Helpful Tips
This page is designed to be able to help those of you who don’t work in grams, or if you just need some help converting ingredients, weights, or temperatures etc! I myself have ALWAYS worked in grams, so forgive me if my conversions on my recipes are a little off, but hopefully this will help!
Cooking Temperature Conversion Table
Fahrenheit to Celcius (F to C)
500 F = 260 C = 240C Fan = Gas Mark 10
465 F = 240 C = 220C Fan = Gas Mark 9
445 F = 230 C = 210C Fan = Gas Mark 8
425 F = 220 C = 200C Fan = Gas Mark 7
400 F = 200 C = 180C Fan = Gas Mark 6
375 F = 190 C = 170C Fan = Gas Mark 5
350 F = 180 C = 160C Fan = Gas Mark 4
325 F = 160 C = 140C Fan = Gas Mark 3
300 F = 150 C = 130C Fan = Gas Mark 2
285 F = 140 C = 120C Fan = Gas Mark 1
250 F = 120 C = 100C Fan = Gas Mark 1/2
Weight Conversion Tables
Cups, Tablespoons and Teaspoons to Millitiers (cup to ml)
1 cup = 16 tablespoons = 48 teaspoons = 240 ml
3/4 cup = 12 tablespoons = 36 teaspoons = 180 ml
2/3 cup = 11 tablespoons = 32 teaspoons = 160 ml
1/2 cup = 8 tablespoons = 24 teaspoons = 120 ml
1/3 cup = 5 tablespoons = 16 teaspoons = 80 ml
1/4 cup = 4 tablespoons = 12 teaspoons = 60 ml
1 tablespoon = 15 ml
1 teaspoon = 5 ml
Cups to Fluid Ounces (cup to fl. oz)
1 cup = 8 fl oz
3/4 cup = 6 fl oz
2/3 cup = 5 fl oz
1/2 cup = 4 fl oz
1/3 cup = 3 fl oz
1/4 cup = 2 fl oz
1 tablespoon = 0.5 fl oz
1 fl oz = 2 tablespoons = 6 teaspoons
Ounces to Grams
1 oz = 28 grams
2 oz = 56 grams
3.5 oz = 100 grams
4 oz = 112 grams
5 oz = 140 grams
6 oz = 168 grams
8 oz = 225 grams
9 oz = 250 grams
10 oz = 280 grams
12 oz = 340 grams
16 oz = 450 grams
18 oz = 500 grams
20 oz = 560 grams
24 oz = 675 grams
27 oz = 750 grams
36 oz = 1 kilogram
54 oz = 1,5 kilograms
72 oz = 2 kilograms
Pounds to Grams
1/4 pound = 112 grams
1/2 pound = 225 grams
3/4 pound = 340 grams
1 pound = 450 grams
1,25 pound = 560 grams
1,5 pound = 675 grams
2 pound = 900 grams
2,25 pound = 1 kilogram
3 pound = 1,35 kilograms
4,5 pound = 2 kilograms
Ingredients – This demonstrates how different 1 cup of different ingredients can weigh!
Flour – 1 cup = 140g
Butter – 1 cup = 2 sticks = 8oz = 230g
Granulated Sugar – 1 cup = 200g
Brown Sugar – 1 cup = 220g
Cocoa – 1 cup = 105g
Icing Sugar – 1 cup = 160g
Yoghurt – 1 cup = 235g
Milk – 1 cup = 245g
Cream – 1 cup = 245g
Sugar Temperature Conversion
Thread = 107C/225F
Softball = 119C/238F
Firmball = 125C/256F
Hardball = 138C/280
Soft Crack = 151C/304F
Hard Crack = 168C/336F
Cake Tin Sizes
Round Tins = Square Tins
6 inch/15cm = 5 inch/13cm
8 inch/20cm = 7 inch/18cm
9 inch/23cm = 8 inch/20cm
11 inch/28cm = 10inch/25.5cm
I have sourced these pieces of information from
http://cafefernando.com/conversion-tables/
http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/conversion-guides
Hi Jane, I absolutely love all your recipes! I want to try Cinnamon rolls but could I use part double cream/full fat milk instead of 275ml milk. If so please could you advise what ratio to use and whether it would alter the rolls in flavour.
Can all of your recipes be made GF by just changing the flour used?
Do you have any eggless cup cake recipes?
Hi Jane,
Looking to make the Mini Egg Cookies and I’m just wondering if I can freeze the dough prior to baking them? Some of your other cookie recipes stay it in the method but due to work I want to get prepared and am considering making the dough in advance.
