A few weeks ago I decided I was going to try and make a Halloween gingerbread house this year and here it is! It was actually easy to do and made me wonder why I hadn't made gingerbread houses before. The windows were made of peppermint glass and I lit the inside of the house with a short string of Christmas tree lights, inserted into the house before the roof went on with the wire iced in under one of the side panels. Once baked and cooled the gingerbread is very sturdy and was just joined together using royal icing which set enough to hold the house together within a few minutes. Once the house was firmly set, I had lots of fun decorating it with sweets! With the lights on, I think it looks pretty cute and I just know our halloween visitors will like it! I thought you might like to see the before shot too - its amazing what a little bit of icing and some sweets will do!

These are some cute rainbow cupcakes that I made at the weekend for our nephews and nieces. The white clouds were just piped with vanilla buttercream using a large round nozzle on top of a thin layer of blue buttercream for the sky. If you can't find sugar rainbows you could use a yellow boiled sweet or a yellow smartie as a sunshire and pipe thin yellow icing lines for the suns rays instead.

Since my friend Lucy has been diagnosed as gluten-allergic, I have been on a mission to make a perfect cake using gluten free flour that doesn't taste powdery. I find that some times when I use gluten free flour there is a slight texture of the almost squeekyness of custard powder which I think comes from the use of cornflour. Anyway, my latest attempt was I think the most successful I have been and I served this cake up without telling anyone I had used gluten free flour and when I asked - noone had spotted that it was anything other than a normal carrot cake. The coconut I use for this cake is American Baker's Angel Flake sweetened coconut. This is really the best sort of coconut for baking in my view and is available (sadly not cheaply) in the UK from American Sweets (click for a link - I am not on commission - its just that it is the best coconut) or they sell it at the American Food shop Lets Eat in Milton Keynes if you are ever passing. If you can't get this coconut then dessicated coconut will be fine but will give a slighly crunchy topping rather than the softened coconut strands of Angel Flakes.

Gluten Free Carrot and Coconut Cake
Preparation time 15 minutes baking time 40 - 55 minutes

180g/6oz butter
180g/6oz caster sugar
3 eggs
180g/6oz gluten free self raising flour
100g Angel shredded coconut
2 medium carrots, peeled and grated
1 apple, cored and grated
85g/3oz plump sultanas
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground mixed spice
200ml buttermilk

For the topping
100g Angel shredded coconut
2 tbsp golden syrup
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp ginger syrup (from a jar or stem ginger)

Preheat the oven to Gas Mark 4/180/350 and grease and line an 8in round spring form cake tin. Cream together the butter and sugar until light until an electric mixer. Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each egg has been added. Fold in the flour, coconut, grated carrots and apple, spices, sultanas and buttermilk ensuring that everything is incorporated. Spoon the mixture into the tin and bake for 40 - 55 minutes until cakes is golden brown and springs back to your touch and a knife comes out clean with no cake batter on. If the cake starts to get too brown, cover with a sheet of silver foil.

For the topping, melt the butter, ginger and golden syrups in a saucepan until the butter has completely melted. Stir in the coconut and simmer for 2 - 3 minutes until the coconut has absorbed some of the syrup. Spoon the coconut evenly over the warm cake and allow to cool. If you are using dessicated coconut for the topping, try soaking it in hot water for 30 minutes or so and then squeeze out the water and add to the syrup.

This cake can be served warm or cold (my preference was warm straight from the oven but that's because I couldn't wait!!!)

If you've ever wondered what my brother is like - this is him - he is mad but I love him anyway!

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Work has taken over this week - I have so much to do and there are just not enough hours in the day. I have to leave for a meeting at 6.30am tomorrow and then return to do a cookery demo at 6.30 in the evening. I am needing to be very organised but am failing miserably. However a nice thing to look forward to is that my sundae book is arriving for final proof reading in a couple of days - it will be the first time I see all the pictures and I can't wait (I have only seen about 6 so far!) Luckily even though life is a little stressful, Peapod is always on hand for a good snuggle. She has taken to sleeping on my bed every night - I think because it is too cold for her hunting expeditions! I just love these pictures of her "reading" Little Grey Rabbit - one of my favourite books from when I was little. She gave up with the reading in the end and decided to have a little nap instead!

