This Mint Chocolate Aero Cake is a perfect cake for any mint chocolate lover! It has two layers of chocolate and mint sponge, and it's filled with a two toned combination of chocolate buttercream and green mint buttercream. I've decorated the top with Aero Bubbles and more Aero chocolate, as the colours match the buttercream perfectly. You can decorate this cake with any mint chocolates though, or a mix of your favourites. This cake would be fabulous for a birthday, or any celebration!
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.
- I recommend using a good quality peppermint extract for the perfect minty flavour. And you don't need a lot of it to get the right balance of mint versus chocolate. Remember that with peppermint, a little goes a long way!
- You can decorate this cake with any mint chocolate sweet, I chose Aero but other yummy options include After Eights, Mint Matchmakers or Bendicks.
- The two toned buttercream is also optional. If you want all chocolate or all mint buttercream, just double the ingredients for your buttercream of choice.
- For the green buttercream I used a professional grade food colouring. These types of food colouring not only provide excellent colour results, but they are gel based so they do not make the buttercream sloppy. They are also easily available for purchase online. My favourite brands are Pro Gel and Sugarflair. Other good quality brands are Colour Mill and Americolor.
- 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 Mint Chocolate Aero Cake
To make the sponges, mix the butter and sugar together for about three minutes until fluffy, then whisk in the eggs, peppermint extract and milk.
Add the self raising flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda, and whisk in gently. Divide the mixture between the cake tins. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until a thin skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Leave to cool completely.
Make the mint green buttercream by mixing together butter, icing sugar, peppermint extract, milk and green food colouring. Make the chocolate buttercream by mixing together butter, icing sugar, cocoa powder and milk. Put both buttercreams into a piping bag on opposite sides. Pipe the buttercream onto the first layer of cake, then add the second layer and decorate with the remaining buttercream, Aero bubbles and chopped up Aero bar.
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. 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 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 apperance of 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.
Can this cake be made in different size cake tins?
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.
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 3 additional teaspoons baking powder. Please note, I have not tested this recipe using plain or all purpose flour.
Can this recipe be made into cupcakes?
Yes, for full details check out my Mint Chocolate Aero Cupcakes recipe.
Do you have to decorate with two toned buttercream?
No, while the two toned buttercream looks very effective and is simple to do, if you are short on time just double either the green buttercream or chocolate buttercream amounts and decorate the cake with one solid colour. Or you could make both buttercreams, put them in separate piping bags and do swirls of each colour alternately around the cake.
Do you need an electric mixer to make this recipe?
While you can absolutely make this recipe with a wooden spoon and some elbow grease, I do recommend using an electric mixer for the best results. The cake will be lighter and fluffier when made with an electric mixer. The buttercream will also be smoother. You don't have to use an expensive stand mixer either, you can get electric hand whisks for as little as £10!
Can this cake be made 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 additonal baking powder. The general advice is to add 2 tsp baking powder per 200g flour, so for this recipe you'd need to add 3 additional teaspoons baking powder. You may also like to add ½ tsp Xanthan Gum for better texture. 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.
Can this cake be made dairy free?
For a dairy free version, use a dairy free baking spread and dairy free milk for both the cake and buttercream. I recommend Flora Plant or the Stork Baking Block for the buttercream, as they give the best texture. You will also need to use a mint chocolate that is dairy free for decoration. 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.
More tips for making the Mint Chocolate Aero Cake:
- I used a Wilton 2D piping nozzle for this cake.
- You can spread the buttercream onto the cake with a spoon if you don’t want to pipe it.
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*
- 8" cake tins
- Mixing bowls
- Cooling rack
- Kitchen scales
- Electric hand mixer
- Piping bags
- Wilton 2D Piping nozzle
- Peppermint extract
- Green food colouring
- Aero bubbles
*I earn a small amount of money if you buy the products after clicking on the links. You will not be charged anything extra for this. Thank you for supporting The Baking Explorer!
More mint chocolate recipes...
Mint Chocolate Aero Cake
Ingredients
For the cake
- 350 g Butter or baking spread softened, unsalted
- 350 g Caster sugar
- 6 Eggs large
- 2 tbsp Milk
- 2 tsp Peppermint extract
- 300 g Self raising flour
- 50 g Cocoa powder
- ½ tsp Baking powder
- ½ tsp Bicarbonate of soda
For the mint green buttercream
- 125 g Butter softened, unsalted
- 250 g Icing sugar
- 1 tsp Peppermint extract
- 1-2 tbsp Milk
- Green food colouring
For the chocolate buttercream
- 125 g Butter softened, unsalted
- 215 g Icing sugar
- 35 g Cocoa powder
- 2-3 tbsp Milk
For decoration
- Aero bubbles
- Aero chocolate bar
Instructions
- Pre-heat your oven to 160C Fan/180C/350F/Gas Mark 4, and grease and line two 8" cake tins (that are at least 2" deep)
- Make the sponge by mixing the butter and caster sugar together in a mixing bowl until fluffy (around 3 minutes), ideally using an electric mixer
- Add the eggs, peppermint extract and milk, and whisk until fully incorporated
- Add the self raising flour, cocoa powder, bicarbonate of soda and baking powder and whisk in gently, just until you can't see any flour anymore
- Divide the mixture between the tins, use scales for accuracy if you like
- Bake them for 35-40 minutes or until a thin skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean. Leave them to fully cool either in the tins or remove from the tin and place on cooling racks
- Make the green mint buttercream by mixing together the softened butter, peppermint extract, milk and icing sugar until smooth. You can do this by hand, but an electric whisk or stand mixer with paddle attachment will provide the best results. If the buttercream is too stiff, you can add a little more milk
- Then add a small amount of green food colouring and mix until a pastel green shade is reached. You can add more food colouring if needed
- Make the chocolate buttercream by mixing together the softened butter, cocoa powder, milk and icing sugar, and mix until smooth. You can do this by hand, but an electric whisk or stand mixer with paddle attachment will provide the best results. If the buttercream is too stiff, you can add a little more milk
- Fill a piping bag fitted with your chosen nozzle, with the gren mint buttercream on one side and the chocolate buttercream on the other side
- Put one of the sponges on your plate or cake stand and pipe or spread some of the buttercream onto it
- Add the other sponge on top and pipe or spread the remaining buttercream on top
- Decorate with the Aero Bubbles and chunks of Aero Bar
- Leftovers will keep in an airtight container in a cool place for 3 days
Notes
- 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.
- I recommend using a good quality peppermint extract for the perfect minty flavour. And you don't need a lot of it to get the right balance of mint versus chocolate. Remember that with peppermint, a little goes a long way!
- You can decorate this cake with any mint chocolate sweet, I chose Aero but other yummy options include After Eights, Mint Matchmakers or Bendicks.
- The two toned buttercream is also optional. If you want all chocolate or all mint buttercream, just double the ingredients for your buttercream of choice.
- For the green buttercream I used a professional grade food colouring. These types of food colouring not only provide excellent colour results, but they are gel based so they do not make the buttercream sloppy. They are also easily available for purchase online. My favourite brands are Pro Gel and Sugarflair. Other good quality brands are Colour Mill and Americolor.
- 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.
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