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.