White Chocolate Brownies: A Family Baking Recipe and a Beautifully Dressed Table

I've never shared many recipes here before, but these white chocolate brownies felt like a lovely place to start. Inspired by Carole Bamford's much-loved Daylesford bakery recipe, they have everything a good brownie should: a delicate, crisp top, a rich and fudgy middle, and generous pieces of white chocolate throughout.

I made a batch for the family during our kitchen renovation, photographing them on a linen napkin in Holland Street's Flight print. I'm already looking forward to serving them later around a beautifully dressed table, with our printed linen bringing a little colour, pattern and personality to the occasion.

At Holland Street, I'm interested in the feeling a home creates as much as the way it looks. Whether it's something delicious baking in the oven, favourite linens laid across the table or family gathering at the end of the day, it's these seemingly simple moments that make home feel special.

I came across this recipe by Carole Bamford, founder of Bamford (whose hand creams are a firm favourite of mine at Space NK) and the woman behind Daylesford Organic in the Cotswolds — surely one of the most decadent farm shops around, with its beautiful organic produce and the most gorgeous ingredients, all rooted in a true farm-to-fork philosophy.

These brownies have long been one of the most popular treats in the Daylesford bakery, and it's easy to see why. A crisp top gives way to a rich, fudgy centre, with generous shards of crunchy white chocolate running all the way through. The smell as they bake is simply heavenly, and my family certainly didn't need much persuading.

With the renovation in full swing (the deVOL kitchen is arriving on Friday! Read more here), making them was something of a logistical exercise. I prepared the batch and enlisted a neighbour to pop them in the oven, while I carefully watched the clock from home. Not quite the usual way of baking, but needs must when your kitchen is temporarily out of action!

They're wonderfully indulgent, surprisingly straightforward and a lovely thing to make for the family over a weekend. Just be sure not to overbake them — that gloriously soft, fudgy middle is the whole point.

Daylesford's White Chocolate Brownies

From Carole Bamford's cookbook, A Love for Food

Makes approximately 16

Ingredients

• 4 organic eggs
• 150g caster sugar
• 150g demerara sugar
• 350g unsalted butter
• 350g dark chocolate (70% cocoa)
• 180g plain flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 380g white chocolate buttons

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 160°C (Gas Mark 3) and line a 30cm square cake tin with baking paper.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs and both sugars until thick.
3. Place the butter and dark chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a pan of gently simmering water, ensuring the bowl doesn't touch the water. Allow to melt, then leave to cool slightly.
4. Pour the melted chocolate mixture into the beaten eggs and sugars, mixing well.
5. Gently fold in the flour, baking powder and vanilla extract until combined, then stir through the white chocolate buttons.
6. Spoon the mixture into the prepared tin and bake for approximately 20 minutes. Keep a close eye on them: the brownies should remain soft and moist in the middle.
7. Remove from the oven and leave to cool completely in the tin before turning out onto a board and cutting into squares.

The secret: Don't wait for a clean skewer. It should come out sticky, not clean, to ensure that deliciously fudgy centre. A little restraint with the oven is what makes all the difference.

Perfect for a slow weekend, a pot of tea and a kitchen filled with the smell of chocolate — even if, like me, your own kitchen is currently a building site.

The art of feeling at home

There is something wonderfully cocooning about baking for the people you love. The warmth of the oven, the smell of chocolate filling the kitchen and everyone eventually gathering around the table are the small rituals that make a house feel like home.

It brings to mind the Danish idea of Hygge, beautifully explored by Meik Wiking in The Little Book of Hygge: Danish Secrets to Happy Living — creating warm, comfortable spaces where we can slow down, feel safe and enjoy the company of others. For me, this is the essence of being cocooned: creating a home that wraps around you and makes you want to linger. (SENSE Method™)

It is also at the heart of what I love about Holland Street. Colour, pattern, textiles and the spaces we create around us have such a powerful effect on how we feel. A beautiful tablecloth or linen isn't simply practical; it can transform the mood of a room, make an ordinary meal feel special and create a sense of occasion without becoming formal.

Perhaps that is why these brownies felt so right to make: a warm kitchen, the comforting scent of chocolate, family gathering and a table dressed in favourite Holland Street linen. I photographed them on our Flight Cocooned napkin, whose colour and pattern bring warmth and personality to the table — the kind of detail that makes a home feel lived-in, welcoming and entirely your own.

Cocooned living, for me, isn't about perfection. It's about creating warmth, belonging and sanctuary in the everyday.