This fun and easy recipe for a chocolate hedgehog cake is sure to be popular! Perfect for a family baking activity or afternoon project.
The recipe is simple and tasty, leaving plenty of options for decorating. You could make a white or dark chocolate hedgehog, or make your own chocolate shards to use in the place of buttons!
Ingredients
For the cake
- 170g butter
- 170g golden caster sugar
- 170g self-raising flour
- 3 large eggs
- 30g cocoa powder
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
For the buttercream
- 150g butter
- 350g icing sugar
- 90g cocoa powder
- 2 tbsp milk
To decorate
- Chocolate buttons, shards, pretzels or other 'spiky' treats
- Chocolate chips for the eyes and nose
Method
1. Pre-heat the oven to 180C. Butter the base and sides of a round sandwich tin and line the base with baking parchment.
2. In a large bowl, beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
3. Beat in the eggs, one by one, until combined, then add the vanilla extract.
4. Sift the flour, baking powder, and cocoa powder into the bowl and fold gently with a spatula until just combined. Add a small pinch of salt to enhance the cocoa flavour.
5. Pour the batter into the lined baking tin and place in the centre of the oven for 25 minutes or until a skewer poked into the middle comes out clean.
6. Leave to cool in the tin for 10 mins, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
7. Make the chocolate buttercream. Mix the butter in a large bowl until soft, then sift the icing sugar and cocoa powder together and beat together with the softened butter. As the mixture stiffens, add in the milk a bit at a time until the buttercream is spreadable.
8. Carefully cut cake as shown below, leaving a rectangle with a pointed tip for the hedgehog body and nose. The curved sides will form the hedgehog’s back. You may need to shape them to form a rounded body for your hedgehog. Use buttercream to stick the pieces together.
9. Cover the whole cake in buttercream, then chill in the fridge for 5-10 minutes to firm up. Once firm, stick chocolate buttons all over the hedgehog's back to form the spikes. Make fur texture on the face by dragging a fork lightly over the buttercream. Finally, add chocolate chips for the eyes and nose, and your hedgehog cake is done!
Tried this recipe? Send us a photo at marketing@wkwt.org.uk!
