Calendar Cakes Round Up - July

As the saying goes 'better late than never'...so here is the Calendar Cakes round up for July. As mentioned in the announcement post it's been rather a busy time recently and I've been away for the last few weeks too, so my poor little blog has been sadly neglected but hopefully soon I'll have more time again and I can get back to some baking and blogging! :-)

The theme for July's Calendar Cakes was fruit as its the perfect time of year to visit a PYO to stock up on all the luscious fruits that summer brings. Apparently it's also going to be a bumper year for blackberries too, although they will ripen a little later than usual. Anyway without further ado here is the round up...

Our first entry was from Let Them Eat Cake and it was this gorgeous Summer Fruits Vanilla Cake. I love the piping and you can check out more great bakes on the Let Them Eat Cake Facebook page.

Next up is a Honey Almond Cake with Macerated Strawberries from the Hungry Hinny. This recipe was inspired by a visit to Romania! The honey is acacia honey and it came from a farmer in Romania. The finished product looks really tasty and perfect for summer.

Like me Katharine from Leeks and Limoni loves fresh fruit in cake, berries are in fact my favourite so this cake would be perfect for me as it's a Three Berry Cake with strawberries, raspberries and blueberries...as Katharine says it's summer on a plate!

A more unusual fruit next from Ros at the More Than Occasional Baker who has given us a Fig, Yoghurt and Walnut Cake with Pomegranate and Pistachio. Ros describes the cake as sheer perfection as it is both moist and flavourful and it certainly has visual appeal too. The moistness comes from the syrups which are used on the baked cake...looks delicious!

Bundt queen and co host of Calendar Cakes, Rachel from Dolly Bakes made this Strawberries and Cream Bundt which would be perfect to celebrate the Wimbledon Tennis Championships. Rachel reports that the cake is supremely moist with a delicate flavour and firm sugar crust.

Lottie from Lottie's World of Cakes and Bakes made these Strawberry and Chocolate Cupcakes for her classmates on her graduation day after finishing 6 years at university. The chocolate cupcake recipe comes from the Hummingbird Bakery and the strawberries and chocolate make perfect partners. Well done to Lottie on her graduation too!

Baking in Pyjamas entered a Strawberries and Cream Buckle with a Hint of Lemon. I must confess that I've never heard of a buckle before but as far as I can ascertain from Google, it's a old-fashioned single layer cake with the filling mixed in!! Regardless of the definition this looks seriously tasty and it also has a streusel topping and a glaze.

Next up a showstopper from Mummy Makes Cakes, it's a Fruit Topped Chocolate and Vanilla Swirled Sponge. The cake is a chocolate and vanilla swirled sponge with vanilla frosting and Cadbury's fingers around the outside. The finishing touch is chocolate covered strawberries on the top, this cake would be perfect for a special occasion.

Eclairs are currently enjoying a moment, so Caroline of Caroline Makes is on trend with these Mini Apple and Chocolate Eclairs. The recipe is from a book called 'Secrets of Eclairs' and Caroline added stewed apples inside before the cream which is an interesting twist on a traditional éclair.

Just the sight of this next cake will make your taste buds tingle, it's a Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake from Cupcakery. This cheesecake was created as a result of an excess of chocolate cake and I can't think of a better way of using it up...yum!

Next up Triple Strawberry Cupcakes from Tea with Erika. If you want strawberries, strawberries and more strawberries then this is the one for you! There is strawberry jam in the batter, diced strawberries mixed in and then strawberries on the top with Chantilly cream. That may also be the world record for the number of times the word strawberries has been used in one paragraph! These cupcakes look really lovely and Erika made them for a friend's birthday. Strawberries ;-)

Shirley from Bells Bakery made this delicious looking Strawberry and Frangipane Tart. It's so good that Shirley would rank it amongst her all-time favourite tarts as the pastry is crunchy and the frangipane smooth...it lasted all of 10 minutes when it came out of the oven...that's pretty good going!

Choclette from Chocolate Log Blog always comes up with interesting recipes and this one is no exception...it's Raspberry, Rose and White Chocolate Cake. This was made for a pop up café in Liskeard and is described as having a slight puddingy quality...anything pudding related gets my vote.

Dawn from a Cup of Tea and a Slice of Cake made this scrumptious looking Coconut Meringue Roulade. The recipe is from Rachel Allen but Dawn found it a little bit sickly but has decided to give it another go. This roulade contains strawberries which are a nice alternative to the raspberries in the original recipe.

Next another lovely chocolate and strawberry combination from Tasty Recipes and Other Stuff who made these Malteser and Strawberry Muffins with Vanilla Buttercream Icing. What's not to love with moist muffin, strawberries and Maltesers which would be my chocolate of choice! :-)

As I was away I wasn't able to make anything especially for July's Calendar Cakes but you might like this Peaches and Cream Upside Down Cake which I made this time last year. Click here for the recipe. It was completely delicious and it just so happens that it's currently National Peach Month!

Thanks to everyone who entered July's Calendar Cakes, all the entries were fab. If you'd like to enter in August then head over to Dolly Bakes where the theme is Summer Lovin'.