Also would a silicone 9×9 tin work for brownies or is a metal tin better?
hiya, do you have any advice on adding melted chocolate into cheesecake mix?
every time i do it i cant seem to get the temperatures right so i end up with hardened chocolate in the mix rather than it smoothly mixed together.
i always get my fridge ingredients out of the fridge beforehand, and try to leave my melted chocolate as long as possible before adding. (although often the chocolate starts to harden and needs melting again)
i’ve tried whisking fast while adding the chocolate to get it combined before it has a chance to set but it still happens every time.
they still taste great but i’d love to be able to achieve the smooth incorporated chocolate mix rather than little chunks.
thanks!
Hi, I’m looking at doing a twix brownie. Would you recommend freezing the twix before, like you do with a lot of the other chocolate bars?
Hi Jane
I love your recipes
When I bake your cookies they never seem to flatten. Is there something I am not doing correctly or am I missing something?
Your oven might be too hot, the cookie dough is being rolled too tightly, or the cookie dough has been overworked! x
Hi Jane, what bowl do you use for your spotted dick? I can’t find the recipe on your website which usually links the items you use
Hi Jane
Just bought your new patisserie book and looking forward to diving in.
My question is should I be using cooking chocolate or normal chocolate in the recipes?
Thanks so much!
Hi Jane, just got your new book and absolutely buzzing for the spotted dick (it would probably be my ‘last meal’ pudding request 😂)
What mould do you use for your pudding mould? Is metal better than silicone?
Ah yay! I use metal or plastic, not silicone!! x
Thank you for your reply 🥰 do you have a link to a 1.5 bowl you use? I’m struggling to find one
Hey Jane another quick question, when do you use stork and when do you unsalted/salted butter (the ones that come wrapped in tinfoil). Do you have a preference on salted and unsalted butter for baking? And which would you use for cookie & cookie bars? Thanks
Hi Jane all you bakes look so pretty and I’m desperate to try some when I get time! Quick couple of questions…
1. do you use the same base recipe for all your cookies and then add different flavours/toppings to change the theme or are the completely different
2. Do you use the same recipe for cookies and cookie bars and cookie cakes?
3. Do you have to add the cornflour if/can you substitute it for something else.
Morning Jane,
I’m going to be making a birthday for my friend and she would like different shades of purple for the buttercream can you advise how you would achieve this? What food colouring can you advise would it be a purple or do you think a red and blue to get the different shades? Thank you x
Hiya! I would buy a good quality purple online (check out my food colouring post) and then just add different amounts to different bowls of buttercream!
Hi Jane. Do you have a tutorial video on how to pipe the rainbow frosting on the rainbow explosion cake, please?
Hi Jane,
I’m looking to make toffifee brownies for my stepdads 50th as he doesn’t really like cake. Which recipe is best to use to substitute them in to and would the toffifees need freezing first?
Hi Jane. A lot of your recipes say that the sponges can be frozen, which is great, however what is the process you go through to defrost them? How long for? Also what do you put things in to freeze? Sorry if it’s a stupid sounding question. Thanks for your help lovely xx
Hiya! When freezing sponges, I wrap them twice in clingfilm then once in foil. To defrost, I leave them at room temperature unwrapped until defrosted, though I do often decorate from frozen as I sometimes find this easier! Hope this helps x
Thank you so much for answering my question Jane! 😘❤️ You’re an absolute star. Going to attempt freezing/defrosting some and see how they turn out. THANKYOU!! xx
Hi, Know you’ve probably been asked before but where do you order your choc chips? They do small bags in the supermarket but I find the chocolate quality poor and buying in bulk would be better, thanks Jo
Hiya! I usually use Callebaut in baking, they’re linked on my amazon shop! Hope this helps! x
Hi Jane
I absolutely love your recipes and have made quite a few of your bakes. My problem is I really struggle with the drip cakes. I just can’t get the drips to set like yours seem to part way down the cake. I’ve followed your recipes and kept the cake in the fridge right up until I’m ready to pipe the drip but it just runs right down the cake. Do you have any tips? Many thanks 😃
Hiya! You could be piping too much so the drip is too heavy, or if your mixture is too thin, this likely means your cocoa content was too low. Hope this helps! x
Hi Jane! I love your recipes and have made quite a few of your cakes – always very popular! Could you let me know if you have a food mixer that you could recommend? With Christmas coming up I am thinking of upgrading my old hand mixer and getting a proper mixer – will be giving very large hints to my hubby! Are there any that you would recommend, I’d say budget wise up to around £300 or thereabouts ideally. Many thanks! Liz
Hiya! Take a look at my ‘favourite baking appliances’ blog post – I list and link all my favourites there! Hope this helps! x
Hi Jane, where do do source all your sprinkles and cake decorations from please? They always look so good.
