Chocolate Raspberry Mini Cakes
To skip the post and step-by-step instructions and go straight to recipe, click here. Hey, baker friends! I hope everyone got to enjoy a little break for the holiday, and maybe get to enjoy another one coming up soon! Because this year is almost OVER, and I can’t think of any better reason to celebrate (and/or make and eat cake).
These rich, soft little morsels are perfect for a New Year’s celebration, as small as they may be this year. Layers of dark chocolate cake filled with homemade raspberry jam, coated with creamy ganache, and topped with edible gold, all in one little beautiful bite - what more could you want?
While these tiny cakes may be a bit high-maintenance, you could certainly use the same cake, jam, and ganache recipes to make one larger cake and save some time and effort while still having a beautiful and delicious celebratory treat. To do this, I’d recommend cutting the sheet cake in half, spreading jam on one half, topping it with the other, and spreading the ganache over the top.
Let me know if you ring in your new year with these amazing treats! Here’s to a sweeter 2021.
Step-By-Step Walk-through:
If you’re feeling confident in your cooking skills and want to skip the walk-through, click here.
Step 1:
Prepare to Bake Cake
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Grease the sides of a jellyroll pan (usually 15.5 by 10.5 inches), and line the bottom with parchment paper.
Step 2:
Combine Dry Ingredients
Into a bowl of a stand mixer (or a large mixing bowl), sift ⅜ cup cocoa powder, ¾ cup all-purpose flour, ¾ cup sugar, ¾ teaspoon baking soda, ⅜ teaspoon baking powder, and ½ teaspoon salt with a fine mesh strainer or sifter. Any larger chunks remaining at the end can be pressed through with the back of a spoon.
Step 3:
Make Batter
To the dry ingredients, add 1 egg, ⅜ cup plain Greek yogurt, ⅜ cup warm water, 1 ½ tablespoons melted coconut oil, and ¼ teaspoon almond extract.
Beat on low speed for one minute with paddle attachment (or, if not using a stand mixer, with an electric beater).
Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula and beat on low speed for another minute.
Step 4:
Bake Cake
Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth flat.
Bake in the preheated oven for 11-14 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Step 5:
Make Ganache
While or after the cake is baking, heat 1 cup of heavy cream in a small pot over medium heat until warm and steamy, but not yet bubbling.
Remove from the heat and add 1 ½ cups of semisweet chocolate chips.
Whisk until fully melted.
Refrigerate about 1 hour, until firm and spreadable, about the consistency of frosting.
Step 6:
Make Jam
Add ¾ cup of fresh raspberries, ¼ cup sugar, ½ teaspoon of lemon zest, and 1 teaspoon of lemon juice to a medium pot.
Cook over medium heat, stirring and gently smashing the berries, until the sugar is fully dissolved and the berries have broken down and mixture is boiling (about 10 minutes).
Mix 1 teaspoon of cornstarch with a splash of cool water until fully dissolved.
Add to the hot raspberry mixture. Continue cooking, stirring constantly, until thickened (about 2-3 minutes).
Pour into a jar and refrigerate until you’re ready to use it.
Step 7:
Cut Cake
When cake is finished baking, let cool completely (you can refrigerate it a bit to save time). Use a serrated knife to gently trim the top of the cake off to be even with the top of the pan.
Gently run a knife around the edges of the cake to release it from the pan if needed, then remove from the pan and peel off parchment paper.
Transfer right-side up to a large cutting board or countertop.
Trim the sides with the same serrated knife to make a 12x9 inch rectangle, then cut into 48 even 1 ½ inch squares.
Step 8:
Assemble
Scoop your cooled ganache into a large piping bag with a small round tip.
On half of the cake squares, pipe a square border of ganache around the edge.
Fill the ganache border with a small spoonful of raspberry jam.
Press a plain square of cake on top to make a sandwich.
On the side of the cake sandwich, pipe a square and fill it in.
Use the flat side of a butter knife or a pallete knife to smooth the ganache.
Repeat on all sides of all the mini cakes. This is a time-consuming and messy step, but will make getting an even coat of ganache over each cake much easier in the end. Place the cakes on a cooling rack - this will help later as well.
Pop the cakes into the freezer for at least an hour until the ganache is firm and cold.
Step 9:
Finish
While the cakes are firming up, repeat step 5, making another batch of ganache the same as the first, only don’t refrigerate it this time.
Remove the cakes from the freezer, placing the cooling rack on a piece of wax or parchment paper. Drizzle a spoonful of warm ganache over a cake.
Smooth the ganache over the sides and top of the cake with a knife.
