Easter Speckled Egg Cake

Make this Easter Speckled egg cake - a showstopper Strawberry Ruby chocolate cake that will certainly impress everyone! Super moist vanilla sponges cakes layered with a quick and easy strawberry compote and my signature Ruby chocolate whipped ganache frosting that does not only look stunning but also extremely delicious with all-natural pink colors!

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• Why this is the best recipe
• Ingredient notes
• 5 Expert Baking tips
• More Easter recipes
• RECIPE CARD
• Easter Speckled Egg Cake

Why this is the best recipe

The Speckled Easter cake is made using my popular super moist sponge cake recipe that is enhanced with vanilla. For the filling, I made a super simple strawberry compote that is extremely delicious with full of natural strawberry flavors without being overly sweet.

Forget food coloring and overly sweet buttercream, make this gorgeous Ruby chocolate whipped ganache (3 ingredients only, so easy!) instead, that has a beautiful silky taste and lovely natural pink color. Last but not least, some homemade chocolate decoration takes this Speckled Easter cake to the nest level; chocolate nest and molded chocolate chicken!

Ingredient notes

For the sponge cake

1. Oil: No butter, but oil! The biggest disappointment I often have with traditional butter-based sponge cakes is that they tend to firm up in the fridge and I like my cake soft and tender. The oil not only adds moisture to the cake, but it coats the flour which prevents gluten formation therefore the cake will get super tender even straight out of the fridge. Use good quality vegetable oil that has no or just very mild taste
2. Sugar: Superfine sugar is the most appropriate choice especially at the stage when beating egg white into the meringue, however, granulated white sugar can work fine too. If you want to learn about the different types of sugar and how to use them in baking, please read my article in here.
3. Egg: The majority of the sponge cake recipes call for beating whole eggs with sugar, however for the fluffiest sponge-like result I do recommend beating the egg white separately into a meringue-like texture then gently folding it into the mixture. Eggs must be at room temperature
4. Flour: All-purpose flour or cake flour makes the best cakes. They are so-called “soft flour” which is low on protein resulting in a delicate, tender texture. If you want to be a pro when it comes to deciding what type of flour to use in your baking, please read my article here.
5. Baking powder/soda: Actually none of these! Believe me, if you beat your egg yolk for min. 8-10 minutes until very pale and fluffy, in the meantime beat your egg white separately until shiny, easily stiff peaks, there is no need for an extra raising agent in the recipe. It won’t get grainy, it won’t get heavy, in fact, it will rise more evenly and definitely won’t crack on the top. The air that you beat into the egg is the actual rising agent
6. Milk: Use milk at room temp, I prefer whole milk

Exact Ingredient quantities can be found at the bottom of this page, in the RECIPE CARD!

For the strawberry compote filling

1. Strawberry: Fresh or frozen both works well here. I just love how the natural strawberry flavor without using tons of sugar meets berry-like Ruby chocolate in this Speckled Easter cake. It is so simple yet so delicious!
2. Sugar: Simply granulated sugar is fine to make the compote
3. Lemon juice: Use a small amount freshly squeezed. Lemon juice is needed to balance the sweetness, it won´t taste lemony
4. Gelatine: Gelatine is an odorless, tasteless and colorless thickening agent, very often used by pastry chefs, particularly in mousse cakes. Powder or sheet versions are available, in my recipes I always use sheet (1,7 g / sheet), which I found easier to handle. Simple soak the gelatin sheets into cold water for a few minutes before you need them and use them according to the recipe. Gelatin is not suitable for vegetarians. Agar agar can be a good substitution for vegetarians however replacing gelatin with agar agar is not 1:1 and can only be done by reformulating the recipe slightly. Please note that depending on how much you cook the compote (how much it thickens) you might need more or less gelatine.

Exact Ingredient quantities can be found at the bottom of this page, in the RECIPE CARD!

For the Ruby chocolate whipped ganache

1. Ruby chocolate: Ruby chocolate is what makes the amazing springy pink color of this Speckled cake! Ruby chocolate is a variety of chocolate introduced in 2017 by Barry Callebaut, a Belgian–Swiss cocoa company. It is marketed as the "fourth" type of chocolate alongside the dark, milk, and white chocolate varieties and is notable for its natural pink color. The chocolate is characterized by a taste that can be described as slightly sweet and sour, similar to a natural berry flavor, however, Ruby chocolate does contain berries, berry flavor, or colorings. I order it from Amazon, you can check it out in here. If you are unable to purchase Ruby chocolate, the recipe can be made using white chocolate and a small amount of food coloring too.
2. Cream: Also known as whipping cream or double cream, has a fat content between 36% and 40%. Avoid substitutes like vegetable-based “whipping cream”
3. Gelatin: same as above

5 Expert Baking tips

1. Step-by-step process of making sponge cake

I have a full-on tutorial with tons of tips about how to make the PERFECT sponge cake, make sure you check it out first. In that tutorial, I cover all my tips and tricks and the necessary equipment and detailed technique.

Prepare all the ingredients and bring them to room temperature, also prepare the tools such as 15 cm (6 inch) round cake pan, Rubber spatula, Wilton cake strip (if using). You will also have to preheat your oven at least 15-20 minutes ahead.

