If you’re tired of the usual variations of a ‘devil’s food cake’, then you’ve stumbled across the perfect blogpost.

This chocolate malt cake takes a twist on the usual cocoa flavour of a chocolate cake by having a slight biscuit-like flavour infused into the cakes which takes this cake to the next level.

This post is dedicated to my younger brother since this is his all time favourite flavour amongst all the cakes I’ve baked till date. I’d baked this cake last year for his 17th, and this year again for his 18th. His face was filled with delight upon finding out that I’d finally gotten around to baking this cake again. (I usually try out new flavours and he’s always getting me to repeat recipes, he legit couldn’t stop pestering me.)

I decided to grant him his wish for his birthday and bake off this cake and just like last time, I ensured that malt powder was the key ingredient in the cake. Most recipes incorporate the malt powder in the frosting but I wasn’t too sure if that’d be the best way to go since I’m not a fan of buttercream frostings anyway. They end up being way too sweet for my liking.

Thus, I paired it with a dark chocolate ganache which goes SO well with this cake especially if you’re a fan of dark chocolate- however you could essentially go for any kind of chocolate frosting.

One of the most fun parts of making this cake was having to pick out a packet of Ovaltine from the cereal aisle of the supermarket because it wasvery reminiscent of my childhood. I always looked forward to indulging in a warm cup of ovaltine right before going to bed as a kid! It was true comfort in a cup. Anyone else out there who was also an ovaltine kid?

Back to the cake- for best results I suggest that after you’ve assembled the cake, you allow the cake to set in the fridge overnight and slice into it once it’s extremely cold so that you’ve allowed the flavours to develop & infuse together.

Unfortunately for me, my toddler of a brother devoured this cake at night, by himself. In one sitting. (Albeit only a third of it was left by the time we kept it in the fridge and it was kindof a small cake. But still.)

Ingredients

For the cake

1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons or 130 grams unsalted softened butter

1/2 cup sugar

2 eggs (room temperature)

1 tablespoon vanilla

2 tablespoons buttermilk / yoghurt

1 teaspoon cocoa powder

3 tablespoons Ovaltine (or any malt powder of your choice)

1/3 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

For the simple syrup

1/4 cup sugar

1/8 cup water

1/8 cup milk

1 teaspoon malt powder

For the ganache frosting

150 grams dark chocolate

150 grams heavy whipping cream

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 170C. Butter and line 2-6 inch cake pans. In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar for about 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy. Add in the eggs, one at a time, until well incorporated. Add in the vanilla and buttermilk and whisk well. Sift in the cocoa powder, malt powder, flour and baking powder into the bowl. Fold well with a spatula. Bake your cakes for around 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting. To make the ganache frosting, heat chocolate and cream in the microwave for around 1 minute, stirring every 20 seconds to ensure the chocolate doesn’t burn. Allow it to cool in the fridge. To make the simple syrup, place water, milk, sugar and malt powder in a saucepan and stir constantly until the sugar dissolves. Once the cake layers are cooled, use a brush or a spoon to soak them in the simple syrup. Frost the cake layers with the ganache. Allow the cake to cool completely before serving & enjoy!

Notes

This recipe makes two 6 inch cakes or one 8 inch cake or 12 cupcakes.

You could leave out the simple syrup if you wish.

You could whisk the ganache after it cools if you want it to resemble the texture of a buttercream frosting. Or you could spread it as is after it’s cooled for a rustic finish.

This is a no fail, must try recipe that surely deserves a place in everyone’s recipe book. If you do get around to trying it, be sure to let me know how it turned out!

Until next time,

Happy Baking!

xx