Notes about Recipes in this book

• Large all-in-one Victoria sandwich

  • sharifah on November 14, 2014

    I like that she gives variations for various tin sizes. I wanted to make a 7" cake, and she had an ingredients variation at the bottom of the page for 7" and 6" tin, which I thought was very useful. Cake was OK..nice...all-in-one method, can't go wrong really.

• Lemon Swiss roll

  • annapanna on January 04, 2015

    I used lemon curd made according to a recipe from Food52. I thought the layer of sponge it turned out a bit too thick. The flavor was nice, the kids loved it.It did crack a bit when rolling it, I need to figure out when is the best moment to roll it (is it better to wait that it cools down a bit? Or will it be even more difficult then?). Mary Berry says one should trim before rolling. I don't agree. It's not easy to trim nicely when it's still warm. Next time I will roll and chill first, then trim, to make a neater cut.

• Rich fruit cake

  • BasicStock on December 23, 2017

    My cake has now aged about six weeks, and it's delicious. I just used two types of raisins, currants, dried cherries and almonds, increasing amounts to get the same weight of fruits and nuts.

• Death by chocolate cake

  • billcranecos on June 08, 2022

    This is the second recipe from this book that did not produce stellar results for us. The cake and frosting all came together, but this did not make for a rich indulgent chocolate experience.

• Blueberry muffins

  • sharifah on December 03, 2012

    Hmmm, these are OK, nothing really special...

• Divine chocolate birthday cake

  • jck99nz on October 21, 2016

    Not having used chocolate much for cooking, I followed the recipe which said to add 1T water (with coffee granules dissolved in it) to the melted chocolate. My smooth runny chocolate immediately turned to a stiff lump. Didn't take much research to find that water is the enemy of melted chocolate, causing seizure. Don't know why the recipe is worded this way - would be much better to add melted chocolate and coffee separately to the egg mixture. I used a couple of tablespoons of oil to recover the chocolate sufficiently to use, but not sure what effect it'll have on taste and texture - cake is still in oven.

• Doboz torte

  • annapanna on September 14, 2014

    There must be a mistake in the list of ingredients - the recipe does not use agave nectar, just sugar. The cake turned out well, but I would have liked the filling to taste more like chocolate, so next time maybe I will try ganache instead of the buttercream described. Also, I made 1 1/2 the given quantity of buttercream and used almost all of it.

• Chocolate chip cookies

  • sharifah on June 11, 2014

    Emmhh, these were okay, nice but...nothing special. A little bit flat, took a bit longer than the 10 minutes stated.

• The very best shortbread

  • Sparkles75 on April 23, 2019

    Fantastic shortbread and super simple to put together. Quite dangerous really!

  • senzler on August 07, 2022

    Fabulous. I used a 9x9 pan. Agree they are dangerous. Folks could not stop eating them. Worth the box of oatmeal I spilled on the floor trying to get to the semolina!

• Focaccia bread with onion and balsamic topping

  • Wojtanowski on November 05, 2018

    Excellent with some fontina cheese and sage instead of thyme

• Bara brith

  • sharifah on November 26, 2012

    Super easy and super yummy. Very sweet cake though, may reduce the sugar a little bit next time

  • eliza on October 18, 2020

    Very good and super easy. Would probably reduce the sugar a bit but otherwise really nice.

• Banana loaf

  • sharifah on February 10, 2013

    Quick to make, lovely, moist and not too sweet. Quick to disappear too.

  • Sparkles75 on April 23, 2019

    So easy and quick to make. Lovely flavour and texture. Nothing fancy here but didn't last long

• Very best scones

  • Astrid5555 on October 01, 2013

    Very quick and easy, Nice with jam. Freeze well.

• Potato scones

  • Susan_F on January 28, 2014

    These were disappointing - I will stick to traditional potato scones in future, ie cooked on a griddle rather than in the oven.

• Large all-in-one Victoria sandwich

  • sharifah on November 14, 2014

    I like that she gives variations for various tin sizes. I wanted to make a 7" cake, and she had an ingredients variation at the bottom of the page for 7" and 6" tin, which I thought was very useful. Cake was OK..nice...all-in-one method, can't go wrong really.

  • Rebbiejaye on April 10, 2026

    You can taste the margarine a little bit - choose a good margarine! I like that it’s not too sweet.

• Coffee Victoria sandwich

  • Rebbiejaye on June 08, 2026

    Get good margarine and use decaf coffee powder!!

• Chocolate Victoria sandwich

  • Rebbiejaye on June 08, 2026

    Get good margarine. Very lightly chocolate. Could double the frosting.

• Orange Victoria sandwich

  • Rebbiejaye on June 14, 2026

    I liked it, but with very tart marmalade it wasn’t sweet enough for my kids.

