1. Start the night before by weighing out the fruit, peel and zest. Sprinkle over 3 tablespoons of the whisky (you can use the extra half tablespoon for feeding once cooked), mix well, cover and leave to soak overnight.

2. Pre-heat the oven to 170°C/325°F/gas mark 3.
Place the butter and sugar in a mixing bowl and beat until light and fluffy – using a deep bowl and an electric whisk is recommended.
Beat the eggs separately in a bowl, and gradually add them into the butter and sugar mixture (if it starts to look curdled, you can sift in some of the flour).
Next, using a large tablespoon, carefully fold in the sifted flour and baking powder (I recommend lifting the sieve up high to get as much air in). Your mixture needs to be of a soft, dropping consistency so, if it seems too dry, add a dessertspoon of milk.

3. Now carefully fold in the ground almonds followed by the whisky-infused currants, sultanas, cherries, mixed peel and orange and lemon zest. Then spoon the mixture into the prepared cake tin, smoothing it out evenly with the back of the spoon.
Place the cake in the centre of the oven and bake for 2–2½ hours. When cooked, it should be firm and springy to the touch. For an extra check, you can insert a fine skewer in the centre. It should come out clean when fully cooked.

4. Once cooked, leave the cake to cool for about 30 minutes on a wire cake rack. You can then feed it with the remaining whisky. Do this by making small holes in the top and feeding in with a spoon.

5. To decorate, start by melting 3 tablespoons of the marmalade in a small pan over a low heat. Once the marmalade has melted, brush it onto the surface of the cake as a glue to stick the pecans on (be careful as it will be very hot).
Finish by brushing over the top of the pecans with the melted marmalade. This will give the cake a nice glossy look.

I can’t really claim credit for this little beauty; the recipe comes from a friend of mine. But I can say that every time I make it, the feedback is so joyous and effusive that I’ve started fancying myself as the original domestic goddess. Take a hike, Nigella. It’s a sloppy, chuck-it-all-in kind of recipe, so it’s great for kids and the culinarily challenged. Don’t think ‘culinarily’ is a real word, but it should be.

It’s is called The Cake of Obscenity because it’s full of fat and sugar and all the naughty things that taste nice. A little bit of what you fancy and all that… Anyhow, if you bake it and enjoy it, let me know and I’ll post another recipe. Cheers, Jess x

For the cake mix:
3 bananas – the mushier the better. I used an entirely soft, black-skinned banana in the last cake, and the flavour was immense.
300g self-raising flour
150g soft butter. Make sure it’s soft. It’s a total pain trying to mix hard butter, and you’ll end up with lumps.
130g –150g Demerara sugar, depending on how sweet your tooth
2 medium eggies
2tsp lemon juice
2tbsp oil (plain vegetable or light olive oil will do fine)

Optional extras:
80g walnuts (lightly toasted for a better flavour and a little crunch) or 80g raisins (nice fat ones)
A fistful of fresh blueberries
A handful of chopped dates
2 tbsp Drambuie or any other suitable liqueur

For the ridiculously indulgent topping:
125g cream cheese, light or full-fat
75g butter (again, let it get soft first)
200g icing sugar
A few drops of vanilla essence

The method:
1. Grease and line the tin (eight-inch should be fine) and preheat the oven to 180°C.
2. Mush bananas with a fork until really mushy (chop walnuts, dates etc if you’re using them).
3. Mix the butter and Demerara sugar until soft and fluffy, then combine with the bananas.
4. Add one egg and half the flour. Beat together, incorporating lots of air in the mixture for a lighter finish.
5. Add the other egg and the rest of the flour, repeat as above.
6. Mix in the lemon juice, oil and any booze you’re adding.
7. Tin, oven, bake. It should take about 40 mins, but everyone’s oven is different, so just check it with the old knife trick (stick a knife or skewer into the middle and if it comes out clean, the cake’s cooked). I like to keep the middle a bit underdone and gooey, so I don’t bake it for too long.
8. Mix up the topping ingredients, making sure there are no lumps.
9. Once the cake has cooled a little, gloop and spread over the top.
10. Serve to willing mouths with a nice cup of tea or some ice-cold milk.

Da-daaaaa.

Ingredients
400g butter
175g golden caster sugar
120g chopped walnuts
3 large eggs
175g self-raising flour
1 tbsp baking powder
3 tbsp instant coffee granules
400g icing sugar

You will also need two 21cm loose-bottomed sponge tins, lined with greaseproof paper, and an oven preheated to 180°C/gas mark 4.

Beat half the butter and all the caster sugar into a light, fluffy mixture. Crack the eggs into a bowl, beat them briefly with a fork and add slowly to the butter and sugar, mixing as you go.

Mix the flour and baking powder thoroughly and gently mix into the butter and sugar. Dissolve two tablespoons of the instant coffee in a tiny bit of boiling water, then stir into the mixture with half the walnuts.

Pour the mixture into the two cake tins, smooth the tops, and then bake for 25 minutes, or a little less if your oven is on the hot side.

For the tasty icing, beat the other half of the butter till it’s soft, then add the icing sugar and carry on beating until you attain a smooth and creamy consistency. Mix the remaining coffee into a tablespoon of boiling water, and then combine this with the mixture. Finally, fold in the remaining walnut pieces.

Once the cake is cooled, spread about a third of the mixture on one half, then place the second half on top. Use the rest of the mixture to spread over the top and around the sides of the cake.

All the oats in flapjacks must surely make them a health food.

Ingredients
125g big oats
125g little oats
150g margarine
75g golden syrup
75g caster sugar

Instructions
1. Whack the oven up to 175° and line a shallow tin about 20cm square.
2. Melt the margarine, syrup and sugar in a saucepan then stir in the oats.
3. Put the mixture into the tin and spread it around to cover the base and make the mixture flattish.
4. Bake for 25 minutes and cut it into squares in the tin before it cools. (To make them even more calorific and yummy melt some chocolate and spread it over the top).

This is one of our favourites from Steve’s mum. Tart cranberries work brilliantly with the sweetness of the bananas. Apparently it can be served toasted but ours has never hung around long enough for us to be able to confirm this.

Ingredients
225g caster sugar
100g softened butter
3 ripe bananas peeled
and chunked
4 tbsp milk
2 eggs
300g plain flour
2 tsp baking powder
50g chopped walnuts
170g dried cranberries

Instructions
1. Stick the oven to 180° and line a loaf tin.
2. Blend the sugar and the butter, add bananas, milk and eggs, then the flour and the baking powder.
3. Finally the walnuts and the cranberries and pop the mixture in the tin and the tin in the oven for about an hour (a skewer should come out almost dry).
4. Leave to cool for as long as your self control lasts.