Polenta always makes for a rich, dense cake and never more so than when paired with rich, dried figs.

This Alsatian Christmas bundt is fluffy, buttery and completely delicious with its spiced walnut filling.

Try this sticky Italian christmas classic with a chocolate and orange twist.

Make this delicious, colourful and fun big rig petrol tanker cake for you child's birthday.

Not suitable to freeze. Not suitable to microwave. Any type of berries can be used instead of raspberries. If you prefer, use semi-sweet dark chocolate or milk chocolate, instead of white chocolate. Note

If you have an electric pressure cooker you won’t need to reduce the heat to stabilise pressure, your cooker will automatically stabilise itself. Always check with the manufacturer’s instructions before using. Note

Put the kettle on and indulge in a thick slice of this crumble-topped raisin cake.

Pudding can be made an day ahead, keep, covered, in refrigerator. Note

Filled with sweet, spiced nuts and drizzled in a warm honey syrup, these Greek pastries are heavenly served with a cup of coffee.

You’ll need 3 lemons to make this recipe. Note

Perfect for a kid's birthday party, these butterfly cupcakes are fun to both make and eat.

The pudding is at its best made on the day and served hot. The big day wouldn’t be complete without a pudding of some sort. If there’s a large crowd, especially where you have a range of different age groups, it’s a good idea to serve both a hot pudding – either traditional, or one […]

Perfect for a dinner party, these colourful crumbles are delicious topped with a scoop of melting ice-cream.

Start your day with an indulgent breakfast of creamy ricotta pancakes, complete with a wonderfully syrupy quince topping.

Mille-feuille, pronounced meal-fwee, translates as “thousand leaves”, and refers to puff pasty used in multi-layered sweet or savoury dishes. We’ve adapted the classic dessert version here by layering fillo pastry with almonds and honey.

This recipe will make more Eight Spice Mix than you require for the tarts. Store excess in an airtight container and use in cakes, custards, stewed fruit, crumbles or creamy desserts. It is also fantastic rubbed on duck before roasting.

For a real chocolate rush, try this rich cake with warm sauce.

With 11 children to feed and a home-based business to support them, it’s no surprise that my husband Mick’s grandmother had one eye on economy. This recipe uses no milk or cream and hardly any butter – a couple of eggs, a couple of lemons, a handful of sugar. It costs very little to put on the table, yet it is absolutely delicious and decadent.

My mum used to make pineapple upside-down cake when I was a kid. This orange version is lovely – syrupy, sweet and satisfying.

My mum recently handed me a real treasure – an exercise book that was used for recipes by my great-grandmother. I never knew my great-grandmother, but I certainly recognise some of her recipes from my visits to Nan’s house. It has been compiled with patience and love, and gives me an insight into a woman I never met. It is a privilege to now have her cookbook. This cake is from an era where home cooks were incredibly frugal, as everyday ingredients, such as butter, were in short supply.

A fruity delight to share.

There was usually a tin of condensed milk in the fridge at home when I was growing up and my guilty pleasure was drinking it out of the can!

The Weekly's Top 10 cakes - Number 8

Soft and zesty, this classic cake should be served with heaps of strawberries to create fresh flavour profiles to complement your afternoon tea.

These old-style passionfruit mango parfaits will be a hit with young and old when you serve them up for dessert.

This zesty custard would go wonderfully with a steamed ginger pudding.

The contrast between the light, lemony pudding and rich berry topping of these self-saucing puddings is delectable.

The kids will love these vanilla cupcakes topped with pink whipped cream and fresh berries.

Strawberries should be served as soon as possible after dipping. Note

Keeping time: 3 days. Note

These desserts look gourmet, but without the fuss. Simple to put together and delicious!

This divine pie has a crunchy almond crust and is best served with a dollop of whipped cream or melting ice-cream.

Indulge your sweet tooth with this gorgeous coconut and passionfruit pie. Enjoy a big slice with a dollop of ice-cream or fresh cream for a beautiful dessert.

These medium GI buckwheat pancakes are a healthier alternative to your regular, sugar-laden recipes. Serve topped with a light and zesty lemon cream for a satisfying start to your day.

Decadent baking in under half an hour? Amazing but true with this delicious chocolate slice recipe!

Lovers of the chocolate and mint combination will be delighted with this decadent brownie.

With a texture this silky and a flavour this heavenly, you'll not be able to resist a second helping of this decadent chocolate orange mousse cake. It really is that good.

Enjoy the flavours of creamy vanilla and berry in this cheat's trifle.

The ‘religieuse’ is meant to resemble a nun in a habit. Note

When beating the egg yolks and sugar, the ribbon stage indicates when you’ve dissolved the sugar and properly aerated the mixture. To check, remove a spoonful of the mixture, drizzle it over the top of the remaining mixture in the bowl; it should hold its shape briefly, before disappearing into the mix. You need a […]

This recipe is nut-free and egg-free. Note

Drizzled in a toffee syrup and plump with fruit and nuts, this cake will be the centrepiece of your Christmas table.

