Chocolate Malteser Cake

If I haven’t convinced you by the title and picture alone, know that this is a glorious cake. Horlicks powder is used both in the cake and buttercream to help achieve that delicious malty flavour.

This is perfect for a birthday or special occasion. Not that you need one of course. I made it just because I was in the baking mood and I wanted to eat it. Can you blame me?

Recipe from Nigella Feasts by Nigella Lawson.

Ingredients

Makes about 8-10 slices

For the sponge:

• 150g soft light brown sugar
• 100g caster sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 175ml milk (full fat preferably)
• 15g butter
• 2 tbsp Horlicks powder
• 175g plain flour
• 25g cocoa (sieved)
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

For the buttercream and decoration:

• 125g soft unsalted butter
• 250g icing sugar
• 1 tsp cocoa
• 45g Horlicks powder
• 2 x 37g packets of Maltesers
• 2 tbsp hot water

Equipment needed: 2 x 20cm sandwich tins

Method

1. Preheat your oven to Gas Mark 4 (or the equivalent). Grease the sides and bottom if your tins and line the bottom with some baking parchment.
   
   
2. Measure out the flour, cocoa, baking powder and bicarb into a small bowl and set aside.
   
   
3. Over a very low flame, heat together the milk, butter and Horlicks powder until the mixture is hot but not boiling.
   
   
4. Whilst that’s happening, whisk the eggs and sugars together until light, pale in colour and quite frothy. An electric handheld whisk is most convenient here but a regular whisk will do the job too.
   
   
5. Pour the warm malty milk into the egg mixture and stir together. Then fold in your bowlful of dry ingredients until everything is mixed evenly.
   
   
6. Divide between the tins and bake in the oven for about 25 minutes until the cakes are coming away from the sides of the tin and are springy to the touch. Leave to cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes before turning them out completely, peeling off the baking parchment as you do so. Leave to get absolutely cold.
   
   
7. Once the cakes are nearly cool, you can make the icing. Sieve together the icing sugar, cocoa and Horlicks powder to get rid of any lumps. Or like Nigella suggests you can put them all into a food processor with a few whizzes to achieve the same effect.
   
   
8. Beat the butter for a moment to loosen it then add in the sugar mixture. Add in the hot water to make it a more spreadable consistency. Again, this too can be done in a food processor.
   
   
9. Now for assembling the cake. Take one of the layers and put it top side down onto a plate or cake stand. Spread with half of the buttercream leaving a little space round the edges. Place the remaining cake on top followed by the rest of the buttercream, smoothing it with a little palette knife.
   
   
10. Arrange the Maltesers in a circle around the border of the cake or use them to decorate the cake however you wish.