Conquer a cake you’ve never baked before – that’s the message to everyone for World Baking Day 2013, which takes place on Sunday 19th May.

The global event is sponsored by Stork in the UK and the theme for 2013 is to’Bake Brave’. From novice to master baker, food blogger to food celebrity, the aim of World Baking Day is to get people to step out of their baking comfort zone and master a cake they’ve never baked before, to step away from a simple sponge and aim higher.

Thanks to the success of shows such as The Great British Bake Off, baking has never been more popular.

World Baking Day has collected 100 Bake Brave recipes ranging in difficulty from ambassadors around the world; from Level 1 for a complete novice, up to Level 100 for a master baker. There are even recipes to try from World Baking Day ambassadors Lisa Faulkner, winner of Celebrity MasterChef and Miranda Gore Browne, finalist on The Great British Bake Off, to try your hand at.

Rhiannon Carr, brand manager of Stork, which is sponsoring World Baking Day, said: “Whether your idea of a challenge is a simple cup cake or a twelve-tiered coffee-fudge-cookie-dough cheesecake creation, we’re hoping World Baking Day inspires people to Bake Brave on Sunday May 19. Within the 100 Bake Brave recipes there’s a baking challenge for everyone, from the likes of a simple vanilla cookie, to our hardest bake from Buddy Valastro, Cake Boss USA, with his level 100 recipe. It’s going to be a great day, and we look forward to people sharing their baking recipes, experiences and creations.”

The first World Baking Day took place in May 2012 reaching four million people in nine countries around the world, including the UK, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, Poland, Turkey, USA, Canada and South Africa. This year, it is hoped that even more people will get involved – in 20 countries across six continents – by baking together and sharing tips and recipes and results.

If you decide to Bake Brave this World Baking Day, visit www.worldbakingday.com and share a picture of your creation using #bakebrave. For more information on the Bake Brave 100 recipes and World Baking Day, visit www.worldbakingday.com and pledge to Bake Brave. You can also get involved on Twitter via @worldbakingday or #bakebrave, or search’World Baking Day’ on Facebook, YouTube, Pinterest and Google+.

Miranda’s Chocolate Brownie Meringue Cake

Serves 10 -12

35 minutes

Miranda Says “Chocolate, raspberries and meringue are a few of my favourite things. I love this recipe because it is the perfect way to enjoy them all together. The pretty, pink raspberry cream contrasts so well with the rich, dark chocolate making this the perfect cake for any occasion”

For the brownie base:

200g good-quality dark chocolate

200g margarine

250g icing sugar

3 medium free-range eggs, at room temperature, beaten

110g plain flour

For the meringue topping:

4 medium free-range egg whites, at room temperature

¼ teaspoon cream of tartar

200g caster sugar

100g chopped roasted hazelnuts

For the filling:

300ml whipping cream, well chilled

100g icing sugar

300g fresh raspberries

To finish:

200g fresh raspberries

100g toasted hazelnuts, roughly chopped

100g shelled unsalted pistachios

2 x 20.5cm sandwich tins, greased and the bases lined with greaseproof paper

METHOD 

Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F/gas mark 5. Roughly chop the chocolate, set 20g aside for later, and put the remaining 180g into a heatproof bowl. Set the bowl over a pan of steaming water and leave to melt gently, stirring frequently. Don’t let the base of the bowl touch the water. When melted and smooth, remove the bowl from the pan and leave to cool until needed.

Meanwhile, beat the soft margarine with the icing sugar until very light, creamy and fluffy; you can do this with a wooden spoon or an electric whisk or mixer.  Gradually add the eggs, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in the flour. When the mixture is very smooth, gradually beat in the cooled, melted chocolate. When thoroughly combined, stir in the reserved chopped chocolate. Divide the mixture between the prepared tins and spread it out evenly. Bake for 8 minutes – the mixture will not be cooked but will have started to form a crust. While the mixture is baking, whisk the egg whites with the cream of tartar in a bowl until stiff peaks form. Whisk in the sugar in four batches, to make a smooth and glossy, thick meringue. Fold in the chopped hazelnuts. Remove the cake tins from the oven and reduce the temperature to 170°C/325°F/gas mark

Divide the meringue equally between the two brownie-filled tins, and gently spread it over the still soft mixture to cover evenly. Smooth and flatten the surface of the meringue in one of the tins and’peak’ the meringue in the other using a skewer or the tip of a knife – this will be the top of the cake. Return the tins to the oven and bake for a further 25 minutes, until the meringue is firm to the touch. Remove from the oven and leave to cool before unmoulding.

To make the filling, whisk the cream until soft peaks form, then add the icing sugar and 200g of the raspberries. Whisk briefly, to make a thick, pink cream. Fold in the remaining 100g of raspberries. Run a round-bladed knife around the inside of each tin to loosen the cakes. Turn out the flat-topped meringue cake on to a serving plate, meringue-side down. Spread with the raspberry cream. Top with the second cake, with the peaked meringue side uppermost. Decorate with raspberries, hazelnuts and pistachios.