Hiya! Each recipe should have links to the decorations and sprinkles! Hope this helps! x
Hi, I’m wanting to make the carrot cake in a 12inch round tin for a wedding instead of 8inch, what quantities would I need please? 8inch always goes down a treat but won’t be big enough. Lemon will be the second tier in an 8inch and then a small plain sponge.
Hi there,
When making a sponge cake, (going to do a white chocolate and raspberry cake) what attachment do you use on the kitchen aid?
Hiya! I always use a paddle attachment when making a cake mix. Hope this helps! x
Hi Jane , how do you manage to cut your blondies and brownies in such straight clean lines . I made some jammy dodger blondies which were delicious but the biscuits broke and crumbled when I cut them . Can you recommend the best knife to use ?
Hiya! I just use a very large, sharp knife! You can also try waiting until the bake is room temperature, or warming up your knife slightly! Hope this helps! x
Hi Jane
I have been making your rolo brownies for a while now and they are 🤤 Only problem is, every single time, the centre pieces are always close to being raw. I have tried lowering the temp to 150 and cooking for longer but I still get the same result. Have you any other ideas please?
Thank you X
Hiya! Try ‘setting’ them in the fridge overnight! Hope this helps! x
Hi Jane,
I’m planning to make your smores cake, and I’m looking for a suitable carrier to transport it. Roughly how tall are your cakes (might go for 2 tier instead of 3, not sure yet), or do you have a recommendation for a carrier or container?
Thanks 🙂
Hi Jane, have recently purchased your first book and pre-ordered your second. Could you tell me if your cake recipes are freezeable? (For example ones containing fresh fruit). And if so, how long can you freeze them for? Many thanks!
Hiya! Thank you so much – hope you love them both! Yes, all of my cake recipes you can freeze both decorated and undecorated for up to 3 months! Hope this helps! x
Hi Jane! I love your recipes and i am trying to learn how to pipe but it never looks as good as yours..
What piping nozzle do you use? And do you have any tips?
great advice, I had just invested in an oven thermometer and my very old decrepit oven has to be turned up much higher to get to the right temperature. This will make such a big difference
Can any of your cookie recipes be converted to Gluten Free?
Hi Jane,
If I was to use ground nuts in one of your NYC cookie bakes, at what point would I add these in? Thanks ☺️ x
Hi Jane,
I just purchased your book it looks great! I am British living in the USA and was wondering what I can substitute caster sugar for? I can’t get hold of caster sugar and a lot of your cake recipes include caster sugar.
Thanks,
Kate
Can you get hold of light brown sugar? I know in some of the recipes that it’s a 50/50 mix of caster sugar and light brown sugar.
A quick google search suggests bakers sugar or super fine sugar is the same as castor sugar (not sure if you can find either of those two)
Hello Jane I am going to make your Coconut cake from your book and was wondering with the buttercream will any long life coconut milk work ok? And also do you have a tinned coconut milk that works best for the sponge? Many thanks x
How do I stop my brownies almost being cake like as opposed to dense and gooey??
Mine come out quite spongy like a choc cake!!!
Hi Jane,
Is it ok to freeze the Sticky Toffee cake sponges as per normal sponge cake freezing or not please? Been asked to make this and didn’t want the stress of doing it all on one day lol.
Yes you can, but the sponge can easily be made the day before so you don’t have to even bother freezing!
What can I use instead of 100ml buttermilk please x
Hi Jane
Could you help me out with this question I’m pretty new to this. Every where I look at recipes it says salt could you advise on what salt to use please table salt / sea salt / rock salt I just don’t know lol. So if you could help I would appreciate it and then it would answer my question
Thank you
I use Maldon sea salt or rock salt – table salt should be avoided in my opinion! x
Hello,
I make a lot of your recipes with your daughter & would like to invest in a whisk. We have a hand held on at the moment but I’d like one of the standing ones. Which do you recommend is best? I am on a budget. Thank you!
Hiya, I always use Kenwood or Kitchen aid but they vary in cost for both – it is worth looking in price wise x
Hi Jane!
I am looking to invest in a proper baking oven, specifically for cakes, cookies and brownies. I am doing some research but would love a pointer if you have a recommendation? What do you use?!
Many Thanks and LOVE your recipes!
Emily x
Hiya, I like Bosch branded fan ovens but I am not sure if that counts as ‘proper baking’, do you mean home or industrial ovens? Bless you thank you so much x
Hi Jane, I was looking for a white chocolate and raspberry cheesecake recipe and found yours on You Tube! I have made it before but received so many compliments. The advice about bltzing the biscuit base down to a sand texture was brilliant and mixing the melted butter in the mixture was a gamechanger.
