Frosted white chocolate Easter cake

Frosted white chocolate Easter cake

A slice of this Madeira-style cake is wonderful with a morning cup of tea or coffee

Difficulty and servings

Easy

Serves 10

Preparation and cooking times

Preparation time

Prep 10 mins

Cook time

Cook 1 hr

plus cooling
Freezable

Can be frozen un-iced

Method

  1. Heat oven to 160C/fan 140C/gas 3. Grease a deep 23cm cake tin and line the base with greaseproof paper. Place the butter, white chocolate, milk and vanilla extract in a small saucepan, then heat gently, stirring, until melted. Combine the flour, bicarb and sugar in a large bowl with a pinch of salt, then stir in the melted ingredients and eggs until smooth. Pour the batter into the tin, then bake for 1 hr, or until the cake is golden and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Cool in the tin. Once cool, the cake can be wrapped in cling film and foil, then frozen for up to 1 month.
  2. To make the frosting, beat together the Philadelphia, butter and icing sugar until smooth. Spread over the cake, then decorate with mini eggs.
Try

Use full-fat cream cheese

- Don't use low-fat cream cheese, as this has a much higher water content than full fat and will be more prone to going runny.

Choosing chocolate

- We've used various qualities of white chocolate and have had a good result with all of them, but found that flavour-wise the standard 200g own-brand bars that each supermarket sells tasted great, plus the chocolate was easy to work with.

Icing know-how

- For the icing, don't over-soften or melt the butter, or your icing will be too soft. It should be at room temperature but not looking greasy. The more you beat, the more you'll warm the ingredients, and the softer it will become.

Tips for success

This cake has been made 10 times by 5 different people for various photo shoots and testing, so we can assure you it does work. However, white chocolate can sometimes be temperamental, so before you start cooking, take a look over our tips for success:

Bake for an hour

- Because this cake has a high sugar content, it will develop a very dark crust as it bakes. Don't remove the cake from the oven until an hour is up - even if it looks ready.

Bubbly mixture?

- The surface of the cake will get a volcanic-looking ring of bubbly mixture in the middle during cooking. This is because the batter is much thinner than a normal cake mixture. By the end of the cooking time, this will have evened out and the surface should be uniform.

The skewer test

- To test that it's ready, insert a clean skewer into the cake. It should come out clean without any hint of stickyness.

Egg size

- Make sure your eggs are the right size.

Watch the heat

- Don't let the chocolate, milk, butter mixture get too hot. Melt over a very gentle heat, stirring regularly so the chocolate doesn't catch on the bottom. This should take a good 5 mins.

PER SERVING

770 kcalories, protein 7g, carbohydrate 76g, fat 50 g, saturated fat 29g, fibre 1g, sugar 58g, salt 1.04 g

Recipe from Good Food magazine, April 2009.

Try 3 issues of Good Food magazine for £3 - subscribe now!

Latest comments and suggestions

Results 1-20

  • Binder photo Jane

    02 April 2009

    Jane rated and commented on this recipe

    1 stars

    I made this as an option for the top tier of my daughter's wedding cake as she loves white chocolate. Although the texture was lovely and moist it had a peculiar taste - not white chocolatey at all. Disappointing!

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo Biggestdave

    06 April 2009

    Biggestdave rated and commented on this recipe

    4 stars

    Lovely cake. As the tester mentions above it does not taste that much of white choc but it is still very tasty.

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo Tanzanite

    09 April 2009

    Tanzanite commented on this recipe

    I have made this cake twice, one in a gas oven the other electric and both have come out with a sticky gooey piece at the bottom of the cake, although it was okay to eat.

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo shez

    11 April 2009

    shez commented on this recipe

    This is officially my first baking disaster! It smelt lovely and chocolately while cooking and came out really moist but with a crunchy top. Not sure what happened but mine took two hours to cook.

