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The Mad Scientist
Meet Dini
I’m Dini and I’m the recipe developer, photographer and writer behind The Flavor Bender. I was born in Sri Lanka, grew up in New Zealand, did my Master’s and practiced as a Clinical Audiologist in Australia, before moving to the US with my husband in 2014, and then Canada in 2019. Now I call Ottawa, home!
Here you will find:
Master the Science of Baking
I love baking, cooking, experimenting with flavors, textures and ingredients, and then passing on all my tips and tricks to you, my dear reader! Here you will find detailed troubleshooting guides to master sweet and savory recipes.
I provide clear, detailed recipes and instructions to help you perfect your baking and cooking skills and impress your friends and family with your delicious creations!
I’m a firm believer and advocate of accurate measurements, especially for baking recipes. To this end, I provide weight measurements for ingredients (g/kg/oz/lbs etc.). Wherever possible, I also provide volume measurements (based on US cups, teaspoons and tablespoons), but these are approximations.
See Measurement Conversions for more.
Search my comprehensive Recipe Index for more.
Browse By Skill Level
Required skill levels defined by difficulty of cooking/baking techniques involved. Not by number of ingredients/steps/equipment.
BEGINNER – No complicated cooking/baking techniques involved. Straightforward recipes. Great for novice cooks and bakers.
INTERMEDIATE – Require some basic knowledge. Great for the average reader who cooks and/or bakes regularly, or for novice cooks/bakers wanting to expand their skills beyond the basics.
ADVANCED – Require multiple and/or involved techniques. May also require a lot of prep work. Great for those readers wanting to expand their cooking/baking knowledge and skills.
Beginner
Try these first:
Intermediate
Try these first:
Advanced
Try these first:
The Flavor Bender
Cookbook
My cookbook Secret Layer Cakes is a collection of 60 flavor-bending cake recipes, with photos accompanying each one. The book features cheesecakes, no bake cakes, ice cream cakes and all types of dessert mash ups, each one with a secret layer or element to enhance your desserts even more!
Let’s Get Baking
Join The Flavor Bending Tribe
I’m so happy you’re here. Hope you enjoy my recipes as much as I loved sharing them with you. Now let’s get cooking and baking!