Carrot Cake With Cinnamon Frosting

Who can resist a slice of moist, frosting-topped carrot cake with a warming cuppa?

• Cooking Time Prep 20 mins
  Cook 1 hr
• Skill Level Easy
• Servings Cuts into 8-10 slices

Nutrition per serving

• Kcalories

  592

• Protein

  7g

• Carbs

  51g

• Fat

  41g

• Saturates

  14g

• Fibre

  2g

• Sugar

  36g

• Salt

  0.83g

Ingredients

• zest and juice 1 orange
• 50g sultanas
• 150ml sunflower oil, plus extra for greasing
• 2 eggs
• 140g soft light brown sugar
• 85g wholemeal self-raising flour
• 85g self-raising flour
• 2 tsp each ground cinnamon and ground mixed spice
• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 140g carrots, coarsely grated
• 50g walnuts, chopped, plus a few halves to decorate
• For the icing
• 200g soft cheese
• 50g butter, softened
• 85g icing sugar, sifted
• pinch ground cinnamon

Directions

1. If you have time to do it the night before, put the orange zest and juice in a bowl with the sultanas. If you don't have time, on the day simply stir the zest, juice and sultanas together and microwave on Medium for 1-2 mins.
2. Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4 and grease and line the base and sides of a 2lb loaf tin. Whisk together the oil and eggs. Mix together the sugar, flours, mixed spice, cinnamon and bicarb in your largest mixing bowl. Add the sultanas with any juice and zest left in the bowl, grated carrot, walnuts and whisked egg mixture into the dry ingredients, then thoroughly mix with a wooden spoon. Tip into the loaf tin and bake on the middle shelf for 1 hr, or until a skewer comes out clean. Cool the cake in the tin.
3. Once cool, remove from the tin and make the icing. With an electric whisk, beat together the soft cheese, butter, icing sugar and cinnamon until smooth. Spread over the top of the cake and decorate with walnut halves.

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Coffee & Walnut Cake

The classic combo is made extra sumptuous with mascarpone frosting - a traditional sponge for cake sales and parties

• Cooking Time Prep 45 mins
  Cook 30 mins
• Skill Level Easy
• Servings Cuts into 10 slices

Nutrition per serving

• Kcalories

  620

• Protein

  7g

• Carbs

  55g

• Fat

  41g

• Saturates

  22g

• Fibre

  2g

• Sugar

  36g

• Salt

  0.8g

Ingredients

• 250g pack softened butter, plus extra for the tins
• 100ml strong black coffee (made with 2 tbsp coffee granules), cooled
• 280g self-raising flour
• 250g golden caster sugar
• ½ tsp baking powder
• 4 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 85g walnuts, 2 tbsp roughly chopped, the rest finely chopped
• For the filling
• 100g icing sugar, sifted, plus a little extra for dusting
• 150ml double cream
• 100g mascarpone, at room temperature

Directions

1. Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Butter 2 x 20cm round cake tins and line with baking parchment. Set aside 1 tbsp of the coffee for the filling.
2. Beat the butter, flour, sugar, baking powder, eggs, vanilla and half the remaining coffee in a large bowl with an electric whisk until lump-free. Fold in the finely chopped walnuts, then divide between the tins and roughly spread. Scatter the roughly chopped walnuts over one of the cakes. Bake the cakes for 25-30 mins until golden and risen, and a skewer poked in comes out clean. Drizzle the plain cake with the remaining coffee. Cool the cakes in the tins.
3. Meanwhile, make the filling: beat together the icing sugar, cream and mascarpone, then fold in the reserved 2 tbsp coffee. Spread over the plain cake, then cover with the walnut-topped cake and dust with a little icing sugar.

