About Time: You Made Mary Berry’s Malt CakeBy Angelica Malin

This cake is the perfect family treat and a real crowd–pleaser. The malt extract gives a lovely creaminess to the sponge, while the malted chocolate flavour is echoed in the cake’s topping. See Mary Berry at the BBC Good Food shows in Birmingham, London and Scotland. Now, let’s get baking: 

Malted Chocolate Cake

Serves 8-10

Prepare Ahead: The filling will remain soft and ready to use in a bowl covered with cling film for 2–3 days. The finished cake can be kept in an airtight container for up to a day.

Freeze: Freeze the cake and icing separately, then defrost at room temperature and assemble when  ready to serve.

Ingredients

30g (1oz) malted chocolate drink powder

30g (1oz) cocoa powder

225g (8oz) butter, softened, plus extra for greasing

225g (8oz) caster sugar

225g (8oz) self-raising flour

1 tsp baking powder

4 eggs

For the Icing

3 tbsp malted chocolate drink powder

1½ tbsp hot milk

125g (4½oz) butter, softened

250g (9oz) icing sugar, plus extra for dusting

50g (2oz) dark chocolate (at least

50 per cent cocoa solids), melted

1 tbsp boiling water

about 20 Maltesers, to decorate

Method

1 You will need two 20cm (8in) round sandwich tins. Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/Gas 4 and grease the tins with butter and line the bases with baking paper.

2 Measure the malted chocolate drink powder and cocoa powder into a large bowl, pour over 2 tablespoons of water and mix to a paste. Add the remaining cake ingredients and beat until smooth.

3 Divide evenly between the prepared tins and bake in the oven for

20–25 minutes. Set aside in the tins to cool for 5 minutes, then turn out on to a wire rack to cool completely.

4 To make the icing, measure the malted chocolate drink powder into

a bowl, add the hot milk and mix until smooth. Add the butter, icing sugar and melted chocolate and mix again until smooth, then add the boiling water to give a gloss to the icing.

5 Place one cake on a plate and spread over half the icing. Sandwich with the other cake and spread (or pipe) the remaining icing on top, using the tip of a rounded palette knife to create a swirled effect from the centre to the edge of the cake. Arrange the Maltesers over the top and dust with icing sugar before serving.

Extracted from Mary Berry’s Absolute Favourites by Mary Berry