<p>Jam pots of joy, festive fudge and indulgent truffles, you won’t be short of gift ideas. Thoughtful, unique homemade gifts baked with love. A chocoholic’s box of <a href="/recipes/chocolate-peanut-butter-cups">homemade peanut butter cups</a>, honeycomb bites and caramel bombs will go down a treat.<br>
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<p>Fellow bakers will love our <a href="/recipes/cookies-in-a-jar">cookies in a jar</a>, a medley of ingredients baked into dreamy nibbles. Happy Birthday, Merry Christmas, Thank You.</p>


Homemade Gifts

Jam pots of joy, festive fudge and indulgent truffles, you won’t be short of gift ideas. Thoughtful, unique homemade gifts baked with love. A chocoholic’s box…

Homemade Gifts | Baking Gift Ideas

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Bread & Dough

Cookie, Oreo & Brownie Layered Cake with a slice cut out of it. 

Cake Recipes

Top view of Rainbow Meringues in a bowl, with Rainbow Meringues scattered around next to a bag of silver spoon caster sugar

Confectionery

Side on view of a stack of vegan and gluten free chocolate chip cookies

Cookies & Biscuits

Nutella Cupcakes with glass bottle of milk in the background

Cupcakes & Muffins

2 glass jars of eton mess, raspberries, edible flowers and vanilla extract

Desserts

Bowl of ice cream, apple and slices, brown sugar packet

Ice Cream & Lollies

Icing & Buttercream

Jams & Spreads

Stack of American pancakes drizzled with maple syrup and topped with fresh berries

Pancakes, Crepes & Waffles

Pastries, Pies & Tarts

scone with strawberries and cream on a plate 

Scone and Shortcake Recipes

Sweet Sauces

Salted Caramel Cookie Traybake pieces stacked on top of each other with a hand reaching for the top piece. A bottle of milk in the background and jar of caramel sauce in the foreground

Traybakes

Pop tarts decorated with biscoff, chocolate and pink icing with sprinkles. 

Air Fryer Pop Tarts

Individual Eton Mess

Mini chocolate cupcake with a bite taken out of it and the cupcake case peeled back

Tiramisu Mini Treats

Recipes

Tips & Tricks

Allinson's

A top down view of chocolate brownies next to a packet of Billington's Dark Muscovado Sugar

