baking


Red, White and Blue Layer Cake 3

Not only is it The Royal Wedding this Saturday it is also the final of the FA Cup and our patriotic Red, White and Blue Layer Cake is a super simple make perfect for any celebratory occasion. The secret to making a great Red, White and Blue Layer Cake is to use gel food colouring. that way you get a fabulous colour but also a light sponge with great taste.  I am going to admit that this is a very rough and ready cake and it would also look fab with less icing as a naked cake. Red, White and Blue Layer Cake Ingredients for the cake 375g/13oz butter or margarine softened to room temperature 375g/13oz […]


Failsafe Chocolate Fairy Cakes – Handmade Mother’s Day 4

Failsafe Chocolate Fairy Cakes is a paid collaboration with Amazon to celebrate Handmade at Amazon and Mother’s Day. I am a huge fan of homemade and handmade gifts and as a maker myself always try to buy handmade when I can. This Mother’s Day Handmade at Amazon are celebrating the importance and power of handmade gifts and sent us a beautiful Jonny’s Sister ‘Mum’s Cakes’ Tin and Victoria Eggs Apron’s, which inspired Mini to get creative and bake a batch of our failsafe Chocolate fairy cakes and show me a mum who wouldn’t love a cake tin full of homemade cakes for Mother’s Day!


Oreo Owl Cupcakes - Cooking with kids

Peanut Butter flavour Oreo Owl Cupcakes – Cooking with kids 3

How adorable are these owl cupcakes all made by Mini with Peanut Butter flavour Oreos.  We have been challenged by Oreo to produce a recipe using one of their exciting new flavours range that most suited our personality.   The options were Choc’o Brownie flavour Oreo – smooth, Mint flavour Oreo – cool, Peanut Butter flavour Oreo – nutty or Strawberry Cheesecake flavour Oreo – fruity.  Well seen as we are The Mad House there really was no choice – it had to be nutty! 


No Added Sugar Peanut Butter and Chocolate Cookies 7

When Barleycup challenged me and the boys to produce a recipe with their delicious gluten free and free from added sugars instant cereal drink I knew instantly that they would be the perfect addition to peanut butter and chocolate cookies.  I first was introduced to peanut butter cookies by Cass from Diary of a Frugal Family and they are such a delicious cookie, but remarkably simple to make.

No Added Sugar Peanut Butter and Chocolate Cookies

This rich 4 ingredient chocolate shortbread recipe is easy to prepare and keeps for several days in an airtight container. Perfect for cooking with kids.

Chocolate Shortbread with Salter Cook – Cooking with Kids 21

I am passionate about getting kids in the kitchen and getting them cooking, and anything that makes that easier and simpler is great by me. So when Salter asked us to take a look at their revolutionary Salter Cook range, which includes the Salter Cook 10kg Pro Bluetooth Kitchen Scale and the Salter Cook Bluetooth Cooking Thermometer that links to their cooking app, we decided to adapt one of the recipes we found on the app and make chocolate shortbread.


White Chocolate Chip Cookies – Cooking with Kids 8

Sometimes all you want is the perfect chocolate chip cookie.  Crispy on the outside and all chewy on the inside.  These white chocolate chip cookies never fail to hit their mark and they are simple to make and perfect for cooking with kids. So we are delighted to be teaming up with We Bake and sharing our recipe for the best white chocolate chip cookies I have ever eaten as part of their Half Term Bake Brighter Days community challenge.

White Chocolate Chip Cookies - Cooking with Kids

Our Traditional Christmas Pudding Recipe with a Twist 16

This Traditional Christmas Pudding Recipe with a Twist with a twist is brought to you in conjunction with The Royal Mint and their special silver six pence who commissioned us to share our Stir Up Sunday traditions. Growing up in my house Christmas dinner was a family event which always culminated with a fantastic flaming Christmas pudding and the hunt for the sixpence.  I love that we have carried that tradition on.

Our Traditional Christmas Pudding Receipe with a Twist

Cook with your Grandkids

Cook with your Grandkids – #CookSomethingGrand 7

As you know I am passionate about cooking with kids and one of the things that make me sad is that my boys can not learn to cook and bake with my mum like I did, especially as this coming Sunday 2nd October is Grandparents Day.  But I am delighted to be working on this fab #CookSomethingGrand campaign about cooking with your grandkids.


How to make the perfect Victoria Sponge. Follow our secret tip to make the most delicious classic Victoria Sponge Sandwich. This tea time mainstay is a brilliant bake for cooking with kids.

The perfect Victoria Sponge – Cooking with kids 12

There is a special place in heaven for kids that can bake amazing cakes.  Not only that there is something wonderful about having a child that can pull off making the perfect victoria sponge cake.  The queen of all cakes, a sponge cake can seem really simple, but can be tricky to get just right. The Vitoria Sponge is the perfect tea time winner and classic cake that has been around since Queen Victoria’s times.  Delicious, simple and moreish and we like ours with strawberry jam and fresh cream, although a purist might tell you it should be jam only.