Position the large cake on the small cake, then spread pink butter cream over toadstool cap. Split the spearmint leaves in half through the centre then slice the halves into three pieces. Note

The beauty of the crumble is in its rustic look. There's no need to take too much care with the crumble topping, whichever way you toss it onto the delicious fruit, it will brown up and look so good when running with rivers of cream.

Delicate and delicious cupcakes with white choc curls from Australian Women's Weekly.

Recipe can be made a day ahead, store, covered, in the refrigerator. It is important to use full-cream milk in this recipe,ook rice slowly for creamiest results. Serve with fruit of your choice. Note

Wow your dinner guests with these vibrant and delicious blackberry soufflés.

On a balmy summer's night this velvety pudding is a light and refreshing alternative.

This is a delightful dessert to present to guests at the end of a special dinner. You could make a simple syrup by adding rosewater to the cooking water and use it in place of the custard if you prefer.

Bombes can be made and frozen a week in advance. You can make one large bombe by freezing the mixture in a 2-litre (8-cup) pudding steamer. We used Grand Marnier, but you can use your favourite citrus liqueur. Note

Celebrate your child's birthday with this adorable yellow beehive cake!

These gorgeous treats are sweet to look at and especially sweet to eat.

For either a morning snack or afternoon tea, this moist, zesty loaf is just perfect.

Try these fudgy brownies for an easy, decadent treat.

Tangelos are a cross between a grapefruit and a tangerine, tasting more like the latter but closer in size to the former. You need four for this recipe. Any citrus fruit of similar size can be substituted in this moist, exquisite and fruity cake.

Bite-sized tarts with a vanilla and raspberry crème brûlée filling and a crispy toffee topping make an elegant dessert or afternoon tea.

Assemble and serve éclairs as close to serving time as possible. Note

Soufflés must be made just before serving. Note

Mastic is available from shops that stock Greek and Middle Eastern food. Note

This gourmet dessert combines the sweetness of pomegranate syrup with a beautiful rosewater infusion to create this turkish delight roulade. This is perfect for delighting loved ones.

These crunchy chocolate and peanut truffles are so easy to make and are the perfect sweet treat with a cup of hot tea or coffee.

Who can resist the decadent combination of hazelnut, chocolate and raspberry?

The dark blue pigment of blueberries is full of antioxidants, which have been shown to lower cholesterol. They are sometimes referred to as “brain berries” because they may help with brain function. Note

Satisfy your sweet tooth with this twist on the classic French dessert.

There are many parts to this dish, so it pays to get yourself fully organised before you begin. Despite the work involved, coconut panna cotta with mango and wafers is worth the effort.

This crunchy apple crumble is heavenly served with runny cream or a big scoop of vanilla ice-cream.

Rich, fruity and aromatic with brandy, this steamed Christmas pudding is gorgeous served warm with either brandy butter, double cream or vanilla custard.

Filled with plump raisins and drizzled with a rich chocolate glaze, this luscious cake makes the perfect afternoon treat or dessert.

We've given a grapefruit flavour to the classic lemon meringue pie here, but you could experiment with any citrus fruit, or a combination of.

It’s important to measure the closed springform pan; the measurement that appears on the base of the springform pan sometimes refers to the measurement of the pan when it is open. This rich flourless cake can be made with other dried fruit, such as figs, or a combination of raisins, currants and sultanas, and with […]

These festive loaves make for wonderful Christmas gifts.

These gooey, delicious two-tone brownies make an excellent gift! Jazz them up with a little cellophane and ribbon.

For those in search of indulgence, it's hard to go past banoffee pie. Fresh banana, caramel toffee and sweet cream piled high, settle down with a slice and a cuppa.

We used a combination of Granny Smith and red-skinned apples in this recipe. Note

It's a good thing these choc-caramel brownie ice-cream bars are so striking and delicious, it makes the fiddly bits worth it!

These indulgent cupcakes with choc mint crush are a delightful treat for any time of day.

Equipment – 1 x deep 20cm-square cake pan, 1 x deep 22cm-round cake pan, 1 x 30cm x 60cm covered cake board. Decorations 2 x 25g packets WONKA NERDS Rope 2 NESTLE Melts White Cooking Compound 2 blue NESTLE SMARTIES 2 ALLEN’S CHICOS, sliced thinly 1 ALLEN’S JAFFAS 1 ALLEN’S FRECKLES 2 ALLEN’S Ripe Raspberries […]

This decadent chocolate semifreddo dessert is easy to make for a quick rich treat to satisfy your sweet tooth.

Plump with fruit, this delicious apricot fruit cake is perfect with your morning or afternoon cuppa.

It is fine to use just one 300ml carton of cream for this recipe. Note