Katie Laing at City of Oxford College student presents this week's recipe

I am Katie Laing and I am studying hospitality and catering at City of Oxford College. I have always loved cooking so as soon as I finished school I knew I wanted to go to college to get qualified.

As part of my course I work at the college’s Waterside Restaurant. Outside college, I also work for Fingers and Porks catering specialists. I have just started, having been there for only two months.

I have a passion for baking and my signature dish is chocolate and hazelnut cake.

My guilty pleasure when I’m too tired to cook is macaroni cheese.

One of my favourite places to eat is The Swan at Streatley.

One of the strangest things I’ve ever eaten was kangaroo steak at a wedding, it is similar to beef.

My favourite kind of cuisine is French patisserie and I’m inspired by Raymond Blanc and Mary Berry.

4 eggs separated
350g self-raising flour
70g cocoa powder
½ teaspoon salt
225g butter
400g caster sugar
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
250ml milk – room temperature
500g butter
300g icing sugar
50g cocoa
A splash of milk
For the decoration
Hazelnuts chopped and toasted
Ferrero Rocher and Lindt chocolate balls

Preheat the oven to 180ºC.
Separate the eggs, whisk the whites with ¼ of the sugar till soft peaks
Cream the butter and reminding sugar.
Add the egg yolks and vanilla.
Alternately add the flour, cocoa and milk to the butter and sugar
Once the mix is smooth fold in the whites.
Put into two lined cake tins, bake for 30-35 minutes.
For the icing, cream the butter with the icing sugar. Add the cocoa and milk.
Use the icing to layer the two cakes and cover the outside with icing.
Put nuts on the edges of the cake and cover the top with the chocolates.