Lemon & White Chocolate Bundt Cake

This beautiful bundt cake is surprisingly easy to make. The inspiration for this came from the discovery of the wonderful Keelham Farm Shop in Skipton, where I bought some of the most gorgeous lemons you have ever seen (yes I really did get that excited about lemons) and colourful edible flowers. However, don’t worry if you can’t find edible flowers, just grate some extra lemon zest and white chocolate over the top, it will still taste wonderful.

The cake itself is full of hidden ingredients to make it extra special and the icing is a sour cream and mascarpone base, making it not only a healthier option to buttercream but also extremely delicious!

INGREDIENTS

Bundt Cake
150g white chocolate, melted
320g salted butter
350g caster sugar
4 eggs
380g self raising flour
Zest of 1 lemon and 1.5 tbsp juice
2 heaped tbsp soured cream
2 tbsp crunchy peanut butter

Icing
150g white chocolate, melted
150ml soured cream
175g mascarpone
250g icing sugar
Zest of one lemon and 1 tsp juice

Optional to decorate – either edible flowers or lemon zest and grated white chocolate

METHOD

1. Preheat your oven to 170 degrees fan and grease your bundt tin well with either butter, or my personal recommendation (which never fails me), PME release a cake spray

2. Using a stand mixer or electric hand mixer, beat the butter, sugar and melted chocolate until smooth and creamy

3. Beat in the eggs, soured cream, peanut butter and lemon juice until fully combined

4. Add the flour and lemon zest, then beat again until completely smooth

5. Pour the mixture into the greased bundt tin, make sure it is level.

6. Bake in the oven for 50-55 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean

7. Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the tin for 10 minutes before turning out on to a wire rack to cool completely.

8. Whilst the cake cools, make the icing. Combine all the ingredients in to a stand mixer or using an electric hand mixer beat until a perfectly smooth icing is formed (this will take a few minutes).

9. Spread the icing on to the cooled cake and top with either edible flowers or grated lemon zest and grated white chocolate.

ENJOY! If you opt for Lemon & White Chocolate Bundt Cake, please do share a picture!

Chocolate & Peanut Butter No Bake Cheesecake

A no bake cheesecake with a few twists, topped with a blonde chocolate ganache it really adds a gorgeous different texture to the whole thing. If you can’t get your hands on the golden blonde chocolate (I used one from M&S Simply Food which is their own brand in with the baking ingredients called “ingredients for cooks” – it’s absolutely delicious!), you can always sub in a milk chocolate. This recipe is absolute min effort, maximum reward too.

I prefer to use crunchy peanut butter as I really like the texture in the cheesecake, but again if you want to use smooth just swap it!

INGREDIENTS

Base
300g chocolate digestives
75g melted unsalted butter

Filling
400g full fat cream cheese
500g mascarpone
300ml double cream
300g crunchy peanut butter
6 heaped tbsp icing sugar
1 tsp vanilla essence

Ganache
300g golden blonde chocolate
300ml double cream
40g crunchy peanut butter

METHOD

1. Line the base of a 23cm springform tin and grease the sides.

2. Crush the digestives either using a rolling pin or in a blender (I use a magimix) until they are a fine crumb.

3. Stir in the melted butter and tip into the base of the tin. Using the back of a spoon pat down until even and firm across the base. Put to one side whilst you make the filling.

4. Put the cream cheese, mascarpone, vanilla essence and double cream into a bowl and using either a hand or stand mixer beat for a couple of minutes, this gives the cream chance to thicken as well as combining the ingredients.

5. Add the icing sugar and beat again until well combined

6. Add the peanut butter and then beat again until fully combined.

7. Spoon on top of the biscuit base and smooth across for an even fill, pop in the fridge whilst you make the ganache.

8. Break the chocolate up into small pieces and pop in a heat proof bowl, add the peanut butter on top.

9. Add the cream to a saucepan and bring to a very low simmer, remove from the heat and pour over the chocolate.

10. Leave to stand for a few minutes before then mixing thoroughly with a balloon whisk until it has fully combined and you have a smooth, pourable ganache. (if you haven’t heated the cream quite enough and so all the chocolate hasn’t melted pop in the microwave for 10 second intervals, keep stirring after each time as you don’t want to overheat).

11. Remove the cheesecake from the fridge and pour the ganache over the top.

12. Optional: grate some white chocolate over the top

13. Put back in the fridge and leave in there for 3-4 hours before removing to serve.

Store in the fridge

ENJOY! If you opt for Chocolate & Peanut Butter No Bake Cheesecake, please do share a picture!

Vegan Chocolate & Peanut bundt cake

All I can say is this is delicious!!