I now have my sights set on the chocolate box cookie dough bar as I have recently been giving 2 huge boxes of chocolates to do something with. It looks perfect and even your tip for freezing the chocolate beforehand makes sense. You make your recipes easy to follow and best of all they look so good.
Keep up the good work.
Can’t wait to try more.
Thank you
Heyy! Thank you so much for such a lovely message, I am so pleased you enjoy my recipes xx
Hi Jane, Absolutely loving your recipes, the cheesecake ones especially! I am planning to make the lemon and raspberry cheesecake this weekend, can I swap the digestives for shortbread?
Thank you! 🙂 x
Hello! Yes you can, just use 2/3rds of the butter!x
Do you find that in cakes stork works just as well as unsalted butter? I’m always drawn towards using proper butter but stork is better value!
Yes in sponges I ALWAYS use stork!! x
Hi Jane. Love your recipes! Every time I make brownies or blondies though, the edge always cooks faster than the middle. How do I rectify this? I normally bake on 160 degrees. Thanks
You could lower the temp by about 20c and then bake for longer – it may make a more even bake! x
Hi Lydia
Did you find lowering the temp and cooking for longer helped? I make Jane’s rolo brownies and the are amazing but have the same problem. They are just right around the edges but too under baked in the middle. I’ve tried cooking at a lower temp for longer and it just does the same. Just wondered if you had found a solution?
Thanks
Claire X
Hi Jane great website and love your recipes. I need to buy a piping bag and nozzle kit do you have any recommendations as there as so many to choose from.
Hi Jane! I love your website so much, you are my go to when I want to bake anything!
How do you ensure that your cakes are level every time? I find mine usually rise more in the middle. Do you use cake tin strips or how do you do it?
I don’t use anything – I have a fan oven so the heat distribution is really good! You can try baking belts, or even lower the temp of your oven and bake for longer instead!
Hello Jane!
I have only just found your website and I can’t wait to try out all the recipes ❤️. Unfortunately, I am based in Germany and won’t be able to get treacle here (at least not quickly enough before I start baking the gingerbread loaf 😂).
Do you have any advice for a substitute, please?
Much appreciated, thanks a million,
Carolyn
A golden syrup would work well!! xx
If a cake mix suggests that one box makes 2×8 inch pans, how many boxes would I need to make a 3 layer cake using a 6 inch pan thats 3 inches deep?
I’m afraid I don’t use box cake mixes so I have no idea x
Hello I’m just wondering on average how deep the cakes are mainly the mini egg one as I’m wanting to order a cake box to give it to my Nan. I just don’t know what size I’ll need to order!
Thank you!
Which mini egg one do you mean? I have a few! Either way they’re about 6-7″ tall!
Sorry the mini egg drop cake! Thank you for replying means a lot. I don’t want to order a box and it be too small. I use the same tins as yourself so would a 8” wide box be okay?
No you will want a 10″ wide box otherwise the sides of the box will squish the cake! x
Hi Jane. Thank you for sharing all your recipes, I’ve done your Terry orange and salted Caramel millionaires many times, but today I done the flapjack millionaires, please can you tell me why is the ingredients for the Caramel is different in the flapjack?
Hi, I love your various stuffed cookie recipes and they’re a huge hit with my stepson! We’ve tried them with all sorts in the middle and he wants me to make some for Christmas Eve…but with doing a full Christmas dinner as well I was wondering whether making and freezing the cookies, then baking them from frozen would affect the centres in any way? Thanks!
The cookies may need reheating slightly to get the centres gooey again, but otherwise yes they all freeze well!
hi! hope you’re well – just wanted some advice! any tips for setting the cheesecakes better i feel as if no matter how much i follow the recipe it seems to come away a bit when i take the springform sides off, is it worth putting baking paper round the tin or anything & also how best to take the cheesecake off of the tin bottom & present it/transport it, i end up just keeping it in the tin and it looks awful 😭 any tips to help it set really strongly & to present it/transport it would really be appreciated 🥰
Hey! So the perfect set is annoyingly just based on practice and getting it right – the annoying part about no-bake! You can line the sides, but sometimes it can still stick to the paper. You can use a gelatine to help it set better though and that helps! You can line the bottom of the tin as well, but again it’s hard to get off sometimes! One good trick I’ve learnt is to add a different base into the tin, so it doesn’t have the lip anymore! x
Hi there,
Firstly thank you so much for your brownie recipe – I always struggled and now they’re always delicious!
I am using a couple of your lovely recipes for Christmas gifts but would like to start now so I have plenty of time. I just wanted to ask if you’ve ever frozen your fudge recipes – I am looking at making the Baileys and biscoff ones!! Thank you so much!