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo Allie

    12 April 2009

    Allie commented on this recipe

    I am really disappointed with the way this has turned out. It looked so tempting on the front of the last issue of the mag. I followed the recipe but had to leave the cake in for 15 mins longer before taking out of the oven as I was worried it would burn. My cake has dropped in the middle and is still sticky- the top is golden and crunchy. Ah well so much for our Easter cake today - better think of a plan B :o(

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo Lynda, Kent

    12 April 2009

    Lynda, Kent rated and commented on this recipe

    2 stars

    I too baked this cake twice, and both times it had a thick, almost 'uncooked' looking section at the bottom of the cake. The best part was the frosting - very yummy.

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo Moosie Moo

    12 April 2009

    Moosie Moo commented on this recipe

    Don't use a springform tin when making this cake as the raw mixture is alot runnier than the average cake mix. I stood my springform tin on a baking tray just incase it leaked (& it did, but only a little). I had to cook it for slightly longer than the hour, about 10 mins extra.The outside of the cake was crunchy but once the icing was put on this softened up. I made the mistake of using Philly Light for the icing. It covered the cake nicely but was a little bit runny. Tasted scrummy though. This is a lovely dense, moist cake - I was a bit worried on cutting the cake as it looked slightly uncooked in the centre but it was fine. I was a bit concerned after reading the other comments while I was in the process of making this but on the whole I was very happy with the result.

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo Moosie Moo

    13 April 2009

    Moosie Moo rated this recipe

    3 stars

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo Alison Goodwin

    13 April 2009

    Alison Goodwin commented on this recipe

    I'm pleased to see it's not just me that had trouble with this recipe - I thought I must have done something really wrong! Like others, mine took far longer to cook than the stated time, sank in the middle and went crunchy on the top! The texture was very heavy and sticky. A big disappointment.

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo saffij

    14 April 2009

    saffij rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Don't be put off! Give it a go! I made this cake for Easter and it was a hit. I also didn't use a spring-tin as it leaked! Instead, I used two smaller tins and sandwiched them together with some of the frosting before covering the whole lot and topping with mini-eggs. It was great. perhaps by using two tins rather than one large, I overcame the cooking issues that some of you experienced? If you are transporting this cake or not eating it for a while - leave the eggs off until you are ready to serve as the dye from them runs slightly.

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo LisaC1973

    15 April 2009

    LisaC1973 rated and commented on this recipe

    4 stars

    I agree with the comments by Moosie Moo and saffij - do not use a spring-form tin! I did and as the mixture is runnier than a normal cake mix, it leaked a little (not much), but I did have the foresight to put it on a baking tray first. I made this cake for Easter with the mini eggs on top and it turned out brilliantly. I didn't have any problems with it being undercooked after one hour or crispy on top. It was perfect. The only thing I would say is that it is a dense cake and is very sweet - probably due to the white chocolate in it. Therefore its perfect for the kids. Yummy!

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo SHARON

    16 April 2009

    SHARON commented on this recipe

    Was going to do this for a barbeque tomorrow night. Glad I read the reviews as I have changed my mind.

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo Jo

    16 April 2009

    Jo rated and commented on this recipe

    4 stars

    I was a bit worried doing this cake for easter after reading some pf the previous comments but it turned out perfectly. It cooked in the time given in the recipe & the texture was lovely. My only comments would be that it doesn't keep that well so needs eating on the day that it's made & as previously mentioned, don't add the mini eggs until the last moment as the dye runs.

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo LindaL

    16 April 2009

    LindaL rated and commented on this recipe

    4 stars

    I've made this cake three times now - Easter and birthdays - and will be making it again tomorrow for my son's birthday party at his insistence! I haven't had a problem with the texture and have used a springform each time. On each occasion it has cooked in just under the hour (two different ovens used). My only problem has been the icing. I haven't been able to get the consistency correct without using almonds. However this is a great cake that is easy to make and tastes delicious!

