It was my privilege to award The Susan Prize to the girls who baked this cake. It proved they must have loved Arthur Ransome’s book Winter Holiday. The Swallows, Amazons and Ds are obviously contemplating whether or not to skate on the tarn that I understand was made by melting sweets and ‘took absolutely ages.’ You can see two of the characters approaching the ice.

Dorothea, the aspiring novelist, is skating around this cake, which tasted so delicious it almost transported me into Mrs Dixon’s kitchen on the banks of Coniston Water.

Winner of the Crumbly Creations

A number of crumbly creations, using biscuits and chocolate, gave us a good idea of what the igloo in Winter Holiday must have looked like, while this birthday cake was inspired by the Puffin cover of Swallows and Amazons.

Detail of a Swallows and Amazons cake based on the Puffin cover.

Swallowy dodgers with slices of cake claimed by Amazon pirates were on offer at Lakeland Arts to accompany their Swallows and Amazons exhibition:

“There was an enormous gooseberry tart.” We’ve had a recipe published in The Arthur Ransome Society’s magazine Signals:

Elizabeth Rondthaler Jolley sent this photo from America:

Adam Quinan has written from Canada: “I made this for an Arthur Ransome Birthday party event in Toronto back in January 2004. We went skating on an outdoor rink and ate Igloo hotpot and then came inside and listened to some storytellers retelling some of Old Peter’s Russian Tales with the Winter Holiday cake and tea.”

Arthur Herbertson designed this Birthday cake, which celebrates ‘Secret Water’ published eighty-odd years ago.

The Swallows, Amazons and Ds seem to be sailing around Wild Cat Island in this Birthday cake made by Mae Fuller:

We have another igloo sent in by the Australian Arthur Ransome Society:

This cake depicting Wild Cat Island was made for a special birthday that included the lantern in the lighthouse tree and leading lights.

I love this cake of Potter Heigham Bridge in Norfolk with the Teasel passing beneath that was made by AusTARS in celebration of Arthur Ransome’s birthday. To find ideas for Swallows, Amazons and Coots Birthday presents, please click here.

I love this gingerbread cake featuring the adder who lived in the charcoal burner’s tobacco box. ‘Is it safe to touch?’ made by Arwen Seccombe of The Arthur Ransome Society.

You can see other examples of Swallows and Amazons cakes as well as ideas for parties and presents here.

We would love to see your photographs of any cakes inspired by Arthur Ransome’s books. Please contact me via the comments here.

Now do these…

• The original Swallows and Amazons film is available on BBC iPlayer until 16th May 2020.
• The remastered DVD of the film is available from Amazon.
• Sophie Neville’s book about The Making of Swallows and Amazons is available from our Nancy Blackett shop.

The revised version of this story was first published by Sophie Neville in April 2020.