Name: Crunchie Drip Cake
Prep time: 90 min
Cook time: 35 min
Total time: 125 min
Ingredients: 500 g Caster sugar; 500 g Butter or baking spread (softened, unsalted); 9 Eggs (large); 425 g Self raising flour; 75 g Cocoa powder; 1 tbsp Milk; 1/4 tsp Baking powder; 200 g Butter (softened, unsalted); 400 g Icing sugar; 200 g Crunchie spread; 1-2 tbsp Milk; 350 g Butter (softened, unsalted); 615 g Icing sugar; 85 g Cocoa powder; 1 tbsp Milk; 65 g Dark chocolate; 65 ml Double cream; 75 g Dark chocolate; 1 tsp Vegetable oil; 7 Crunchie bars

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This celebration worthy Crunchie Drip Cake is made up of three layers of chocolate cake, with Crunchie buttercream between each layer, surrounded by rich chocolate buttercream and decorated with a chocolate drip, more Crunchie buttercream and then lots of Cadbury's Crunchie bars on top. It's Crunchie heaven! This cake would make such a perfect birthday or celebration cake for the Crunchie fan in your life!

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Ingredient Tips & Equipment Information

Make sure all your ingredients (particularly the butter and eggs) are at room temperature before you start baking.
I used a baking spread for the cake and unsalted butter for the buttercream.
Crunchie spread is available from Asda, Sainsburys and online. Check the recommend equipment and ingredient section below for an Amazon link. If you can't get hold of it, you can make extra chocolate buttercream and use that instead.
You can use any cocoa powder for this cake, of course the better quality it is, the better flavour it will have. Also do make sure you are using cocoa powder and not a hot chocolate powder.
The Crunchies will go slightly soft after a short while once the honeycomb inside is exposed to the air, so add them as close to serving as possible.
For all the tips and tricks on how to make a drip cake, including a how to video, check out my Ultimate Drip Cake How To Guide!
Although I provide cup measurements, I highly recommend weighing your ingredients out using digital kitchen scales. It is the most accurate way to measure ingredients and will ensure the best results. Digital scales are very low cost and can be purchased for around £12 ($16.50) .
For teaspoon (tsp) and tablespoon (tbsp) measurements, please use measuring spoons and not the type of spoons you eat with. Again this will ensure accuracy and provide the best results.

For the full recipe with measurements, head to the recipe card at the end of this post.

How to make a Crunchie Drip Cake

To make the chocolate sponges, mix together butter and sugar, then whisk in eggs and milk. Add self raising flour, cocoa powder and baking powder, and mix in. Divide the mixture evenly between three lined and greased 8″ cake tins. Bake them for 35 minutes, and leave them to cool.

For the Crunchie buttercream, mix together butter and icing sugar, then add the milk and Crunchie spread and mix until smooth. For the chocolate buttercream, mix together the butter, cocoa powder and icing sugar, then add milk and mix until smooth. To stack and decorate the cake, level off each sponge with a cake leveller so they are all an even height, Then place the bottom chocolate sponge on a decorating turn table, pipe chocolate buttercream around the edge and fill the middle with Crunchie buttercream. Do the same with the next sponge.

Then cover the cake with a crumb coat of chocolate buttercream and put it in the fridge for 30 minutes. Next add the final layer of chocolate buttercream and smooth it out. Add the chocolate drip, and pipe Crunchie buttercream all around the cake in rosettes.

Finally break up the Crunchie bars and place them on top. Also chop up some more Crunchie bars and place them in the centre of the cake.

For the full recipe with measurements, head to the recipe card at the end of this post.

Can the cake be made in different size cake tins?

Yes! If you would like to make this cake in different size tins, please check my Conversion Guide to find out how to adjust the recipe.

How do you get the perfect chocolate drip?

It's really important to have a good base for the chocolate drip, so the cake needs a 'crumb coat' then a top layer of buttercream. Try and get it as smooth as you can so the chocolate drip has a nice even surface to drip down. Each layer of buttercream needs to firm up in the fridge and be chilled when you apply the chocolate drip. Be frugal with the drip amounts at first and see how far it drips, then you can reduce or increase the amount of chocolate you release from the piping bag or squeeze bottle as you move around the cake. For all the information, including a tutorial video and step by step instructions with photos, check out my Ultimate Drip Cake How To Guide!

How long does the cake last for and can you freeze it?

The cake will keep in an airtight container for 3 days in a cool place. You can freeze the sponges either alone, or decorated (but do not freeze the crunchies). Once the sponges are fully cool, wrap them well with cling film or put them in an airtight container with some baking paper between them. You can freeze the buttercream on it’s own in a tub, or you can decorate the cake and freeze it fully assembled. To do this and avoid damage to the decoration, freeze it either in an airtight container or let it freeze solid on a cake board or plate, then wrap in cling film. Remove the cling film when you take it out to defrost it, if you don’t it could damage the decoration as it defrosts and softens. You can also freeze slices of the cake, again well wrapped in cling film or in airtight containers.

What if you can't find the Crunchie spread?

Crunchie spread is available from Asda, Sainsburys and online. Check the recommend equipment and ingredient section below for an Amazon link. If you can't get hold of it, you can make extra chocolate buttercream and use that instead.

Can you make the cake with plain/all purpose flour?

Self raising flour, which is very commonly used in the UK where I am based, already contains a raising agent and a little salt too. Therefore if you want to swap it for plain or all purpose flour, you will need to add some additional baking powder and also a little salt if you like. Some people like to add salt to cake recipes and some don't, so I'll leave that up to you as it won't affect the bake. The general advice is to add 2 teaspoons baking powder (a measuring teaspoon, not the kind you stir your coffee with) per every 200g plain or all purpose flour. So for this recipe you'd need to add 4 teaspoons baking powder. Please note, I have not tested this recipe using plain or all purpose flour.

Can this cake be made dairy or gluten free?

Yes! For gluten free you can replace the self raising flour with a gluten free self raising flour blend. If you only have a gluten free plain flour blend, you will need to add additional baking powder. The general advice is to add 2 tsp baking powder per 200g flour, so for this recipe you'd need to add 4 teaspoons baking powder. You may also like to add ¾ tsp xanthan gum for better texture. For a dairy free version, use a dairy free baking spread and dairy free milk for both the cake and buttercream. Please do check the labels for everything you use to make the cake if you are serving it to someone with an allergy or intolerance.

Troubleshooting

If you have any questions about this recipe, or if something went wrong and you need help, please use the comment form below and I will get back to you. You can also get in touch with me on my Twitter, Instagram or Facebook. I'd love to hear from you!

Recommended equipment & ingredients

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