Chocolate Orange Reindeer Cake
Moist chocolate sponge meets zesty orange and a playful reindeer topping—this Christmas cake is easy, festive, and crowd-pleasing.
Equipment
- - 9" cake tin
- Mixing bowls
- Electric mixer
- - Palette knife
Ingredients
- **Sponge Cake**
- - 300g caster sugar
- - 250g self-raising flour
- - 50g cocoa powder
- - 200ml vegetable or sunflower oil
- - 100ml whole milk
- - 3 large eggs
- - Zest and juice of 1 orange
- **Buttercream**
- - 100g chocolate orange chopped
- - 100g salted butter
- - 180g icing sugar
- - 1 tbsp cocoa powder
- - 1 tbsp boiling water
- **Decoration**
- - 7 chocolate buttons
- - 7 red Smarties
- - 7 pretzels broken into antlers
- - 14 edible eyes
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 160°C fan / 180°C conventional. Line a 9" round cake tin.
- Mix sugar, flour, and cocoa in a bowl. Add oil, milk, eggs, zest, and juice. Stir until smooth.
- Pour into tin. Bake 45–50 mins. Cool fully.
- Melt chocolate and let it cool. Beat butter, add icing sugar, then fold in chocolate. Stir in cocoa and boiling water.
- Frost the cake. Arrange buttons in a circle, add Smarties for noses, eyes above, and pretzel antlers.
Notes
Store at room temp in an airtight container for 4–5 days. Make the sponge a day ahead for easier assembly.