June 4, 2018
Crunchie Drip Cake!
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A chocolate three layer drip cake with honey buttercream frosting, a chocolate drip, Crunchie spread and even more Crunchie – a Crunchie drip cake!
Crunchie drip cake!
So I’m always fan of producing ‘showstopper’ type recipes, because I just think they look amazing. They’re something you could produce for a birthday, a party, or just any form of celebration… and Drip Cakes are perfect for this. They just always look amazing, and everybody loves them. Something about them makes them a lot more showstopper than a regular cake!
Honeycomb Crunchie recipes
My honeycomb Crunchie cake is one of the most popular cakes on my blog because its basically irresistible. Along with my honeycomb Crunchie cupcakes, they’re just delicious. Both incorporate the same flavours as this new recipe does, because I think its the best recipe I’ve got for the theme. The sponges in the honeycomb Crunchie cupcakes and honeycomb Crunchie cake are Chocolate, with a Honey Buttercream Frosting… and you all LOVE it.
Buttercream
The honey buttercream frosting is something I randomly made when I was developing the other recipes, and its just wonderful. Oddly, I find it makes the frosting slightly less sweet, but still incredibly delicious. For this particular one, I had to use less honey for the this buttercream in comparison to the others, as it needs to hold better.
When making a drip cake you need the buttercream to be stiffer in comparison to a regular cake, because it needs to withstand being sideways. Therefore, I used 100g of clear honey in this buttercream, but more sugar and butter in comparison to my honeycomb Crunchie cake. You can of course leave the honey out completely. If its a really hot summers day like its been recently, this might be an idea.
When its really hot weather, you don’t really want to add any extra liquid to buttercream if you can help it. The room temperature butter, and the icing sugar, is all you want. However, if the taste of the honey is amazing…. so its up to you. When I made this, I did use the honey, and it worked wonderfully. If you seem to struggle with buttercream being stiff in general, you might want to check the ingredients you are using.
Butter
I use supermarket own UNSALTED BUTTER. I do NOT use a spread such as stork, or a baking spread, or flora for buttercream. They are far too soft, and will result in a softer buttercream. Actual unsalted butter is the only way to go in my opinion. Making sure the buttercream is at room temperature before you mix it is also important, as that means it will mix into the sugar better. Try not to heat the butter to get it to this either as that can mess with the butter.
Similarities
You can see from the images that I did do this cake slightly different to my other drip cakes such as my Oreo drip cake. In my Oreo drip cake I make the drip in the same way, but I add it onto the top of the cake as well. For this one, as I was using the crunchie spread in the middle, I thought I would use it on the top as well. And I am so glad I did because it looks delicious, and it tastes amazing.
Crunchie spread
Crunchie spread if you haven’t tried it is literally like a chocolate spread, with little bits of honeycomb in, and it tastes insane. If you don’t have access to it, you can either swap it to a different spread, or just leave it out. It’s currently available in the UK, which is where I am from, so if you’re outside the UK you might struggle to find it.
Sponge
When you slice this cake you get three layers of fudgey chocolate cake, honey buttercream frosting and crunchie spread. In every bit you get the same as well, and its utterly delicious. This sponge is eeeever so slightly different because I basically made the dry ingredients slightly more than a regular ‘Victoria sponge’ type cake, and it made it more fudgey. I just wanted to demonstrate this type of cake as it basically makes it more madeira like, and easier to decorate! If you don’t want to do this however, simple use 330g self raising flour, and 70g cocoa powder to make up the 400g!
Tips and tricks
The easiest way to do the drips for this, is to use a small disposable piping bag. All you have to do is pour the drip ingredients once made into it, a snip off the end (only a small snip) and then gradually let it drip down the side. It’s rather hard to explain, but if the drip is the correct consistency, it will just fall out of the piping bag, so you simply have to hover it over the edge and it will drip down. The longer you leave it there, the longer the drip will be. It’s a matter of practice, but you’ll get used to it! Enjoy!
Crunchie Drip Cake!
Ingredients
Cake
- 400 g unsalted butter
- 400 g light brown sugar
- 8 medium eggs
- 350 g self raising flour
- 75 g cocoa powder
Buttercream Ingredients
- 350 g unsalted butter (room temperature)
- 700 g icing sugar
- 100 g clear honey
Decoration
- 1 Jar Crunchie spread
- 100 g dark chocolate
- 2 tsp sunflower oil
- 5-6 Crunchie bars
Instructions
For the Cake
- Heat the oven to 180C/160C Fan and line three 20cm/8inch cake tins with baking parchment – leave to the side.
