How to make easy rainbow meringues (and a rainbow cake!)

Crisp, white meringues are one my favourite things to make, but a few weeks ago I tried something a little different by adding some colours to the mix! The reason? I wanted to top my daughter's rainbow birthday cake with rainbow meringues. I had so many party guests (well, the parents) asking me for the recipe that I have decided to pop it on the blog this week along with my go-to meringue recipe. I am also sharing a few tips for making your own rainbow cake. 

Flourless Dark Chocolate Cake

We are all about the birthday vibes at Cupcakes and Couscous HQ at the moment. If you read last week's post you might remember that we celebrated my daughter's 5th birthday, and this week my little blog... drum roll... turns four!

Bran and Fruit Muffins

Happy New Year everyone! I am glad to be back after a few weeks away from my "home on the web" and thought we would ease into the year with an easy muffin recipe that I know you will love. 

A Train Party

October was a rather hectic but very exciting month here at Cupcakes and Couscous HQ. Chaos continued to reign on the home front as renovations went on (we are starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel, hooray!), my sister visited us from the U.K (double hooray!) and we had a couple of special family birthdays - my Dad, and my youngest James who turned two. He is completely obsessed with all things train related and so it was a no brainer as to what his party theme would be. I thought that this week I would share a few snaps from the day, perhaps they will give you a few ideas if you have a train party coming up.

The Lightest Lemon Squares

The other day my daughter came home from school and (after proudly showing me the red autumn leaves she had found in the playground that day as well as an energetic, full length rendition of "The Farmer in the Dell" - oh to be four again!) told me that her class had celebrated a birthday that day and that the birthday boy had brought a lemon cake to school for everyone to share. It made me think of this recipe which is one of those that I have had for years, scribbled on a piece of paper and unceremoniously shoved inside a notebook. It is a fantastic recipe and worthy of a more permanent home here on the web and not just on a scrap of paper!

Sugar Free Banana Cake

It is March and in my house that equals birthdays and lots of baking! I made this cake earlier in the month for my daughter's school birthday and wanted to avoid added sugar but still make something delicious that the children would love. This cake has a soft, light texture and a delicate banana flavour. Rather than cover the cake with icing I drizzled it with delicious melted carob. This is a great alternative to chocolate! 

A Fairy Party (and a cake!)

If there was ever a good time to haul out some banal clichés then this must be it. "Time flies." "They grow up so fast." How often we use these timeworn phrases, and yet how true they are. As I write this, almost exactly 4 years ago to the hour my precious daughter arrived into the world. I remember it like it was yesterday, (which is impressive as I often struggle to remember what I was doing last week!). My bright, funny, sweet girl who knows exactly what she likes and wants... which is handy as I knew for months that she had her heart set on a fairy birthday party this year. Oh yes, one of the many things I love about her is that she knows her own mind, and once it is made up she usually sticks to her guns. Luckily this also meant that I had quite a while to mull over cake ideas before settling on this one.

The Ultimate Chocolate Cake & October Cake Round Up

November already and it feels as though we are hurtling towards the end of the year now. Hearing Christmas jingles on the radio, seeing mince pies on the shelves and receiving school newsletters reminding us that there are only five weeks (what?!?) left of this term do nothing to help quell the hysteria!

FOR THE LOVE OF CAKE

I feel as though CAKES have been my theme lately, with various celebrations that have happened over the last few months. So this week I thought it might be fun to share some of my recent cake creations with you. Let's just clarify one thing out though - I looove to bake, but when it comes to cake decorating my skills are more on the rustic side. Some of the cakes worked out better than others, but all of them were made with love!

CHOCOLATE MERINGUE CAKE

March is always a busy birthday month, and lately I feel as though I am either busy planning or baking a celebration cake (or both!). My most recent creation was a Peppa Pig cake which I made for my daughter's 3rd birthday. I have a few other special birthday cakes planned for the coming weeks - look out for a cake filled post with all the photos sometime in the future.  

A Birthday Celebration and Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

 

I started this blog a year ago, with the intention of sharing my favourite recipes and kitchen adventures. I had been mulling over the idea of having a food blog for quite some time before this, but kept putting it off thinking that no-one would read it, or that I would run out of things to write out. I am pleased, and relieved, to say that neither of those things has happened...in fact, little did I anticipate the adventure that lay ahead when I published my first recipe one year ago.

A Paddington Bear Party and Marmalade Sandwich Cookies

I am no stranger to long stints in the kitchen, but as I write this I feel as though I am still recovering from the cooking marathon that happened this past weekend. It was all for a very special reason though, as I was preparing for my daughters 2nd birthday party!