Sometimes you just feel like baking a cake!

Here is my recipe for Crispy Lemon Cake

Ingredients
4oz (100gms) soft margarine ( I use Flora buttery)
6oz (150 gms) caster sugar
2 medium eggs lighten beaten
6oz (150 gms) self-raising flour
zest of 1 lemon, finely grated
1 level tsp of baking powder (but you can leave this out)
2 tablespoons of milk

Topping
4 oz of granulated or caster sugar
Juice from 1 lemon

A loaf tin -  lined with buttered greaseproof paper 

Method
1) Put the oven on at 180 degrees C.

2) Beat the butter and sugar together until soft. 

3) Add the lightly beaten egg a little at a time. If the mixture starts to curdle add a little of the flour. 

4) Once all the egg is mixed in, fold the self-raising flour, lemon zest and baking powder into the mixture. 

5) If the mixture looks a little stiff add 1 or 2 tablespoons of milk until it is a soft dropping consistency.

6) Spoon the mixture into a loaf tin and level out. 

7) Bake for 40 minutes until the cake looks golden and it springs back when touched lightly in the middle.

8) While it is cooling, juice the lemon and mix with the 4oz of sugar. If you prefer a crunchier texture use granulated sugar. 

9) If you have a skewer prick the top of the cake a few times (this is optional but will help the sugar mixture penetrate the cake) Pour the sugar mixture over the cake and leave until cold.  


Eat and enjoy!

When it comes to your wedding, you want to make sure everything is perfect. From the venue to the clothes that you are wearing, to the people involved in your wedding party - everything has to be just right. The same goes for your wedding cake - it is such a massive part of your big day that it needs to be exactly how you want it, but how do you choose the perfect wedding cake when there is so much choice out there?

Choosing the right people to make it, is always something that should be considered first - perhaps choose a local company that has excellent feedback like the Perfect Pudding Company who make amazing wedding cakes in Essex and you know will deliver upon what you want. But once you have chosen the right people to make your wedding cake, then you need to decide exactly what you want. So how can you do this?

Think About Your Wedding Theme

I have always thought of cake as being one of my five a day, so when bakerdays got in touch to ask me if I would like to review one of their Christmas cakes, of course, I said yes.

bakerdays is a company that delivers celebration and gift cakes all over the UK. From birthdays to anniversaries, Easter to Halloween, the cakes are suitable for any occasion. If you are looking for gluten and wheat free cakes or dairy free cakes they make these too so that is good to know if you have someone who has an allergy or intolerance.

The cake they sent me was a letterbox Christmas cake. Now letterbox cakes are a genius idea, not home to receive one? It doesn't matter as they fit through the letterbox. See what I mean about genius!




So I looked on the website and went through the designs to order my cake. Now some people are traditionalists and love a good fruitcake for Christmas, whilst others prefer a traditional sponge cake, a lemon cake or even a chocolate cake under their Christmas icing. The good thing about ordering your cake from bakerdays is that you can choose a variety of different sponges and you don't have to order a fruitcake for your Christmas cake. 

The choices of designs are wide, from fun cartoon characters to romantic designs, and traditional Christmas scenes, there is a design for most people. I picked a design I thought my son would like as he loves dogs, a cake called 'dachshund through the snow'. 

A few days later the cake came through the letterbox and landed on our doormat. With excitement, I opened the box, looking forward to seeing the cake. The cake was delivered in a sturdy little tin and came complete with card and a cracker, what a nice touch! 





The design was true to the photo on the website and I thought it looked really good.




The sponge was light in texture and tasted great. The icing was soft and sweet, exactly as expected. I have to admit I was expecting more buttercream though, as there was a very thin amount on the bottom of the cake. The letterbox cakes are described as serving 3-4 and are priced at £14.99. Personally I think it is a little expensive for what you get but of course, you pay for the convenience, the tin and the design which you can personalise. Overall it is a lovely cake that anyone would appreciate having for Christmas.

Today on my blog you can win a bakerdays Christmas cake. Entry is via the Gleam app below, and don't worry, it is easier than it looks to enter! Check out my other competitions when you are here too. Good Luck!
Win a bakerdays Christmas cake

Most of us know someone who has had cancer, and thankfully many people who have cancer go on to live until old age these days. Unfortunately, some don't. Marie Curie, the charity offers support and care for those with cancer but did you know they offer care for any terminal illness too? 

This year on the 23rd to 25th of June they are encouraging family and friends to hold a fundraising 'Blooming Great Tea Party'. It's easy, fun and a great thing to do. All you have to do is pick a date, invite some friends, bake some cakes and watch the donations roll in.

Will you make a classic Victoria sandwich or a red velvet cake, or what about my chocolate and Caramac roulade or my classic Bakewell tart.

For some inspiration check out the recipes on the Marie Curie website by award-winning food blogger Suzy Pelta. I tried out the banana and chocolate cake with a peanut butter frosting below and found it was so easy to make. You can even use some great food processors for making your own nut butter to add in if you are dairy-free.

If you want a fundraising pack, it's free and available on the Marie Curie website.

Banana and chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting




Ingredients for the cake

3 medium bananas
120g butter
100g dark chocolate
2 large eggs
160g light brown sugar
Pinch of salt
150g self-raising flour plus 1 tablespoon extra

When I was invited to try out some Dr Oetker baking products I thought, yes please! I first came across the brand through my love of pizza, and then I found out that they make a range of items for bakers everywhere. From cooking chocolate to frostings, icings to marzipan and edible decorations too, they have everything the home cook needs to take their bakes from the "yummy" to the "SCRUMMY".

So I decided to make the chocoholic cupcakes and to involve my teenage son in the making of them ( and eating) as I am trying to teach him some life skills before he ventures off to university in September, and of course, everyone should know how to make cupcakes! We decided to decorate them in lots of different ways to the recipe on the website, using a selection of Dr Oetker decorations.

A guest post by Karen Lancaster

These gorgeous little cakes are great to make with children. Decorate with shapes cut out of ready rolled icing, such as Christmas trees, stars and snowmen. Easy to adapt for all occasions.

Ingredients

I love cake! There I said it. I can take or leave most foods but there is something about cake, the taste, the sweetness, the deliciousness that transports me to another world. 

Living in a small town I find when looking for a cake for a special occasion there isn't a lot of choice. Sometimes you want something personal and unique for that someone special, so where do you go for a cake like that?

Well Baker Days is a company that I can recommend for that special cake.




What I like about Baker Days is that you can personalise your own cake with almost any design. You can add a name to their template design or even upload photos or a new design yourself. From letterbox cake to large party cakes they have something for just about everyone.

They even offer Next day delivery if ordered before 2pm at a modest charge of £4.99 and free delivery if you don't mind waiting a little longer.