Food: It's layer cakes for Liam

LIAM CHARLES does "cool things now". The 20-year-old, who despite not winning last year's Great British Bake Off was the stand-out contestant of the series, gave hosts Noel Fielding and Sandi Toksvig serious screen-time competition, and had that certain 'we love you' factor Mel and Sue used to rake in.

A year on and the drama student has landed his own telly gig, co-hosting Bake Off: The Professionals, and has written his debut baking book, Cheeky Treats ("It's just crazy!") - even though he's yet to graduate from university.

The book packs in decadent cookies, colossal layer cakes (more of which later) and savoury bites too, like his pattie quiche and curried goat pie. "Shout out to Nan," says Charles, "because she inspires my savoury bakes. Being from a Caribbean background, eating curried goat, jerk chicken, ackee and salt fish, I try to combine the two - my modern 'hipster' side and then my foundation of being Caribbean."

Charles' fascination with baking, fuelled by food shows on TV, kicked in four years ago, when he was 16 and began to think, "I can do this myself", when faced with Sainsbury's ready-made cheesecakes and microwaveable apple crumbles. He'd sketch out bakes on a whiteboard in his kitchen - and still does, Cheeky Treats is scrawled with his analytical doodles - and bring his cakes into school on Mondays.

You'd have wanted to be in his year at school. Nicknamed 'Cake Boy', for sixth form prom he baked every person in his year a customised cupcake with biscuit initials. But what is it like, being 16, and a lad, baking? "It's all right!" Charles laughs. "But obviously, some people don't really understand it. It's usually either football, music or girls."

Refreshingly, he's frank about the fact that baking from scratch isn't cheap - often, a microwaveable apple crumble actually makes more financial sense. "Obviously you don't want to skimp on quality of ingredients, but you also want it to be feasible," he says. His advice is, if you're new to baking, to start off small, no matter how badly you want to "go to Lakeland and just buy everything! Just buy what you need, "then build up, build up, build up".

Building is something Charles takes literally - he's obsessed with layer cakes. Take his salted nutter layer cake, a tower of chocolate, nuts and salted caramel. "Anything to create drama in a cake, I'm up for," he says. "There's just something special about slicing through a quartet of sponges," he adds: "You can feel, by the knife, the textures when you cut into it, and lift it up and you see one, two, three, four and what's in the filling - it's like a massive story.

Carrot cake cookies

(Makes 15)

For the filling

150g full-fat cream cheese

150g icing sugar

1tsp vanilla extract

For the dough

350g plain flour

½tsp baking powder

1tsp ground cinnamon

1tsp mixed spice

1tsp ground cloves

150g unsalted butter, softened

100g soft light brown sugar

50g soft dark brown sugar

1 large egg

200g carrot, finely grated

For the decor

Zest of 2 oranges and juice of 1 orange

4tbsp walnuts, finely chopped

1. Mix the cream cheese, three tablespoons of the icing sugar and the vanilla in a large bowl until combined, then pop in the freezer for 30-45 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, measure your flour, baking powder and spices into another bowl. Beat your butter and both sugars together in a third bowl until creamy. Beat your egg into the butter mixture, then tip in your carrot. Mix together well. Tip your dry ingredients into the carrot mixture and mix slowly to form a dough.

3. Preheat oven to 200.C/Fan 180.C/Gas 6. Line a baking tray with baking paper. Weigh your dough and divide by 15 - this is how much each ball should weigh. Then flatten them slightly into thin discs using the palm of your hand.

4. Add a generous teaspoon of the cream cheese filling to the centre of each disc and wrap the dough around the filling to seal. Pinch the top and roll it back into a ball, making sure no filling leaks out. Pop the balls on to the tray and flatten slightly. Place in the fridge to chill for 30 minutes.

5. Bake the cookies for 20 minutes, until golden brown. Remove from the oven and leave on the tray for a few minutes to firm up, then transfer to a wire rack to cool further.

6. Sift the remaining icing sugar into a small bowl and mix with the orange juice - you're aiming for a drizzling consistency. Flick the icing over the cookies and top with the orange zest and walnuts.

Toffee apple cake

(Serves 16-24)

For the sponge

750g unsalted butter, softened

600g golden caster sugar

150g light muscovado sugar

12 large eggs

750g self-raising flour

1tsp baking powder

180ml whole milk

½tsp vanilla extract

For the crumble

225g plain flour

135g soft brown sugar

1tsp fine sea salt

150g unsalted butter, cold and cubed

For the cinnamon buttercream

900g unsalted butter, softened

1.95kg icing sugar

2tsp ground cinnamon

180ml whole milk

1½tsp vanilla extract

For the filling and topping

350ml shop-bought salted caramel

Apple compote

Apple crisps (optional)

You will need 4 x 25cm cake tins

1. Preheat oven to 180C/Gas 4 and grease and line the cake tins.

2. Make the cakes. Cream your butter and both sugars together in a large bowl with a freestanding or hand-held mixer until light and fluffy. Crack the eggs in one at a time, mixing after each addition. If the mixture begins to curdle, just pop in a couple of tablespoons of the flour to bring it back together. Turn the speed down very low and add your flour and baking powder. Finally, add the milk and vanilla and give it one more blast. Divide your mixture evenly between the cake tins and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10-15 minutes in the tins before turning out on to a wire rack.

2. Make the crumble. Line a baking tray with baking paper. Tip your flour, sugar and salt into a large bowl and give it a good mix. Take the cubes of butter and begin to rub them into the flour. Tip the crumble onto the baking tray and bake for 25-30 minutes, until deep golden brown. Remove from the oven and leave to cool. Smash it and tip into an airtight container, ready for later.

3. Make the buttercream. Measure your butter into a large bowl and beat with your free-standing or hand-held mixer until light and pale. Sift your icing sugar and cinnamon into a separate bowl, then add it to the butter in three stages, beating after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl from time to time. Add your milk and vanilla to loosen the buttercream and give it one more mix.

4. Use a cake leveller or sharp knife to trim the top off all the cakes so they are level. Spread a small amount of buttercream on a board that is slightly bigger than your sponges and place your first layer of sponge on top. Place that board on a turntable, if you have one. Place half the buttercream in a piping bag, snip the end and pipe a circle around the edge of the first layer of sponge, leaving a 10cm circle in the middle. Fill that circle with apple compote and sprinkle with crumble. Spoon the caramel into a piping bag and cut the tip off, then squiggle the salted caramel on top.

Repeat until all the sponges are stacked. Your last sponge should be placed upside down on top.

5. Using a palette knife, cake scraper and a turntable, coat the outside and top of the cake with a thin layer of the remaining buttercream. Place in the fridge for at least an hour to set.

6. Remove the cake from the fridge and apply another layer of buttercream around the sides and top of the cake. Use any leftover buttercream to pipe around the top edges of your cake. Finally, place apple crisps on top with more crumble and - yes - more salted caramel.

• Cheeky Treats by Liam Charles, photography by Haarala Hamilton (Hodder & Stoughton, £20)