Showstopping Mojito Drizzle Cake

By Tala Kitchenware

Part cake, part cocktail, this outrageous glitzy Mojito drizzle cake from Tala will get the party started! Citrus flavours combine with silky rum-flavoured Swiss meringue buttercream, crystallised fresh mint and food-grade gold leaf. To be purist, you should use white rum (not the pirate variety) but both taste delicious.

Preparation Time: 1hr 30min (approx) + 2hrs chilling
Cooking Time: 35min
Serves: 12

Tips:

You really need a counter-top mixer for the Swiss meringue buttercream but in a pinch, a hand-held mixer will do.
Start on the crystallised mint the day before, so it can dry out overnight. For this, you can use pasteurised egg whites which you can buy in a carton.
For the Swiss meringue buttercream, though, only freshly cracked egg whites will do.

Equipment:

Baking tray x 2
Large mixing bowl and a wooden spoon (or counter-top mixer)
18cm diameter cake pan (x3 or re-use the same one)
Greaseproof paper
Wire cooling rack
Cake leveller
Small and large saucepans
Tala enamelled lime squeezer
Tala enamelled lemon squeezer
Medium mixing bowl
Whisk
Tala Cook’s Measure
18cm diameter cake board
Pastry brush
Cake scraper
Mini palette knife

Ingredients:

For the cake:

275g caster sugar
275g softened butter or margarine
6 medium free-range eggs
350g self-raising flour
1tsp baking powder
3tbsp milk
zest of 1 lime

For the drizzle:

200ml caster sugar (pour to this level in the Tala Cooks’ Measure)
100ml water
juice of the zested lime
3tbsp rum

For the Swiss meringue buttercream:

6 medium egg whites
500g salted butter (softened slightly)
360g caster sugar
4tbsp rum

To decorate:

3 limes
5 leaves of food-grade gold leaf transfer
Mint leaves picked from the plant (or a pack of fresh leaves is fine)
Pasteurised egg whites
Caster sugar

To Make:

Line a baking tray with greaseproof paper. Using a pastry brush, paint each side of the mint leaves with pasteurised egg white. Dredge both sides of the leaves with caster sugar and place on the baking sheet to dry overnight.
Preheat the oven to 150ºC Fan. Line an 18cm diameter cake pan (or all 3 if you are not re-using the same pan).
Cream the caster sugar and margarine in a large mixing bowl or counter-top mixer. Add the eggs and mix again, followed by the flour, baking powder and zest. Mix until smooth.
Divide the mixture between the three tins, if you have them. Or divide the mixture into three and bake separately (the uncooked mixture will wait quite happily, just give it a quick stir before transferring to the tin).
Bake for about 30min until risen and golden. The cake should spring back when carefully pressed in the centre. Cool in the tins for 5min before turning out onto a wire rack.
For the drizzle: Place all the drizzle ingredients apart from the rum into a small saucepan and heat gently until the sugar dissolves. Turn off the heat, add the rum and stir.
When the cakes are cool, cut off the domed parts with a cake leveller. Spoon the syrup over the three cakes – it seems like a lot of drizzle, but it really is worth it!
For the Swiss meringue buttercream: Place egg whites and sugar into a medium-size mixing bowl, whisk, and place over a pan of boiling water. Stir occasionally at first, then constantly until the sugar crystals dissolve (about 71ºC).
Allow to cool for about 5min. Transfer the mixture to the bowl of a worktop mixer fitted with a balloon whisk. Whisk the egg and sugar mixture at high speed until the mixture turns into glossy peaks. The mixing bowl should be about room temperature.
Slow down the mixer. Add butter, piece by piece until it is all used and the mixture is pale, smooth and fluffy. Add the rum and mix again.
Place a few scrapes of buttercream onto the cake board and set the first cake on top of it. Spread a generous layer of buttercream over the top and layer the next cake on top. Repeat. Chill for at least 2hrs.
To decorate: When the cake is firm, remove from the fridge and place on a turntable. Spread buttercream generously over the top and sides. Holding the cake scraper vertically next to the cake, revolve the turntable so that the scraper smooths the icing into the walls of the cake and some of the sponge is visible here and there for that contemporary ‘scraped’ look. Use the palette knife to smooth off any buttercream ridges that form at the top of the cake, so that it has nice sharp top edges. Return to the fridge to firm up again.
Remove the cake from the fridge. Apply the gold leaf by placing each leaf face down onto the side of the cake and pulling away from the backing paper so that the gold sticks to the cake in random distressed patches.
Cut two limes into very thin slices. Arrange in patterns over the sides of the cake – try not to cover the gold leaf. Cut the third lime into wedges and place in a ring on top of the cake.
Carefully place the crystallised mint in and around the wedges, and serve!