Coconut and Cherry Cake

 

I made this cake for my Nan’s birthday. She loves coconut and glacier cherries, so I figured I’ll fill a cake with both of them! It’s simple, but delicious. The recipe makes a small two tiered cake (about 15cms in diameter) so if you want to make a full sized sandwich cake, double the recipe.

Fruit Scones - Two Ways

 

As I mentioned before, it was my Grandad’s birthday recently, and he is seriously the hardest person to buy presents for! I mean, what do you buy someone who already has everything they need?! After a lot of thinking and fruitless shopping trips, I finally decided to make him up a hamper of fancy tea, posh jams, clotted cream and some homemade scones - an ‘Afternoon Tea’ Hamper if you will. I knew he loves fruit scones, but I couldn’t decide whether to make them with raisins or glacier cherries, so I ended up doing both. These are super easy to make, and the end result is very light scones, studded with lots of fruity goodness! I soaked the raisins in whiskey for an hour before adding them to the dough, for an added kick.

Mini Chocolate Coconut Cupcakes

This weekend, my parents hosted afternoon tea for the rest of our family. There was SO much food; from sandwiches and quiches, to scones with cream, jam and fresh strawberries. I made these mini cupcakes as my contribution to the spread, and they went down a treat! This recipe made about 30 mini cupcakes, which would probably equate to a dozen regular cupcakes.

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

 

This is a bit of a 'retro' cake - I remember pineapple upside down cake from when I was really little, and I  haven't really seen it around much since. I don't know why - it's light and fruity, perfect for pudding after a heavy meal, and it makes a fun centre piece on a dessert table at parties. Plus it's fun to make!