Recipe: these adorable mini drum cakes couldn’t be more festive and fun

An alternative to traditional Christmas cake, these cute mini treats are guaranteed to impress

Written by I Love MCR
Last updated 2 years ago
Food & Drink, Sponsored

If you’re looking for an alternative to the traditional Christmas cake this winter, we’ve got just the thing.

While Christmas puddings and cakes can often be quite heavy after a full-on festive feast – not to mention time-consuming to make – these individual fluffy sponge cakes are sandwiched with fruity strawberry jam and decorated with smooth white butter icing.

Oh, and they’re incredibly cute, too.

While they look intricate, they’re fun to decorate, and can be ready in around an hour and a half.

They’re guaranteed to impress family, friends and social media alike.

And shopping for all the ingredients couldn’t be easier, thanks to the excellent news that Prime members in Manchester can now experience a new Click & Collect service when shopping ‘Morrisons on Amazon’.

Available at selected Morrisons stores across Greater Manchester, it means you can order all the ingredients you need in a few clicks, and then get your groceries in minutes without even leaving your car – as soon as an hour from ordering.

Mini Drum Cakes

Makes 8 cakes

Ingredients

720g butter
220g caster sugar
4 eggs
220g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp milk
50g smooth strawberry jam
1 kg icing sugar, sifted
1 green food colouring
1 red food colouring
16 mini pretzel sticks
50ml white chocolate, melted

Total time required: 1 hr 25 mins

(Preparation time: 55 mins; cooking time: 30 mins)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 180c/160fan gas mark 4/ 350F

Grease and line a 24×24 square cake tin.

Cream together 220g butter and the caster sugar until pale and fluffy.

Add in the eggs, plain flour, baking powder and milk and mix until just combined.

Spread the mixture into the cake tin and bake for 20-25 minutes or until risen and golden. Allow to cool completely.

Melt the white chocolate in a small bowl with 10 second blasts in the microwave.

Dip the end of 16 pretzel sticks into the chocolate to resemble the end of a drumstick, allow to set slightly and then dip again.

Line a baking tray with baking paper. Lay the drumsticks on the tray lined with baking paper and chill until firm in the fridge for 10 minutes.

Prepare the icing by beating 500g butter and the icing sugar together until very pale and fluffy.

Take out half of the icing and divide that into two bowls.

Mix one with red food colouring and the other green food colouring until you have vibrant icings.

Place the fine writing nozzle in one piping bag and fill with the green icing. Place the small star nozzle in another piping bag and fill with the red icing. Set aside until needed.

Now the cake sponge is cooled, use a 6cm round pastry cutter to stamp out the mini cakes.

Turn them all upside down so the top is flat and halve them horizontally through the middle. Spread with the jam and sandwich back together.

One by one, ice the mini cakes with the white butter icing, using a small palette knife to cover the cakes completely. To create a smooth effect at the end, place the palette knife in hot water, dry and use immediately on the icing.

Chill each cake after it is made in the fridge for 15 minutes

Once you have iced all the cakes, place on a flat serving board.

Start with the green icing and pipe diagonal lines around the outside of each cake. Next, pipe small stars around the bottom edge and top edge of the drum. Continue until you have iced all 12 and then place two drumsticks on top of each drum to complete.

Recipe from Morrisons.

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