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Chocolate & Ginger Torte

This decadent dessert with a triple-ginger hit is a chocoholic's dream

• Cooking Time Prep 25 mins
  Cook 1 hr, 10 mins
• Skill Level Moderately easy
• Servings Serves 8 - 10

Nutrition per serving

• Kcalories

  907

• Protein

  10g

• Carbs

  73g

• Fat

  65g

• Saturates

  35g

• Fibre

  2g

• Sugar

  72g

• Salt

  0.18g

Ingredients

• 250g unsalted butter, diced, plus extra for the tin
• cocoa, for dusting
• 350g dark chocolate, chopped
• 2 tbsp Stone's Ginger wine
• 140g caster sugar
• 100g light muscovado sugar
• 5 eggs, separated
• 75g ground almonds
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1 heaped tbsp ginger preserve
• For the ganache icing
• 140g dark chocolate, finely chopped
• 150ml double cream
• 25g unsalted butter
• 2 tbsp Stone's Ginger wine

Directions

1. Heat oven to 170C/150C fan/gas 3-4. Butter and line a 23cm round springform tin with a disc of buttered baking parchment. Lightly dust the inside of the tin with cocoa and tip out excess.
2. Put the chocolate and butter into a medium-size heatproof bowl, add the ginger wine and set the bowl over a pan of barely simmering water. Stir occasionally until melted and smooth. Remove from the heat and cool slightly.
3. Tip both the sugars into a large mixing bowl or the bowl of an electric mixer and add the egg yolks. Whisk until pale and light. Pour the melted chocolate and butter into the yolks and stir until smooth. With another large, spotlessly clean bowl and whisk, beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt until they just hold a stiff peak.
4. Sift the almonds and ginger into the chocolate mixture and fold in using a large metal spoon. Add one-third of the egg whites and stir in to loosen the mixture. Fold in the remaining egg whites until combined.
5. Spoon half the mixture into the prepared tin and gently spread level using a palette knife. Gently warm the ginger preserve until it's just spreadable and carefully spoon onto the cake in small dollops. Spoon over the remaining chocolate mixture, spread level and bake just below the middle shelf of the oven for 50 mins-1 hr until a wooden skewer inserted into the middle of the cake comes out with a moist crumb attached. Allow the cake to cool in the tin and don't be dismayed if the top sinks and cracks.
6. To make the ganache icing, tip the chocolate into a heatproof bowl. Then add the cream, butter and ginger wine. Set the bowl over a pan of barely simmering water and stir until melted and velvety smooth. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly.
7. Carefully run a palette knife around the edge of the cake to loosen it, then put on a serving plate. Spread the ganache over the top, and leave to set before serving.

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Blitz-And-Bake Beetroot & Chocolate Cake

Beetroot is actually very sweet and keeps this rich chocolate loaf wonderfully moist

• Cooking Time Prep 15 mins
  Cook 1 hr
• Skill Level Easy
• Servings Cuts into 8 slices

Nutrition per serving

• Kcalories

  594

• Protein

  7g

• Carbs

  71g

• Fat

  34g

• Saturates

  7g

• Fibre

  3g

• Sugar

  45g

• Salt

  0.78g

Ingredients

• 1 large cooked beetroot, about 175g in weight, roughly chopped
• 200g plain flour
• 100g cocoa powder
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 250g golden caster sugar
• 3 eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 200ml sunflower oil
• 100g dark chocolate, (not too bitter), chopped into pieces
• crème fraîche or clotted cream, to serve

Directions

1. Heat oven to 190C/fan 170C/gas 5. Tip the beetroot into a food processor and blitz until chopped. Add a pinch of salt and the rest of the ingredients, except the oil and chocolate. When completely mixed (you may need to scrape the sides down once or twice), add the oil in a steady stream, as if you were making mayonnaise.
2. When all the oil has been added, stir in the chocolate, then tip the mix into a lined 900g loaf tin. Cook for 1 hr until an inserted skewer comes out practically clean. leave the loaf to cool on a rack. Serve in slices with the crème fraîche or clotted cream.

