Sticky crumble topped gingerbread

Searching for a gingerbread recipe can be a bit confusing – for a start gingerbread can be a rich loaf cake, a pain d’epices, or it can be a crisp biscuit for gingerbread houses or little iced biscuits (see my own recipe for Gingerbread foxes). This is neither! Inspired in part by Grassmere gingerbread (a

Pistachio and raspberry/bay Battenburg

Something a little different from the traditional Battenburg, this cake incorporates pistachios and a fresh raspberry sauce which has been flavoured with bay leaf. I have made my own marzipan, and have included the ingredients but please don’t think you have to do this – you can use shop bought (I do think it’s inferior

Florentines

Recipe for chocolate covered almond, pistachio and cherry Florentines – plus make them extra special with a shortbread base

Paris-Brest with passionfruit crème diplomate

This Paris-Brest choux is another Daring Bakers‘ challenge. I have made Paris-Brest before on a few occasions and to follow the original recipe is to produce one large ring-shaped choux filled, decorated simply with toasted, flaked almonds and filled with crème mousseline. It’s typically large enough that it can be sliced to serve a number

Spiced beef and cheddar pasties

These are roughly based on a traditional Cornish recipe – which I adore, but I’ve spiced them up a bit and added chunks of melty cheddar. So they’re definitely not Cornish anymore, but they are nice! Makes about 5 – 6 Equipment Baking tray Large saucepan Saute pan Grater or microplane pastry brush Rolling pin

Chimney cake

Another Daring Bakers challenge – thanks to Swathi from Zesty South Indian Kitchen. Chimney cake (its anglicised name) or Kürtőskalács is a brioche/enriched dough treat from Hungary and Romania. It’s name reflects the shape, caused by coiling dough round a wooden cylinder and baking the whole thing together. This cake is a legacy of medieval

Cornish saffron plaited loaf

Fruity Cornish plaited saffron loaf

Sachertorte

I’ve made Sachertorte before but found it to be a very adult-oriented cake, certainly one that my children wouldn’t particularly enjoy. So, I set about making a sweeter, less bitter version. It still has all the essentials to be a Sachertorte-type cake with the melted chocolate in the mix, the Savoy-sponge method and the melted