Super simple Banana Cake

This is a super easy, fail-proof and speedy recipe. You can whip up a cake in no time for breakfast, brunch or tea!

Ingredients: (10 slices)
2 eggs
150 g of cane sugar
150 g of sweet melted butter
3 bananas cut in round shapes + 1 whole
100 g of nuts cut in half and chopped
170 g of flour
1 full teaspoon of baking soda
1 tablespoon of brown sugar

Preparations: 
Preheat oven to 200°C
1.) Mix all the ingredients with an electric whip during 4 minutes, leave out the whole banana and the brown sugar
2.) Pour the preparation in the mould.
3.) Cut the whole banana in 3 to 4 slivers lengthwise and place it on the batter.
4.) Sprinkle with brown sugar.
5.) Cook for 70 minutes

Allow to cool for 10 minutes before unmoulding. Serve tepid or cold.

English Apple Cake

Nothing beats a homemade apple cake with chunks of sweet fruit. Try this hearty recipe and surprise your kids with a scrumptious afternoon tea treat when they arrive home after school.

Ingredients:
225r self-raising flour
2 tsp ground cinnamon
115r unsalted butter, diced and chilled, plus extra for greasing
115r light brown sugar
1 large egg, beaten
6-8 tbsp milk
225r Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored and diced
100gr raisins
2 tbsp brown sugar with some cinnamon (optional)

Preparation:
Heat the oven to 180C.
1.) Grease and line a deep 20cm cake tin with baking paper.
2.) Mix the flour and cinnamon together in a large bowl.
3.) Add the butter and rub into the flour using your fingers, until it resembles fine breadcrumbs.
4.) Stir in the light brown sugar.
5.) Beat in the egg followed by 6 - 8 tbsp of milk – you want to achieve a smooth, thick batter.
6.) Add the apples and raisins and mix to combine.
7.) Scrape the batter into your prepared tin and gently level out.
8.) Sprinkle over the brown sugar and bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes or until golden and a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.

Allow to cool in the tin for 15 minutes and then carefully turn out onto a wire rack to cool further. Best served still warm with a little custard.

Student's Banana Cake

‘Afternoon tea’ is something terribly British and I love to keep up this tradition on a daily basis. Unfortunately, with the busy and hectic lifestyles we now lead this is not always easy. This recipe will take 20 minutes out of our day and let you indulge in a little ‘you’ time for a slice of cake and a cuppa.

Ingredients:
2 ripe bananas (over-ripe is best) Please make sure you crush these to mush before adding in!
170gr caster sugar
170gr self raising flour
170gr soft margarine
3 eggs
a few drops of vanilla essence
a table spoon of cinnamon (optional)

Preparation:
1. Pre-heat the oven to 160°C .
2. Add all the ingredients to a bowl but sieve the flour and add in gently, folding in with a wooden spoon.
3. Pour the mixture into a well greased cake tin or lined loaf tin (depending on how you want your cake to look).
4. Bake for one hour, checking every 15-20 minutes to make sure you don’t over-cook it!
5. Pull out of the oven; put a knife through the cake and check the knife comes out clear, if it does, the middle is cooked, if it looks gooey, place back into the oven but perhaps lower the heat slightly.
6. Let the cake cool for 20 minutes, cut, serve and enjoy!

Tip: If you fancy a more nutty texture, add some crushed walnuts to the recipe before pouring into your chosen tin of choice…about 60gr should do the trick!

Swiss Chocolate Almond Cake

This has got to be one of my favourite combinations: chocolate with almonds. Make sure the chocolate is good quality and you cannot go wrong with this recipe. YUM!

Ingredients:
200 gr butter, softened
200 gr sugar
1 pinch salt
6 egg yolks
200 gr Chocolat Noir 64%, crumbled
120 gr flour
1½ teaspoons baking powder
100 gr ground almonds
6 egg whites, stiffly beaten

Preparation: 
1.) Whisk butter, sugar, salt and egg yolks with hand mixer until the mixture turns paler.
2.) Melt chocolate in a double boiler, add.
3.) Mix flour, baking powder and almonds, fold into the mixture.
4.) Fold stiffly beaten egg whites into the dough, pour mixture into the prepared cake form.
5.) Bake approx. 45 minutes in the middle of oven preheated to 180°C.