Hey!! Ah yay thats amazing! So they can definitely go in the freezer – they don’t usually ever freeze completely solid because of the sugar, but they can easily go in the freezer! x
Hello! I love your website – thank you so much for all of the tasty treats 😋 . I’m making a birthday cake this weekend, your recipe uses 3 x 20cm tins but I have a deep 28cm tin I was hoping to use and cut in half. Would it be possible to tell me the amount of time I should leave the cake in for if it’s just in one bigger tin?
Many thanks xxxx
Hiya – so if you were just planning on increasing the tin size you would need to double the recipe. I’m afraid I really don’t often bake cakes that size, or with that amount of mix so I am unsure!x
Hi Jane. Id like to make your chocolate fudge cake but using 6″ pans and 4 layers. Do you know the weights of ingredients I’d need please? Many thanks
hi,
how to convert your 8 inch cake recipes to 6 inch and 2 round pans.
please reply
Hi Jane! I am wanting to create a white chocolate cake, what white chocolate do you recommend? the cooking chocolate or a branded bar like milkybar? Also which bar is best for the buttercream also?x
I usually use a cooking chocolate, or a supermarket own! x
Hi,
I really love all your recipes, I aim to try a new one once a week!
I made your mini egg cupcakes a while back and managed to get my buttercream perfect, very smooth lines when I piped the roses. On the past few cupcake attempts my buttercream roses/swirls have jagged edges but I feel like I did the exact same method as the first time. Any tips or ideas where I went wrong? Thank you
Hey! So this can happen for a few reasons – assuming you use the same brands of ingredients as well as the method, it’s often down to the temperature. If the butter is slightly colder, or slightly warmer, or the general temperature is different it can change the buttercream! x
Hello I am wanting to make your Mars cheesecake and take it to my fathers for his birthday. Thing is it will be a 3 hour car journey! Would it be okay to freeze the cheesecake whole do you think? Or would this change the taste upon defrost? Or is there some other way?
Thank you
Hey! So yes you will have to freeze it, also store it in a cool bag, and preferably with freezer blocks – as three hours is a long ol’ time! It can change the texture ever so slightly but is usually okay! x
Hi Jane,
I’m looking to do your mini egg cake for my little girls birthday minus the mini eggs. She really doesn’t like the sound of the mixer! If I made the sponge or the whole cake I can keep it in the fridge overnight can’t I? I just don’t want the sponge to dry out
I personally wouldn’t keep the sponges on their own in the fridge – they should be wrapped with clingfilm and kept at room temperature. The decorated cake should be fine in the fridge until cut though!
Hi Jane
Love your recipes especially the cheesecakes.
How do you bale the sponge so it’s flat and not risen in the middle when baked?
Thanks
Kirsty x
Domed cakes can happen for a few reasons – how you mix it, accuracy of measuring your oven type, the temperature, etc! I personally use a new fan oven, basic tins, and they bake quite flat! If yours dome a very large amount its worth looking at the things I have mentioned xx
Hi Jane! I absolutely love your recipes and I have tried to many and they’ve always been a hit! I’m just wondering why my sponges always come out quite “crispy” round the edges. How can I make them more softer? I have tried putting less butter when greasing, as I read that could be a cause, but it is still happening. Thank you!
Hey! So generally I usually just line the bottom, and do nothing on the sides. It may be that your oven is also a bit hot for your cakes so you could reduce the temp! x
I’m never sure where to place the shelf in the oven, middle or near to top, does this impact the baking please? If so, could you recommend in your recipes where’s best. Love, love everything I’ve made so far and recommended you to everyone!!
Hey! So this can depend on your oven. For example, I have new fan ovens.. and I bake mine in the middle, or if I need to I will put the sponges on two shelves! Because of the fan element, the temperature is even throughout! xx
Hi, I love all of your recipes and was just wondering, when making brownies or some of the other traybakes, whether the butter could be swapped out for baking spread (such as stork or a supermarket equivalent)?
Hey! So yes for traybakes such as brownies and cookie bars you can use baking spreads!
Hi Jane!
love you page! i make cheesecakes a lot and been looking for new ways to decorate them, i’m going to try and do some like yours! thanks for the inspo!
also do you sell your cheesecakes? wondering how much for?
I don’t sell anything, no!
Hi Jane.
Every time I make buttercream it tastes very strange. It’s more of a “cheese” taste than a buttercream taste.
I can’t understand what I’m doing wrong.
Is there a specific type of butter to use?
Xx
I only use block unsalted butter – the kind wrapped in foil! It’s very strange that you can taste cheese though..!
my eldest daughter showed me your website last week and she made the Oreo Drip Cake for her sisters 16th Birthday. it was blooming amazing. I love baking too. Just wondered if you had links as Ive been trying to find storage tins that accommodate the 3/4 tier cakes? Thank you
I will be doing a post about that soon – but cake boxes (like cake decorator) are the best and easiest things to find!