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Flourless Chocolate & Pear Cake

A light, but luscious cake made with hazelnuts - serve a slice for dessert with a dollop of crme frache

• Cooking Time Prep 20 mins
  Cook 40 mins
• Skill Level Moderately easy
• Servings Serves 8

Nutrition per serving

• Kcalories

  334

• Protein

  5g

• Carbs

  28g

• Fat

  23g

• Saturates

  9g

• Fibre

  0g

• Sugar

  28g

• Salt

  0.28g

Ingredients

• 85g butter, plus 1 tbsp extra for tin
• 85g golden caster sugar, plus extra for tin
• 85g gluten-free dark chocolate, broken into pieces
• 1 tbsp brandy
• 3 eggs, separated
• 85g hazelnuts, toasted and ground in a food processor
• 4 very ripe pears, peeled, halved and cored
• icing sugar, for dusting

Directions

1. Cut a circle of baking parchment to fit the base of a 25cm loose-bottomed tin. Melt 1 tbsp butter and brush the inside of the tin, then line the base with the parchment and brush again with more butter. Spoon in 2 tbsp caster sugar, swirl it around to coat the base and sides, then tip out any excess.
2. Heat oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Melt the chocolate and butter in a bowl over a pan of hot water, remove from the heat, stir in the brandy and leave to cool. Whisk the egg yolks with the sugar in a large bowl until pale and thick; fold into the chocolate with the hazelnuts.
3. In a separate bowl, with a clean whisk, beat the whites until they reach a soft peak (try not to whisk them too stiffly or you'll have trouble folding them in). Stir a spoonful of the whites into the chocolate mix, then carefully fold in the rest of them in 2 additions. Spoon into the prepared tin. Level, then arrange the pears over the mixture, cut-side down. Bake for 40 mins until the pears are soft and the cake is cooked all the way through. Leave to cool in the tin slightly before releasing it, then place on a rack to cool completely. Dust with icing sugar and serve with crème fraîche.

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Chocolate Courgette Cake

Grated courgette gives this cake a lovely moist texture - a great way to use up a glut from your garden

• Cooking Time Prep 10 mins
  Cook 1 hr
• Skill Level Easy
• Servings Serves 10

Nutrition per serving

• Kcalories

  716

• Protein

  10g

• Carbs

  84g

• Fat

  40g

• Saturates

  10g

• Fibre

  4g

• Sugar

  55g

• Salt

  0.43g

Ingredients

• 350g self-raising flour
• 50g cocoa powder
• 1 tsp mixed spice
• 175ml extra-virgin olive oil
• 375g golden caster sugar
• 3 eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 500ml grated courgettes (measure by volume in a measuring jug, but it's about 2 medium courgettes; if using 1 overgrown one, peel first and take out seeds)
• 140g toasted hazelnuts, roughly chopped
• For the icing
• 200g dark chocolate, chopped
• 100ml double cream

Directions

1. Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. In a large bowl, combine the flour, cocoa powder, mixed spice and 1 tsp salt. In another bowl, combine the olive oil, sugar, eggs, vanilla essence and grated courgette. Mix the dry and wet mixture until just combined, then fold in the toasted hazelnuts. Line a 24cm cake tin with greaseproof paper, then pour in your mixture. Bake for about 40-50 mins, or until a knife inserted into the middle comes out clean. Cool in the tin for 10 mins, then turn out onto a wire rack and leave to cool.
2. To make the icing, place the chocolate in a bowl and bring cream to the boil in a saucepan. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and stir until completely smooth and melted. Leave the icing to cool slightly and thicken, then spread it over the cake so it's covered and the icing starts to drip down the sides. Serve with a cup of tea or enjoy as a pud with a spoonful of something creamy.

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Double Chocolate Loaf Cake

Chocolate and cake are two of our favourite things, so what's not to love about this indulgent cake?