• Lemon Swiss roll

  • annapanna on January 04, 2015

    I used lemon curd made according to a recipe from Food52. I thought the layer of sponge it turned out a bit too thick. The flavor was nice, the kids loved it.It did crack a bit when rolling it, I need to figure out when is the best moment to roll it (is it better to wait that it cools down a bit? Or will it be even more difficult then?). Mary Berry says one should trim before rolling. I don't agree. It's not easy to trim nicely when it's still warm. Next time I will roll and chill first, then trim, to make a neater cut.

• Rich fruit cake

  • BasicStock on December 23, 2017

    My cake has now aged about six weeks, and it's delicious. I just used two types of raisins, currants, dried cherries and almonds, increasing amounts to get the same weight of fruits and nuts.

• Death by chocolate cake

  • billcranecos on June 08, 2022

    This is the second recipe from this book that did not produce stellar results for us. The cake and frosting all came together, but this did not make for a rich indulgent chocolate experience.

• Very best chocolate fudge cake

  • Rebbiejaye on April 27, 2026

    Not too sweet. Easy to make. A little dry for my taste.

• Blueberry muffins

  • sharifah on December 03, 2012

    Hmmm, these are OK, nothing really special...

• Divine chocolate birthday cake

  • jck99nz on October 21, 2016

    Not having used chocolate much for cooking, I followed the recipe which said to add 1T water (with coffee granules dissolved in it) to the melted chocolate. My smooth runny chocolate immediately turned to a stiff lump. Didn't take much research to find that water is the enemy of melted chocolate, causing seizure. Don't know why the recipe is worded this way - would be much better to add melted chocolate and coffee separately to the egg mixture. I used a couple of tablespoons of oil to recover the chocolate sufficiently to use, but not sure what effect it'll have on taste and texture - cake is still in oven.

• Dobos torte

  • annapanna on September 14, 2014

    There must be a mistake in the list of ingredients - the recipe does not use agave nectar, just sugar. The cake turned out well, but I would have liked the filling to taste more like chocolate, so next time maybe I will try ganache instead of the buttercream described. Also, I made 1 1/2 the given quantity of buttercream and used almost all of it.

• Iced chocolate sheet cake

  • Rebbiejaye on April 27, 2026

    Very easy and I liked the fudgy icing. The cake was very crumbly.

• Chocolate chip cookies

  • sharifah on June 11, 2014

    Emmhh, these were okay, nice but...nothing special. A little bit flat, took a bit longer than the 10 minutes stated.

• Dorchester crackers

  • s.shadan on September 17, 2025

    I also added ground fennels and cumin, which worked really well

• Viennese fingers

  • EmilyR on May 11, 2023

    These remind me of the danish tin biscuits that turn into a sewing kit. They melt away as soon as you eat them. They look like far more work than they are. Mine are more stubby, but one of my kids wanted to do it and they used a pastry tip.

• The very best shortbread

  • Sparkles75 on April 23, 2019

    Fantastic shortbread and super simple to put together. Quite dangerous really!

  • senzler on August 07, 2022

    Fabulous. I used a 9x9 pan. Agree they are dangerous. Folks could not stop eating them. Worth the box of oatmeal I spilled on the floor trying to get to the semolina!

• Bakewell slices

  • EmilyR on May 03, 2023

    These little slices are far easier than they appear and are a great way to use up random jams. I appreciated that the shortcrust is so forgiving, but it makes exactly enough for a 9x13 - nothing more or less. Using a small pastry roller in a pan was easier than actually rolling it on my flour dusted counter.

• Chocolate éclairs

  • EmilyR on April 18, 2023

    Unquestionably good, however not all of mine rose as I would have liked. I think a couple trouble shooting things she could have included are that if you can create a bit of steam it will result in a crisper shell. Also, I have read that using a star tip creates more uniform shape though it becomes smoother through the baking process.

• Focaccia bread with onion and balsamic topping

  • Wojtanowski on November 05, 2018

    Excellent with some fontina cheese and sage instead of thyme

• Bara brith

  • sharifah on November 26, 2012

    Super easy and super yummy. Very sweet cake though, may reduce the sugar a little bit next time

  • eliza on October 18, 2020

    Very good and super easy. Would probably reduce the sugar a bit but otherwise really nice.

• Banana loaf

  • sharifah on February 10, 2013

    Quick to make, lovely, moist and not too sweet. Quick to disappear too.

  • Sparkles75 on April 23, 2019

    So easy and quick to make. Lovely flavour and texture. Nothing fancy here but didn't last long

• Very best scones

  • Astrid5555 on October 01, 2013

    Very quick and easy, Nice with jam. Freeze well.

• Potato scones

  • Susan_F on January 28, 2014

    These were disappointing - I will stick to traditional potato scones in future, ie cooked on a griddle rather than in the oven.

• Banoffee pie

  • s.shadan on January 02, 2026

    Delicious, but the toffee layer makes it too heavy.