Nina asked me for an iced jam and buttercream sponge for her mum’s birthday. ‘Anything with ducks and daisies’ she said. Hope this meets the brief Nina and that you all had a lovely day

Maureen turned 90 this week and she asked me to make a rich fruit cake to share with her family and friends. When I went to visit her she showed me some wonderful pictures of the glamorous ballroom dancing days. We chose a striking colour scheme of red and black to reflect her love of dance and her favourite roses. Very many congratulations Maureen, Happy Birthday.
When Mandy got home from work this afternoon, all her friends and neighbours were waiting with a surprise birthday party for her. She rarely sits still, but when she does, she gets out her needlepoint. What better then, than this embroidery inspired cake. Underneath the sugar thread-work is a jam and buttercream filled sponge. Happy birthday Mandy.
I was lucky enough to be invited to Julie and Derek’s golden wedding party. We had a lovely dinner finished off with this lemon sponge, layered with fresh lemon curd and buttercream and decorated with yellow roses and a golden monogram. A lovely start to their weekend of celebrations.
Congratulations to you both.
Julie has organised a James Bond classic Aston Martin driving experience as a birthday treat for Bernie. He is a diabetic and doesn’t get to eat much cake usually, but Julie asked me to make this one to a low sugar recipe. The chocolate and beetroot cake is filled and topped with dark chocolate ganache. The car is all sugar though … don’t eat it all at once Bernie.
Alison and Chris’s planned wedding at the RAF club was scuppered by a Covid lockdown so they decided to get their friends together at the same venue to celebrate their joint 60th birthday instead. Alison had very clear ideas as to how the cake should look – she wanted a bit of a tropical theme as they couple have been living in Barbados until recently. The pink and blue marbling was all her idea, as were the golden palm-fringed sides giving it rather a sunset feel. There was a last minute call requesting that a turtle should feature on the top and so here we are a rich fruit cake with a totally tropical look. Happy birthday to you both.
Chalkie is the kindest man you will meet.. He will do anything for anyone and loves few things more than pottering in his garage surrounded by useful bits of wood and his tool box. So here, for his 70th birthday is a white chocolate tool box filled with sugar tools. Inside it all is a lemon drizzle cake layered with fresh lemon curd. A very happy birthday to you Chalkie.