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo Lil

    18 April 2009

    Lil commented on this recipe

    I actually had quite a success with this cake, BUT it still could have done with longer in the oven as the centre was ever so slightly moist...a bit annoying as on the face of it, it was fully done. WHAT WAS DIFFERENT ABOUT THE WAY I DID IT? My oven was absolutely boiling hot when I put it in as had been making hot cross buns too - I really think this helped. Pre-heat your oven for ages so that it is really red hot. Had this not been the case, I think I would be here leaving cross comments! The icing was delicious and I followed the recipe to the letter. If you've made this and not had a good time of it, give it another go - it really is a yummy cake but I think the timings given in the recipe are a bit dodgy.

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo Kesmyth

    21 April 2009

    Kesmyth rated and commented on this recipe

    1 stars

    Very unhappy with this cake, a lot of ingredients wasted as all went in the bin. A complete mess of a cake. :o(

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo x--Annabanana--x

    04 May 2009

    x--Annabanana--x rated and commented on this recipe

    3 stars

    i agree with some of the previous comments about the taste. I like white chocolate but this had a weird taste to it. It didn't take longer to cook for me but it was a really dense texture and the middle wasn't quite cooked. However it looked impressive once covered with the icing and alot of mini eggs and went down a storm with my family!

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo mary marney

    10 May 2009

    mary marney rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    YUMMY

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo Jinty

    14 May 2009

    Jinty commented on this recipe

    I am so relieved to read the other comments and know it was not just me! This was the worst cake I have ever made, even beats the terrible Blue Peter recipe for banana cake I made when I was 8! The texture was very strange and my 14 year old daughter said it tasted like vegetables. It seemed very dense and oily. As someone above said what a waste of a lot of ingredients. Mine went in the bin!

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo VonnyBee

    16 May 2009

    VonnyBee rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    I have made this cake three times and it has worked brilliantly each time. The timings have been just right. I was a bit concerned that the cake looked a little overcooked on top but by the time you add the icing, you don't notice that the top is a little crispy. Everyone loves this although it is very rich and you don't need much of it.

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

Leave a comment or suggestion

You must sign in or register to leave a comment.

Sign in / Register

Difficulty and servings

Easy

Serves 10

Preparation and cooking times

Preparation time

Prep 10 mins

Cook time

Cook 1 hr

plus cooling
Freezable

Can be frozen un-iced

Ingredients

  • 250g butter , plus a little extra for greasing
  • 140g white chocolate , broken into pieces
  • 250ml milk
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 250g self-raising flour
  • ¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda
  • 300g caster sugar
  • 2 large eggs , lightly beaten

FOR THE FROSTING

  • 300g tub Philadelphia cheese
  • 85g butter , softened
  • 100g icing sugar , sifted
  • mini eggs , to decorate (or use 50g/2oz chopped hazelnuts)
Print this recipe
Add to your binder

PER SERVING

770 kcalories, protein 7g, carbohydrate 76g, fat 50 g, saturated fat 29g, fibre 1g, sugar 58g, salt 1.04 g

Advertisement

Your binder

Here are three other great reasons why to sign up:

  • You get an online binder, where you can store all your favourite recipes and create menus.
  • You can add your own recipes to this site for others to try; plus, rate and make comments on recipes, and share your views on our blog.

Follow Good Food

Advertisement

All about Good Food

Magazine

Good Food Magazine

Subscribe to Good Food magazine - enjoy 100+ triple-tested recipes delivered to your door, every month.

Order today, and receive your first 3 issues for just £3

On TV

Foodie TV

See your favourite chefs on Sky Channel 247, Virgin TV 260 and find their recipes at goodfoodchannel.co.uk.

Good Food Apps

Good Food Apps

For Good Food on the go, download our apps to your phone or portable device.
Find out more here

Buy ingredients

With just one click, the full list of recipe ingredients will be put into a basket at your choice of provider. Choose from:

mySupermarket Compare prices and choose a retailer you wish to buy them from.

Ocado Let Ocado deliver all you need for this recipe, right to your door

Tesco Buy all the ingredients from our recipes through your Tesco online shop.

new

Asda Shop with Asda? You can now buy ingredients for our recipes via your Asda online shop.

In association with the above providers. Terms and conditions apply.

Close