- In a stand mixer, beat together the butter and light brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add in the flour, cocoa powder and eggs and beat again briefly till combined – try not to over beat the mixture!
- Divide the mixture between the three tins and smooth it over – bake for 25-30 minutes until a skewer comes out clean when poked, and when the cake springs back.
- Once baked, leave the cake to cool in the tin for 10 minutes, and then remove and leave to cool fully on a wire rack. If the cake has domed slightly, leave the cake to cool upside down to flatten it slightly.
For the Buttercream
- In a stand mixer, beat the room temperature butter with an electric mixer until it is smooth and loose and then beat in the icing sugar 1/3 at a time until its fully combined. Keep beating the buttercream for a few minutes so it starts to get fluffier and lighter.
- Add in the honey and beat again until combined.
For the Decoration
- Once the cakes are cooled, put the first layer on the serving plate - spread one or tablespoons of the buttercream onto the top of the first layer, and spread over a tablespoon of the Crunchie spread.
- Add the second cake on top, and then top again with some of buttercream and Crunchie spread, and then add the final sponge layer.
- Spread a thin layer or the buttercream around the edges of the cake to fill in any gaps and form a 'crumb coat'. Leave this to set in the fridge for 10 minutes, or on the side for 30 minutes until the buttercream crusts over.
- After its crusted a bit, spread the rest of the buttercream around the edges and top. Naturally you will wipe some off again with making the edges smooth, and this is what you will use to pipe on top later.
- I use a large metal scraper to do the smoothing. It's easier to roughly spread some around all the edges of the cake, and then smooth it all.
- Once finished, melt the dark chocolate in a heat proof bowl until melted. Add in 1/2 tbsp of oil and beat till smooth. Using disposable piping bags, pipe it round the edge of the cake, edging over slight bits to create the drip.
- Leave it to set for about 10 minutes, and then add some more crunchie spread on top. Alternatively, add the Crunchie spread on the top first, and then drip around the edges. I only used the drips around the edge in this cake, and didn't cover the top because of the Crunchie Spread.
- Leave the chocolate/spread to set for about 10 minutes or so, and then pipe the rest of the buttercream on top, and add on some crunchie pieces, and chopped up sprinkles of crunchie to finish.
- Enjoy! X
Notes
- You obviously don’t have to make straight edged buttercream if you don’t want to, but I just like the look of it! You can slather it on, and it’ll still taste damn delicious.
- However, if you do want to make it like this, I seriously recommend using a metal scraper for the decoration of the buttercream, and the disposable piping bags.. I wouldn’t be anywhere without them!
- All of the decorations are completely optional – but I love this style of cake! To make a smaller version of the cake, use:
- Two 8″cake tins
- 300g butter
- 300g sugar
- 255g flour
- 65g cocoa powder
- 6 medium eggs
- And it might take an extra 5-10 minutes to bake and use 2/3 of the decoration recipes!
- This cake will last in an airtight container/cake box for 3 days!
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J x
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I adjusted quantity to make 3 x 6inch sponges. I couldn’t find crunchie spread so used dairy milk spread and sprinkled with some chocolate honeycomb I bought off Amazon.
Delicious 5/5 as per for your recipes!! x
Hi Katie,
I’m wanting to adjust this one to make 3 x 6-inch sponges too. Could I ask how you did that? I was thinking of just using 2/3 of the quantities.
Hi Jane I watched your video on this yummy cake and wanted to ask two questions. Do you use stork or butter abs also what attachment would I use in my new Kenwood stand mixer. Thank you in advance 🥰
For the sponges I use stork, for the buttercream I use block unsalted butter! And the beater/K attachment!
me and my dad made this for my brothers 17th birthday and it was amazing i also really enjoyed making the mars bar brownies and i’ve never been anywhere different to find brownie recipes this website/blog is amazing for good and yummy recipes love all the work you’re putting in x
Hi Jane,
Just wondering if you know where to get a tall cake carrier? I often need to bring these cakes to a different house but the 3 layer ones are too tall to fit in the cake box, and cannot seem to find a larger one.
Thank you
Some cake boxes are taller (it depends where you buy them from sometimes I find) but I only have one tall plastic box I bought about 5 years ago and I’ve never found it online since unfortunately!
Hi! Love all your recipes 🙂 I’m wanting to make this sort of cake but with Nutella and Ferraro Roche’s! Do you have an idea on what I should use/amounts of ingredients for the buttercream?
