Viral Cakes – my rather grumpy view
And a Light, Moist, Chocolate Sprinkle Cake which is NOT a Dot Cake!
And a Light, Moist, Chocolate Sprinkle Cake which is NOT a Dot Cake!
Viral Cakes are just classics by another name wrapped up with a bit of theatre. The recent Dot Cake explosion got me wondering why on earth they were seemingly so exciting. A relatively basic sponge, in a pot, covered in fairly basic buttercream, encrusted with hundreds and thousands and then refrigerated – what’s the big deal?
The original Dot Cake comes from a New York bakery with the same name. There have been queues round the block to buy these things. The reviews of the originals are mixed and range from people not really sure what the fuss is about to those raving about them. I saw one Instagram reel of 2 girls, around the age of 20 saying how the cake is the perfect amount of crunch, creaminess and cake.
A Dot Cake is a classic age old combination. In fact, over 50 years ago my Mum would make fairy cakes – because cupcakes didn’t exist back then – cover them in buttercream and sprinkle Hundreds and Thousands over the top.
So what is the difference between a dot cake and the cute cakes my Mum made half a century ago. (Woah…..half a century, now that hits a bit hard!)
What difference half a century makes?
The difference is simple – the drama! Every single post I have seen about Dot Cakes show someone scraping a spoon or fork over the crust of sprinkles, then delving through thick, hard buttercream to scoop some cake from below.
The difference between my Mum’s fairy cakes and todays Dot Cake is my Mum wasn’t videoing what she was doing for full dramatic effect. She was making cakes her kids wanted to eat. The world is now viewed in 30 second clips. The goal - make something look fun, interesting or delicious in 30 seconds, whether it’s an age old recipe or a new invention. Let’s look at other recent viral sensations.
The cornflake crunch cake: A tub lined with chocolate cake, covered in chocolate ganache, topped with chocolate cornflake mix and some crushed mini eggs. You’re advised to eat this one warm, so the ooey gooey chocolate ganache comes flowing through the crunchy layer.
Dubai Chocolate anything: Originally a chocolate bar, but then it made its way to cookies, cakes and anything else where you can add chocolate to pistachio. Again, it was all in the drama – crack open a seemingly simple chocolate bar to reveal a green, creamy yet crunchy centre.
Let’s face it, it’s all a little ‘this isn’t any food, this is M&S food.’
These viral sensations are usually nothing ground breaking. They are well known flavour combinations, with well loved texture combinations. But they are dressed up into a video that creates a bit of theatre. Just like a M&S Food advert.
The problem I see however is that in order to get the drama, things sometimes have to be changed for the worst. Back to Dot Cakes.
The crunchy 3-4 millimetre thick Hundreds and Thousands layer, or as we seem to now be calling them, Nonpareils, is not a joyous eating experience. They are small, hard and pretty much pure sugar. A thick, impenetrable crust of Hundreds and thousands is not an optimum eating experience. Added to the fact that Dot Cakes are designed to be eaten cold. As in straight from the fridge cold.
Often a cake maker will tell you, that yes cakes, mainly those covered in buttercream or ganache, and particularly in a heatwave, can be stored in a fridge. But any cake maker worth their salt will tell you to remove the cake from the fridge at least an hour before you want to eat it. Because no-one likes cold, hard cake and solid buttercream. Yet, Dot Cakes, for maximum theatrical effect of hard buttercream and thick sprinkles should be eaten icy cold.
Anyway, enough of my grumping. If you want to try Dot Cakes, go ahead. That’s what being an adult with free will is about. However, I recommend you go and have a nice slice of cake, not too cold, with a few sprinkles on top for a pretty delicious cake experience.
Chocolate Sprinkle Cake
Below is my sprinkle covered chocolate cake. It is not a Dot Cake. I recommend eating it at room temperature. I recommend a thin layer of Hundreds and Thousands. I recommend not videoing yourself eating it. I recommend simply enjoying it for what it is.
This is a very light and delicate cake. I bake it thin and sandwich it. You can bake it thicker but don’t try to slice it for layers as it will fall apart.
It uses the reverse creaming method, which coats the flour in fat before adding liquid. This helps to make it a very moist cake. If you don’t manage to construct the cakes on the day you bake the cake, beware if you try to wrap it in cling film as it will stick quite badly. I recommend putting a piece of greaseproof parchment on top of the cake before wrapping to help when you come to unwrap it.
I made a 7” x 11” traybake which I then sliced into 10 rectangles for my tubs. You can also make these in round tubs and use a round cookie cutter to cut the cake. Doing it that way though will give you more waste cake.
There is a printable PDF and ingredient notes after the recipe
Chocolate Sprinkle Cake Recipe
Makes 5 tubs – 1 x 7” x 11” Traybake or equivalent