Hi Jane, was wondering if you could help recommend, or do a post, on your baking must haves? I’m contemplating buying a stand mixer and would love to know your thoughts on your KitchenAid mixer and any others you’d recommend!
Loving baking your recipes!
It’s in the works! 🙂
Hi Janeee, love your recipes 🙂
Just wanted to ask if you could tell us how to adjust recipe for smaller/ bigger tins (as well as the temperature)
Thanks in advance!
This is the best website for converting tin sizes – http://www.cakebaker1.co.uk/apps-for-bakers/baking-tin-size-conversion-calculator/. Temperatures though are very variable depending on recipe!
HI Jane
Love your site and instagram page!
I wanted to ask I dont like adding too much sugar but if I reduce the amount does in affect the other ingredients?
If so, how would I go about reducing sugar in baking?
Yes, changing a recipe can have an effect on the recipe. A recipe is designed to use all ingredients specified. I don’t do reduced sugar baking, sorry.
Hi Jane do you use stork ( in the tub for your cakes) and the block for biscuits ? Love love LOVE your recipes thank you
I use either stork often, but only when specified – if I write unsalted butter I mean actual butter (such as for buttercream, you need to use actual butter). I tend to stick to the tub stork in general though!
If I wanted to make half a batch of cupcakes and a recipe for 13 cupcakes says 3 eggs, how many should I used?. And if I wanted to bake three cakes at once to make a three tier, will they all cook at different speeds? If so what do you do or would you recommend ? .
You have to stick to a 1 egg mix, or 2 egg, or 3 egg. So you’ll either get 4, or 8, or 12 cupcakes out of it. And I’m not 100% sure what you mean… do you mean tiered like a wedding cake or three layers of one cake?
Hi, i’ve already made your gin and tonic loaf cake and it was amazing! Probably the best cake i’ve baked. I want to make the biscoff cake for my sisters birthday, i only have 2 8″ tins so went to buy some more but realised the ones i have are sort of slanted on the edges so the cake is never going to be quite even when stacking, is this normal? And what are the best sandwhich tins for baking cakes? Thanks
Ahh that’s so lovely! I’m so glad you enjoyed it! The baking tins I use for cakes are either PME tins from amazon, or the cheaper ones from Asda! I’ve bought £4 ones before that are 8cm with a loose bottom from Asda and they’ve been great!
Hi jane
Could you please tell what actual size piping nozzle you use as mine are too small and I’ve been out looking for 1 today but haven’t a clue on the size! Thanks
Most posts have the exact piping tips linked – I buy them all from Iced Jems.
Hello my lovely, I came across your website a few weeks ago and it is the best discovery i’ve made, a real hidden treasure!!
I’ve always struggled with getting cakes to stay moist and to decorate them properly so they don’t look like a tipped over trifle… Your pictures and decorations are incredible, did you sit a class or is it a matter of trial and error?
I love your blog, my little secret when baking for the family! x
Thank you Jane
I will look them up!
I am managing your cheesecake cream piping with what I have but I’m pretty sure they are not big enough..
Nicola x
Hi Jane
Absolutely love your recipes, have tried out a few now with great success. I am looking for a bit of advice from you! I am planning to do bright coloured cake pops for my sons birthday and thought about using white chocolate for dipping but I am unsure how to colour white chocolate. The last time I tried adding the regular bottles of food colouring bought in the supermarkets it went all thick and grainy.
Hiya! Yes, basically, supermarket food colours suck. You need to use gel/oil colours such as Sugarflair, Wilton or Progel – you can get them in places like Hobbycraft, or on amazon! You need to use such a small amount to colour, that it doesn’t tend to affect the chocolate. Alternatively, you can use candy melts, that are already bright colours!
Thanks for replying Jane, will have a practice soon and see how I get on! Tried your vanilla cake at the weekend, very yummy!!
Hi Jane! I hope you don’t mind me asking I’ve recently bought a new oven and I can’t seem to work out the best setting for baking average sponge cakes they don’t taste as nice as normal and seem to take 1 hour and a half if not more to cook, so I was just wondering what the best setting is to bake a sponge cake please? Your cakes always look amazing and I love your recipes too!
Hiya! It depends entirely on your oven – which one do you have? I have a fan oven, so use the fan setting at 160C x
Thank you for replying! It is a hoover oven it has a fan, but has lots of different settings –
Fan cooking
Conventional cooking
Fan and lower element
Pizza
And eco setting.