One bowl apple cake

This cake is so moist and rich and just perfect for this time of year. Supereasy to make!

Ingredients:
2 eggs
1 3/4 cups sugar
2 heaping teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 cup oil
6 medium Gala or Fuji or Honey Crisp apples
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350°.

1.) In a large bowl, mix the eggs, sugar, cinnamon and oil.
2.) Peel and slice the apples and add to mixture in bowl (coating as you go to keep apples from turning brown.)
3.) Mix together the baking powder and flour and add to the ingredients in the bowl.
4.) Mix well (best with a fork) until all of the flour is absorbed by the wet ingredients.
5.) Pour mixture into a greased one 9x13 or two 9″ round pans.
6.) Bake for approximately 55 minutes.

Chocolate cake

Nothing tops a real Swiss chocolate cake. This is a recipe we use for all the kids' birthday cakes. It never fails! Yummy and scrumptious. You could also adapt it for a Valentine's Day cake.

Ingredients:
150 gr margarine
230 gr sugar
6 eggs
1 pinch of salt
5 gr of vanilla sugar
200 gr dark chocolate (e.g. Crémant)
125 gr ground almonds
125 gr ground plain biscuits
375 gr powder sugar
4 tablespoons chocolate powder

Preparation:
1.) Stir margarine until foam-like.
2.) Add sugar, yolk of the 6 eggs, salt and vanilla sugar, stir again.
3.) Melt chocolate with 3 tablespoons of hot water and add to the mixture.
4.) Add almonds and biscuits.
5.) Whip the whites until stiff, add to the mixture and mix well.
6.) Grease mold with butter, pour mixture into 24 cm diameter cake mould.
7.) Bake on lowest position in oven at 180°C for 50 to 60 minutes.

Frosting:
1.) Mix powder sugar with 4 tablespoons of water. Put 1 tablespoon aside.
2.) Add chocolate powder to the rest of the mixture, add a few drops of water and stir.
3.) Let cake cool off after baking. Pour chocolate mixture evenly over cake.
4.) Form a small, funnel-shaped paper with a tiny opening. Put the mixture set aside beforehand into paper cone and draw 8 concentric circles on cake.
5.) Use a small knife and pull 8 lines from the center towards the edge and 8 lines from the edge towards the center alternating.

Gabriella's Coffee Cake

This is a cake that is easy and fast to whip up. It presents well and will impress your tea guests with it's taste and presentation. Kids and adults love it!

Ingredients:
16 tbsp. unsalted butter, plus more for greasing
4 cups flour, plus 3 tsp.
3 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
2 cups sour cream
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup dark brown sugar
5 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 cup chopped pecans

Preparations:
1.) Heat oven to 300°.
2.) Grease a 9½" bundt pan and set aside
3.) Whisk 4 cups flour, baking powder, and baking soda in a bowl; set aside
4.) In another bowl, using an electric hand mixer, cream butter and sugar until fluffy
5.) Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition
6.) Add sour cream and vanilla and mix well to combine
7.) With the motor running, slowly add dry ingredients until smooth; set aside
8.) In another bowl, combine remaining flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon.
9.) Starting and ending with the batter, layer in bundt pan with sugar mixture to form five layers.
10.) Sprinkle with pecans and bake 1½ hours until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Express French Lemon tart

Here is a very easy and fast recipe for a tasty lemon pie! Made in 5 minutes, you just have to bake it during your meal, it will be perfect for dessert!

Ingredients:
1 lemon cut into 8 pieces
300 gr sugar
120 gr butter
1 little pack vanilla sugar (20g)
4 eggs
1 tart shell

Preparation:
1.) Put all ingredients (except tart shell) into a blender and whirl well until you get a smooth mix.
2.) Pour your mix into tart shell.
3.) Bake 40 minutes at 160 degrees (watch that the top does not burn).

