A beautiful loaf cake made using no eggs or butter. Delicious and squidgy with a malt loaf kind of texture. It’s best served with a cup of tea, sliced up and buttered with a little extra honey drizzled over it. Tip: The ripest bananas are best when adding them to cakes.
Ingredients
350g self raising flour
75g banana – mashed
1 teaspoon ground mixed spice.
100g soft brown sugar
175g runny honey
150ml semi skimmed milk
Method
Grease and line your loaf tin with greaseproof paper
Pre heat oven to 180c / 160c fan
Mash the banana and set aside.
In a large mixing bowl add your flour, mixed spice and brown sugar. Stir to combine and make a well in the centre.
Pour in the honey and milk to the well and mix thoroughly to blend all the ingredients fully.
Now fold in the mashed banana.
Transfer the mixture to your loaf tin and bake in the centre of the oven for 1 hour.
Leave to cool in the tin for 10 mins upon removing from the oven, then transfer to a wire rack to cool fully.
Slice up and spread with butter and a drizzle of honey for added deliciousness.
Something classic and simple to add to the table for your Platinum Jubilee celebrations. Fit for a Queen. Bite sized mini Victoria sponges filled with fresh cream and jam. You can whip up a batch in minutes. Serve immediately on adding the cream and jam!
Makes 12
Ingredients
125g butter
125g self raising flour
125g caster sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons milk
Tablespoon icing sugar to dust over for decoration
Double cream and strawberry jam to serve
Method
Preheat oven to 200c / 180c
Line a fairy cake tin with paper cases.
Add all your ingredients to a large mixing bowl. Whisk together until smooth and creamy, then spoon evenly into your cases.
Bake for approximately 15-20 minutes on the middle shelf of the oven, keeping an eye so when they have risen and are nicely golden they are ready to come out.
Allow to cool for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire baking rack .
Split in half with a sharp knife and allow to cool for another 5 minutes so the cakes have fully cooled.
Meanwhile, whisk up your double cream.
Spoon on a dessert spoonful of double cream and a teaspoon of jam into each sponge cake, dust with icing sugar and serve immediately.
Raspberry and white chocolate is such a delicious combination I had to marry them up in some cookies. I’ve only ever eaten them together in cake so I was delighted that they turned out so good.
Sandwich them together with some vanilla ice cream in between for added happiness.
Ingredients
150g raspberries
150g butter – unsalted
75g caster sugar
75g light brown sugar
1 egg
225g plain flour
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate soda
100g white chocolate chips or small pieces
Pinch of salt
Method
Pre heat oven to 190c / 170c fan. Line and grease two baking trays.
Mix together your butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Add a beaten egg and beat it into the mixture.
Now fold in your flour, bicarbonate soda and salt and mix fully.
Fold in your chocolate chips and raspberries.
Roll out approximately 12 golf ball size mounds and place evenly between the trays, 6 per tray.
Bake in the centre of the oven for approx 15 minutes.
Remove from oven and leave to cool on the baking tray for 10 mins or so as they will still be cooking inside.
Sandwiching together with ice cream for extra happiness.
I thought you might have some Easter eggs to use up and still be in the mood for a chocolate hit. This is just the recipe. Soft chocolate sponge sandwiched together and covered with fudgy icing. For the icing feel free to change the chocolate types to all milk or all dark if you desire as both work well.
Ingredients
125g caster sugar
4 eggs
100g self raising flour
25g cocoa powder
40g butter – melted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Icing
150g dark chocolate
200g milk chocolate
250g butter
Method
Pre heat oven to 200c / 180c and grease and line an 8 inch cake tin.
Add your sugar and eggs to a large mixing bowl and whisk for approx 5 minutes until all thick and frothy.
Sift over the flour and cocoa, then fold it in gently along with the 40g melted butter and vanilla extract. Stir to fully combine.
Transfer the mixture to your lined cake tin and bake on the middle shelf for 25 minutes.
