So, this is not my usual style of cake,  but it was my brother’s birthday and he has very conservative food tastes, so out with the lemon and thyme and in with the heart attack inducing  Malteser cake. So on this blog, I said I would only post great recipes that work, so even though this cake is really indulgent, it was extremely good; naughty but nice. The recipe is from Lorraine Pascale, but I adapted it slightly by adding a third layer (add 1/3 extra of each of the ingredients) and using 3x 320g sharing bags of Maltesers. The original recipe can be found here: http://lorrainepascale.com/2015/10/13/let-them-eat-cake-cake/

 

 

For the Sponge

150g really soft butter, plus a little extra for greasing

250g caster sugar

150g self-raising flour

125ml  sour cream

4 medium eggs (at room temperature)

50g cocoa powder

1 tsp baking powder

pinch of salt

½ vanilla pod (or few drops of vanilla extract to taste)

 

For the Buttercream 

100g  dark chocolate (minimum 70 per cent cocoa solids)

550g icing sugar

250g really soft butter

2 tbsp milk (or water)

To Decorate 

4 x 135g packets of Maltesers  (I used 3x 230g bags)

Directions  

1) Preheat the oven to 180C/ fan 160C/ Gas, 4then grease and line 2 loose-bottomed sandwich cake tins (I used 3x 22cm sandwich tins)

2) Place each of the sponge ingredients into a large bowl and use an electric mixer to blend well until you have a soft, smooth mixture.

3) Divide the mixture between the cake tins, smooth the tops and place in the oven for 25-30 minutes, or until an inserted skewer  comes out clean.

4) Leave the cakes to cool for a few minutes before removing from the tins, then leave to cool completely.

5) Once the cakes are almost cool, it’s time to start making the buttercream. Break the chocolate into a bowl and melt it in the microwave in 30-second blasts, stirring in between.

6) Sift the icing sugar into a bowl, then add the butter and milk and beat with an electric mixer until it is really light and fluffy. Pour in the melted chocolate, stirring all the time.

7) Sit one of the cakes on a cake stand (place a little dollop of buttercream underneath the sponge so that the cake doesn’t move around), then put about a third of the buttercream on and spread it around. Sit the other sponge on top and spread the remaining buttercream all over so it is completely covered.

8) Once you have covered the cake, take the Maltesers and stick them all over the cake. Line them up nice and tight with no gaps, then serve and enjoy!