for 3–4 minutes until thickened slightly — it should coat the back of a spoon and leave a clean line when you draw a finger through. Pull off the heat and fish out the vanilla pod.
4. Stir in the lemon juice and most of the zest a little at a time. The cream will thicken visibly as the acid hits — taste, then add a pinch of flaky salt to lift the sweetness and sharpen the citrus.
5. Pour the warm posset over the chilled biscuit bases, leaving a few millimetres of headspace. Cool to room temperature, then chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours, until silky and just set with a faint wobble in the centre.
6. To serve, scatter raspberries over each posset, dust with icing sugar if you like, finish with a mint sprig and a pinch of extra lemon zest. The first spoonful should plunge through a glossy, just-firm surface into luxuriously creamy posset with a clean citrus tang.