Billington’s

Nielsen Massey Vanilla Extract being added to Vanilla Extract Cupcakes mixture

Nielsen-Massey

Silver Spoon

Our Brands

<p>This easy chocolate cupcake recipe was created by Mary Berry, and creates&nbsp;rich, indulgent cupcakes that are easy to achieve in your own kitchen.</p>
<p>Whether you're looking for simple chocolate fairy cakes for a party or an easy chocolate cupcake recipe for everyday baking, this chocolate cupcake recipe is soon to be your go-to recipe for 5-star rich, gorgeously-moreish chocolate cupcakes every time.&nbsp;</p>
<p>In just half an hour, this quick and easy cupcake recipe will make a delicious batch of 12 delicious chocolate cupcakes, ready to pipe with your favourite topping. We love whipping up an easy <a href="https://www.bakingmad.com/recipes/salted-chocolate-buttercream">Chocolate Buttercream </a>flavoured with rich cocoa powder for a satisfying chocolatey hit!</p>
<p>If you love quick and simple cupcakes, then why not give some of our other cupcake recipes a go? Try our <a href="https://www.bakingmad.com/recipes/chocolate-chip-cupcakes">Chocolate Chip Cupcakes</a> for an easy twist on traditional <a href="https://www.bakingmad.com/recipes/triple-vanilla-cupcakes">Vanilla Cupcakes</a>. If you’re a&nbsp;Nutella fan, our <a href="https://www.bakingmad.com/recipes/nutella-cupcakes">Nutella Cupcakes</a> are always a winner for family and friends.</p>
<h3>How to make Halloween cupcakes:</h3>
<p>Turn your chocolate cupcakes into spooky Halloween treats with just a few easy steps! Use <em>Silver Spoon’s chocolate fudge icing sugar</em> and follow the instructions on the pack to whip up the smoothest, most delicious chocolate buttercream. For a fun bat design, top each cupcake with an Oreo for the body, and pipe black and white icing to create little bat eyes. It’s cute, creepy, and absolutely delicious!</p>
<h3>How to make Christmas cupcakes:</h3>
<p>Transform our versatile chocolate cupcakes recipe into adorable Christmas cupcakes. Simply add some edible eyes, a small ball of red fondant icing (or red smartie) and some broken pretzels for antlers and you have the cutest Christmas reindeer cupcakes. Alternatively, crushed up some candy canes and sprinkle on top for a simple, yet indulgent looking Christmas treat.&nbsp;</p>
<h3>How to decorate chocolate cupcakes:</h3>
<p>These rich chocolate cupcakes are perfect to decorate for any occasion, all year round. Simply top with chocolate buttercream, then add Mini Eggs. Alternatively, add a quarter of a teaspoon of Hundreds And Thousands to the top of each cupcake's buttercream topping.</p>
<h3>How to make your&nbsp;cupcakes moist and fluffy:</h3>
<p>If you want your cupcakes to stay moist for longer, brush your cooled sponges with a simple sugar syrup made from two parts granulated sugar to one part boiling water. After you’ve added the sugar syrup, top the cupcakes with your buttercream icing and enjoy.</p>
<h3>Reasons to bake:</h3>
<p>⭐Ready in under an hour</p>
<p>⭐Ideal for last-minute gatherings and parties</p>
<p>⭐Brilliant for getting the kids involved</p>
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Mary Berry Chocolate Cupcakes

<p>Ever wondered how to make Millies cookies from the comfort of your own home? This recipe is perfect for recreating delicious, chewy, and gooey Copycat Millie’s Chocolate Chip Cookies whenever you fancy them. They bake in less than 10 minutes, so they’re a brilliant idea for a quick dessert - and kids love them.</p>
<h3>The best ways to eat Copycat Millie’s Chocolate Chip Cookies</h3>
<p>Once baked, let them cool down and set for a few minutes before enjoying. Or if you really can’t wait, you can enjoy them whilst they’re soft and warm with a scoop of ice cream.</p>
<p>You can also choose to fill your cookies however you want. Try a combination of milk chocolate chips, white chocolate or dark chocolate. You can even use mini eggs, smarties or M&amp;Ms to make them even more unique</p>
<p>If you prefer a crunchy cookie, leave them in the oven for 10 minutes, as opposed to 7.</p>
<h3>Can I freeze cookie dough?</h3>
<p>You can easily plan ahead with this cookie dough recipe and freeze it to enjoy it anytime. Once you’ve made your dough mixture, roll it tightly in cling film to make sure it’s air-tight, or put it into a container, then pop it into the freezer.</p>
<p>Defrost the cookie dough for around 4-5 hours before you want to make the cookies, roll the defrosted dough into shape and start baking. Or to make things even easier, roll into cookie-sized balls before freezing and bake from frozen; the cookies will still taste just as delicious and hold their shape better due to the quick temperature change from cold to hot.</p>
<h3>How long do Copycat Millie’s Chocolate Chip Cookies keep for?</h3>
<p>These Homemade Millie’s Chocolate Chip Cookies should keep for around 4 days when stored in an airtight container.</p>
<p>If you’ve enjoyed baking our Copycat Millie’s Cookies, you can take some more baking inspiration from the rest of our <a href="https://www.bakingmad.com/recipes/categories/cookies-and-biscuits">cookie recipes.</a> You’ll find loads of tasty bakes like our <a href="https://www.bakingmad.com/recipes/biscoff-cookies">Biscoff Cookies</a>, <a href="https://www.bakingmad.com/recipes/rocky-road-cookies">Rocky Road Cookies</a> and <a href="https://www.bakingmad.com/recipes/peanut-butter-cookies">Peanut Butter Cookies</a>.</p>
<h3>Reasons to bake:</h3>
<p>⭐Super-simple recipe for novice bakers</p>
<p>⭐Great for getting the kids involved in baking</p>
<p>⭐The dough can be frozen and defrosted in advance</p>

