Look at this handsome little cake with all its marvellous marbly shenanigans. It’s not all window dressing either. This lovely moist sponge, with its comforting flavour combo of buttery vanilla and choc, delivers some clout too. Read more

Do you get intrigued sometimes by slightly odd recipes? - with slightly unlikely ingredients? – (especially if they turn out to be surprisingly yum) Well then here’s a little corker for you. My friend and fellow cake enthusiast Justine Blore shared this recipe with me recently. I’ve adapted it to low/almost zero sugar and tweaked it with a little additional flavour to compensate for the subtler sweetness. Read more

Here’s a special call out – and suggestion – to any veggie gardeners out there, currently knee deep in courgettes, who are wondering what an earth to do with them all.

PUT THEM IN A CAKE!

Did you know that courgettes are the Prince Charming of cake ingredients? They bring such a lovely lightness and joy to a cake sponge, it could almost float away. Which surely makes this spicey limey nutty creamy work of art, a perfect Summer afternoon sweet treat to get your gnashers round.Read more

This little beauty tastes every bit as heavenly as it looks. Bite into this cutey and your lucky tastebuds get to enjoy a seductive combo of cardamom, warm buttery sweetness with a nuanced after-zing of fresh lime. Pistachios always move a cake up the luxury scale for me. I find their unique flavour incredibly moreish. It’s a wonder they made it from the jar to the mixing bowl. And their gorgeous decorative spring green colour light up the top of any cake. Read more

Let’s face it, flapjacks are the Julie Andrews of the cake world really, aren’t they? They don’t have the frivolity nor kerbside appeal of a good chocolatey or iced toppingy type of cake. But as a wholesome and satisfying sweet snack, they’re unbeatable. Read more