goldener herbst.{ pumpkin spice gugelhupf with cheesecake filling }

This cake is a winner. Its batter bakes beautifully, turning several shades of autumn leaves: from caramel brown on the outside to deep orange on the inside. It is easy and fun to make, even more impressive when sliced, and it will fill your kitchen with the soothing scent of spices. Its crumb is dense and moist, a bit like banana bread - but full of pumpkin spice love. The cheesecake filling baked inside the cake is compulsory, not only to add to the show factor, but also because it perfectly complements the taste of the batter. Fresh currants on top bring a nice zesty contrast to the whole.

a birthday cake for prince charming. { semi-naked hummingbird cake with mascarpone frosting and toffee caramel sauce }

The recipe for the Hummingbird Cake is said to have been first published in 1978 by the Southern Living magazine, and it has ever since become a staple in the Southern US cuisine. Packed with exotic flavours, this cake relies on a rather unusual combination of ingredients, starting with the fact that it asks for more fruit than flour. With banana, pecans and pineapple at its core, it's easy to imagine a dense cake with a compact crumb, however, this cake, will prove you wrong: it has a deliciously tender and slightly moist texture, which is just compact enough to make it a perfect candidate for layering and frosting! My staple mascarpone frosting is in the sweet spot between whipped cream and cream cheese, with a hint of lemon, vanilla and maple syrup, and the whole thing is taken to new heighs by all that caramel dripping on top! This cake had such wonderful layers of flavours that each bite was a different experience of yumminess. And on top of all, I can't help but being super proud of how gorgeous my first semi-naked cake turned out!