A family favourite, the original magazine cutting has been in my cookbook for decades! My daughter has been the one to make this for years now, so I'm a bit out of practice, but knowing how much she likes it, I cooked one for her birthday this week. She adds the tip that she likes to add extra slices of apple arranged on top before cooking, which looks really good. I'll do that next time. :-)

A simple to make cake, this would also be wonderful with some whipped cream, yoghurt or ice cream, or with custard.

A great, economical and simple stand-by for feeding hungry kids or to take to an event, this is a family favourite. The ingredient list may surprise you! There are two steps - the soaking, then the mixing and cooking. I often do the first step and then move onto other things, and come back to complete it when I have time.

Ingredients:
​1 cup hot black tea
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup dried fruit - my fave is half and half diced apricots and sultanas
2 cups self-raising flour, or 2 cups plain flour plus 3 tsp baking powder
1 egg (optional)

Note: You can use any size cup to measure for this recipe, so long as it's consistent, as everything is based on the same measurement. I use a coffee mug (300ml) usually rather than a metric cup, and cook it in a large loaf tin.

Method:
Place hot tea, sugar and dried fruit into a bowl. Stir, cover, and set aside until cool. Add flour/baking powder and egg. Stir to combine well. Pour batter into greased loaf tin. Bake 45 mins at 180C/350F until cooked through - skewer comes out clean. Cool on wire rack. To serve: slice thinly and butter. 

Notes: Adding the egg makes the loaf rise much better and cook more evenly. Without it, it can be difficult to tell when it's properly cooked. Cooked it is delicious. Undercooked in the middle, not nice at all! So if you skip the egg, err on the side of well done. 

I have made this using my gluten free flour blend, but the blend I used had coconut flour rather than almond meal (coconut flour can be very unpredictable in baking) and the result tasted good but was very crumbly. I need to play with it a bit more. 

Perfect buttered and served with a nice hot cuppa, or some Water Kefir

About 23 years ago, we lived in Murchison. Murchison is close to the convergence of a number of rivers, and surrounded by yet more rivers and river valleys. From Murchison, nearly every direction is "up the .....[.river]." There was a farming family "up the Owen" whom we visited several times. On one occassion, they served this lovely apple nut cake, and kindly shared the recipe. This week I decided to see if I could make this cake without gluten or dairy. Both options below.

Ingredients:
125g butter OR 1/2 cup coconut oil
1 cup sugar
2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 cups stewed unsweetened apples (I used my applesauce, and reduced the sugar to 3/4 cup)
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
2 TBSP cocoa
1/2 tsp mixed spice
1/2 tsp cinnamon (I reduced to 1/4 tsp as there is some in the applesauce)
2 cups plain flour OR 2 cups all purpose gluten free flour blend
1 tsp cream of tartar

Method:
The applesauce needs to be warm, so gently warm in a pot if it's not. 
Cream butter or oil and sugar. Dissolve 1 1/2 tsp bakingsoda in the warm apples and add them to the creamed mixture with raisins, walnuts, cocoa, and spices. Stir well. 

Mix together flour, remaining 1/2 tsp baking soda and cream of tartar, then stire into the apple mix. 

Bake in a greased, floured 20cm tin at 180C/350F for 45 mins. Leave to cool in tin before removing and icing. 

Icing: 1 tsp vanilla essense, 1 TBSP sherry/brandy/wine (optional), knob butter or a little coconut oil, icing sugar, hot water to mix. 

I wasn't sure what to call these as they aren't exactly cookies, but close. I called them fruity drops because they are mostly fruit, and you "drop" spoonfuls on the baking tray. A yummy, natural treat. 

Method:
Mix together, then drop spoonfuls onto baking paper on an oven tray. Shape into cookie-like shapes. Leave spaces between, but they don't really spread. Bake at 180C/350F for 20-25 mins. Cool. 

I stored mine in a container in the fridge, as I don't get through them very fast. A nice fruity, naturally sweet treat. 

Good old-fashioned, moist, scrumptious banana cake. This one is for my husband, who loves it. I haven't made one in years - back when the kids were younger, I used to triple this recipe and bake it in a roasting dish. Today I made a single batch in a regular cake tin - oh how the times have changed! Great way to use up overripe bananas, and perfect to take to anywhere that's bring-a-plate.

Method:
Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs, bananas, then baking soda dissolved in milk, stirring after each addition. Lastly add mixed flour and baking powder. Mix. 

Bake in greased, floured baking tin at 180C/350F until skewer comes out clean - about 40 mins. Let sit in tin for 5 mins, then turn out onto rack to cool. 

Hint: if banana cake browns too quickly on top and is still uncooked in the middle, placing an oven tray over the top of the cake tin will prevent it overbrowning while it finishes cooking. 

Since my gluten and dairy free son was coming for Christmas, I decided to buy a bag of GF baking flour. Normally, I seldom bake these days as it's been a long while since there was anyone at home who was into eating baked goods. And if I wanted to bake, I generally go for various healthy and/or raw options, or make my own flour mixes. Anyway, this time I thought I'd whip up a GF cake using my old faithful egg and dairy free recipe from way-back-when. Only, it turned out I didn't have any vegetable oil or sugar on hand either, so I improvised with applesauce and honey. The result was rather good! Both versions of the cake below. Or you could play with these and just change out the ingredients you wish to, keeping the others.

I started making this when my eldest kids were little, as we often didn't have eggs or butter in the house as we'd run out before shopping day.

Ingredients and Method:
Preheat oven to 180C/350F. Grease and line a suitable cake tin.
In a bowl, combine:
1 1/2 cups plain flour
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup cocoa
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients, and pour in the following:
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 TBSP cider vinegar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup water

Mix throughly until smooth. Pour batter into tin and bake until skewer comes out clean (around 30-40 mins). Cool.

This a very moist, fudgy cake - good on it's own or with icecream. Certain family members have been known to eat it for breakfast with milk or cream poured over.
​

Did you know that applesauce can be used in place of butter or oil in most recipes? I used my delicious homemade applesauce, but simply pureed cooked apples could be used too. When baking with honey, reduce overall fluids by 1/2 cup for each cup of honey used. Also lower oven temp a bit, as honey can cause products to brown quickly. 

Grease and line cake tin. Preheat oven to 160-170C
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups gluten free flour - I used Healtheries, but the texture of this cake could have been even better with a good homemade blend.
1/3 cup cocoa
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 TBSP cider vinegar
1/2 cup applesauce
1/2 cup honey
3/4 cup water

Method:
Warm honey gently in a pot to make runny.

Combine dry ingredients in a bowl, then make a well and pour in wet ingredients. Stir to combine. Bake about 20-25 mins or until skewer comes out clean. Turn onto rack and cool. 

Delicious served with some yoghurt or icecream (I use dairy free coconut yoghurt or coconut icecream). This version is not as fudgy as the above one.