INGREDIENTS

1 1/2 cups plain flour
1 1/3 cup caster sugar
2/3 cup cocoa powder
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
3/4 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup soya milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 tbsp white wine vinegar
1/2 tbsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup hot coffee
1/2 cup smooth peanut butter (my pref is always @manilife_ )
1 cup icing sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 tbsp soya milk
Vegan chocolate shavings and rock salt for decoration .

METHOD

Preheat oven to 180 degrees (fan) Spray the inside of the bundt pan with oil and then lightly dust with cocoa powder.
In a large bowl, add the plain flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add the soya milk, oil, vinegar and vanilla extract
Whisk to combine then pour in the hot coffee. Whisk again together just until combined.
Add the batter to the bundt tin and bake for 40-45 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.
Let the cake cool completely. Make the glaze whilst it’s cooling. Then turn out on to a plate.
In a medium sized bowl, gradually whisk the icing sugar into the peanut butter. Add the vanilla extract. Add the soya milk until it’s pourable but not too runny
Pour the glaze over the cooled cake, sprinkle with rock salt, and chocolate shavings.

Enjoy!

ENJOY! If you opt for Vegan Chocolate & Peanut bundt cake, please do share a picture!

Triple Cookie Layer Cake

This one is epic! It’s a vanilla & chocolate chip cookie, biscoff & pink chocolate chop and peanut butter & milk chocolate chip cookie all stacked together with a peanut butter & biscoff buttercream.

This one is not to be missed, each cookie has a slightly different base recipe so they each have a different texture as well as flavour. It would make a perfect celebration cake as it’s such a crowd pleaser.

INGREDIENTS

Vanilla Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake

3/4 cup salted butter
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
1/4 cup caster sugar
1 egg
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups plain flour
2 tsp cornflour
1 tsp baking powder
200g milk chocolate chips

Peanut Butter & Milk Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake

3/4 cup salted butter, room temperature.
1/2 cup brown sugar, lightly packed
1/2 cup caster sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups plain flour
150g dark chocolate melted
2 tsp cornflour
1 tsp baking powder
3 tbsp peanut butter
200g white chocolate chips

Biscoff & Pink Chocolate Cookie Cake

3/4 cup salted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup caster sugar
1/4 cup caster sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cornflour
3 tbps smooth Biscoff spread
200g pink chocolate chips (you could sub for white)

Peanut Butter & Biscoff Buttercream

500g salted butter
500g icing sugar
2 tbsps smooth peanut butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsps biscoff smooth spread

METHOD

Grease and line 3 8 inch round tins and preheat the oven to 180 degrees fan. (please note the recipes for each cake have different sugar ratios)

MAKE THE VANILLA CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE CAKE

Using a stand mixer, beat butter and sugar together fluffy
Beat in egg and vanilla extract.
Add flour, cornflour and baking powder and beat until completely combined.
Beat in chocolate chips, using a spoon (and your hands as it’s a thick batter) press into the bottom of one of the cake tines. Bake for 20 mins, then cool completely before removing from tin.

PEANUT BUTTER & MILK CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE CAKE

Using a stand mixer, beat butter and sugar together fluffy
Beat in egg and vanilla extract, followed by melted dark chocolate
Add flour, cornflour and baking powder and beat until completely combined, then beat in the peanut butter
Beat in chocolate chips, using a spoon (and your hands as it’s a thick batter) press into the bottom of one of the cake tines. Bake for 20 mins, then cool completely before removing from tin.

BISCOFF & PINK CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE CAKE

Using a stand mixer, beat butter and sugar together fluffy
Beat in egg and vanilla extract, followed by melted dark chocolate
Add flour, cornflour and baking powder and beat until completely combined, then beat in the Biscoff spread
Beat in pink chocolate chips, using a spoon (and your hands as it’s a thick batter) press into the bottom of one of the cake tines. Bake for 20 mins, then cool completely before removing from tin.

PEANUT BUTTER & BISCOFF BUTTERCREAM

Beat the butter until completely softened.
Beat in the icing sugar until combined.
Add the Biscoff spread and peanut butter and beat until thoroughly mixed.

ASSEMBLY

Use a large, serrated knife to remove the tops of the cookies (just the crisped top) so that the layers are even.
Place Biscoff & pink chocolate layer on your plate.
Top cookie with the icing, this can be piped or just spread on
Top icing with peanut butter & milk chocolate cookie, then add another layer of icing.
Add last cookie, the vanilla & chocolate chip, then pipe icing around the edge (again this could just be spread on with a knife)

Enjoy!

ENJOY! If you opt for Triple Cookie Layer Cake, please do share a picture!