Some windfall apple and pears in our garden gave me a lovely photo opportunity at the weekend - two visiting deer stopped for a snack on Saturday afternoon. Although they visit often it is normally just a passing dash through the garden but this time they stopped and munched outside my office window for a whole 15 minutes. Just so cute!

My lovely "sister-in-law-to-be" (very imminently as my Brother's wedding is on 28th December in New York) Amy sent me a link to the latest in transport fashion - the cupcake car - on sale in New York for the bargain price of $25,000 and capable of reaching 7mph. Can't quite see myself in one of these but it made me smile all the same!

For Joshua's birthday I made Panda cookies - Josh loves Pandas. The clever design for these I found on the internet made by ruthiesaurus - click here for a link. Isn't it a clever design she came up with? I did what she said and re-moulded an old cookie cutter by heating it on the Aga and then bashing with my rolling pin - feeling very much like a blacksmith as I did it. I used 500g of fondant icing sugar to cover the 12 biscuits that my shortbread dough made. Place all the cookies on a cooling rack with a sheet of greaseproof paper or foil below to catch the drips and carefully spoon over the icing. Add a few tbsp of water to the icing - you need it to be fairly runny but not too runny - so that it leaves a good coating on the cookie and doesn't all run off. Allow to dry completely, then colour the leftover icing with black food colouring and carefully spoon a little over each of the ears. Place the rest of the icing in a piping bag with a small round nozzle and pipe eyes and noses. Leave to set overnight. I think next time I make them I will use royal icing as Ruthie suggests as hers had a nice fur effect with the royal icing. Anyway Joshie and Rosie loved them so mission accomplished. We gave Josh this adorable Panda kite as a present (can you tell I want one for myself?).

You may recall a while ago I made a 60th Birthday cake for my friend Lucy's mum. It was a dainty two tiered birdcage cake that Lucy somehow managed to transport all the way to the Scottish boarders on the train! As a thank you present for the cake (and it really really wasn't necessary) Lucy's Dad treated us to afternoon tea at the Dorcester. Oh my! Now I have sampled a lot of afternoon teas in my time at all sorts of places - some posh, others not - but I can safely say I have never experienced anything like tea at the Dorcester's Promenade. It was heavenly. Delicate sandwiches (caraway seed bread cucumber sandwiches were my favourite - the aniseed and cucumber worked so well together), a pannecotte infused with orange pekoe tea, scones with clotted cream and preserves and a selection of dainty cakes (my favourite the tonka bean coconut macaroon - yum yum). The best part of the whole afternoon was the effort they made for Lucy who is allergic to gluten. Not only did she receive plates of gluten free sandwiches but also gluten free scones and a whole plate of cakes - delicious macaroons and semolina cake but also two pots of fruit - one a tropical mango and kiwi salad - the other strawberry puree layered with whipped cream. These last two were just inspirational and looked so pretty and I will definitely serve these to anyone who comes here for tea in the future who is allergic to gluten. It was such a special treat and I really loved it. Thank you Lucy's Mum and Dad! We also popped to Waterstones at Piccadilly and they had my book! It was an exciting moment!

I am still poorly (alas the earlier report of being on the mend was a little premature) and feeling very sorry for myself - it has been almost two weeks now. I know I must be ill as I haven't cooked anything for over a week - very sad. Hopefully my antibiotics will kick in soon...please!!! Whilst lying in bed I have been planning ahead for the next baking project - Halloween is only a few weeks away and I thought this year I would make a Halloween gingerbread house. Any hints and tips on gingerbread house construction gratefully received - particularly from you lovely American readers as I know gingerbread houses are your National specialty! I am thinking that sugar glass windows and lights inside would be stunning...although perhaps this is a little too ambitious for a first attempt. In the meantime I thought I would share a few photos of the allotment show in my Mum's village - such a nice rural affair. I just love the scarecrows - Mum's was the large one in the green suit!