French Strawberry hearts

T'is the strawberry season. We have spent the last two months eating strawberries with cream and sugar. I therefore decided to come up with a new twist to our habitual pudding:

Ingredients: 
500gr Gariguette strawberries from France

Sweet dough :
220 gr flour
120 gr glazed sugar
90 g butter
1 good pinch of salt
1 teaspoon of chemical yeast
1 small egg

Cream :
50 gr butter
50 gr sugar
1 egg
50 gr ground almonds
1 tablespoon of flour
70 gr  cheese spread
1 untreated green lemon

Preparation:
1.) Make the sourdough by mixing the flour, the glazed sugar, the butter, salt and yeast until you obtain a fine sandy texture. Be careful not to overheat the butter.
2.) Add the egg
3.) Roll the dough in a ball and set aside for 1 hour minimum.
4.) Flatten the dough on a paper cooking sheet and spread it into a buttered heart shaped mold. Cut off the extra around the mold.
5.) Make it all slide on a cooking grid and precook the pie crust for 10 minutes in an oven preheated to 200°C.
6.) Prepare the cream by mixing the butter and sugar.
7.) Add the egg. Mix well.
8.) Add the ground almonds and the flour
9.) Finally mix in cheese spread and the zest of grated green lemon.
10.) Pour this cream on the precooked sour dough and bake for 10 minutes at 200°C.
Let the pie cool down.
11.) Remove the strawberry stems, cut them in half and lay on the pie in heart-shaped formation.

Zesty Lemon bars

Lemon bars are fast and easy to make. A great treat for Spring days when rain alternates with sunshine and zesty takes turns with sweet.

Ingredients:
For the crust:
1/2 pound unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 cups flour
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
For the filling:
6 extra-large eggs at room temperature
3 cups granulated sugar
2 tablespoons grated lemon zest (4 to 6 lemons)
1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 cup flour
Confectioners' sugar, for dusting

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 180°C.

1.) First, cream the butter and sugar until light in the bowl of an electric mixer for the crust.
2.) Combine the flour and salt and, with the mixer on low, add to the butter until just mixed.
3.) Dump the dough onto a well-floured board and gather into a ball. Flatten the dough with floured hands and press it into a 9 by 13 by 2-inch baking sheet, building up a 1/2-inch edge on all sides. Chill.
4.) Bake the crust for 15 to 20 minutes, until very lightly browned.
5.) Let cool on a wire rack.

Leave the oven on.

6.) For the filling, whisk together the eggs, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, and flour.
7.) Pour over the crust and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the filling is set.
8.) Let cool to room temperature.

Cut into triangles and dust with confectioners' sugar.

Lemon Yoghurt Cake

In full swing with Expat daughter's Birthday Party preparations I decided to share a few of my ideas with you. I'll start today with the basics: the cake! This lemon yoghurt cake tastes delicious, is moist and mixes with any topping or filling, from fruit to chocolate! Here goes:

Ingredients:
2 cups all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
½ cup softened butter
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp grated lemon zest
3 large eggs, separated
1 cup lemon flavored yogurt

Lemon Frosting:
2 cups icing sugar
3 tbsp melted butter
2-3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 tbsp candied lemon peel, coarsely chopped

Preparations:
1. Preheat the oven to 325 degree Fahrenheit. Grease a 9-inch round cake pan. Line with waxed paper. Butter the paper. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a medium bowl. Beat the butter, sugar and lemon zest in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium speed until creamy.
2. Add the egg yolks, one at a time, until just blended after each addition. With mixer at low speed, gradually beat in the dry ingredients, alternating with the yogurt. With mixer at high speed, beat the egg whites in a medium bowl until stiff peaks form.
3. Use a large rubber spatula them into the batter. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 35-45 minutes or the cake shrinks from the pan sides and inserted toothpicks into the center comes out clean.
4. Cool the cake in the pan for 5 minutes. Turn out onto a rack. Carefully remove the paper and let cool completely.
5. How to make Lemon Frosting: Mix the icing sugar and butter in a medium bowl. Beat in enough of the lemon juice to make a thick, spreadable frosting. Spread the top and sides of the cake with the frosting. Decorate with the lemon.
6. Enjoy!