Paddington Bear's Favourite Marmalade Buns (from the book Cherry Cake and Ginger Beer by Jane Brocket)

You will need:

175g butter

175g soft brown sugar

175g self-raising flour

3 eggs

Grated zest of 1 (unwaxed) orange

Juice of ½ an orange

2 rounded tablespoons of thin-cut marmalade

12 bun tray and 12 paper cases or 1 large (25x11x7cm) loaf tin, greased with butter and lined with baking parchment.

For the icing:

200g icing sugar

Juice of 1 orange

Orange food colouring (optional)

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 180°C / gas mark 4. Place the paper cases, if using, in the bun tin.

Step 2: In a mixing bowl, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one by one until fully incorporated into the mix. Add the orange zest, orange juice and marmalade and stir in thoroughly.

Step 3: Add the flour and fold in gently with a large metal spoon.

Step 4: Divide the mix equally between the paper cases and place them in the bun tray OR spoon the mix into the loaf tin.

Step 5: If you are making one cake - bake for 40-50 minutes, but check after 35 minutes. Use a sharp knife of skewer to test for doneness - insert it into the cake and if any trace of uncooked mixture comes out on the knife the cake is not fully cooked.

Step 6: If you are making a dozen small buns the will need approximately 20 minutes of cooking time.

Step 7: Transfer the tin(s) to a wire rack and leave to cool. Do not begin to ice them until they are completely cold.

Step 8: To make the icing, sift the icing sugar into a bowl and add half the orange juice.

Step 8: Enjoy!

Buttercream

This recipe makes enough buttercream to sandwich together 2 sponge cakes. To cover the cake too – double the quantities.

You will need:

100g (4oz) unsalted butter

225g (8oz) icing sugar

1 tablespoon milk

½ teaspoon vanilla essence

Step 1: Put the butter into a large mixing bowl and beat it with a wooden spoon until it becomes soft and creamy.

Step 2: Sift about 1/3 of the icing sugar over the butter and stir it in. Sift the remaining icing sugar over the mixture.

Step 3: Add the milk and then vanilla essence. Then, beat all the ingredients until the buttercream is really pale and fluffy.

For Chocolate buttercream: replace the milk with 1 tablespoon of cocoa mixed with 1 tablespoon of warm water.

For Coffee buttercream: replace the milk with 2 teaspoons of instant coffee granules mixed with 1 tablespoon of water.

For Orange buttercream: replace the vanilla and milk with 2 teaspoons of orange juice and the grated rind of an orange.

Piping Icing

You will need:

175g (6oz) icing sugar

1 ½ tablespoons warm water

coloured food dye (colours of your choice)

2 small plastic food bags

Step 1: Sift the icing sugar into a bowl. Stir in the warm water to make a smooth paste. Spread half of the icing over the cake.

Step 2: Add 2 drops of food dye to the icing in the bowl and mix it in well. Put one plastic food bag inside the other.

Step 3: Spoon the coloured icing into the bag. Hold it over the bowl and snip off a tiny corner. Be careful that the icing doesn’t run out.

Step 4: Move the bag over the cake, taking care not to spill. Gently squeeze the bag as you draw patterns on the cake.

Playdough

2 cups plain flour

1 cup salt

2 cups water

2 table spoons of cooking oil

2 dessert spoons of cream of tartar

food colouring

Sift flour into a large old saucepan, then add all other ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon over a medium heat. You will know when it is done as after a short while it magically turns into playdough!

Turn out onto a lightly floured board and allow to cool for a few minutes before use. This playdough should keep for 2-3 weeks if stored in an airtight container.