“Victoria Foods brings you the recipes from the Home Baker of the Year Final 2007… why don’t you give them a try and get planning your own extra special recipe for Jane Asher next year? (www.homebake.co.uk)

Method:

1. Sieve flour and rub in butter until resembles fine breadcrumbs.

2. Stir in sugar, coconut, eggs, milk and grated lime.

3. Spoon mixture into prepared tin

4. Bake at 160°C Electric/Gas Mark 3 for 50-55 minutes until well risen and golden

5. Leave cake in tin to cool slightly before transferring to wire rack.

6. When cold mix lime juice with icing sugar spread over loaf sprinkle with coconut.

Jean Hassall's Orange Chip Cake

You will need:

4 oz butter or marg
4 os castor sugar
2 eggs
rind of an orange
Juice of an orange
3 oz good quality chocolate cut into small chunks.
2 oz chopped walnuts
3 oz self raising flour
2 oz self raising wholemeal flour
pinch of salt(optional)

Method:

1. Set the oven to 160°C Electric/Gas Mark 3.

2. Grease and line base of a 2lb loaf tin

3. Cream the sugar & marg until pale in colour add the eggs, whisk well together.  Add the the juice and zest of the orange.  Fold in the flour & salt (if using). Fold in the chocolate and walnuts.

4. Transfer mixture to the prepared loaf tin. Cover with brown paper. Put on middle shelf of oven. Cook for 30mins with paper over, remove for the last 10 mins.

Lucy Manzoor's Chocolate Orange Checkered Cake

You will need:

For the chocolate cake :
3oz self-raising flour
1oz cocoa powder
4oz caster sugar
4oz margarine
2 medium eggs
2 tsp milk
1 tsp vanilla essence

For the orange cake:
4oz self-raising flour
4oz caster sugar
4oz margarine
2 medium eggs
Rind of 1 medium orange
Juice of ½ an orange
(For the icing):
2½oz margarine
1 tbsp cocoa powder
9oz icing sugar
3 tbsp hot milk
1 tsp vanilla essence

METHOD

1. For the chocolate cake cream together the margarine and sugar until fluffy and then add eggs and vanilla essence.

2. Gradually add the flour and cocoa powder and mix together to form a cake batter.

3. Pour into a line 18cm round cake tin and bake in the oven at 180°C Electric / Gas mark 4 for 20-25 minutes.

4. Whilst cooking mix up the orange cake by creaming together the margarine and sugar until fluffy and add the eggs, orange juice and orange rind.

5. Gradually add the flour and mix into a cake batter.

6. After the chocolate cake has come out of the oven pour into the same size cake tin and cook for 20-25 minutes at Gas mark 4.

7. When both cakes are cooked and cooled place a sauce in the middle of one cake and cut around to form two rings. Repeat this with the other cake.

8. Then using a smaller glass place this in the centre of the smaller ring and cut out a third ring. Repeat this with the other cake.

9. You should have three chocolate rings and three orange rings. Place the middle sized ring from each cake into the middle of the opposite flavour cake. This will mean you have two cakes, one with a chocolate centre, ornage middle and chocolate outside and a cake with an orange centre, chocolate middle and orange outside.

10. Mix up the icing by melting the margarine and mixing in the cocoa, icing sugar, vanilla essence and milk and mix until smooth and glossy. Pour half of this over one of the cakes making sure some of the icing goes down the middle of the rings so they stick together. Place the other cake on top and pour the rest of the icing on top, again making sure it goes down the rings of the cake and this time allow to dribble down the outside of both cakes.

11. Allow the icing to set and serve with vanilla cream or ice cream.

Lynne Janssen's Chocolate, Whisky and Yoghurt Cake with Crispy Coconut Topping

You will need:

125g unsalted butter
190ml caster sugar
2 large egg yolks
1 tsp bicarbonate soda
125ml natural yoghurt
1 tsp baking powder
250g plain flour
Pinch of salt
3 egg whites beaten at room temperature until stiff
2 tsp whisky
90g best quality dark chocolate you can find!
3 tbsp milk

For the topping:
60g butter
125g sugar
4tbsp cream
125g desiccated coconut
1 tsp whisky

METHOD

1. Slowly dissolve chocolate with the milk in a bowl placed over a pan of hot water.

2. Do not let the water boil, it should just simmer.

3. Dissolve bicarbonate soda in yoghurt and leave to stand while creaming the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy.

4. Then beat in the egg yolks one at a time until fully incorporated into mixture. Add dry ingredients carefully, do not over mix.

5. Fold gently spoonfuls of yoghurt mixture and beaten egg whites alternately into the bowl with a large metal spoon along with a good teaspoon of whisky.

6. Spoon the mixture into a 20cm springform cake tin and spread top evenly.

7. Drizzle the melted chocolate mixture over the top of the cake and bake in a moderate oven for about 40 minutes, or until cake is springy to touch.

8. For the topping: Boil the butter, sugar and cream for two minutes.

9. Remove from heat and add coconut and whisky.

10. Spread over warm cake and put the cake under a hot grill for two minutes or until lightly browned. Do not leave the cake unattended at this point as it browns very quickly!

11. Serve this cake warm with thick crème fraiche and/or a bowl of fresh Scottish raspberries with raspberry coulis. Decorate the centre of the top of the cake with a handful of the fresh raspberries in season.