Thank you! Nutella can make the frosting softer compared to the honey, but it should still work – so maybe just straight swap? x
Thank you! So maybe just 100g of Nutella? X
Yeah! x
Hi, followed the recipe to the letter but my sponge was heavy and dense. Any advice for next time to improve this?
That’s really strange – it’s a simple chocolate Victoria sponge so it shouldn’t be at all. How did you mix it? There could have been too much egg for example.
Brilliant!! I made this for my parents anniversary, and it was gorgeous, it looked the part and I was very impressed as I had never made a multi layered cake and this looked outstanding. It lasted for about 5 days for us, and we served it to quite a lot of people (we cut on the outside of each crunchie piece and halved the slice as 1 is to big ha ha). If you are going to make this make it- DELICIOUS
Thank you Jane
Hello I am making this tommorown and only have large eggs, how many large eggs should I use??
Weigh the eggs in their shells – it may be about 6 or 7 large, but you want it to be close to 400g worth!
Also I have just got sandwhich tins would you reccomend them or not?
Generally I find sandwich tins can sometimes be too shallow – it depends on their depth really, but I prefer deeper tins! The sponges themselves are about 1-2″ deep x
OMG I just made this and it’s amazing. Recipe works perfectly. I couldn’t find crunchie spread, so I used normal chocolate spread with two crunchie bars smashed up and stirred in. Yum
Hi Jane
What size tin do I need for this?
Is it 3 times I will need?
Thank you in advance
The sizes are listed in the method!
Hi Jane
I can’t find crunchie spread anywhere, can I substitute anything or best to just leave it out and possibly sprinkle some crunchie piece onto each layer?
Hey! You can just leave it out and sprinkle bits on! x
Hello! I am hoping to make this cake for my husbands birthday as he absolutely loves crunchie chocolate bars! I am unable to get any crunchie spread here in the UK at any supermarket at the moment and just wondering if lotus biscoff spread or Cadbury caramel spread could be an alternative if I can get my hands on this?
Thank you!
Ahh yay! Yes, you can use whatever spread you like, or you can just leave it out!
Hello! I’m wondering if I can use golden caster sugar instead of light brown sugar?
Yes you can!
Hey I am planning on making this for my step-daughters birthday I have 1 question do you have to use dark chocolate or can I use milk? Thank you for your time xx
For the drip, it’s important to use dark chocolate as the milk chocolate will be thinner. You can use it, but don’t use cream/oil, otherwise it’ll be too liquid!
Made this to the letter for a 50th birthday party and it looked and tasted magnificent. I cut it into way more than 15 slices, which was a nice surprise as it meant more leftovers for us after the party!
You have made a fab website full of ‘special’ recipes, you’re now my ‘go to’- thank you x
Hello. Just wondering why you use oil for the drip? I use double cream but I’m wondering if that affects how it can be stored. Does it need to be in the fridge if I use 60ml dark choc, 60ml double cream to make the drip or will this still be ok to store at room temp? Thanks!
A lot of people struggle with cream and chocolate, and as explained in other posts of mine it’s just easier with the oil! If the ganache is made correctly, then the drip with cream will be fine at room temp for a few days!
Hello
What icing tip did you use to make the ruffles round the edge of the cake?
Kind regards
Pauline
Hi Jane
Can you please let me know what icing tip you used for the buttercream around the top edges?
Kind regards
Pauline
Hiya! It was probably a 2d closed star, of a wilton 1M!
Hi Jane..
I wanted to know if I can substitute the clear honey for golden syrup?
Love these bakes 🙂
Hiya! I wouldn’t recommend it for the buttercream to be honest – the honey is much better a flavour!
Hi Jane,
I’d like to make the cake taller, would it be possible just to split the mixture into 6″ tins instead or would it not work?
It’s for my dad’s retirement, love your bakes.
Thanks!
Hiya! Yes it would work! I usually bake my 6″ cakes at 140C Fan so they stay more moist, but this makes them take longer to bake X
Fab recipe it sounds great! Do you use 3 sandwich tins or 3 deep cake tins?
Thanks
All my tins are about 3-4″ deep, but the cakes don’t come up that high so Im sure three sandwich tins should be alright just keep an eye on them!
love it i’m gonna try to make in the summer hols
How much cake mix do I need to use for 3 x 6” tins? I’ve been using a chocolate cake recipe with oil in but I’m intrigued as this one looks yummy!!!!! Xx
The best way to convert recipes is using this website – http://www.cakebaker.co.uk/baking-tin-size-conversion-calculator.html