Italian style cake. “Pan di Spagna” means sponge cake in Italian. To make this type of cake, you can either beat egg yolks and whites separately, or you can beat whole eggs. We use the latter method in this recipe. This is a fairly standard sponge cake recipe using butter.

German style cakes with rum-soaked raisins. Small bags of ready-made rum-soaked raisins are commonly sold at discount stores. If they are not available, here’s what you can do: chop raisins, soak them in a small amount of sugar syrup/rum mixture and knead. When baked, brush with marmalade and top with Christmas decorations.

German style cake made of an almond powder batter, topped with sliced almonds. In this recipe, we use 20g of almond powder for the batter, but you can increase the amount up to 50g. Note that the total amount of flour plus almond powder should always be 100g, for instance, if you are using 50g of almond powder, reduce the amount of flour to 50g.

Belgian style almond-flavored cupcakes with canned peaches. Traditionally, peaches cooked in syrup or peach compote are used for the cakes, so try making with either of them if available.

Belgian style chocolate cakes. Use strong coffee for the syrup, and choose small cups or molds for this recipe.

Austrian style pound cake with marmalade and mixed dried fruit. “Obst” means “fruit” in German. Ready-made mixed dried fruit is used in this recipe, but traditionally, this cake is made with orange peel and/or lemon peel. If you prefer, you can use 100g of orange peel and/or lemon peel instead of mixed dried fruit.

French style marble cakes baked in tart molds. Using a pastry bag, pipe the cocoa batter into the plain batter, then using a skewer, swirl the batter in a zigzag motion to create a marble effect. After cooling, sprinkle with confectioners’ sugar.

Austrian style moist chocolate cake, very rich and satisfying. Cover with foil and bake. You can serve them with whipped cream.

French style cake. “Kouglof” is a traditional cake from Alsace which is also famous in Germany and Austria. You can find “Kouglof” cakes in many European countries, and there are different kinds of recipes. Today, we are introducing a recipe for a butter sponge “kouglof”.

Swiss style chocolate cake. To pipe chocolate sauce onto the cakes, you can use chocolate decorating pens (see the “Ingredients” photo) to save time.

Swiss style cake made with a basic sponge batter. To make the batter, beat together whole eggs and sugar. After baking, brush the cake generously with syrup and let it rest in the refrigerator before serving.

Belgian style cupcakes. “Souris” means “mouse” in French. Combine sugar and egg and beat until the sugar dissolves. When the sugar dissolves, fold in flour and mix.

Not-too-sweet cocoa and walnut cakes made with “hot cake (pancake)” mix.

French style cake using “financier” batter. To enjoy a rich butter flavor, heat butter until it turns a little brown when melting it.

Belgian style cupcakes with strawberry jam filling. To prevent jam filling from sinking into the batter, pipe the jam thinly onto the batter, then cover with additional batter completely. You can substitute strawberry jam with raspberry jam.

Swiss style cakes with a nice simple flavor. The batter is also easy to make; just mix the ingredients in order. After cooling the cakes, sprinkle with confectioners’ sugar. Instead of piping, you can spoon the batter into the molds.

Belgian style chocolate cakes. To bake, use small cups or molds and cover the cakes with foil. They are done when a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean.

Belgian style cakes. “Barquette” means a “small boat” in French, and barquette molds (small boat-shaped molds) are used to bake these cakes. Barquetts baking molds have commonly become available at discount stores, etc., however, if they are not available, you can substitute with small tart molds. Instead of piping, you can spoon the batter into the molds.

Belgian style cheesecake. If you prefer a lighter cake, you can substitute flour with starch such as cornstarch. To bake, pour hot water into a baking tray and place the pans filled with batter in it.

Belgian style cakes. In addition to walnuts and almonds, you can use hazelnuts for a richer flavor. To enhance the nutty aroma, roast the nuts in the oven beforehand. Also, allow burnt butter to cool before using it.

French style moist rich cheese cake. You can bake the cheese batter in tart shells, however, we don’t use tart shells in this recipe. In order to remove the cakes from the molds easily, line the molds with baking paper.

British style apple cake. Instead of dusting apples with sugar as directed, you can simmer the apples in syrup or cook them with sugar until caramelized. You can also substitute fresh apples with canned apples.

German style cake, topped with sliced almonds. Optionally, you can sprinkle with confectioners’ sugar and/or decorate with whole almonds after cooling.

German style cupcakes with a rich almond flavor. While the cakes are still hot, glaze with marmalade. Orange liqueur is optional – you can make the cakes without it if you don’t like alcohol.

