Chocolate Traybake Cake with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting, Cadbury mini chocolate eggs, mini creme eggs and sprinkles, rich, buttery, moist and decadent, perfect for your Easter baking. It might be an easy traybake, but it looks like a proper showstopper, ready to impress your family and guests.
This Easter chocolate traybake is everything you want in a celebration cake: it's perfectly delicious, bakery-style, but really easy to make with simple, easily-available ingredients at this time of the year.
Easter is the perfect time to indulge in one too many chocolate treats, and my Easter Chocolate Cake is another great cake to bake, just a little bit different, as it's a two-tiered cake coated in chocolate buttercream and topped with chocolate eggs.
I do have a rather large list of Easter Recipes, and I cover everything from appetizers, to mains, sides and desserts, and this decadent chocolate cake is another great dessert to add to the list.
It's easy enough to be baked with kids, as a fun Easter activity, but also fancy enough for school cake sales, family gatherings or potlucks. And it also makes great use of all the leftover chocolate eggs you have around after Easter.
Inspired by my vanilla traybake cake with vanilla buttercream frosting, this cake is intensely chocolatey, rich and exquisite, and a real treat every single time.
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Note!
Go to the recipe card at the bottom of the post for exact quantities and detailed instructions!
Ingredients overview - the sponge
- self-raising flour - makes the sponge light and beautifully risen, unlike plain flour which will use a lot more raising agents added to it
- cocoa powder - use the best possible quality for an intense chocolatey flavour
- baking powder - for a good lift and light texture
- eggs - make sure they are at room temperature, so the sponge can rise quickly in the oven
- vanilla extract - it adds a lovely flavour to the sponge, and also enhances the chocolate touch
- butter - make sure it's at room temperature, as cold butter can have a massive impact on the sponge quality
- light brown and granulated sugar - add sweetness to the sponge, and the light brown sugar keeps it moist and rich
- milk - to loosen up the batter
Step-by-step photos and instructions
- add the butter to a large mixing bowl, and use a hand mixer to beat it lightly
- in go the sugars and beat again until you have a creamy, smooth texture
- add the cracked eggs, beating well after every addition
- sift in the flour, cocoa powder and baking powder, add the milk and vanilla extract and mix to get a smooth batter
- butter and flour a rectangle baking tray ( mine is 30 x 22 x 5 cm / 12 x 9 x 2 inches)
- spread the batter in an even layer, and bake in the preheated oven at 180 degrees Celsius (350 Fahrenheit) for 15 minutes
Expert tips
Make sure the butter is soft when you start baking, this ensures you will have a smooth batter and even rise. Cold ingredients can lead to a dense sponge that will not keep moist for long.
Let the sponge cool down completely before frosting it. Even slight warmth can melt the buttercream and spoil the finish. Decorate as soon as the buttercream goes on the sponge, once it sets, the sprinkles won't stick to it anymore.
Butter gives this sponge a richer, more decadent touch. Oil-based sponge is moist and light, but I find that it lacks that luxurious touch that only butter can add.
You can use any other edible decorations for your cake, I absolutely love the Cadbury mini eggs and mini creme eggs, but you can definitely decorate any anything else you have around.
If you do use mini creme eggs like I did, I highly recommend freezing them first, you can slice them so much easier. They are really messy if they are at room temperature.
Other Easter chocolate treats
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Easter Chocolate Traybake Cake with Chocolate Buttercream
Ingredients
For the chocolate sponge
- 200 g self-raising flour (1 ⅔ cups or 7 oz)
- 30 g cocoa powder (1 oz)
- 225 g butter, soft (1 cup)
- 135 g granulated sugar (⅔ cup)
- 65 g light brown sugar (⅓ cup)
- 4 large eggs
- 2 tablespoon milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
For the chocolate buttercream
- 300 g icing sugar (confectioners' sugar, 1 ½ cups)
- 30 g cocoa powder (1 oz)
- 160 g butter, soft (¾ cup or 5 oz)
- 1 tablespoon milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
To decorate
- 1 packet Cadbury mini creme eggs (78 g, 2.5 oz)
- 1 packet Cadbury mini eggs (74 g, 2.5 oz)
- a handful of Easter sprinkles
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Instructions
- To make the sponge, preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius (350 Fahrenheit).
- Add the butter and sugar to a large mixing bowl, and use a hand mixer to beat them well until creamy.
- Crack the eggs in one by one, mixing well after every addition.
- Sift in the flour, cocoa powder and baking powder, add the vanilla extract and milk and use a spatula to mix well to incorporate all the ingredients.
- Line a rectangle baking tray with non-stick paper or butter and flour it well, and spread the batter evenly (mine is 30 x 22 x 5 cm / 12 x 9 x 2 inches).
- Bake for 25 minutes until golden and a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.
- Remove the sponge from the oven and leave it to cool down completely.
- To make the buttercream frosting, add all the ingredients to a blender and blitz to a smooth texture.
- Alternatively, add the butter and icing sugar to a large mixing bowl, and use a hand mixer to cream them together.
- Add the cocoa powder, vanilla extract and milk, and beat again until smooth and creamy.
- Once the sponge has cooled down, spread the buttercream evenly on top, then decorate with mini creme eggs, chocolate eggs and sprinkles.
Video
Notes
- a soft butter helps with an even rise and a lighter sponge
- cool the sponge down completely before icing it
- if you do use mini creme eggs like I did, I highly recommend freezing them first, you can slice them so much easier. They are really messy if they are at room temperature.
Nutrition
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