Copycat Chocolate Chip Millie's Cookies

<p>Try baking our Mars Bar cakes for a slice of nostalgia. Not only is this recipe delicious, but it’s also fun and simple to make, and a perfect activity for you and your children. The chewy, gooey cereal base is blended with melted Mars Bars and topped with milk chocolate and white chocolate swirls. Bliss.</p>
<h3>Can I melt Mars Bars in the microwave?</h3>
<p>Yes, you can melt a Mars Bar in the microwave. We’d recommend you do this on the lowest power setting though, to avoid spoiling the chocolate. Put the Mars Bars in your microwave on a low setting, and check it every 30 seconds until it is melted and smooth.</p>
<h3>Can I melt a Mars Bar on a hob?</h3>
<p>If you don’t have a microwave, you can melt your Mars Bar in a small saucepan on the hob. Chop the Mars Bar into smaller chunks to speed up the melting process. Melt your chocolate on low heat and to check it often.</p>
<h3>How to make sure your Mars Bar cakes are soft</h3>
<p>If you haven’t melted and mixed your Mars Bars, syrup and butter enough, this can cause your final bake to turn out too hard and clumpy. When melting these three ingredients together, you can use a whisk as they begin to melt to get the mixture nice and smooth.</p>
<h3>Reasons to make our Mars Bar cakes:</h3>
<p>⭐Easy recipe for kids to follow (with supervision!)</p>
<p>⭐Can be made ahead of time and kept in the fridge</p>
<p>⭐Oven-free recipe</p>

Mars Bar Cake Recipe

<p>Calling all Biscoff fans! This Biscoff cupcake recipe is a real game changer. Soft vanilla cupcake topped and filled&nbsp;with a beautifully light Biscoff buttercream, this recipe is definitely one you will want to save and bake time and time again.</p>

Biscoff Cupcakes

<p>This is the perfect mini cake recipe for Christmas. These mini Christmas cakes might be small, but they packed full of the rich, fruity flavour you'd expect from a <a href="https://www.bakingmad.com/recipes/classic-christmas-cake">classic christmas cake</a> recipe. Let's be honest, it can often be hard to finish a whole classic Christmas cake, so these mini twists on the classic version are the perfect solution. These simple mini cakes are wonderfully rich thanks to Billington's Light Muscovado Sugar which gives subtle hints of warm honey and creamy fudgy flavour, making it one of the finest light brown sugars in the world, and exactly what your Christmas baking deserves this festive season.&nbsp;Give our mini Christmas cake recipe a try!</p>
<p><strong>How to decorate my Christmas Cake?<br>
</strong>Golden in colour, these mini cakes are delicately covered with a thin marzipan layer, brushed with sweet and sticky apricot jam and tidied up with a final layer of white fondant icing leaving your Classic Mini Christmas Cakes ready to decorate however you'd like. The key to ensuring your Christmas Cake is smooth and uniform in shape is using an icing smoother (which you can pick up at most baking stores online), as well as ensuring your apricot jam is applied smoothly without any chunks of fruit. This way you'll create the perfect white canvas to decorate your Christmas Cakes as beautifully as possible. Why not pop a ribbon on your cakes to give them the final 'wow' factor? This is also a nice hack for covering up any untidy edges to your white fondant icing. We used red and green ribbon tied with a bow to give our Mini Christmas Cakes an extra festive finishing touch.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Making a Christmas Cake from scratch is one of the most magical moments of home baking at Christmas. Filling your home with the wonderful scent of spiced fruit and ginger, and gifting these to a friend or loved one is why we love baking at Christmas. If you're looking for baking ideas this <a data-item-id="08cd3511-5b87-5fca-9678-088061240e51" href="">Christmas</a> we have a huge selection of baker-approved recipes; from centrepiece showstoppers to quick &amp; easy baking ideas for the kids this festive season.&nbsp;</p>
<p>If you're baking these Mini Christmas Cakes as a gift for someone, we have plenty more edible gifting ideas to tempt you with; from our simple <a href="https://www.bakingmad.com/recipes/mini-pannetones">mini pannetones</a>, to our <a data-item-id="04891ab1-069c-54b9-83a4-e02b16b3fd48" href="">Christmas Pudding Cake Balls.</a></p>
<h3>Variations</h3>
<h4><a href="https://www.bakingmad.com/recipes/classic-christmas-cake">Classic Christmas Cake</a></h4>
<h4><a href="https://www.bakingmad.com/recipes/easy-christmas-cake">Easy Christmas cake</a></h4>
<h4><a href="https://www.bakingmad.com/recipes/last-minute-christmas-cake">Last Minute Christmas Cake</a></h4>
<h4><a href="https://www.bakingmad.com/recipes/christmas-cake-with-a-twist">Christmas Cake With a Twist</a></h4>
<h4><a href="https://www.bakingmad.com/recipes/christmas-cake-parcels">Christmas cake parcels</a></h4>
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Mini Christmas Cake Recipe

