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Spiderweb Cake

17/11/2023

The Spiderweb Cake is a themed dessert often seen during Halloween parties, but it can be a fun treat at any time of the year, especially if you have kids at home. Here is a simple version of this dessert, ideal for creating a little “scary” atmosphere.

Ingredients

For the cake base:

  • 200 g of sugar
  • 200 g of flour
  • 200 g of soft butter
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 sachet of baking powder
  • A pinch of salt
  • 30 g of cocoa powder

For the topping and decoration:

  • 100 g of dark chocolate
  • 100 ml of fresh cream
  • 2 tablespoons of apricot jam (or preferred flavor)
  • 50 g of white chocolate

Preparation

  1. Preparing the base: Begin by preheating the oven to 180 °C (350 °F). In the meantime, whisk the soft butter with the sugar until you get a foamy mixture. Add the eggs, one at a time, continuing to whisk.

  2. Separately, sift the flour with the baking powder, cocoa, and salt. Add these dry ingredients to the mixture of eggs, sugar, and butter, mixing gently to avoid deflating the mixture.

  3. Pour the batter into a round cake tin (22-24 cm in diameter) that has been buttered and floured or lined with parchment paper. Bake for about 35-40 minutes. Check for doneness with a toothpick: if it comes out clean, the cake is ready.

  4. Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool completely.

  5. Preparing the topping: Melt the dark chocolate in a double boiler or microwave and mix with the cream to create a smooth and homogeneous ganache. Spread it over the surface of the cooled cake.

  6. Creating the spiderweb: Warm the jam to soften it and use it to cover the top part of the cake, this will make the surface sticky so that the white chocolate spiderweb sticks better.

  7. Melt the white chocolate in a double boiler or microwave and put it in a piping bag with a very thin nozzle (or use a finely cut parchment paper cone). Draw concentric spirals, starting from the center of the cake and moving outwards.

  8. Using a toothpick or the tip of a knife, draw lines from the center of the cake to the edge, crossing through the white chocolate spirals, to create the “spiderweb” effect.

Curiosity

Many pastry chefs have fun further personalizing the spiderweb cake, for example by adding a “spider” made with chocolates or black fondant. The spiderweb cake is versatile: depending on the holiday or occasion, you can adapt the colors of the decoration (like red and green for Christmas). Have fun decorating and bon appétit!