What a week! Not only did my first book, The Big Book of Cakes and Cookies come out but I can finally share with you the cover for my second book as it is now on Amazon - Sundaes and Splits. The cover shot is the Neopolitan sundae with vanilla strawberry and chocolate ice creams - toffee, summerberry and chocolate sauces - topped with white chocolate dipped wafer decorated with hundreds and thousands. Ridiculously decadent but definitely yummy! I hope you love the cover as much as I do! It is out on 8th April next year which feels like a life time away but I know will be here before you know it.

Before Masterchef I had not heard of Laduree. One day Ben, one of the other finalists was going to see his girlfriend and showed me a box of beautiful coloured macaroons he had bought her. I fell in love instantly (with Laduree just to be clear)! I think it would be my dream to work for Laduree - the cakes in their shop in Paris are just works of art - www.laduree.fr/public_fr/produits/patisseries_accueil.htm. My friend Maren is staying at the moment and she arrived clutching a pale green Laduree bag - I literally swooned as we opened the box - even the packaging is just so pretty to look at! The macaroons taste like little heavenily clouds flavoured violet and blackcurrent, pistachio, licorish, chocolate, lemon...! As well as macaroons, Maren had bought delicate crystalised violets - I will need to make a very special cake to put these on. What a nice friend I have!

I am feeling sorry for myself. I have been in bed poorly most of the weekend with a chest infection but am on the mend again. So much for wildly celebrating my book release!!! I also had three cakes to make this weekend - two birthday cakes and a 50 year celebration of Margaret living in our village. This was a gluten free chocolate cake for Lucy who loves Reindeer. Not the best icing in the world but I had a valid excuse! Anyway Lucy loved her cake. The Gluten free cake (recipe is in my book!!!!) was sandwiched in two layers with Damson cream and buttermilk buttercream which went well with the dark chocolate. Lucy's partner David had taken her away for a surprise weekend to Wells where we went last weekend and she had a lovely time flying the kite we bought her (a 2.5m long cat kite!) on the beach. Happy Birthday Lucy xxx

This morning I wanted to say a huge thank you for all the lovely messages from those of you who have my book! I can't quite believe that after all those months of work it is out - a week early which took me by surprise!!! I can't tell you how nice it is to think that some of you have it on your cook book shelfs and I really hope that you will enjoy the recipes. I am always here if you have any questions and will see if the publishers will let me publish one of the recipes on my blog for you. Thank you too for all the messages of support whilst writing it - they really did keep me going at times when the sheer number of recipes to test each day became overwhelming!

You would think that after writing so many recipes I would have run out of ideas for new cakes but..oh no... I am still coming up with new ideas. These were yesterday's harvest offering - it is our village harvest festival this weekend and harvest supper on Monday - a LARGE casserole is looming this weekend! These Harvest buns have been eaten already (not by me I hasten to add) so they must be good! I love damsons as they are so tangy and if you have not had time to make jam you could add some chopped damson flesh instead (stones removed of course)

Damson and Blackberry Harvest Buns
Preparation time 15 minutes baking time 20 - 25 minutes
Makes 15

225g/8oz butter
225g/8oz caster sugar
4 eggs
225g/8oz self raising flour
2 heaped tbsp creme fraiche
2 heaped tbsp damson jam (or plum jam would be fine too)
2 handfuls of blackberries (about 150gz would be about right - I used mine straight from the freezer and they worked fine)
zest and juice of 2 lemons
1 tbsp icing sugar

Preheat the oven to Gas Mark 4/180/350 and place muffin cases in two 12 hole muffin tins. Cream together the butter and sugar until light until an electric mixer. Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each egg has been added. Fold in the flour, creme fraiche, jam, blackberries and lemon zest gently until everything is incorporated. Spoon the mixture into the cake cakes and bake for about15 - 20 minutes until the cakes are golden brown and spring back to your touch. Remove the cakes from the oven and heat the lemon juice with the icing sugar, bring to the boil and then spoon over the cakes. Serve warm or cold.

