“When I was growing up, no kid’s birthday could be celebrated without a plate of sugar-studded, floppy white fairy bread. This is a fluffier and rather less floppy version of my childhood favourite.

“Did you know that although koalas sleep for up to 19 hours of every 24, and eat over a kilo of eucalyptus leaves a day, they can run as fast as a rabbit when they want to? When a koala is born it’s about the size of a jellybean – tiny yet mighty!” This cake can be refrigerated for up to five days.

“Our cake version of the real big pineapple on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast is filled with luscious pineapple curd for extra zing. This recipe makes excellent use of the entire fruit, which should hopefully save you time when it comes to decorating and supports your pineapple farmer. No fruit parties quite as hard as the pineapple.” This is an edited extract from Bake Australia Great by Katherine Sabbath, photography by Jeremy Simons (Murdoch, $39.99).