Remove from oven and allow to cool in the tin for 10 minutes or so. Once removed cool completely on a wire rack.
Once the cake has fully cooled slice in half horizontally and allow to cool a little longer as the inside of the cake may still be a warm. You need it to be completely cool for the icing to set properly.
Meanwhile, mix up your icing by melting the 250g butter and chocolate in a microwave in short 30 second bursts mixing each time to combine.
Slowly fold in the icing sugar.
Whisk to form a fudgy consistency and smear all over your base of the cake and sandwich the other cake on top.
Now smear the rest of the chocolate on top and all over.
Perfect for afternoon tea, perfect for lunch boxes, perfect for a post work out treat. Basically perfect for anything, you get the gist. These can be made in a flash and devoured even quicker. If you end up having lots of Easter eggs to use up these are perfect. These are so popular I’d make two batches if I were you.
Makes approx 12
Ingredients
250g oats
125g butter
125g caster sugar
3 tablespoons golden syrup
80g dark chocolate – in cubes or chips
Drizzle of dark chocolate to decorate
Method
Pre heat oven to 180c fan
Weigh out all your ingredients into separate bowls.
Gently heat your butter in a saucepan along with the syrup.
Add the oats bit by bit making sure they get fully coated in the syrup mixture. Allow to cool a little.
Now add your dark chocolate chips.
Grease and line your baking tin and spoon the mixture in. I use an 18x18cm shallowish tin. Don’t worry if the mix doesn’t spread to the sides. I pour my mixture in and leave about 2 inches up the side of the tin otherwise it will be too flat if the mixture goes all the way to the edges.
Bake in the centre of the oven for 15 minutes. Once out of the oven quickly score into 12 and allow to set.
Lift out carefully with a palette knife. Allow to fully cool, then drizzle over some dark chocolate.
This is heavenly served as a pudding with hot chocolate custard. I’m banned in my family for saying the word pudding as they hate it, so I’ve called it frosted chocolate sponge traybake! Reminiscent of school dinners back in the day.
Ingredients
300g dark chocolate
200g butter
200g caster sugar
4 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
150g self raising flour
Frosting
50g butter
50g cream cheese
150g icing sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Method
Pre heat oven to 180c / 160c fan
Line and grease a traybake tin. I used a 28cm x 18cm.
Break up the chocolate into squares and add to a large mixing bowl along with the butter.
Melt in the microwave in short bursts stirring after every 30 seconds until fully melted or you can do this in a bowl over a pan of boiling water if you prefer.
Remove bowl and stir to combine the chocolate and butter. I bet you can’t resist trying a bit!
Stir in all the other ingredients and whisk until smooth.
Transfer to your traybake tin and bake in the centre of the oven for 35 mintues.
Remove from oven and allow to cool in the tin for 15 minutes or so before lifting out and placing on the works urface.
Meanwhile, whisk up your frosting in a separate bowl and set aside.
Once fully cooled spread over your frosting with a palette knife and cut into 12 squares.
Serve with hot chocolate custard for delightfulness.
A cute and simple sponge cake bringing back all the nostalgic childhood memories.
Makes 12
Ingredients
125g butter
125g self raising flour
125g caster sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons milk
For the buttercream
125g icing sugar
40g butter
Half teaspoon vanilla extract
Few drips of icy water
Method
Preheat oven to 200c / 180c
Add all your ingredients to a large mixing bowl. Whisk together and spoon into your cases.
Bake for approximately 15-20 minutes keeping an eye so when they have risen and are nicely golden they are ready to come out.
Allow to cool for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire baking rack .
While the cakes are cooling mix up your buttercream.
Once fully cooled cut out a circle about 1cm deep in the centre of the cake leaving about a centimetre around the outside of each cake. Spoon your buttercream in the centre and cut your sponge circle in half and stick on into the buttercream to replicate butterfly wings. Dust over a little icing sugar to pretty up.
I love blueberry and raspberry muffins but I don’t like them too sickly sweet and artificial tasting. These are not heavy on the sugar, gorgeously fruity and heavenly split in half and buttered with a cup of tea.
