Vanilla Bean Latte Layer Cake

A homemade mocha torte introduced me to my first taste of coffee when I was still too young to drink it. Coffee and I continued our illicit affair in stolen bites of any dessert it graced - until we both felt we were ready and old enough to 'get serious'. With a lot of milk and sugar as a protective measure, I drank my first latte and never looked back. I still have a weakness for coffee-flavoured desserts and this triple-layer cake truly satisfies the craving: it takes all the flavours of a vanilla bean latte and translates them directly into dessert. Three, in this case, is not a crowd, but a definite crowd-pleaser: this cake, with its rich and flavourful three layers, made at least 20 people remember their 'first time'.

Cinnamon-Sugar Doughnut Bites

Some of the most seductive things in life take only two bites: one to start, and a second that leaves you wanting more. Luckily, this recipe for Cinnamon-Sugar Doughnut Bites makes enough to 'start again' as many times as you like. These highly addictive doughnuts are also made for sharing: I knocked on my neighbour R.'s door with a plateful of them, which prompted him to text his wife boastingly about what she was missing out on. She made him text her photos of the doughnuts periodically to ensure there were still some there when she came home!