• Cooking Time Prep 25 mins
  Cook 55 mins
• Skill Level Easy
• Servings Cuts into 8-10 slices

Nutrition per serving

• Kcalories

  504

• Protein

  8g

• Carbs

  48g

• Fat

  32g

• Saturates

  16g

• Fibre

  2g

• Sugar

  33g

• Salt

  0.64g

Ingredients

• 175g softened butter, plus extra for greasing
• 175g golden caster sugar
• 3 eggs
• 140g self-raising flour
• 85g ground almonds
• ½ tsp baking powder
• 100ml milk
• 4 tbsp cocoa powder
• 50g plain chocolate chips or chunks
• few extra chunks white, plain and milk chocolate, for decorating

Directions

1. Heat oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3. Grease and line a 2lb/900g loaf tin with a long strip of baking parchment. To make the loaf cake batter, beat the butter and sugar with an electric whisk until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, flour, almonds, baking powder, milk and cocoa until smooth. Stir in the chocolate chips, then scrape into the tin. Bake for 45-50 mins until golden, risen and a skewer poked in the centre comes out clean.
2. Cool in the tin, then lift out onto a wire rack over some kitchen paper. Melt the extra chocolate chunks separately in pans over barely simmering water, or in bowls in the microwave, then use a spoon to drizzle each in turn over the cake. Leave to set before slicing.

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Chocolate Fudge Cake With Angel Frosting

The ultimate in indulgence, this chocolate fudge cake looks like a star with American-style frosting and bakes in just one tin

• Cooking Time Prep 1 hr
  Cook 1 hr, 45 mins
• Skill Level For the keen cook
• Servings Serves 10

Nutrition per serving

• Kcalories

  849

• Protein

  7g

• Carbs

  132g

• Fat

  35g

• Saturates

  11g

• Fibre

  2g

• Sugar

  107g

• Salt

  0.47g

Ingredients

• 250g dark chocolate, broken into chunks - standard supermarket chocolate is fine
• 300g self-raising flour
• 300g light, soft brown sugar, plus 2 tbsp
• 50g cocoa
• 200ml sunflower oil, plus a little extra for greasing
• 284ml soured cream
• 3 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• For the angel frosting
• 500g white caster sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp liquid glucose
• 2 egg whites
• 25g icing sugar, sifted

Directions

1. Heat oven to 160C/fan 140C/gas 4 and grease and line a deep, 20cm round cake tin. Whizz the chocolate in a food processor until crumbs. Tip the flour, sugar, cocoa, oil, 150ml soured cream, eggs, vanilla and 150ml water into the largest mixing bowl you have. Whisk with an electric whisk until smooth, then quickly stir in 150g of your whizzed-up chocolate bits. Scrape into a tin, and bake on the middle shelf for 1 hr 20-1 hr 30 mins, or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Cool in the tin.
2. While the cake is baking, make the icing. Combine remaining chocolate bits and soured cream with 2 tbsp soft brown sugar in a small saucepan and heat, stirring, until the chocolate is melted and you have a smooth icing. Leave to cool.
3. When the cake is cool, slice it into 3 even layers. Spread 2 layers with chocolate icing.
4. To make the angel frosting, put the sugar, vanilla and liquid glucose in a pan with 125ml water. Bring to the boil and cook just until the sugar has melted and the syrup turns clear. Take off the heat. Meanwhile, beat the egg whites until stiff, then continue beating, gradually pouring in the hot sugar syrup in a steady stream, until the mixture is fluffy and thick enough to spread-this might take a few mins as the mixture cools. Beat in the icing sugar. Work quickly and spread a tiny bit over each chocolate-covered layer. Assemble cake and swirl remaining frosting over entire cake.

