The flavours of toffee and chocolate merge together to make this awesome Speckled Toffee Cake. Perfect for those special celebrations.
Birthdays are always a special celebration in our house, and a celebration always calls for a special dessert. This year my dear daughter asked for this Speckled Toffee Cake for HER birthday!!
During her first year of university way back in 2002, I made this cake for my daughter. It was her first birthday away from home and I wanted to make something awesome to bring to her….I even made it a triple layer!! I still remember very carefully packing it in the car for our 2 hour drive to Kingston….hoping that it would still be ok when we got there.
She didn’t know what kind of cake I was bringing and was totally shocked when I carried it into her room. She LOVED it, and so did the rest of the kids that were lucky enough to be living on the same floor…she was nice enough to share!
It is one of those cakes that you totally don’t forget….so much that this year she said “Remember that cake you made me in university…that is the one I want!”. So yet again I recreated this Speckled Toffee Cake…13 years later! However I will admit I had to dig for the recipe since it had been sooooooo long since I made it. All I could remember was that it involved A LOT of chocolate.
Sort of like the time I tried Sticky Toffee Pudding. Sometimes those food memories are very vivid, even years later.
When I say a lot of chocolate I really mean it…like 1 ½ pounds of chocolate!! Between the chocolate, toffee bits and whipping cream this cake is not lacking calories…or taste. But that’s what birthdays are all about….it’s your special day…ENJOY!!
You begin by grating and grating and grating chocolate…that is for the “speckled” part of the cake. In between the layers are tons of toffee bits and a thick layer of ganache. The cake is then covered in ganache and more toffee bits…pure heaven. Nothing beats the combination of toffee and chocolate.
Next time you want to make an impression on a special celebration…this Speckled Toffee Cake is sure to be star of the party!
This recipe was inspired from a very old cookbook of mine but such a keeper….Mrs. Fields I Love Chocolate Cookbook (affiliate link).
For another totally awesome chocolate dessert try: Oh My Reese’s Cupcakes
Speckled Toffee Cake
Ingredients
For the Cake:
- 3 cups cake flour (sifted)
- 1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoons baking soda
- ½ teaspoons salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter (room temperature)
- 1 ½ cups brown sugar (packed)
- ¼ cup greek yogurt (unflavoured)
- 5 extra large egg yolks
- ¾ teaspoons English Toffee oil (LorAnn Oils)
- ¾ cup milk
- 6 ounces semisweet chocolate (grated)
- 2 bags of toffee bits
For the Ganache:
- 18 ounces milk chocolate (finely chopped)
- 1 ½ cups whipping cream
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350º F
- Butte and line two 9 inch round cake pans.
To make the Cake:
- Whisk flour, baking soda and salt in a bowl. Set aside.
- Using an electric beater (or stand mixer), cream butter and sugar until fluffy.
- Beat in the yogurt.
- Beat in egg yolks (one at a time).
- Add flavoured oil.
- Add ½ the flour mixture and beat well.
- Add the milk and beat well.
- Add the remaining flour mixture and beat well.
- Fold in the grated chocolate. (NOT the one for the ganache)
- Spread batter between the 2 pans, and bake 30-35 minutes, or until done.
- Cool cakes in pans, then remove and finish cooling on racks.
For the Ganache:
- Place chopped milk chocolate in a bowl.
- In a saucepan, bring the whipping cream just to the boiling point.
- Pour hot cream over chocolate.
- Let stand for 5 minutes to melt chocolate.
- Stir until smooth.
- Chill in fridge for 1 hour.
- Slowly beat chilled ganache with an electric hand mixer until think and smooth. (DO NOT over beat).
To Assemble:
- Place one cake layer on a cake board or plate.
- Spread a nice thick layer of the ganache over the top of the cake.
- Pile on some of the toffee bits.
- Top with the other cake layer.
- Frost the outside of the cakes with the remaining ganache.
- Decorate cake with toffee bits...along the top edges and bottom of cake. (Be creative and have fun).
- Chill until ready to serve.
- Bring to room temperature before slicing.
- ENJOY!!
Notes
Oh My Reese's Cupcakes
Rachel @ Bakerita
This cake looks incredible – I love how you garnished with the toffee bits!
Chef G
Thanks so much….it was fun to do.
Sarah @ Sarah's Bake Studio
This looks beautiful and delicious! Toffee is one of those foods/ingredients that I rarely bake with or eat, but actually really enjoy. I am so happy I found your cake because this is something that I definitely am going to want to bake!
Chef G
Well I hope you enjoy it as much as we do.
Afrolems
My secret addiction is toffee bits and looking at this cake is fueling my craving. Sigh 🙂 Looks so yummy
Chef G
HAHAH….well we all have some sort of addiction….sounds like a good one to me.
Katrina @ Kitchen Trials
Oh. My. God. This cake looks soooo good!!
Chef G
Thanks for the kind words….it was a labour of love!!
Emily
Gaahhh.. This has me drooling! So pretty too!
Chef G
Thanks so much. Special days call for special cakes…and she is a special girl.
suki
Oh! lovely! I see beautiful cakes this week all place! lovely!
Chef G
Beautiful cakes can sometimes just look so nice….almost too nice to cut into.
Lynn | The Road to Honey
I had to transport a rather large layer cake to a party this summer. It was only about a 45 drive but my heart raced the entire time. I can’t even imagine having to try to hold on and protect it for 2 hours. I’m sure your daughter’s reaction made it worth every hair raising moment..
BTW. . . I think it is adorable that your daughter to this day remembers that special cake.. That certainly is testimony in of itself as to how divine this chocolatey beauty really is.
Chef G
Thanks for the kind words….yes it was hair raising…but so worth the effort.
Marsha @ Marsha's Baking Addiction
This cake looks amazing! Looks super chocolatey and delicious!
Chef G
Thank you so much.
Sarah
Toffee has a special place in my heart…this looks wonderful and makes my heart happy! 🙂
Chef G
Toffee is wonderful you are right!!
Dalia
This cake looks so decadent, and I love chocolate so much and ganache…and toffee 🙂 And I really love that you shared the personal happy memory behind this recipe.
Chef G
Thanks so much. Sometimes stories are wonderful to share.
Amanda@ChewTown
Toffee and chocolate really is a winning combination and lets face it, if you’re making a chocolate cake, why not pimp it up with toffee!!
Chef G
My thought’s exactly!!
THE HUNGRY MUM
This cake is amazing! Toffee and choc – how delightful. Your styling is lovely, too. Found your great blog via Food Bloggers Central on fb.PS – Yummed this.
Chef G
Thanks for the kind words…it was a labour of love that’s for sure.
Nadia
You had me at toffee! So sweet that 13 years later your daughter still remembers a cake you made for her 🙂 The cake must be that amazing and your daughter seems very appreciative! can’t wait to make this for my daughter!
Chef G
ENJOY…you will all LOVE IT!!
Fareeha
Looks like all the goodness has come together in this recipe.. toffee cake!!! my mouth is watering right now.
Chef G
Thanks so much…it is pretty tasty if I do say!!
Julia (@Imagelicious)
Wow, such a tall cake! Looks delicious!
Chef G
Thanks so much Julia….and thanks for the info on camera and lenses….it was really helpful!!