Makes 12
Ingredients
275g self raising flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 eggs
75g caster sugar
225ml milk
100g butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
85g blueberries
85g raspberries
Icing sugar to dust over – approx 1 tablespoon
Method
Pre heat oven to 200c / 180c fan
Line your muffin tin with muffin cases ( slightly larger than the fairy cake ones).
Literally throw all the ingredients into the mixing bowl except for the blueberries and raspberries. You gently fold these in once you have whisked the mixture and it is smooth and creamy.
Spoon evenly into the muffin cases.
Place in the centre of the oven and bake for approx 22 minutes.
Allow to cool on a wire rack and then dust over with icing sugar.
You can never have too much funfetti in your life. Crunchy oat biscuits dipped in a burst of bright sprinkles. How is that not going to cheer up anyones day?
Ingredients
Makes 10 medium cookies
75g plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
75g oats
50g brown sugar
75g butter
1 tablespoon golden syrup
2 tablespoons milk
100g white choc chips
Shake or 2 of sprinkles.
Method
Pre heat oven to 180c / 160c fan
Sift your flower and baking powder into a large bowl, then add your oats and sugar.
Over a low heat melt your butter and syrup together with your milk. Stirring all the time.
Add to your mixing bowl of ingredients making sure every oat is coated.
Roll into golf ball size mounds shared between two lined baking sheets and bake in the centre of the oven for approximately 15 minutes. So approx 5 cookies per baking sheet.
Allow to cool on a wire rack.
Meanwhile, melt white chocolate in short bursts in the microwave or in a bowl over a pan of boiling water.
Dip your cookie half in and quickly scatter over your sprinkles to the melted chocolate.
Allow to rest on the baking sheet until fully dry.
Inspired to make this by something similar that Nigella makes. My version has a variation on ingredients and no ground almonds as my girls can’t eat them. The delicious end result of a dense Amaretto chocolate cake is the same though. It’s hardly the most pretty of cakes but what it lacks in aesthetic charm it makes up for in flavour. I recommend chilling overnight and serving straight from the fridge the next day with creme fraiche.
Ingredients
250g dark chocolate
4 eggs separated
110g of caster sugar
3 tablespoons of warm water
2 tablespoons Amaretto
Cocoa powder for dusting
Creme fraiche to serve (optional)
Method
Pre heat oven to 180C. Grease and line a loose bottomed tin approx 20cm.
Break up the chocolate into little squares and melt gently either in the microwave in short bursts of a few seconds, stirring occasionally or in a bowl over a saucepan of boiling water. I prefer the microwave method as its quicker. Allow to cool for a while.
Whilst the chocolate is cooling crack your eggs into two different mixing bowls, whites in one and yolks in another.
Add the caster sugar to the bowl with the egg yolks and whisk for a couple of minutes. You want them looking pale in colour. I’d recommend an electric whisk for this.
Gradually add the cooled chocolate mixture which should be a smooth and runny consistency and then add the water bit by bit and finally the Amaretto. Try not to eat any of the chocolate mixture!
Lastly whisk up your egg whites in your separate bowl for a minute or so until they start to hold their shape. You want them looking almost marshmallowy. Finally fold them bit by bit into the chocolate mixture.
When you have a gooey, chocolatey liquid pour into your baking tin and bake in the centre of the oven for 15 minutes.
Remove from the oven and allow too cool. The cake will look a bit wobbly but don’t worry, just leave to cool in the tin as this will soon set. Once the cake has cooled transfer in the tin to the fridge and leave overnight. You don’t have to leave overnight but it really is best that way. This is meant to be a rich dense cake rather than a soft spongey one so it works best straight from the fridge.
When you remove it before serving it will have turned into a gorgeous, chocolatey, dense cake which you then need to dust with the best cocoa powder you can find and serve with creme fraiche or if that’s not your thing then, ice cream or fresh double cream.
Love To Cook With Suzi 