Dark Chocolate Malt Snack Cake

chocolate malt cake cut into squares on parchment paper.

5 from 29 votes

Dark Chocolate Malt Snack Cake

This dark chocolate malt snack cake has a uniform, moist crumb with an impossibly fudgy texture and a swoon-worthy chocolate frosting. Its deep malt flavor is reminiscent of whoppers but elevated with high quality chocolate. As a bowl & whisk recipe, this cake comes together in a flash!

Prep Time 1

Cook Time 40

Total Time 1 40

Servings16 servings

Coursecake

CuisineAmerican

AuthorSloane

Equipment

Ingredients

For the chocolate malt cake:

210 g (1 ½ cups) malted milk powder, toasted
240 g (2 cups) all-purpose flour
187 g (¾ cup + 3 tbsp) granulated sugar
31 g (¼ cup + 2 tbsp) dutch process cocoa powder
31 g (¼ cup + 2 tbsp) black cocoa powder
1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
227 g (1 cup) whole milk, room temp
150 g (¾ cup) light tasting olive oil
3 large eggs, room temp
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
113 g (½ cup) freshly brewed hot coffee

For the chocolate malt frosting:

113 g (8 tablespoon) unsalted butter, room temp
21 g (¼ cup) dutch process cocoa powder
21 g (¼ cup) black cocoa powder
70 g (½ cup) malted milk powder, toasted
½ teaspoon kosher salt
113 g (1 cup) powdered sugar, sifted
1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
113 g (4 oz) bittersweet chocolate, melted & cooled
113 g (½ cup) heavy cream, cold

Instructions

For the chocolate malt cake:

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F (90 degrees C) and line a small baking sheet with parchment paper.
Spread the malted milk powder onto the baking sheet into an even layer. Bake for about 30-40 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes, until evenly golden. To save time, toast enough malted milk powder for both the cake and the frosting.
Once the malted milk powder has been toasted, turn the oven up to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C). Line a 9" square pan with parchment paper.
Soak cake strips in ice cold water.*
In a medium bowl, sift the toasted malted milk powder. Add the flour, sugar, cocoa powders, baking powder, and salt, and mix to combine. Set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together the milk, oil, eggs, and vanilla.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet, and whisk until just combined.
Lastly, whisk in the hot coffee until fully combined.
Pour the batter into the prepared square pan. Wrap the cake strips around the pan and bake for about 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
Allow cake to cool completely in the pan.

For the chocolate malt frosting:

In a large bowl, cream together the butter, cocoa powders, toasted malted milk powder, and salt with an electric mixer until smooth.
Add in half of the sifted powdered sugar, and mix until mostly combined. Then add in the remaining half, along with the vanilla, and mix until smooth.
Mix in the cooled melted chocolate until fully combined. The frosting will be very thick at this point, but don't panic it will all work out!
In a glass measuring cup, add the cold heavy cream and use an electric mixer to beat until soft peaks form.
Use a rubber spatula to gently fold the whipped cream into the frosting until fully combined.
Decorate the cooled cake as desired, and enjoy!

Notes

Toast the malted milk powder. To amplify the malt flavor, toast the malted milk powder at a low temperature (200 degrees F) for about 30-40 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Be sure to toast enough for both the cake and the frosting!

Sift the malted milk powder. Malted milk powder tends to clump up when toasted in the oven. Before using it in the cake batter or frosting, sift it through a fine mesh sieve to bring it back to a super fine powder.

Use a cake strip to create a flat cake. Soak these wilton cake strips in ice water before starting the cake batter. Just before baking, wrap the cake strips around the pan. The cold temperature on the outside of the cake will prevent the edges from baking faster than the center, resulting in an evenly baked flat cake.

When making the frosting, trust the process! This is an unusual frosting, as it resembles cookie dough more than frosting up until the whipped cream is folded in. But don't panic because in the end you'll be rewarded with a very rich, creamy chocolate malt frosting!

Nutrition Facts

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