My Favourite Recipes For World Baking Day

It almost seems like a lifetime ago when national shortages of bread and flour made the headlines. As the country prepared for lockdown, masses stocked up on baking supplies, providing some with a new hobby and others a way to entertain their children whilst they were off school.

I have always enjoyed baking, but with university and work, I found I had less time to spend in the kitchen creating. After finishing university and being on furlough for most of the year, I was able to return to my hobby. I have probably baked more in the past year than I have during my whole three years at university.

Baking is a great way to relax and forget about the situation around you. It has also been proven to improve your mood, with sharing bakes with others guaranteed to make you happier. Baking can also be used as a form of mindfulness. Focusing on the task at hand, baking removes any distractions and sets you a task with a sweet, fulfilling goal.

With World Baking Day taking place on 17 May, here are some of my favourite recipes I have used over the past year.

Easy Lemon Cheesecake – Charlotte’s Lively Kitchen

For my birthday I always bake myself a Birthday Cheesecake. Lemon cheesecake is my favourite dessert and I adore the simplicity of this no-bake recipe. The filling is rich; a combination of double cream and mascarpone. When blended together with lemons and sugar, it transforms into a lightweight, mousse-like texture. It is impossible to have nothing other than a gigantic slice.

The simplicity of the recipe means there is no instructions for decoration, leaving it up to the baker’s imagination. In the past, I have added seasonal fruits on top to compliment the flavour. Last summer, I remember adding kiwi which worked perfectly with the sharpness of the lemons. I also think strawberries and raspberries would work well, or even a lemon compote rippled into the filling to give the cheesecake a marbled effect.

I don’t just save this recipe for my birthday however; it is just too good not to have it all year round. It works great as a dessert at Christmas and other holidays including parties, and most importantly, when you deserve to have something sweet.

Lemon Drizzle Cake – BBC Good Food

A lemon drizzle cake is one of the more underrated cakes. People tend to stray away from the word moist as an adjective but there is no phrase more suited. This cake is baked in a loaf tin, allowing the syrup to seep deep into the sponge. The result is amazing: a light sponge saturated with a sharp syrup that serves as the icing over a caramelised crust. The cake is so delicious on its own it does not need any additional toppings or decorations – it is perfect as it is.

The first time I made this cake, I was so happy with the result, I baked another the next day for my Grandparents. The simplicity proved popular; something my whole family can enjoy together. When studies say sharing your bakes can make you happier, I have never felt it to be truer than with this lemon drizzle cake. So unbelievably easy to make and so unbelievably rewarding to share with others.

Banana Bread – BBC Good Food

An early Lockdown classic: we can almost reminisce about the banana bread craze of springtime last year. It lives up to its hype – a sweet, spongey cake, perfect on its own or with the addition of Nutella on top. I love it when baking is simple and you can let the flavours speak for themselves. This recipe asks for dried banana chips as decoration, but I have always gone without. Like these other recipes, the flavour does not need any added extras. Home baking doesn’t have to be Bake Off standard all of the time. Sometimes, a sweet slice of banana bread is all that is needed to add extra comfort to a hot drink.

After the hype over banana bread slowed down, I did not make it for a while until a few months ago and was pleasantly met with consistent and delicious flavours yet again. Banana bread is such a fantastic cake to keep on coming back to. After all, every kitchen almost always has overripe bananas at hand.

Mini Egg Cookies – Charlotte’s Lively Kitchen

There’s something about holidays that make me even more excited to bake. At Christmas time, I made gingerbread cookies for a family meet up at the beach. Decorated with the help of my sisters, no cookies remained at the end of the day. This Easter, I chose to do something similar; using this recipe for Mini Egg cookies turned out to be ideal. 

They are delicious. I think one of the best parts of baking is the impatience of others when they see bakes fresh out of the oven. I thought there were enough cookies to last the entire Easter weekend, but I turned out to be wrong. Lovingly devoured by my sisters almost instantly, barely lasting 24 hours. I think that’s when you know you’ve made something good.

I wish I had stocked up on Mini Eggs so I could make these throughout the year. Realistically, I don’t think Mini Egg would last long before being added into cookies. The base of this recipe is so adaptable, I know I can add other sweets to them: Maltesers, Smarties, and Oreos. Each one would be just as good. 

Sarah Storer

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