<p>Enjoy the simple things in life. Like the perfect vanilla cupcake. Make Silver Spoon’s easy vanilla cupcake recipe, your go-to cupcake of choice. With the lightest, fluffy vanilla sponge topped with the smoothest, vanilla buttercream, courtesy of Silver Spoon Icing Sugar, you are on to a winner.<br>
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Light and moreish, this is just what you are looking for in a fluffy vanilla cupcake recipe. You are definitely going to want to snuffle more than one of these vanilla cupcakes, for research purposes obviously…<br>
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Sneak a peek at our <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wfNOC9Mfsog" title="How to make vanilla cupcakes">‘how to make vanilla cupcakes’</a> video for extra tips and find out below how you can make our delicious vanilla cupcakes from scratch!</p>
<p><strong>If you are looking for a quick shortcut for your buttercream with maximum flavour, try Silver Spoon's new Creamy Vanilla Flavour icing sugar or Chocolate Fudge Flavour icing sugar and simply beat together with butter, following the instructions on pack for a delicious, speedy frosting.&nbsp;</strong></p>
<p><br>
<strong>Tips for making the best homemade vanilla cupcakes:<br>
<br>
1. Do not overfill your cupcakes<br>
</strong>For the perfect-shaped cupcake with a lovely golden dome, only fill 2/3 to 3/4 of the way up the cupcake liner. If it's too full it looks messy and sometimes, it can even sink.&nbsp;As a rule, we say it's better to underfill rather than overfill.<br>
<strong><br>
2. Best buttercream for cupcakes<br>
</strong>We recommend using our delicious vanilla <a data-item-id="02f6382a-d0f5-58f7-8c17-0acd82570e30" href="">buttercream recipe</a>, but if you're after something a little different on top of your vanilla cupcakes, try out our <a data-item-id="9e283dc4-6386-57a3-b79f-1979ee83461c" href="">citrus buttercream</a> or <a data-item-id="e7750934-e4bf-59a0-bf85-d3283ed9b73e" href="">maple buttercream</a>.<br>
<strong><br>
3. How do I store my vanilla cupcakes?<br>
</strong>Once your cupcakes are cool, get them into an airtight container as soon as possible. Cupcakes can last for around 4 days before losing their freshness. Cupcakes with buttercream/frosting on top will need to be stored in the fridge.</p>

Easy Vanilla Cupcakes

<p>These funfetti shortbread biscuits not only look bright and colourful they also taste delicious too, with flavoursome hints of vanilla. A great one to share at your next coffee morning.</p>

