Summertime… and the livin’ is easy. Use blue jelly crystals if you think the green makes this pool look like it needs a good clean! Remove any toothpicks before cutting and serving the cake. Note

You will need to buy four 22g packets of Life Savers for this cake. Be sure to remove toothpicks, cotton wool and skewer from cake before cutting and serving. Note

You will need to buy a 200g jelly beans packet and a 35g tumini M&M’s for the decorations. Colin should beeaten before he under goes a metamorphosis and changes into a giant butterfly. This cake is just the right size for small hands and its bright colours will keep little ones amused. Note

You need a 6cm (2-inch) flower-shaped cookie cutter. Don’t use boiled lollies for the centres as they will melt during cooking. You can vary the lollies used, but gelatine-based ones (jelly babies and the like) are probably best. Note

This recipe also makes 6 texas muffins (¾-cup/180ml); bake about 40 minutes. Note

The day before you plan to cook the pork, unwrap it, pat dry with paper towel and leave uncovered in the fridge. Doing this will dry the skin out a little which will assist with crackling. Note

Dried rose petals are available from specialist food stores. Note

This recipe is best made on day of serving. Note

Rose, violet, nasturtium and pansy petals are all edible and make beautiful additions to recipes. Note

You need 10 ice-block sticks. If the choc orange balls don’t stick to the cookies, secure them with a little melted chocolate. Note

While this frilly little cake is ideal for a baby shower or christening, it would also delight any budding prima ballerina in the family. Use shades of pink to resemble a tutu, and top with a pair of ballet slippers. The frilled strips of icing should still be slightly soft when positioned on the cake. […]

Ho ho ho and a bottle of red cordial will soon have Pete smiling again. We were lucky enough to find an odd-shaped chocolate- coated sultana for the eyebrow, but use some licorice instead. Note

Also known as floating islands, this dessert is an adaptation of a French pudding, in which a stale sponge cake, steeped in liqueur, was floated in a bowl of custard. Note

Player position seems to indicate only a handful of runs are needed before the end of the match. Budding cricketers will surely want a rematch before cutting into this fun cake. Note

This cake is perfect for the little girl who dreams of having her very own pony. Note

Edible gold leaf and candy thermometers are available from kitchenware stores and cake decorating suppliers. Note

Authentic Japanese red miso sauce, also known as akamiso, from Australian Women's Weekly.

These cookies can be topped with nuts before baking or, once cooked, iced then dipped into various sprinkles, or simply dusted lightly with sifted icing sugar. To flavour the dough, beat your choice of essence or extract with the butter and sugar mixture, or beat in a teaspoon or two of finely grated citrus rind. […]

EQUIPMENT Deep 22cm (9-inch) square cake pan 35cm (14-inch) square cake board Carefully position photograph in centre of cake. You can use any photographic print you like, but remember to laminate it if you want it to remain after the cake is gone. Use a selection of your favourite lollies to decorate this cake Note

Place the unused vanilla bean in a jar of caster sugar to make your own vanilla sugar. Note

Dried lavender is available from gourmet food stores and cake decorating stores. Note

Equipment you will need for this recipe, 23cm x 34cm number 4 cake pan and a 25cm x 40cm rectangular cake board. You can decorate this cake with single or multi coloured lollies. Place lollies such as Smarties on butter cream close to presentation time to prevent the colours running. Note

Use hundreds and thousands as an alternative to the orange sprinkles. You can use cream-filled rollettes, if you prefer. If using butter cream instead of the vanilla frosting, you will need two quantities. White icing is also known as fondant (it’s the traditional icing used on wedding cakes). It is available in packets from the […]

Top puddings with a slice of glacé orange. It is available from gourmet and health-food stores. If the six 30cm squares of unbleached calico have not been used before, soak them in cold water overnight. The next day, boil them for 20 minutes then rinse in cold water. Puddings can be cooked in two boilers […]

The number one cake for your baby's first birthday!

This gorgeous French dessert is worthy of any dinner party or family event. The combination of cream-filled puffs, crisp, spun toffee and a buttery pastry base creates the ultimate sweet recipe.

Use a clean piping and tube for each different coloured meringue. Note

Use frangelico (hazelnut) or crème de cacao (chocolate) flavoured liqueurs. Cut cakes with a serrated knife. Note

Ballerina cake toppers are available from cake decorating suppliers, or top with tiny ballerina dolls from toy stores. Note

A classic steamed Christmas pudding that is sure to bring back childhood memories.

Éclairs are best made on day of serving, but do not fill until ready to serve. Unfilled éclairs can be frozen. Note

Clarissa the cow is out in the paddock, eating the flowers and generally getting into all kinds of mischief. Note

Place any leftover lime leaves in a resealable plastic bag and freeze for another use. Add three or four to a curry, scrunching the leaves first to release the flavour; toss thinly sliced leaves through a tropical fruit salad; or add sliced leaves to a jug of iced water for a refreshing citrus flavour. Mango […]

You can find artificial spider’s web at novelty shops. If you can’t find it, use fairy floss or cotton wool instead. Be sure to remove spider’s web or cotton wool and skewers before cutting and serving the cake. You will need approximately 3 x 100g bars of Toblerone for this cake. Note

Sometimes called Indian blood plum, the large plum used in this recipe has a distinctive dark red to purple fibrous flesh, is extremely juicy, pleasantly sweet, and is the plum most often found canned. Canned apricots or peaches can be substituted for the plums. A delicious time-and waist-saving recipe. Note

Flavoured Milk Bottles can be found in packets of Allen’s Milk Bottle Mania; you will need about 3 x 170g packets. Note

The taste of this loose-crumbed pineapple and coconut cake will instantly transport you to the seventies when a piña colada was 'the' cocktail.

White icing is also known as fondant (it’s the traditional icing used on wedding cakes). It is available in packets from the supermarket and cake decorating shops. Note

You need about four trimmed rhubarb stalks for this recipe. Calcium is well absorbed from dairy products, but poorly absorbed from foods rich in oxalic acid, such as spinach and rhubarb. So stick to dairy foods as the main source of dietary calcium, but enjoy rhubarb as a tangy, vibrant, stewed fruit. Note

More fun and delicious animal cupcakes that the whole family will love.

One-year-olds may be too young to eat the cachous, but they’ll certainly love the cake. Tiny heart-, star-, moon- and other-shaped cutters are sometimes sold as aspic cutters. Note

You need to cook 1kg pumpkin for the amount of mashed pumpkin needed. You can decorate this cake with Chinese candied ginger strips, available from Asian grocers. Note

Pinky bunny is a small cute cake, ­just enough for a small cute person’s birthday. You’ll have ½ cup of the cake mixture left over, enough for another mini loaf. Note