How far can you tweak a cake recipe?

[TickledOnion]

I've just made Paul Hollywood's carrot cake but swapped the carrot for courgette, added half a pureed mango, reduced the oil and increased the flour. It's still cooking so no idea if it'll be any good.

What substitutions do you make in your cakes? I like the idea of having a few basic recipes that I can tweak depending on what I have in.

I make all sorts of cakes by throwing random stuff in my basic batter recipe.
Basic recipe (old money, I'm sorry)

7oz butter
7oz caster sugar
3-4 eggs dependant on size
7oz self raising flour.

From this I make:

Carrot cake
Apple and cinnamon cake
Chocolate and banana brownie
Gingerbread (subbing caster for brown and adding syrup)
Pear and almond cake (subbing flour for ground almonds)
Chocolate and beet root cake
Coffee and walnut cake...

I am sure there's loads more- basically I see what i've got and throw it in. No disasters (as yet!) and I make cakes or biscuits (I do the same with a basic shortbread or cookie recipe) daily.

Those sound like interesting tweaks. I didn't realise that kind of cake could be easily changed. How much fruit/veg can you add? Do you need to change anything to compensate?

I've just found the cakes turn out more moist- a bit more brownie like if you will. I do it by sight though- I know what the batter should look like so I add flour if necessary iykwim.

Banana- 2 really ripe ones, squished. Sometimes I'll sub some cocoa for flour, other times just a handful of chopped chocolate.

I added 3 medium sized almost bendy carrots, some cinnamon and mixed spice today for carrot cake.

Apple- I stew 2 small ones down with cinnamon, drain really well, blitz and add. Same with pear.

I also sometimes cook cake til nearly there, prick with a skewer and pour over home-made, watery (on purpose) lemon curd- like a cheat's lemon drizzle.

Also lining the tin with pineapple bits before plain batter (add vanilla if you're so inclined) creates a pineapple upside down cake.

Coffee and walnut I add coffee essence or very strong espresso and couple handfuls of walnuts, roughly chopped. Not for work, I hasten to add (nursery cook- I don't have a death wish! )

None of these are traditionally 'correct' but they taste darn good (so I'm told) and are so so quick and easy. I start work at 8, and, even with doing breakfast for approx 60 children at the same time, have the cake ready for 8.45 at the very latest.

I will bastardise any recipe. I have no fear. Or maybe I have no taste buds. Either way...

That's fascinating. I've never tweaked a cake recipe other than putting less eggs in than stated as I hate eggy tasting cakes. However biscuits and flapjacks are a free for all. I recently threw a packet of roasted salted nuts into flapjacks and they were fabulous.

Off to try some of the tweaks here.

I've been inspired by you SilentBob.
Just made a blackberry hazelnut swirl cake. I subbed some of the flour for ground hazelnuts and swirled in a few spoonfuls of blackberry puree made with blackberries we picked today.