Funfetti Shortbread Bites

<p>These oat cookies with raisins and honey are quick, easy and delicious.&nbsp; Enjoy as cookies or why not serve with ice cream for a special treat!</p>

Honey & Raisin Oat Cookies

<p>Is there anything better than the firery flavour of a proper ginger biscuit? These ginger biscuits really pack a crunch and a punch.</p>

Ginger Biscuits

<p>These vegan peanut butter chococlate chip cookies are thick and delicious. These rich decedent vegan cookies are crispy on the edges and soft in the centres. They are loaded with Proper Nutty peanut butter and chocolate chunks.&nbsp;</p>

Vegan Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

<p>Tiffin is a firm favourite here at Baking Mad HQ. It consists of crushed biscuits, raisins and cherries mixed together and topped with a layer of chocolate and chilled in the fridge.&nbsp; This&nbsp;is a no-bake chocolate treat which is so simple to make, it is also a great introductory bake for young bakers or if you are wanting to use up any sweet leftovers that you might have after Christmas or Easter.</p>

Tiffin

<p>This honey and apricot flapjack packs a punch with flavour.&nbsp;We've used honey on this recipe as it lends itself well to the texture and flavour. It adds a sweetness without the need for refined sugar and helps retain a really nice moisture. If you love the benefits of baking with honey, why not try some of our other honey recipes?&nbsp;Try our <a data-item-id="69463b7e-8dd5-509e-9d71-6871ec7ec6d4" href="">Honey &amp; Stem Ginger Loaf Cake.&nbsp;</a></p>

Honey & Apricot Flapjack

<p>These honey shortbread biscuits have a subtle honey flavour and a soft shortbread texture and melt in the mouth. These shortbread biscuits go perfectly with a coffee and tea.&nbsp;</p>

Honey Shortbread

<p>This delightful clotted cream fudge by Gizzi Erskine is delicious, easy to make and the ideal homemade gift for your friends and family.</p>

Clotted Cream Fudge

<p>How can you improve a brownie? Challenge accepted. We've added a layer of salted caramel to what we believe is the ultimate brownie recipe... you can practically taste it just looking at the pictures. We've used Billington's unrefined sugars in this recipe to get that depth of rich flavour we all seek in a good brownie. This recipe really pulls out all the stops when it comes to flavour, go on- you know you want to.</p>

Salted Caramel Stuffed Brownies

<p>Raise your cookie game with these super indulgent Chocolate &amp; Peanut Butter Stuffed Cookies. These are best served warm so that the filling is still soft and gooey and is the perfect accompaniment to a luxurious barista style coffee.&nbsp;</p>

Chocolate & Peanut Butter Stuffed Cookies

<p>Not all caramels are equal, the flavour comes from your sugar. We've got 3 versions each tasting different levels of gorgeousness thanks to Billington's unrefined muscovado sugars. Love a deep rich treacle flavour? then molasses is the sugar. Prefer a lighter sweeter caramel? Use light muscovado sugar. Like a deep, richer flavour? Dark muscovado is for you. The possibilities are endless, drizzle this onto steamed puddings, ice cream, or stir into porridge or fill chocolates with them. Who wouldn't want a jar of this in their Christmas stocking?</p>

Salted Caramel Sauce Three Ways

<p>We've taken two timeless classic favourites and stuck them together making a hybrid fit for royalty, the mouthwatering flapjack based millionare's shortbread.</p>

Flapjack Based Millionaire's Shortbread

<p>Following a vegan diet doesn't mean that you need to compromise on baking your favourite classic recipes. This vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe is egg free, dairy free and gluten free and&nbsp;definitely one that you will want to save in your recipe book and bake time and time again.&nbsp;</p>

Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies

<p>The red velvet trend continues in baking; first came red velvet cake, and now these delicious red velvet cookies with white chocolate chips have made an appearance.</p>
<p>These moreish cookies are the perfect addition to a coffee morning with friends, or just a mid-morning munch by yourself.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>