Banana, Chocolate & Oat Scones

I've always been a lover of scones; plain, cheese, fruit...you name it and I'll be right on it. I think people consider them old fashioned nowadays, bit of an old persons treat, perhaps since it's always been a traditional element to an afternoon tea and guaranteed to be in any twee tearoom and national trust cafe up and down the country flocked with those people of a certain age.

London Fog Cake

I bet that unless you've come across it in your coffee shop you're probably think what on earth is London Fog!? A London Fog traditionally is a flavored tea latte combo, made with sweetened earl grey tea, some steamed milk and vanilla syrup. So, in cake form... that equates to one coated in a delicately flavored earl grey and vanilla Swiss meringue buttercream. 

Orange and Thyme Sugar Biscuits

I think a large part of being a food blogger means you have to find a love for collecting a range of quirky and increasingly different kitchen wares, particularly plates, cutlery and tins (and have the budget to be able to do so, as a student - that can be a challenge for me, although I have become quite good at spotting charity shop jewels.) For those in the know, food stylists like to refer to it all as food props. I'm starting to generate a rather nice assortment which I try to fit all together like a mad jigsaw puzzle just so that it can all handily fit in my large wicker basket. This basket of props lives under my bed at my uni flat, not the average collection of items you'd expect to find under a student bed, you might say?! 

Polish Vanilla and Raspberry Ripple Custard Slice (Karpatka)

Mille-feuille, the classic french pastry. Just the word puts a shiver down my spine.  I'm no trained pastry chef and I think others would agree with me in saying that this is one of the hardest things to perfect - looks wise! I can never quite master the uniformity aspect, some custard always manages to seep its way out the sides either in cutting or by overfilling!  

Blackberry, Lime and Thyme Cake

So you might think these flavours sound a bit odd together, especially if you've never heard of thyme in a dessert before but it's getting more and more popular to use the herb in all manner of sweet things, hitting the botanical cake trend - nail on the head. It really does work and to those who might think it's a bit 'out-there' I urge you to give it a chance as the flavour is just a subtle hum in the background and not in the slightest bit overpowering. 

Pistachio, Orange Blossom and Pomegranate Delices

Okay, so these look and sound rather fancy and I must point out now that this recipe certainly isn't for the faint-hearted cook, without trying to put you off!! This has got to be my longest method for a recipe I have ever created in the history of my 2 and a half years blogging. It took me so long to write this and never mind the good amount of hours spent cooking and experimenting to create something I was happy with. 

Caramelised Banana Tart

I've been feeling very uninspired recently, probably a mix of being ill multiple times (seriously though, I've never been this ill AND it came back, again and again...just wonderful) and that the weather has been bloody freezing here! 

Raspberry, White Chocolate and Green Tea Magic Cake

I'm gonna get straight to it, what's so magic about this cake...I can tell you're all dying to know. The magic is all in the baking since it's actually made of the very usual suspects of eggs, sugar, flour, butter and milk.

Gingerbread Madeleines

Here we are again, nearly another year over and let the Christmas baking season commence!! (As of today I can finally relax with a sigh of relief as I have no more uni work till the new year semester. Woooooo!!) 

Lovely Lavender Loaf with Blueberry Icing

The three L's, lovely lavender loaf... this cake has real summer vibes and is perfect for the weekend when you just want to sit outside and chill in the sunshine, and eat of course! I have dabbled with lavender in baking before, but with raspberries, it was one of my very first blog posts which I did way back in July 2014. OMG, that was over 2 years ago. How time flies! (See said post here.)

Strawberry, White Chocolate and Pistachio Tier Cake

This one is gonna be a bit of a quick post because even though I've finsihed college, I've found myself so busy these past two weeks and with the bulk of birthday season behind me now, I just had this one last cake to make...as requested by my friend Ellen.

Raspberry, Poppy Seed and Elderflower Cake

Happy Bank Holiday for all you UK readers! I wasn't planning on making this recipe for a post. It was a cake I created for a friend of a friend's birthday this weekend, but I thought you know what...this cake looks so beautiful (as you can probably tell, I'm very pleased with it!!) so I'll share the recipe anyway - even though I can't cut into it myself and show you the finished inside. 

Rhubarb and Custard Cake

Reading about rhubarb (well, to be honest mainly just looking at pretty Pinterest images ) got me thinking about how much I love these stalky vegetables and it turns out - way more than I thought I already did ( yes! They're vegetables posing as fruit!! Sneaky eh?) 

Little Honey, Orange and Pistachio Cakes

I like pistachios. I like pistachios a lot!! I think I'd  have to put pistachios within the top three of mt favourite nuts list...(if that even exists as a thing? ) And for that reason you'll often find me putting pistachios into whatever I bake as much as possible. 

Earl Grey, Orange and Elderflower Cake (My Birthday Cake!)

In case you haven't gathered from the title of this post - it was my birthday recently! One week ago to be precise... the biggie - 18!! This was my birthday cake which I requested my friend Ellen to make for me, because let's be honest, who wants to make their own birthday cake?! (it's a bit on the sad side if you ask me, I know, I know, I've made it in the past for myself but this year I just wasn't feeling it.) Anyway, me and Ellen have this deal where she makes mine if I'll make hers, and she's also 18 in June so I think we're on even par when it comes to making an equally impressive cake for a rather momentous celebration. 

"Have a Cuppa!" Tea Loaf - Refined Sugar Free

I'm not one to go completely all out with this "sugar free" lifestyle thingy'. BUT, when I do come across a recipe that I might actually like, then it's well worth trying some alternatives out every once in awhile. Plus, it makes eating it feel a whole lot more satisfying knowing there's no guilt involved! A bonus of course!

Sultana, Seed and Cherry Madeira Traybake

Have you been flipping pancakes this week? I have, and needless to say I stuck to the same old, same old safe bet which I do year on year, simply filling mine with honey, berries and lemon. I always mean to try out something new for a change, but never quite get round to doing it when there's countless essays and revision looming over me.

Cranberry Orange Scones

Recently, I've developed a taste for the slightly more 'out-there' and unassuming flavour combinations. Ok, cranberry and orange aren't exactly unusual, I'll give you that one. But I do think these scones are a bit outta the ordinary if all you've ever had are those plain ones along with clotted cream and jam, or the ones riddled with sultanas at a push. Now that's ordinary!

Apple Custard Tarts

A new year brings new year resolutions, but I'd like us all to stop right there. Before you say it, can we all just skip the no more sugar plan and bake on, let's carry on with sweet deliciousness, because I always believe and what everyone else should too is that we all deserve a little bit of it now and then, just in moderation - that's what I say! So, as every other foodie blogger and recipe book writer releases their sugar-free, raw and just about everything else 'free from' (namely just because it's January), I'm saying try my apple custard tarts. They're not sugar free or anything else in that league, but what they do is bring us something familiar; comforting and nostalgic at a time of year when change is happening all around us. 

Carrot and Orange Loaf Cakes

Hiya lovelies. It's about time I posted a cake recipe don't ya think?! (In my brand new sparkling oven - with a light!!!) Eeeekkk. I know. It's been a long time coming, and guess what it feels almost kinda weird being able to make such a luxury as a cake, it's like i've been trained into by passing/ignoring any recipe of the sort that involves using an oven. And now the oven door has opened up a whole new baking world of possibilities. (Soz for being so dramatic there...I'm just so excited.)