Not everyone is a natural cook, some people hate it.

So when it comes time to supply goodies for the school cake stall it is a choice between popping a store-bought cake into a container and pretending you made it, or risking life and limb by attempting to bake.

There is another way, and they are the no-bake slices. You may need to melt some butter or chocolate, but otherwise there is no baking required. 

1. Tic Toc Teacups

These are so cute, they would work equally well at a cake stall, a birthday party or a kids high tea.

Ingredients

1 packet Tic Toc biscuits

1 packet pink and white marshmallows

2 packets musk Lifesavers

Melted white chocolate (or stiff white icing)

Sprinkles

Method

Line up all the Tic Toc biscuits with the icing facing up.

Dip the end of a marshmallow in melted chocolate and then dip in the sprinkles. Turn it over and dip the other end in the chocolate and then stick onto a biscuit.

Repeat until you have used all your biscuits.

Using a very sharp knife, cut the musk lifesavers in half, and using a bit of melted chocolate, stick one on the side of each marshmallow. Allow chocolate to harden by placing biscuits in the fridge for ten minutes, but then remove and serve at room temperature.

2. No-bake Chocolate Slice

A real crowd pleaser, this only has four ingredients, doesn’t require any melting, and looks fabulous iced and decorated with a freckle.

Ingredients

250g packet of plain biscuits (such as Milk Arrowroot or Marie)

¾ cup desiccated coconut

1/3 cup cocoa powder, sifted

1 tin sweetened condensed milk (395g)

Method

Empty the biscuits into a freezer bag (double bag to be safe) or a sturdy snap-lock bag. Seal the bag and carefully crush the biscuits with a rolling pin. It is best to have a mix of fine crumbs and larger pieces. You can crush them in a food processor: just make sure you don’t make it too fine.

Place the crushed biscuits into a bowl, adding the coconut and cocoa and mix well.

Add the condensed milk in and stir until there are no ‘dry’ ingredients left.

Tip the mixture into a lined lamington tray and press with damp fingers until smooth and even. Refrigerate for a couple of hours or until firm.

This is best served with lots of chocolate icing, cut generously and decorated with a chocolate freckle.

3. No-bake Lemon Slice

This perennially popular slice is a great way to use up excess lemons, and like all no-bake slices, keeps really well in the fridge.

Ingredients

1 and ¾ packets of Marie biscuits (or any plain, sweet biscuit)

1 tin condensed milk

250g unsalted butter

The juice and zest from 1 lemon

Method

Crush biscuits in a food processor until quite fine (or place in a sealed bag and carefully crush with a rolling pin). Unlike the chocolate slice, you don’t want too many large biscuit pieces left.

Melt butter and add to biscuits together with the condensed milk, zest and lemon juice.

Mix well and press into a lined lamington tin. Refrigerate for a couple of hours until it is firm, and then ice generously with lemon icing.

Other suggestions for people who can’t bake

Those are my favourite three no-bake slices, and they are perfect for pulling out at the last minute for afternoon tea or if you get asked to donate something for the next election day cake stall.  But there are plenty of other sneaky options, so you can always find some other cake stall alternatives for people who can’t (or won’t) bake.

What’s your favourite no-bake recipe? Share with us below.

Image source Shutterstock.