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I don't know how common this sort of cake is in other countries, but here in Germany a so-called Maulwurfskuchen aka "mole cake" is very popular for birthday parties, especially for children, lol. It's basically a banana and cream filled chocolate cake with LOADS of whipped cream that is supposed to look like a mole hill like the ones you'll find in the backyard, a little mound in the earth with dirt scattered around – or chocolate cake crumbs, in this case!
This one in particular was kindly made by my fiancé J for my granny's 79th birthday a few weeks ago because I had a very bad case of back pain and could hardly walk or move that day. Thanks babe! :-* (I also forgot to bring my camera so for now you'll need to put up with the few photos I took with J's phone.)
The great thing about this mole cake recipe is that is doesn't only look cute, but is very easy to make! You only need to bake a soft chocolate cake, whip up some cream, and slice a bunch of bananas, and you're basically done. It's best to prepare the cake either the night before or the morning of because it does need to chill in the fridge for 2 hours.
I hope you'll give this a try – 'cause it's really good :)
VEGAN MOLE CAKE
Preparation time: 1 h 30 min (+ 2 hours chilling time)
Main ingredients: spelt flour, bananas, whipping cream, cocoa powder
difficulty level: easy-moderate
serves: 12 (26 cm- or 10-inch springform pan)
suitable for: vegan, lactose-free, wheat-free, yeast-free, soy-free
Ingredients
For the cake batter:
1 pack vanilla sugar
pinch of salt
1 large ripe banana, mashed
For the filling:
500 ml vegan whipping cream
2 packs (16 g) whipped cream stabilizer
1 pack vanilla sugar, or to taste
80-100 g vegan dark chocolate shavings or finely chopped dark chocolate
2-3 bananas, cut in half lengthwise (see notes below)
In a large mixing bowl combine sieved spelt flour, sugar, vanilla sugar, baking powder, cocoa powder, and salt. Whisk together.
Add mashed banana and plant-based milk. Stir well. Fold in oil and sparkling water, and mix again. Leave for 15 minutes, meanwhile preheat the oven to 180 °C / 350 °F.
Transfer the dough into a greased springform pan (Ø 26 cm or 10 inches). Bake at 180° C convection oven for about 40 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean. Allow to cool completely.
For the filling:
Whip the (vegan) cream with cream stabilizer with an electric hand mixer. Add vanilla sugar and continue beating until stiff. Gently fold in chocolate shavings using a spatula, and set aside in the fridge until ready to use.
To assemble:
Once the cake has cooled, cut off the top horizontally (leave more to the bottom part). Put in a bowl and cumble – this is supposed to later resemble the soil on top of the mole hill.
Slightly hollow out the cake base in the middle using a spoon (be careful not to go all the way down and pierce through the bottom), leaving a rim. Line the scooped out center with halved bananas.
Spread whipped cream from the fridge onto the banana layers, creating a round mount in the center to shape the mole hill. Lastly, spread the "hill" with the crumbs from the top of the cake. (Of course, you could also go the extra mile and actually make a mole out of marzipan or fondant to place on top of the hill like The Spruce Eats did!)
Place the light-shy mole cake into the fridge for at least 2 hours or until it is ready to serve. Enjoy!
- To make this cake even more chocolaty, feel free to add 3 tsp of cocoa powder to the cream filling.
- For a fruitier version of this cake, add about 2/3 cups of stewed cherries or berries on top of the banana layer.
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