Yo-ho-ho! How to make a pirate ship cake

 

Ahoy! The inspiration for this birthday cake comes from the official birthday cake handbook of the eighties (and beyond), “The Australian Women’s Weekly Kids’ Birthday Cakes”. How many of you can remember paging through this book as children, ogling all of the beautiful birthday creations? Talk about nostalgia. My copy of the book is not the original but a later version, however it but still features its legendary bakes like the train cake, the princess castle and the swimming pool (if you know, you know).

 

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Easter treats recipe round up

 

I’ve been so looking forward to this Easter weekend and a chance to slow down, catch my breath for a few days and enjoy time with my family. We’re keeping things very simple this year without all the fuss and frills, but there will still be plenty of treats to enjoy. I decided to put together a round up of decadent Easter dishes that you can make over the coming weekend.

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Marble loaf cake with coffee glaze

A photo of sliced vanilla and chocolate marble loaf cake with coffee glaze

 

This easy loaf cake is simple enough to whip up as a last minute tea time treat, and you can have a bit of fun creating a swirled effect with the vanilla and chocolate batters.  It’s made with ingredients that I always have on hand, love that! Let’s not forget the simple mocha glaze that goes on top (scroll down for a close up of that drip!), I’m here for all of it.

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Chocolate simnel cake

 

Here’s an Easter bake inspired by the traditional simnel cake. It’s a fruity chocolate cake with a layer of delicious homemade marzipan in the middle and a glossy ganache topping – perfect for some tea time indulging. Yes please!

 

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Vanilla party cake

 

We’re celebrating two special family birthdays in October, my son’s and my dad’s, and in honour of that today I’m sharing my go-to vanilla party cake recipe. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve made this cake, it’s THAT good. My favourite thing about it is that it keeps so well. I can make the cake a day ahead and quickly ice it on party day which saves so much time and stress on the day. Of course the vanilla flavour just wonderful too, it’s always a crowd pleaser.

 

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Gingerbread squares

Gingerbread cake with cream cheese icing

 

Just four sleeps until Christmas (I get the daily count down from my kids, ha ha!) and just time to squeeze in a festive treat to enjoy these holidays. It doesn’t feel like Christmas until I’ve baked something spiced and the homely aromas that come from the kitchen when this gingerbread cake is in the oven are so enticing and comforting.

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Spooky spiderweb cake

Spider web red velvet cake with chocolate cream cheese icing and chocolate ghosts

 

Halloween is just around the corner and it’s interesting to see how this holiday has taken off in S.A. over the last few years. When I was a child Halloween was a holiday we saw in movies and on t.v. shows but never celebrated ourselves. This year my kids want to dress up and many neighbourhoods are organising (socially distanced) trick or treating. I decided that I would create a “spooktacular” cake to mark the occasion and for a bit of fun!

 

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Vanilla and orange cake and Grace Stevens GIVEAWAY

Vanilla and orange cake

In my last post I promised something special for the bakers out there, and here it is! This week I’ve teamed up with Grace Stevens for a fun giveaway and to share a scrumptious cake recipe.

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