Swiss style cocoa almond cakes. Mix together egg yolk-butter mixture, sifted dry ingredients and meringue. Add sifted dry ingredients and meringue to the butter mixture alternately in two or three additions and blend well to make smooth batter.

French style cakes. Madeleine molds are now wildly available at discount stores. Any size will do, and you can use other molds if madeleine molds are not available. Fill the mold with batter 4/5 full and bake.

Belgian style cake called CARRE MOUSSELINE. “Carre” means square in French, but we use pound cake molds or loaf molds for this recipe. Separate the eggs, and make meringue with the egg whites.

Chocolate almond cake made with “hot cake” (pancake) mix. Sliced almonds are used in this recipe, but you can substitute with diced or whole almonds. Roast the almonds beforehand to enhance the aroma.

Swiss style chocolate cake. Sift together flour, sugar and cocoa powder, stir in beaten eggs and melted chocolate, then mix in melted butter and walnuts. We use dark or sweet chocolate in this recipe, but if it is not available, you can use milk chocolate. A freshly baked one tastes good, of course, and a cooled one tastes even better with a smooth, moist texture.

Swiss style cakes. A professional would usually pipe the jam instead of spreading it with a spoon. This is how you do it: pipe jam into a swirly circle, starting from the center of the cake toward the outer rim. By doing so, the jam will cover the cake evenly. Alternatively, you can spread the jam using a spoon.

French style cakes, traditionally made with raspberry jam. We use strawberry jam in this recipe, however, you can use raspberry jam if available to make red and white stripes.

Moist, light and not-too-sweet chocolate pound cake. Add a little more cocoa powder if you like a richer flavor. If you want to make it less sweet, use 70g of sugar instead of 80g.

Richly flavored walnut cakes made with “hot cake” (pancake) mix. You can serve the cakes with jam, or make sandwiches with cheese and/or prosciutto. Of course, the cakes are good too as they are.

Easy chocolate cakes using “hot cake” (pancake) mix. Bake a sponge cake in a square pan and cut it into 3cm squares. Warm and cold ingredients do not mix well, so warm the egg a little before using. You can garnish with whipped cream.

Coconut milk flavored cakes made with “hot cake” (pancake) mix. As coconut milk and whipping cream are used in the batter, the cakes have a rich creamy flavor.

French style cakes. Transfer the batter into square pans, cover with foil and bake. The cakes are moist and satisfying, with a very rich chocolate flavor. After cooling, you can place them on platters and serve them with whipped cream -they will make a great dessert for Christmas.

Belgian style chocolate cake using creamed butter. You can brush with sugar syrup while the cake is still hot. We use sweet chocolate in this recipe, however, if it is not available you can use milk chocolate. Traditionally, walnuts are used in this type of cake, but we substitute them with almonds. Enjoy the mild taste with rich chocolate and nutty aroma.

French style pound cake using meringue, very rich with chocolate and cocoa powder.

Swiss style moist apple cakes. Rum is optional – you can add a little rum to the batter if you prefer to enhance the aroma. Use the apple without peeling.

French style cheesecakes, baked in mini paper cups. When the surface browns while baking, cover with foil and continue baking. To see if they are done, insert a skewer in the center of a cake. It is done if the skewer comes out clean.

Swiss style cake. This is a fairly standard cake batter recipe. Be careful not to melt the butter. Just allow it soften at room temperature, then cream together with sugar. Brush with sugar syrup while the cake is still hot. Adding cherry liqueur to syrup is optional.

Moist pound cake with a mild flavor. You can soften butter in the microwave, but be careful not to melt it. Combine the softened butter with sugar and cream together until creamy.

Swiss style moist sponge cakes with a rich fruit flavor. You can substitute the dried fruit mix with orange or lemon peel. When baked, brush with the syrup while the cakes are still hot. Glaze the top with marmalade.

Swiss style cake made with marmalade, originally called ORANGEN WURFEL. Wurfel means dice or cube in German. We use financier molds in this recipe, however, you can substitute with any other molds.

Swiss style cake made with a basic chocolate sponge batter. You can substitute the chocolate chips with shaved chocolate. You can make shaved chocolate by shaving the back of a chocolate bar using a mousse ring or similar object.

Chocolate cupcakes made with “hot cake” mix (pancake mix). By using both cocoa and chocolate, the cakes have a rich chocolate flavor. Try using small aluminum baking cups for this recipe.

British style moist cake, with hot brandy syrup brushed over the sponge. Before brushing, bring the brandy syrup to a boil to evaporate the alcohol. If you do not want to take out the alcohol, add brandy after removing the sugar syrup from the heat.