Easter Colours Rainbow Cake

Easter in our house means kitchen cupboards filled with chocolate eggs and treats of every description. We always plan a family easter egg hunt at home for the boys and whilst we don't like to go overboard and buys toooooo many chocolate eggs, we do like to have little prizes they can win throughout the day which helps to stagger their sugar intake.

I wanted to make something a little different this year  and I had some leftover cake batter so I decided to use my pastel colours and create an alternative easter rainbow cake.

Caramel apple crisp

I love apple crisp (or apple crumble to my UK readers). Throw in a healthy dose of cinnamon and I am crumbly sugar coma heaven. The thing is my husband makes a darn good crumble so it's a dessert I don't get the chance to try out very often.

I've been pondering a version using caramel for a little while now and I managed to try it out last weekend. It was a little wetter than I'd anticipated but I think it's because I used tinned caramel instead of making my own. When I make it again I'll make my own caramel as I'm sure it'd be even more decadent and rich.

Peanut butter cups chocolate cake

Have you ever woken up with a recipe in your mind that is literally bursting to get out? It's like the baking fairies have left you a little inspiration to get you going in the morning.

Well I had one of these moments a few weeks ago. I also knew my mate Kate was getting pretty darn fed up of being VERY pregnant (at nearly 10 days overdue) so I decided that this cake might just cheer her up. As it happens, she blames it for curing her potential labour pains a few hours later but hey ho - Billy did eventually arrive later that week :)

The end of the tax year looms...

Hands up if you're super organised and prepared for the end of the accounting tax year? I won't lie, I'm not exactly the most organised business owner I know but I have learnt to become more prepared for my tax return by keeping up to date with all incomings and outgoings and more importantly keeping track of all those receipts.

It might sound obvious to many people but running a cake business isn't all about making beautiful cakes and having lots of baking fun in the kitchen. Ask any professional baker what their normal hours of work are and I can guarantee that like me, they regularly become acquainted with 2am finishes!

Managing your actual workloads is difficult enough but when it comes to getting organised for the end of the tax year then I can assure you that it pays to get your accounts in order sooner rather than later.

Hot fudge sauce

Sometimes you come across a recipe that just oozes off the screen at you, and if you're lucky enough you'll even have the ingredients in your cupboard to allow you to make it. RIGHT NOW.

Where I grew up on the East Coast of the States, we had very hot summers (well compared to this country anyway). We were lucky enough to live near the beach, and in turn many ice cream outlets. Ice cream is definitely a luxury purchase so we were often treated to cups of Richie's Italian Ice instead - watermelon of grape favour for me please!

But if we did get to buy ice cream then I would ALWAYS opt to have it with hot fudge. I mean, hot chocolatey sauce turns the standard sundae into something else. Something decadent that smacks of special occasions.

Creme egg brownies

These creme egg brownies caused quite a stir on my Twitter and Facebook streams when I posted a sneak peak picture last week, it seems that people like nothing more than filling brownies with all manner of sweets and treats and this were certainly no exception.

This recipe is very forgiving and you could use it as a great 'base' brownie recipe. There are a few tips I discovered whilst making these and they are:

• Creme eggs are much easier to work with when they're cold - I froze mine for about an hour
• Smaller size creme eggs are a lot easier to cut in half

My Sugar Coated life is born

Welcome to my new look blog! This months sees my 4th blogging anniversary so I decided it was time for a new look, and a new self hosted website address.

This blog started as a document of the beginnings of Star Bakery and has evolved into a haven for recipes, family happenings and anything else I feel the need to write about.

I have divided posts into 3 categories (displayed at the top of the page) and I have kept all posts archived on the site as I continue to get people asking about starting a cake business so there are some useful tips in my older posts. The main focus of this blog will be baking related recipes and family activities but I'm sure I'll still throw in useful cake business insights and some information that surrounds the cake business in general.

I have lots of exciting things planned for this month including at least 3 yummy Easter themed recipes and don't forget you can still keep up to date with my bakery life via Twitter and Facebook.