• Whip egg yolk with vanilla extract, and half of the sugar (75 g) for at least 8 minutes until very pale, creamy, and fluffy
• Whip in the rest of the wet ingredients; oil and milk (room temperature) just until combined
• Whip egg whites starting on low speed on your Stand mixer while adding the rest of the sugar (75 g), one tablespoon at a time. Increase the speed and whip for about 5-8 minutes until stiff and glossy and the sugar completely dissolves. The meringue texture should be sort of early stiff peaks but do not overbeat into super hard meringue as that is a difficult texture to fold with the rest of the ingredients
• While the mixer is on preparing the meringue, sift the cake flour into the egg yolk mixture, then gently fold it in with a Rubber spatula just until combined, do not overmix. This mixture can get somewhat thick and can easily dry out, so do not make it ahead
• With the help of a Rubber spatula gently fold the egg whites into the flour egg yolk sugar mixture. Since the flour mixture is quite thick it's worth first to loosen it up by ¼ of the whipped egg white mixture, then very gently fold the rest of the egg white in
• Pour the batter into the prepared 15 cm (6 inch) round cake pan
• Bake for approx. 60 minutes at 170C / 338F (no fan). Do not open the oven door in the first 45 minutes
• Flip the sponge cake upside down and let it completely cool on a Cooling rack

This sponge will be rather tall so can be used either as a 2 tier or 3 tier cake.

2. How to make strawberry compote filling

A super simple strawberry compote is used to make the filling for the Speckled egg cake. Cook strawberry, sugar, lemon juice until the mixture slightly thickens, about 10-15 minutes then mix in a gelatin sheet. Make sure, you cook the mixture long enough so it is not watery any longer, however, bear in mind that the mixture naturally will further thicken as it cools plus the gelatin sheet also thickens it.

Please note that the amount of sugar will depend on the sweetness of the strawberry you are using. I was using a frozen one and with the sugar, I state in the recipe the compote turned out to be rather tangy, that in my view goes super well with the creamy silky Ruby whipped ganache.

3. How to make Ruby whipped ganache

You might just never ever make buttercream again once you taste whipped ganache, it has a perfect consistency and taste without adding any powdered sugar or butter.

Whipped ganache is a mixture of cream, chocolate, and gelatine. I recommend to chose a high-quality brand when it comes to chocolate with high cocoa content to avoid disappointment. I am using Callebaut Ruby chocolate, which is creamy and has a natural sweet and sour berryish taste, it´s amazing!

Regarding the cream, I am using heavy cream that has 36% fat content. Do not make ganache using low-fat creams or vegetable creams.

Regarding the gelatin, I am using sheet gelatin that is super easy to work with, please see my notes about gelatin above in the ingredients section.

1. Place Ruby chocolate into a bow
2. Soak gelatin sheets in cold water
3. Heat the smaller part of the cream until simmering. If it’s boiling, the cream is too hot and could burn the chocolate. If the cream is not warm enough, it won´t melt the chocolate properly and won’t emulsify
4. Mix gelatin sheets into the warm cream
5. Pour warm cream over Ruby chocolate
6. Let the two sit for a minute then stir together or use a blender to emulsify
7. Once slightly cooled, pour the rest of the cold cream into the mixture and fold in
8. Cover the surface of the ganache with plastic wrap and refrigerate for min. 4 hours
9. 4 hours later or even better if the next day, take the ganache out of the fridge and gently whip it up for a minute or two until it will reach a fluffy, pipeable consistency. Make sure, you do not overbeat the mixture after this point. I like to put the ganache back in the fridge for another hour - it will thicken again into a consistency that is perfect for frosting cakes

4. How to assemble the Speckled Egg Cake

Assembling the cake is rather simple, but a step-by-step process:

1. Start with cutting the sponge cake into 3 horizontally. Use a measuring tape so the layers are even
2. For assembling the cake, you can either do it freestyle without any cake ring or use a cake ring as you can see in the picture
3. Pipe Ruby whipped ganache around the 1st layer of sponge
4. Pour ½ of the strawberry compote within the Ruby whipped ganache circle
5. Place the 2nd layer of sponge on top
6. Pipe Ruby whipped ganache around the sponge
7. Pour the remaining ½ of the strawberry compote within the Ruby whipped ganache circle
8. Place the 3rd layer of sponge on top
9. Let the cake rest in the fridge for an hour to set
10. Crumb coat
11. Let the cake rest in the fridge for an hour
12. Frost the cake with the remaining Ruby whipped ganache
13. Let the cake set in the fridge for an hour
14. Melt chocolate and apply the speckle pattern with the help of a brush
15. Decorate with home-made chocolate nest and molded chocolate chicken

5. How to make the chocolate decorations for this Easter cake

The Chocolate nest and Chick decoration are what make a simple cake into a true celebration Easter cake! Making these chocolate decorations is actually not super hard once you read my tutorials! Try them!

I have a step-by-step tutorial about the Chocolate nest. I can guarantee that it will be one of the highlights of your Easter table! Can function as a decoration filled with chocolate eggs or can be the perfect hand-made edible gift.

I have a step-by-step tutorial about the Chocolate Chick too. There is nothing more satisfying than learning how to make molded chocolate figures at home eg. this delicious and cute Chocolate Chick for Easter. Making chocolate figures is surprisingly easy, the whole process does not take more than 30 minutes, and once you learn the technique, with different molds you can make as many kinds of chocolate figures as you wish eg.

Why not also try these Cadbury Egg Cookies from Liz?

More Easter recipes

Make sure to also check out my Spring Desserts recipe collection!

Surprise inside Easter carrot loaf cake - This is the ultimate Easter cake with a hidden bunny in each slice! Yes, I understand the irony of having a bunny in a carrot cake, but how adorable is it?!

Mini Carrot cake - Easy Mini Carrot cakes with silky cream cheese frosting are the Ultimate Carrot cake experience in a lovely Mini Bundt version! 

Carrot cake with cream cheese mousse filling - The best Carrot cake I have ever had!

Easter Bunny Head cake - A showstopper Easter carrot cake shaped into a super cute bunny head!

Easter egg cookies - These cookies are the easiest baking choice for Easter, besides, they are crispy and chewy, gooey and buttery, sweet but not overly sweet, super delicious, everyone will love them.

RECIPE CARD