Last week we seemed to jump straight from winter to summer and it is so lovely to see some sunshine at last.  It reminds me that Summer term at school is upon us and I remember that when my boys were little I often made traybake cakes and bakes as they were quick and easy to make and so versatile for occasions such as the school cake sales, picnics and parties. So it seems like a great time for a traybake recipe round-up.
It would appear that I am not alone in my love of making traybakes, and as soon as I put out a call for your recipes I got lots of lovely suggestions.

Brownies and Blondies

Needless to say, brownies and blondies featured prominently. I am sure I am not alone in that I could happily bake and eat my way through more than one or two of these variations. For a very chocolatey brownie, these Triple Chocolate Brownies from Baking with Granny are the bee’s knees. If you need a vegan variation try Perfect Vegan Brownies from Yumsome.

If you like a nutty brownie you could opt for Celery and Cupcakes White Chocolate and Macadamia Brownies or Bobsys Mum’s  Easy Nutella Brownies. Another for Nutella fans would be Browned Butter Nutella Chocolate Chip Blondies from Something Sweet Something Savoury. For something a little unusual, you could try these Beetroot Coconut Brownies from Everyday Healthy Recipes. Beach Hut Cooks hides left over selection box chocolates in her Hidden Chocolate Brownies.

I like my brownies with some added fruit and my Blackberry Brownies also work really well made with raspberries instead. Sew White has gone for black forest fruits in her Black Forest Chocolate Brownies.

Those of you who like a coffee hit are sure to like Espresso Brownies from The Petite Cook.  If you need them to be vegan you could try these Vegan Hazelnut Espresso Brownies (which are also egg and gluten free) from The peachicks Bakery. 

I for one have got to try these Pistachios with Raspberry Heart Swirl Blondies from Veggie Desserts, they look so pretty and sound amazing. The Baking Explorer  Guinness Chocolate Brownies are for adults only.

Flap Jacks

Seedy Fruit Flapjacks were one of my earliest posts and remains popular as do flapjack in general. Jo’s Kitchen Larder makes a Healthier Date and Banana Flapjack, and Cooking with My Kids makes Fruity Honey Flapjacks both sound delicious. Casa Costello Raspberry Oat Slices have a soft flapjack base with a tangy raspberry layer and a crunchy topping. She recommends leaving them overnight to firm up before eating – Good luck with that I think you will need a lot of willpower!

Traybake Cakes

I think this Parkin from The Proper Foodie is too good to keep just for Bonfire night when it is traditionally served. Made with tinned prunes Fab Food for All‘s Spice Prune Traybake is lightly spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice. This Jammie Dodgers Traybake from Mummy Mishaps is fun and these Caramel Chocolate Chip Bars from Tin and Thyme are naughty but very nice.

Lost in Food shares her childhood baking memories along with her recipe for Tweed Squares, vanilla cake speckled with chocolate and topped with buttercream and a layer of chocolate.

Plum and Almond Crumble Cake from Family, Friends Food, Raspberry and White Chocolate Traybake Cake Only Crumbs Remain and Sugar-Free Sticky Date and Apple Cake Searching for Spice can also double as desserts.

With so many lovely traybakes I think we will all now be spoilt for choice. They appeal to me a lot as they are quick and easy but individual cakes can be fun to make too so next month I thought I would do a round-up of fairy and cupcake recipes. If you have a great cupcake recipe to share please email me a link to your recipes with BritMums Baking Round-up in the title (click on the mail link below in my bio). I will also put a reminder on the facebook page nearer the time, where you can drop your links. I look forward to seeing your cakes.