Lift the cooling rack and gently tap on the paper-covered surface to allow any ganache that has pooled at the bottom of the cake to drip off.
Repeat with each cake, then place the cakes back in the freezer to firm up again, this time lining the freezer shelf with a piece of parchment or wax paper to catch any drips.
Once the ganache is firm again, you can decorate if desired. To decorate with gold leaf sheets, very gently press the sheet against whichever area you’d like to cover until it sticks. Gold leaf sheets are incredibly delicate and will probably rip, but this will give a natural, marbled look.
You can smooth flyaway pieces of gold against the cake with a food-safe paintbrush.
Lastly, top each cake with a raspberry and serve!
Chocolate Raspberry Mini Cakes
Servings: 24 Time: 5 - 5 1/2 hours
Difficulty: 🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡
Ingredients
FOR CAKE
⅜ cup cocoa powder
¾ cup all-purpose flour
¾ cup sugar
¾ tsp. baking soda
⅜ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
1 egg
⅜ cup Greek yogurt
⅜ cup warm water
1 ½ TBS. melted coconut oil
¼ tsp. almond extract
FOR JAM
¾ cup fresh raspberries
½ tsp. lemon zest
1 tsp. lemon juice
¼ cup sugar
1 tsp. corn starch
Splash of cool water
FOR GANACHE
2 cups heavy cream, separated into 1 cup and 1 cup
3 cups semisweet chocolate, separated into 1 ½ cups and 1 ½ cups
FOR GARNISH (optional)
Gold leaf sheets
Fresh raspberries
Directions
Step 1: Prepare to Bake Cake
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease the sides of a quarter sheet pan, and line the bottom with parchment paper.
Step 2: Combine Dry Ingredients
Sift together cocoa, flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into the bowl of a stand mixer.
Step 3: Make Cake Batter
To the dry ingredients, add the egg, yogurt, water, oil, and extract. Beat on a low speed for about a minute. Scrape the bowl, then beat another minute.
Step 4: Bake Cake
Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth flat. Bake in the preheated oven for 11-14 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Step 5: Make the Ganache
While the cake is baking, heat 1 cup of cream in a small pot over medium heat until warmed and steamy, but not yet bubbling. Remove from heat and add 1 ½ cups chocolate chips, whisking until fully melted. Refrigerate for about 1 hour, until firm and spreadable, about the consistency of frosting.
Step 6: Make Jam
Add raspberries, sugar, lemon zest, and lemon juice to a medium pot. Cook over medium heat, stirring and gently smashing the berries, until the sugar is fully dissolved and the berries have broken down and mixture is boiling (about 10 minutes). Mix the cornstarch with the cool water in a small bowl until fully dissolved, then add to the hot raspberry mixture. Continue cooking, stirring constantly, until thickened (about 2-3 minutes). Pour into a jar and refrigerate until you’re ready to use it.
Step 7: Trim Cake
When cake is finished baking, let cool completely (you can refrigerate it a bit to save time). Use a serrated knife to gently trim the top of the cake off to be even with the top of the pan. Gently run a knife around the edges of the cake to release it from the pan if needed, then remove from the pan and peel off parchment paper. Transfer right-side up to a large cutting board or countertop. Trim the sides with the same serrated knife to make a 12x9 inch rectangle, then cut into 48 even 1 ½ inch squares.
Step 8: Assemble
Scoop your cooled ganache into a large piping bag with a small round tip. On half of the cake squares, pipe a square border of ganache around the edge. Fill the ganache border with a small spoonful of raspberry jam. Press a plain square of cake on top to make a sandwich. Pipe a filled-in square on each of the 4 outer sides of each mini cake, using a butter knife or palette knife to smooth each side flat. Place the cakes on a cooling rack into the freezer and allow to cool until the ganache is firmed up.
Step 9: Finish
Repeat step 5, making another batch of ganache, but don’t refrigerate it this time. Remove the cakes on the cooling rack from the freezer and set the rack on a surface lined with wax or parchment paper to catch drips. Drizzle a spoonful of warm ganache over each mini cake one at a time, smoothing the top and sides with a butter knife or palette knife. Then, after each cake, gently lift the edge of the cooling rack and tap it on the surface underneath to allow any ganache pooling at the bottom of the cake to drip down. Once all the cakes are iced, place the cooling rack in the freezer to firm up again, this time on a piece of wax or parchment paper to catch any stray drips. Once the ganache has firmed up again, decorate with gold leaf if desired by very gently pressing gold leaf sheets against the sides or top of the cakes until they stick. You can smooth down stray bits of gold with a food-safe paintbrush. Lastly, top each cake with a fresh raspberry.