My old oven was the best on one called soft cook but I’m not sure which is best for this one!
I would just go for the fan cooking I guess?! Try a Victoria sponge recipe, and at 160C it should only take 25-30 minutes or so to bake if you use a 250g ratio recipe! (250g flour, sugar, butter and 5 medium eggs) x
Okay I will give it a go! Thank you for your help it’s much appreciated! x
Hi Jane me again. I want to invest in a stand mixer can you recommend any? I don’t want to spend an absolute fortune but mine is a bit to basic
Price rank wise, a cheaper one I’d recommend Vonshef, a Middle range I’d recommend Kenwood, and top range I’d recommend Kitchenaid!
I recently discovered Biscoff spread, then days later discovered your recipe for Biscoff cake and Biscoff brownies, and… oh my gosh… as soon as the shops opened the next day I shot down to get the ingredients and made the brownies for my flatmates and I. Cannot express my love for the recipe, it was a big hit, thank you!!!
Biscoff is the best!!
Hi Jane.
Love making your cakes and want to start baking for family more. Where do you get your cake tins from? Last time I made your 3 tier salted caramel cake I only had 1 tin so had to repeat over and over which was very time consuming. Also what nossle for icing on the cake do you recommend as mine are all plastic and seem cheap and don’t work well
The tins I use for cakes tend to be the cheap 8″/20cm ones from Asda (that are deep, not the cake sandwich tins) that were £4 each last time I bought them! Nozzle wise, I can’t recommend the ones from Iced Jems enough – here’s a link to them https://bit.ly/2DtRN49
Thanks Jane, are the tins the ones where the base comes out? Worried it will get stuck otherwise.
Hiya! Yeah the cheap asda ones have loose bottoms! x
You have lovely recipes, I recently made the billionaire tart which was very tasty. Just need to ask that the base was too hard almost rock solid. I used 300 grams of biscuits with cocoa and 150gram of butter as per recipe. Do you have any suggestions? Thank you
Hiya! It might be that you actually pressed down on it slightly too much, but you can also reduce the butter slightly, but it will make it more crumbly.
Hi could you tell me if you use muffin cases or cupcake cases…. only when I made the Oreo cupcakes I had to much mixture for the cupcake cases 😋
Hiya! I often use Cupcake Cases or Muffin Cases, but mine are the same size. Chances are you bought smaller ones 😊
Hi Jane!
Could you let me know how you get a cheesecake off the metal base? I must press the digestives down so firmly but then I can’t loosen it off and have to cut it on the metal circular base!
Any tips would be appreciated!! Thanks!
Hiya! I run a knife underneath and it lifts right off!
Hi Jane every time I make the lemon drizzle cake it’s lovely and fluffy on outside and very firm in centre (but tastes yummy) the mixture slightly curles every time when I add the lemon, and so maybe I over beat it to bring it back but just wondering if you have any suggestions to avoid this happening
It’s probably over mixing to be honest. The lemon shouldn’t curdle either, so try adding it in more carefully and beat slowly.
Hi I am having real trouble with my cupcake cases why would this be happening and can I have some tips to try and stop this please thank you x
Whats the trouble you are having with them?
Hi Jane I was just wondering what size ice cream scoop you used. I bought one but it’s rather large I was making the chocolate orange cupcakes, I ran out of mixture before I got to the end of the cases I had to scoop some out of the others they turned out fine a little uneven but where very delicious.
Hi Jane what size scoop do you use for your cupcakes
I bought an ice cream scoop . It did seem rather large when I was making chocolate orange cupcakes I was putting the mixture into the cases and ran out of mixture before I got to the end . So ended up spooning some out of the other cases. We all really enjoyed them can’t wait to try more
I use a 5cm in diameter one ☺️
Thank you, the one I was using is 7cm so that does definitely explains how I managed to run out of mixture 😂 a trip to the shops before making mint chocolate chip cupcakes. And thank you for sharing all your lovely recipes
How much do you fill the cupcake cases to endure the mixture rises nicely to the top of the cases when cooked?
Probably 2/3!
Hi Jane
Thank you for sharing your wonderful recipes they’re great! I am after some advice, I’ve made the kinder Bueno cupcakes and my cakes have peeled away from the cases 🙁 I’ve made 3 batches and tried longer in the oven, higher temp (as I think I undercooked my 1st batch) & it’s happened on about 80% of them it’s so disappointing. Any tips? Thanks
Sometimes it can depend on the baking cases, and how you cool them. Which cases do you use, and how do you cool them? Also, do you store them in a completely airtight box?
Hi Jane love your website. I am also gluten intollerant so just wondered when you might be posting more gluten free recipes. Have you found a decent bread one yet.
