Love Cake April 2014 round up

Spring has indeed truly sprung and with it some fabulous cakes this month. The predominate theme has been Easter bakes so make sure you bookmark them for next year. Lots of them can of course be made all year round and there's some which would make great birthday cakes without much adaptation. So cut yourself a slice of cake because I guarantee if you don't you will be starving by the end of this round up. Let the cakes commence!

I asked for some bakes with a religious theme this month since it was Easter and Pauline from Pauline's Occasional Baking Adventures was first in with her version of the Clandestine Cake Club Cookbook's Passion Cake. The 'passion' flavour in this cake comes from the passion fruit curd used both in the cake, filling and topping.

Did the chicken lay some golden eggs? No just some gold coloured chocolate balls for Caroline from Caroline Makes... Bucket of Maltesers Chocolate Birthday Cake. A special creation by Caroline for her boyfriend's birthday this would be the dream cake for any chocoholic.

It seems decadent chocolate cakes are the birthday cakes of choice for the men in our lives. Michelle at Utterly Scrummy Food For Families didn't hold back on the chocolate with her Chocolate Almond Easter Cake which also doubled as a birthday cake for her husband.

We've probably all made chocolate cereal nests over the years using rice crispies, corn flakes or shredded wheat but Camilla from Fab Food 4 All gave them a new twist with her Easter Chocolate Granola Cakes.

If chocolate is not your thing for Easter then Camilla was back with her much tried and tested hot cross bun recipe. For a healthy twist to a standard bun check out her recipe for Wholemeal Apple Hot Cross Buns.

For another version of hot cross buns Laura from How To Cook Good Food gave us her recipe Hot Cross Buns with lemon, rosemary and white chocolate. No traditional spice in this one but a fresh herb and citrus twist.

Chocolate cake for breakfast? Oh, yes you can with Janet from the taste space and her Breakfast Chocolate Mocha Pudding Cake. In an effort to to put right past Good Friday baking disasters Janet made her self-saucing vegan treat with oats making it suitable for eating at any time of day.

In a hurry now and no time to stop but make time to have a look at on Pebble Soup for Solange's recipe for Nutella Cake – quick and easy version. A great emergency cake for any time of year.

Humpty Dumpty sat on the wall, Humpty Dumpty didn't have a great fall! Well, not on Caroline's Humpty Dumpty Creme Egg Cake. He managed to stay on his wall and hide underneath him a cake full of Creme Eggs.

Caroline really has been a busy bunny this month and was back again with her own bunny on her Carrot Cake with Walnut and Pineapple with Fondant Rabbit decoration. A lovely alternative to a chocolate or fruit cake for Easter.

When I think of Spring flavours citrus is always top of the list and Sadaf at My Culinary Adventures has the same thought. The harsh Canadian Winter has given way to a warmer Spring and the perfect excuse to make an Orange Chiffon Cake with Orange Curd filling and Cream Cheese frosting.

Always one to prove you can have your cake gluten free and never know it is Kate from The Gluten Free Alchemist. I not sure I have ever seen so may Mini Eggs squeezed onto a cake but the pastel affect is stunning on her Rich Mocha Easter Cake – gluten free. As the title suggests, underneath all those eggs is two layers of moist chocolate cake smothered with vanilla buttercream.

Caroline's house was definitely the place to go to this year for Easter treats as she presented us with another delightful creation this time in the form of Spring Cake Pops - Tulips and Easter Eggs. I bet these didn't last long in the vase though!

As I said before I asked for some religious cakes this month and Helen from Family-Friends-Food came up with something slightly different for me. April has also seen the Jewish holiday of Pesach or Passover. One of the essential customs is to have no contact with any wheat, rye, barley, oats or spelt. After trying out one recipe Helen made the necessary adjustments to make the perfect Flourless chocolate hazelnut brownie cake.

The Queen of Chocolate, Choclette, from Chocolate Log Blog did not disappoint with her Spicy Chocolate and Orange Easter Bundt Cake. An amazing combination of flavours including a blood orange for Easter. It even proved against the odds to be transportable!

Stuart from Cakeyboi made full use of his thrifty find in Poundland to make Easter Egg Teacakes. A couple of silicone moulds formed the inspiration for his dark chocolate and mallow treats all sitting happily on a biscuit base. There was even room inside for a secret micro egg for the yolk effect.

I love marzipan so Easter provides a very good reason to get your fill particularly if like me you've been waiting since Christmas. Laura from I'd Much Rather Bake Than has seen the light this month and realised the delight of homemade marzipan for her Simnel Eccles Cake – a fusion of a pastry classic and an Easter tradition.

If you're having eggs then you need a nest as Lucy at Teen Baker finally realised after a number of years. She has spent many years wanting to make the Easter Egg Nest Cake but only got round to making it this year. It's a double chocolate delight combining a flourless chocolate cake base and a chocolate cream topping.

I have to admit going a bit Easter baking mad this year. A Clandestine Cake Club meeting gave me the opportunity to make two cakes. First was the Easter Chocolate Bunny Cake. I bought a tin last year from Sainsbury's and worked it out be a 2 egg sponge recipe, so a nice and easy bake. A few facial features made from white chocolate icing and it good to go.

I used my Nordic Ware Jubilee Bundt tin to make an Easter Chocolate and Orange Bundt Nest. The tin sorted out the shape and a piping of chocolate buttercream made the 'twig' effect.

Last bake was 12 Easter Simnel Cupcakes. I had a spring clean of my cupboards and used mincemeat and dried fruit from Christmas to make them. A quicker and cheaper way of having a Simnel Cake.

Thank you to everybody who baked and linked up this month. It was lovely to come across some new blogs. The new theme for May's Love Cake will be revealed in a couple of days and I hope you can all join in again.