Kate Keogh, the daughter of a former school dinner lady, has taken TikTok by storm by sharing simple, nostalgic recipes for classic school dinner treats. Her videos, featuring her mum's authentic 'insider recipes,' have resonated with social media users, evoking fond childhood memories of school dinnertime.

One of the highly popular recipes shared is for a classic school sponge cake, often served with pink custard. Kate's mum, who worked as a school kitchen assistant, revealed that although in her days only rice pudding and tapioca were common school puddings, she still remembered how to make this beloved sponge. The five-ingredient sponge recipe includes 280g unsalted butter, 280g golden caster sugar, 280g self-raising flour, 5 eggs, and 2 tb of Madagascan Vanilla Natural Extract. For the icing, 500g icing sugar is combined with 5-6 tsp water, topped with sprinkles. The accompanying pink custard is made by adding a splash of pink food colouring to a tub of regular custard. The method involves mixing butter and caster sugar until pale, adding eggs and vanilla, then sieving in self-raising flour. The mixture is baked for 30-35 minutes until golden. The cake is then iced on the flat side, sprinkled, and served with heated pink custard. This particular video, posted under @kate_keo, has garnered over 425,000 views, with comments flooding in from users expressing their love for the 'school cake' and pink custard, eager to try the recipe.

Photo Credit: Smitten Kitchen

Following the success of the sponge cake, Kate and her mum revealed another cherished school dessert: the cornflake tart, also known by some as 'cracoleto' or 'Cracknel.' This crunchy, gooey treat was a highlight for many schoolchildren. The simple recipe calls for 60g butter, 4 tablespoons of golden syrup, 1 tablespoon of cocoa powder, and cornflakes. To prepare, the butter and golden syrup are melted together in a pan, then removed from the hob before cocoa powder is added and mixed in. A large portion of cornflakes is added to a mixing bowl, followed by the chocolate mixture, which is then thoroughly combined. The mixture is then placed into cake cases and left to set for an hour. This cornflake tart video has proven even more popular, racking up a staggering 1.8 million views on TikTok, with many users proclaiming their long-held love for the dessert and expressing gratitude for the recipe. The widespread appeal of these recipes underscores the powerful nostalgia associated with school dinner classics.