Let them eat cake!

As a child I loved baking cakes, and as an adult I still enjoy it. There is something so nourishing to the soul about the process of creating a cake.

Over the last little while, I have gone cake mad... encouraged in part by Mr S, who it turns out loves to cook too.

I bought a startburst bundt tin from Target (of all places) for an extremely modest price. Certainly, if I compare the cost to some of the Nordic Ware tins, the price differential is staggering. While I love my daisy tin, I think the startburst is great too... even if it turns out not to have quite the longevity.

I used it to cook a Chocolate and Vanilla Marble Cake. The recipe comes from one of several new books I have. This one is called 'Mmmm... Chocolate'. Sadly there is no author credit, but this cake, using only 70g of butter and one egg (but real chocolate and cream) is moist and delicious!

I have always wanted to make a pineapple upside down cake. When I bought Nigella Lawson's 'Nigella Express' cookbook I had the right incentive. I have a rule that if I buy a cookbook or magazine, then I should be prepared to make at least one thing from it. I don't religiously stick to that rule (that's how you know it's a rule, right? cause it gets broken!!), but I'm glad I did. This cake is so so easy, not to mention delicious.

And finally, from the 'Bourke Street Bakery' by Paul Allam and David Mcguinness, a really scrummy chocolate cake, with a chocolate mouse filling. the cake itself has potato flour, sour cream, buttermilk as well as all the usual stuff. The book suggests piling raspberries and icing sugar on the top, but I iced it with chocolate ganache. Unbelievably good.