A trip to an antique book store at the weekend provided a haul of three wonderful new cook books. I think I was feeling inspired by watching the wonderful Julie and Julia film at the cinema the other week (I left the cinema feeling very virtuous that I had managed 365 recipes in 10 weeks - rather than Julia's 541 recipes in 8 years and Julies cooking Julia's 541 recipes in a year). If you haven't seen it and love food, then you MUST go and see this film. So my new books are 1) A 1970's viennese cook book - OK the photos may be very dated but the recipe for schnitzel and cucumber salad sounds perfect and I can't wait to try it out. 2) A book from 1905 written by Mrs Peel on Puddings and Sweets - I just had to had this for her sentiment at the front of the book "There is no such thing as High Class Cooking. There is merely good cooking and bad cooking, and the former is generally the most simple". A woman after my own heart!! And finally 3) a 1950's book The Complete Patissier written by a chef who worked at the Savoy (after my cooking dessert in the Savoy kitchen I just had to have this book - despite it ridiculous price tag of £27). The other reason I couldn't leave this book behind was that Mr Kollist has a receipe for Looking Glass - Miroirs which I just have to try to see if they are fit for an Alice in Wonderland party.

I have just spent a lovely weekend in North Norfolk near Wells Next The Sea. We used to go camping here when we were children - my overriding memory of those holidays is our tent pole getting bent in a storm and me getting soaking wet when the tent collapsed. I am sure this is why I have an aversion to camping. However I do also remember spending every day in our beachhut that we had hired - having BBQs and fondues (very decadent) and building enormous sandcastles. I hadn't realized until this weekend that we lived only two hours from such wonderful golden sand beaches. Given that we have lived here 5 years this is really shocking! Anyway, now that we have discovered this fact we will definitely go back on a regular basis. Fresh seafood was the highlight of the weekend - we stayed at lovely Titchwell Manor on the edge of an RSPB reserve with a view of the sea and the bird sanctuary from our window - I don't think I have ever woken up to a nicer view. We went passed Morston Hall (home of the lovely Galton Blackiston, one of my all time favourite chefs - sadly fully booked, but next time!!!) and flew a kite on the beach at Wells. I think the beachuts are just as lovely as Southwold (if a little more higgledy piggledy all on different height stilts) and the beach is enormous with sail boats on the sea. I definitely recommend a visit of you are in the area. Hope you all had a lovely weekend xxx

Sacha requested peanut cookies this week, so I had a little experiment. They were quite different with the cornflake crunchy bits and very morish

Peanut Cookies
Preparation time 15 minutes Cooking time 12 -15 minutes
Makes 15

115g/4oz butter, softened plus extra for greasing
115g/4oz light brown sugar
1 heaped tbsp peanut butter
1 egg yolk
100g/3½oz plain flour, sifted
60g/2oz peanuts
1tsp baking powder
100g/3½oz dark chocolate, chopped
55g/2oz cornflakes

Preheat the oven to Gas Mark 5/190°C/375°F and grease and line two baking trays. Using a mixer or whisk, mix together the butter, sugar, peanut butter and egg yolk until light and creamy. Add the flour,peanuts and baking powder and whisk again. Add the chocolate and cornflakes and bring the dough together with your hands. Pull off 15 small balls the size of walnuts and place on the baking trays with a gap between each cookie. Press each cookie down with your fingers. Bake for about 12 - 15 minutes until the cookies are golden brown.

Crabapple and Rose Jelly
Makes 4 jars
450g/1 lb rosehips
900g/2lb crabapples, quartered (no need to peel)
juice of 1 large lemon
800g/1 3/4 lb preserving sugar
1 tsp rosewater

Place the rosehips in a jam pan or large saucepan and cover with 2 litres of water. Simmer for 30 minutes and then add the crabapple quarters and lemon and simmer until the apple is pulpy, adding a little more water if necessary. Spoon the mixture into a jellybag and leave to strain (mine took about 3 hours). Return the liquid to the pan (you should have about 1 1/2 litres of liquid) and add the sugar. Simmer until the sugar is dissolved and then boil until the setting point is reached. To test for set put a saucer in the freezer until very cold then drop a few drops of jelly onto the saucer. If the top wrinkles when you push with your finger the setting point is reached. Stir in the rosewater and then pour into sterilized jam jars and seal. This is lovely on toast or with lamb. Jelly should be of a softer consistency than jam and have a perfect wobble!

