Rahul Mandal

BAKE OF THE MONTH FOR OCTOBER 2025: This is a rich chocolate sponge cake baked with pears in it. A white chocolate frosting is used to sandwich the decadent sponge layers. Finally, a caramel drip and poached pears complete this showstopping bake.

Cake is the ultimate comfort food, a real symbol of happiness and indulgence. Naturally, I can’t take the credit for developing this classic recipe but I’m rather proud of the tweaks I’ve made to achieve the fluffiest of sponges with a nice flat top, the ideal for the good old Victoria Sponge.

If you like bread, but don’t want to wait hours for the dough to prove, Soda bread is the bread for you.  This cheddar and chilli soda...