Back to School Bakes

These Back to School bakes are a proper trip down memory lane, with 10 classic British school dinner and bake-sale favourites – from School Cake and Manchester Tart to Spotted Dick, Apple Crumble and Flapjack. Just add custard for the full canteen experience!

Which Back to School Bake Should I Make?

The ultimate school classic: School Cake
Best served with custard: Jam and Coconut School Cake
If you remember 80s/90s school dinners: Manchester Tart
Proper old-school pudding: Spotted Dick
Easiest bake: Flapjack

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Classic British Back to School Bakes

There’s something about school dinner puddings that sticks in your memory for decades. Maybe it was the huge trays of sponge cut into squares, the endless jugs of custard – sometimes pink! – or those old-fashioned puddings that seemed to appear on every school menu.

This collection brings together some of my favourite nostalgic British school bakes and puddings, from colourful School Cake and Cornflake Tart to proper comfort-food classics like Apple Crumble, Spotted Dick and Jam Roly Poly. Whether you remember them from the dinner hall yourself or you’re making them for kids coming home hungry after school, these are the kind of simple bakes that deserve to be enjoyed all over again.

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10 Classic British School Dinner Recipes

5 from 71 votes

Classic School Cake

The school dinner classic that probably needs no introduction. This simple vanilla tray bake is topped with white icing and plenty of colourful sprinkles, making it instantly recognisable to anyone who remembers old-school canteen puddings.

As seen in Bake Off: School Cake was the Technical Challenge during the first-ever Back to School Week in Series 16, served with custard and even homemade sprinkles.

Old School Cake Recipe

School cake topped with white icing and colourful rainbow sprinkles.

4.7 from 11 votes

Jam and Coconut School Cake

Another proper school dinner favourite, especially good served warm with custard. A soft vanilla sponge is topped with raspberry jam and desiccated coconut for the kind of simple tray bake that brings back instant dinner-hall nostalgia.

Jam and Coconut School Cake Recipe

Jam and coconut school cake topped with raspberry jam and desiccated coconut.

5 from 1 vote

Manchester Tart

One for anyone who remembers the proper puddings of 70s, 80s and 90s school dinners. A pastry case is layered with raspberry jam, custard and coconut for a nostalgic British tart that's just as good made at home.

Manchester Tart Recipe

Manchester Tart with custard, coconut and glacé cherries in a pastry case.

4.7 from 3 votes

Cornflake Tart

A true old-school pudding with plenty of crunch. Crisp pastry is filled with jam and topped with sticky golden-syrup-coated cornflakes, creating the sweet, chewy tart many of us remember being served with custard at school.

GET THE RECIPE

Cornflake tart with jam filling and sticky golden cornflake topping.

5 from 1 vote

Apple Crumble

The comfort-food option in this collection. Soft-baked apples sit beneath a buttery crumble topping for a simple British pudding that's hard to beat, with a generous helping of hot custard.

As seen in Bake Off: Crumble was part of the Pudding Week Showstopper in Series 1, with several bakers choosing apple versions.

Apple Crumble Recipe

Close-up of baked apple crumble showing the soft apple filling beneath the topping.

5 from 1 vote

Spotted Dick

If you fancy a proper old-fashioned school pudding, this is the one. This traditional steamed suet pudding is dotted with dried fruit and is at its best served warm with plenty of custard.

As seen in Bake Off: Spotted Dick was the Dessert Week Technical Challenge in Series 15.

Spotted Dick Recipe

Traditional spotted dick pudding dotted with dried fruit and served with custard.

5 from 5 votes

Jam Roly Poly

Another classic that belongs firmly in the school dinner hall of memories. Soft suet pastry is spread with jam, rolled up and baked until golden, giving you the perfect excuse to get the custard jug out again.

As seen in Bake Off: Jam Roly Poly made an appearance in Series 4, when Ruby baked a plum version for the suet pudding Signature Challenge.

Jam Roly Poly Recipe

Sliced jam roly poly showing its rolled sponge and jam filling.

4.8 from 8 votes

Treacle Tart

A lovely choice if you remember school puddings being unapologetically sweet. Crisp pastry is filled with a sticky golden syrup mixture for a classic British tart that's especially good served warm with custard or cream.

As seen in Bake Off: Treacle Tart was Mary Berry's Technical Challenge during Tarts Week in Series 3, complete with a fancy woven pastry lattice.

Treacle Tart Recipe

Treacle tart with a golden syrup filling inside crisp pastry.

4.9 from 108 votes

Flapjack

The easiest bake in this collection, and perfect for lunchboxes or an after-school treat. Made with oats, butter and golden syrup, these chewy flapjacks are simple, nostalgic and exactly the sort of bake that disappears quickly.

As seen in Bake Off: Flapjacks were the Signature Challenge during Series 16's Back to School Week, with the bakers making 12 of their own flavoured versions.

Easy Flapjack Recipe

Stack of golden-brown flapjack squares beside a tin of Lyle’s Golden Syrup

5 from 1 vote

Marshmallow Top Hats

A little bit different from the school dinner puddings, but pure childhood party nostalgia. Marshmallows are dipped in chocolate and topped with sweets for a no-bake treat that's quick, colourful and ideal for getting kids involved.

Marshmallow Top Hats Recipe

Chocolate-covered marshmallow top hats decorated with colourful sweets.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Amy Reid

Amy Reid is an award-winning food blogger, mother, wife and cookbook author. Inspired by her childhood in the kitchen with her Mum – a professional baker and her children’s Granny – Amy now shares her tried-and-tested traditional home baking recipes with bakers of all abilities around the world. She lives in Scotland with her husband, two sons and her small pack of Siberian huskies.

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