Your website is stunning, helpful in so many ways,and I adore the wonderful recipes you have chosen to share with everyone. I am so in love with everything you have done and I will be so happy to try out these great recipes. I feel like I have discovered treasure!
Hi! I’ve just tried to do the Lindt choc mousse and it’s all split ?. Do you think I overwhipped or put melted choc in too hot? It happened very quickly whereas was expecting to whip for a good few minutes??? Got a dinner party tomorrow night! X
Which mousse sorry? I don’t have a Lindt one? I would say try waiting for chocolate to be slightly cooler next time.
have you got any tips for getting a cheesecake off of the tin base once its set?
I use a thin metal spatula to lift it off the base and then I move it to a plate.
I tried the oreo cheesecake the base is quite hard even though I used 2 packets of biscuit and 125g of butter, do u have to leave it out before having it or is there something I’m doing wrong?
I’m not sure really – you shouldn’t have to leave it out. Try using 100g of butter next time! 🙂
Oh okay will try that next time…another question what butter do you use?
The cheapest I can find as its all quite expensive now!
Hi Jane
Love you recipes have tried a few with some good results 🙂 I am looking for a recipe for a Banoffee Pie (Biscuite Base) can you advise please
Ah yay! Unfortunately I’m allergic to banana so I don’t have one ?
Oh wow! I wish I had found you sooner!! When I’ve tried English recipes I’m typically struggling to make the conversions. So, thank you for doing all the hard work for me! ?
Just found your blog when looking for a salted caramel cake,ooo what a lot of gorgeous recipes to bake,can.t wait am going to start with your salted caramel drip cake for my 15 year old granddaughters birthday,if I.m allowed. Your explanations are so clear your blog is amazing.hope your making a brilliant career.
Thanx so much for the list of conversions, this is so helpful! I’ve been looking for this info for a while. Thank you!!
This is a really great reference page Jane! Just stumbled across your blog and love it to bits! There are so many great recipes! My sister loves baking so I’m definitely going to show her some of your gorgeous recipes tonight!
Awh thank you so much!!
I am an avid fan of the Great British Baking Show. They give baking temperatures sometimes as 220 degree fan or some other temperature fan. Does that mean using a convection oven? Hope you xan help.
Hiya – I’m afraid I work with a Fan oven, which means I always use the Fan temperature stated in my recipes for example, so I wouldn’t know other than that!
Hi Jane I’m after some advice… Recently moved so new oven to contend with… My cupcakes are rising beautifully lovely dome and are cooked (skewer clean) but once out of oven they are sinking dramatically and sometimes coming away from case 🙁 this is making me very sad and frustrated as just don’t know why? Any ideas?
Sometimes it can be the way they cool, or that they’re not actually done? If they are still making a bubbling/crackling sound they are still baking. They should be silent when they’ve finished baking!
Also, sometimes it’s the Cupcake cases themselves.. even if they’re expensive it doesn’t mean they’re good! I use Asda Muffin cases and don’t have an issue, I try expensive ones and they can peel!
Thanks Jane I’ve just invested in an oven thermometer so can check temp and I’ll give them a few extra minutes… Thanks for the reply ?
I’ve been listening to my cakes today… Fingers crossed up to now they’re so much better… And my cooker is about 15-20 degrees cooler than it should be thanks to my oven thermometer x
Ooh yay I’m so glad! Its such a good tip isn’t it!! x
Hi Jane, can I ask what size piping nozzle you use for your cupcakes (crunchie ones as an example) my swirl of cream looks nothing like yours ?
My piping tips are all large ones, and I tend to use a closed star one for all of mine – I’ll be posting a blog on cupcakes soon with pictures of the tips I use 🙂 x
I always looked after a list like this! Thanks a lot for sharing 🙂 Yours Heike
Aww its okay!! Thank you!
I tried the cheesecake but it wouldn’t set like yours I couldn’t work out kg to grams as my scales are only in grams 🙁
1kg = 1000g 🙂 it’s Kilograms!
Great reference page! I definitely need to print this out!
Thank you!! I tried my best with it, its so hard with Cup measurements as they vary so much!
Thank goodness for this! I was becoming panicked about the measures! I don’t know why but in the US we are not taught metric measures like this!
Awh haha thanks! (I don’t know entirely how accurate they are) but I’ve always used digital scales where you can easily convert from ounces to grams? But cups scare me! They can vary so much!! Metric is all I have ever been taught!
Yes they can vary! A dry measure cup is very different than a liquid measure cup! I will learn metric if it kills me! Your recipes look divine! Happy Baking!
Thank you so much! The amount of times I try a cup-measurement recipe and it fails so badly haha I am so unskilled 😛 and same to you!!