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Chocolate & Caramel Ombre Cake

For the ultimate indulgence look no further than Sarah Cook's four-layered chocolate-caramel extravaganza

• Cooking Time Prep 1 hr
  Cook 55 mins
• Skill Level Moderately easy
• Servings Cuts into 12 slices

Nutrition per serving

• Kcalories

  1036

• Protein

  15g

• Carbs

  99g

• Fat

  67g

• Saturates

  35g

• Fibre

  3g

• Sugar

  75g

• Salt

  1.25g

Ingredients

• For vanilla & chocolate sponges
• 225g very soft butter, plus extra for greasing
• 225g golden caster sugar
• 175g self-raising flour
• 85g ground almonds
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 3 eggs
• 150ml pot natural yogurt
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 5 tbsp cocoa powder
• For caramel & caramel-choc sponges
• 225g very soft butter, plus extra for greasing
• 175g light muscovado sugar
• 50g dark muscovado sugar
• 175g self-raising flour
• 85g ground almonds
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 3 eggs
• 150ml pot natural yogurt
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp cocoa
• To assemble
• 397g can caramel (stocked near the condensed milk in stores)
• 140g dark chocolate
• 140g milk chocolate
• 300ml double cream

Directions

1. Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Grease and line bases of 2 x 20cm sandwich tins with baking parchment. For the Vanilla & chocolate sponges, mix all the ingredients, apart from the cocoa, together with an electric whisk. Scrape half the mix into a second bowl and whizz in the cocoa. Scrape into the tins and bake for 20-25 mins until a skewer poked in comes out clean.
2. Repeat step 1 for the Caramel & caramel-choc sponges, again leaving cocoa out of the first mixing, then splitting the mix in half and whizzing the cocoa into one batch. Cook as above.
3. While sponges are cooling, melt the dark and milk chocolate together in a bowl over a pan of barely simmering water. Remove from the heat, stir in the cream and cool or chill until spreadable.
4. When the sponges are cool, spread a third of the caramel over the Vanilla sponge and top with the Caramel sponge. Spread over another third of the caramel and top with the Caramel-choc sponge, then the final third of caramel and top with the Chocolate sponge (don't panic if you mix up the layers, the cake will still look great when you cut in). Spread the chocolate icing over the whole cake to serve. It will keep in a cool place in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

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Dense & Dark Chocolate Loaf

This cake is mixed and made in a saucepan - how easy is that! It's best eaten on the same day, or within two

• Cooking Time Prep 20 mins
  Cook 50 mins
• Skill Level Easy
• Servings Serves 8

Nutrition per serving

• Kcalories

  645

• Protein

  9g

• Carbs

  60g

• Fat

  43g

• Saturates

  24g

• Fibre

  2g

• Sugar

  32g

• Salt

  1.05g

Ingredients

• 200g butter, plus extra for greasing
• 100g dark chocolate (use one that's 70% cocoa solids), broken into chunks
• 150g pot natural yogurt
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 3 large eggs
• 250g self-raising flour
• 175g dark muscovado sugar
• ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
• For the topping
• 100ml double cream
• 1 tbsp butter
• 100g dark chocolate, chopped

Directions

1. Heat oven to 190C/fan 170C/gas 5 and make sure there's a shelf ready in the middle of the oven. Butter a large loaf tin (about 20cm long, measured from the top edge), then cut a strip of baking paper a few inches longer than the total length of the base and the two shortest sides. Press it into the tin. (When your cake's ready, you can use the paper 'wings' at either end to help lift it out.)
2. Put the butter and chocolate in a large saucepan and heat very gently until melted, stirring now and again. Cool for 5 mins, then use a whisk to mix in the yogurt and vanilla, then the eggs and a pinch of salt.
3. Mix the flour, sugar and bicarbonate of soda in a large bowl, squishing any big lumps of sugar with your fingers, then stir into the chocolate mix in the saucepan until even. Pour or spoon into the tin, then bake for 45 mins until risen and shiny (and probably with a nice crack along the length). Test if it's ready by poking a skewer into the middle of the cake (see tip, below). Cool in the tin for 15 mins, then turn out and cool completely on a wire rack.
4. Put the cream into a small saucepan, bring to the boil, then add the butter and half the chopped chocolate. Take off the heat and leave to melt. Stir until smooth and shiny, then spoon over the cake. Scatter with the rest of the chopped chocolate and serve.

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