The sunshine this weekend was glorious and we had what I am sure will be our last lunch of the year in the garden yesterday - lots of smoked and cured fish with watercress salad and German dill mustard sauce. It was a really nice lunch if I say so myself! We also spent a lot of time harvesting from the hedgerows. I have to admit it felt slight odd that it was so hot and we were picking blackberries - normally I am in a winter coat when I do this but I am definitely not complaining!!! We collected Blackberries, Damsons, Rosehips, Sloes and Crabapples by the basket load. All free and all delicious. I spent a lot of time yesterday cooking as you can imagine - Damson and Blackberry Hazelnut crumble, Blackberry and chilli vinegar, Rosehip and crabapple jelly, pickled crabapples to have with cold meat in winter and Damson jam. I froze the sloes so that they are ready to make sloe gin (giving them the "first frost" they need) and also the blackberries so we can have crumbles and pies over the coming months. If you haven't been out picking yet, I definitely recommend it - the trees and bushes are laden this year!

A girl after my own heart - Peapod snuggled in my favourite quilt this morning. How I wish it was me and that I could curl up rather than work today!

A few of you have asked for the recipe for the Very Almondy Almond Cake from Jess' Mother in Law's birthday cake. The cake uses Almond butter which is available in some supermarkets and in health food shops. I love nut butters and use them in buttercream for fondant fancies. You can make your own nut butters by lightly roasting nuts (skins removed) and then blending in a grinder with some flavourless oil and a tbsp of icing sugar to sweeten. Think almond flavoured peanut butter and you will be about there! Just delicious! To ice this cake, add a heaped tablespoon of the almond butter to a classic vanilla butter cream to give a buttery almond flavour.

Very Almondy Almond Cake
225g/8oz butter
225g/8oz caster sugar
1 heaped tbsp almond butter
4 large eggs
175g/6oz self raising flour, sifted
85g/3oz ground almonds
60g/2oz toasted flaked almonds
1 tsp almond essence
200ml buttermilk
4 tbsp Amaretto liquor

Preheat the oven to Gas Mark 4/180C/350F and grease and line two 8inch sandwich pans. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the butter, almond butter and sugar until light and creamy. Add the eggs one at a time, whisking after each egg is added. If the mixture starts to curdle add a spoonful of flour. Add the flour, ground and flaked almonds, almond essence and buttermilk and fold through gentle until all the flour is incorporated. Divide between the cake tins and bake for approximately 25 minutes until the cakes are golden, spring back when you press the center with your finger and a knife comes out clean when inserted into the middle of the cake. Heat the Amaretto liquor in a saucepan for 1 minute then drizzle over the cakes and allow to cool. Fill the cake with almond butter cream.

After a lovely ladies lunch over in Suffolk on Thursday (My popping candy pannecotte sundae went down very well!) I came back to judge the Sharnbrook village show confectionery class at Saturday. It is always so much fun and Caroline, my steward, always makes me feel so welcome. After an hour and a half of tasting I was completely full! My favourites this year were an apple and strawberry jelly that had the perfect wobble and I would love to have taken home to spread on my toast and some crisp ginger biscuits - I wonder if the entrant noticed that 1 1/2 of their biscuits were gone - they were do delicious that Caroline and I couldn't stop munching them! These were the yummy chocolate brownies, Victoria sponges and jars of jelly that I tried!

I am off to Suffolk today as tomorrow I am hosting a ladies lunch at the Bildeston Crown. I am preparing the dessert for the lunch and am looking forward to getting into the kitchen again under the watchful eye of head chef Chris. We are serving the panne cotte popping candy sundae from my Sundae and Split book and I am looking forward to seeing what reaction it gets! Details of the event are here if you are in the area and interested in a yummy lunch

My second book is out on Amazon for pre order - such a long time until it is out (April 2010) and no picture yet - but very please to now have two books available to order on Amazon!!!