cakes

• 1 Time for tea
  Bea’s of Bloomsbury now sits in the realms of London institution. Rarely a day goes by without mention from one lucky so and so or other of their fantastic baked good that are sold in one of their...

• 2 Shamrock cupcakes
  Ingredients (Makes 24) 200g/7oz caster sugar 200g/7oz soft butter 4 medium eggs 200g/7oz self-raising flour 1 tsp Irish cream liqueur (optional) For the shamrock icing ...

• 3 Toffee pear muffins
  Ingredients (Makes 12) 150g/5oz butter 150ml/¼pt milk 3 large eggs 8 tbsp dulce de leche 100g/4oz light brown soft sugar, plus extra for sprinkling 300g/11oz self-raising...

• 4 Shelling out
  When making cakes, meringues or batter there’s rarely an occasion when a smidgen of shell doesn’t wend its way into the mixture and try as you might, trying to get it out with your fingers...

• 5 Fruit got that sinking feeling?
  If you’ve ever made a cake containing dried fruit or nuts and been a little disappointed when they’ve all sunk to the bottom then there’s a quick and easy fix for you. Just dust the fruit...

• 6 Peggy Porschen shows some real cake chic
  Peggy Porschen is best known as cake maker to the stars, having made spectacular cakes for the likes of Elton John, Stella McCartney and Madonna. Her third book, Cake chic, sees her teaching the art of...

• 7 Ingredient of the week: Eggs
  The egg has virtually no equal in the kitchen. It ticks all the right boxes – healthy, inexpensive, delicious – and features in almost all the world's cuisines, from Western cakes to Asian...