Mini Chocolate Sandwich Cakes
Makes 12
Ingredients
- 175g unsalted butter, softened
- 125g soft light brown sugar
- 100g caster sugar
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 175g plain flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 50g cocoa
- Pinch of salt
- 75ml buttermilk
- 75ml boiling water
- 50g white chocolate
- 150g dark chocolate, chopped
- 200g caster sugar
- 3 large egg whites
- 250g unsalted butter, softened and diced
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
for the Cakes
for the Chocolate Meringue Frosting
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas mark 4
- Cream the butter with both of the sugars until pale and light. Gradually add the beaten eggs, mixing well between each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl from time to time. Add the vanilla extract.
- Sift the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, cocoa and salt into the mixture and mix until almost combined. Add the buttermilk and boiling water and continue to mix until smooth.
- Divide the mixture between the Mini Sandwich Pan so that each well is two thirds full. Bake on the middle shelf of your preheated oven for about 20 minutes until well risen and a wooden skewer inserted into the middle of one of the cakes comes out clean. Leave the cakes to rest in the tin for 2 minutes and then ease out and leave to cool completely on a wire rack.
- Cut the cooled cakes in half and spread the bottom layer of each cake with Chocolate Meringue Frosting (below). Sandwich with the top layer then spread the top with more frosting. Use a vegetable peeler to make shavings from the white chocolate, scatter on top of each cake and serve..
For the Chocolate Meringue Frosting
- Tip the chopped chocolate into a heat-proof bowl and melt, either in the microwave on a low setting or over a pan of barely simmering water. Remove from the heat, stir until smooth and leave to cool slightly.
- Put the sugar and egg whites into a second heat-proof bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Using a hand whisk, whisk for about 3 minutes until the mixture is thick, glossy white, hot to the touch and leaves a ribbon trail when the whisk is lifted from the bowl. .
- Spoon the mixture into a clean bowl and use a hand mixer to whisk for about 3 minutes until the meringue has doubled in volume, cooled and will stand in stiff, glossy peaks.
- Gradually add the diced butter to the cooled meringue mixture, beating constantly, until the frosting is smooth. Fold in the vanilla extract and melted chocolate.
- Add the white chocolate shavings to the top of the cake
For the Cakes
- Recipe
