The recipe for this years winning cake by Nell Pugh

We have been inundated with requests for the recipe for this years winning cake made by Nell Pugh. Thanks Nell for sharing it with us!

CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER MOUSSE CAKE

 

This make a massive cake – you could make half or two thirds for a more manageable size!The cake can be made in advance and freezes really well. The mousse is best made in advance and frozen as it makes the cake far sturdier for crumb coating the cake and getting a smooth surface.

 

INGREDIENTS

Equipment:

3 8-inch metal cake tins

Spray oil

Greaseproof paper

2 8-inch silicon cake tins

 

For the cake:

2 ¼ cups white plain flour

1 ¼ cups white castor sugar

½ cup cocoa powder

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

1 ½ teaspoons bicarbonate of soda

¾ teaspoon salt

½ cup sunflower oil

3 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla paste

¾ cup buttermilk

¾ cup strong coffee, cooled

 

For the mousse:

225g full fat cream cheese

¾ cup icing sugar

1 cup smooth peanut butter – use best quality not cheap – I use Whole Earth

1 teaspoon vanilla paste

Pinch of salt

1 cup double cream

 

For the buttercream:

1.5 cups salted butter – I really like Tesco Value!

½ teaspoon vanilla paste or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

½ cup cocoa powder

2 cups icing sugar

4 tablespoons double cream

 

For the ganache:

100g good quality dark chocolate

½ cup double cream

2 tablespoons golden castor sugar

 

For the decoration:

6 Reeces peanut butter cups

Salted caramel sauce – I use Tesco’s finest from a jar (life’s too short!)

Salted peanuts

 

METHOD

For the mousse:

Whip cream until stiff but not dry peaks. Beat all of the other ingredients together until light and creamy – about 5 mins in an electric mixer if you have one. Fold cream into peanut butter mixture. Split mix into two and pour into silicon cake tins, smoothing the top as flat as you can. Freeze until very firm (overnight is best).

 

For the cake:

Cut circles of greaseproof paper for the bottoms of the tins and spray oil all over. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.

Mix together dry ingredients in large bowl. Whisk wet ingredients in separate bowl until combined.Add the wet mix into the dry and stir until just combined and not lumpy – I think this is best done by hand and not in an electric mixer. Split into three and add to the tins. Bake at 180 until done – about 30 mins – a cocktail stick in the centre should come out clean. Cool completely.

 

For the buttercream:

Beat butter and vanilla until light and fluffy then add the cream. Sift together cocoa powder and icing sugar and add slowly.

 

Stack the cake

Sandwich the cake with the frozen mousse and crumb coat with buttercream. Put in the fridge until set then ice again with buttercream until smooth all the way round.

 

For the ganache:

Heat cream and sugar in saucepan until almost (but not) boiling. Chop chocolate into small pieces. Pour cream over chocolate and stir until melted. Let the ganache cool slightly so it doesn’t melt your lovely smooth buttercream. Pour over the cake until the top is totally coated and the ganache runs down the sides of the cake in a (hopefully!) artful manner.

 

For the toppings:

Whack the Reeces cups with a rolling pin then chop them a bit into chunks Chop peanuts finely. Artfully arrange the toppings on the cake (chuck it all on!). Warm the sauce and drizzle over the top – use enough to hold all of the toppings in place.