It's Chews Day (in my best British accent), and the best time to make Tunnocks Tea Cakes. I really do love the UK accent and have always wanted to take a stab at making one of their snack time desserts.
It seems as of late, I have been experimenting with desserts from different cultures, and am super duper excited when they turn out perfect. Not to toot my own horn, but this one came out amazing!
Who can go wrong with a biscuit bottom, marshmallow filling, and a chocolate dome like shell covering it all? It truly is the perfect snack to compliment a cup of tea. In my case, it would have to be an iced coffee drink as I am not a huge tea fan.
Where did tea cakes originate from?
Tunnocks tea cakes originated in Scotland, which is a part of the United Kingdom. The Tunnocks (family owned business) opened a bakery in 1890 and over the years it grew as multiple family members made it famous.
Boyd Tunnock was given the task to develop a new product and that is when he came up with the Tea cake. It was first developed in 1956 and a star was born! It flew off the shelves!
Ingredients
- All-purpose flour
- Granulated Sugar
- Milk: 2% or whole
- Dark chocolate: 60% cocoa
- Vanilla extract: or paste can be used as well
- Golden Syrup: I made my own syrup as we did not have any readily available in our stores.
What is Golden syrup?
It is thick, smooth golden syrup that is made from sugar cane that has a unique buttery scent and a light caramel flavor.
Our stores here in Wisconsin did not have any golden syrup on the shelves, so I made mine from scratch. See video on how to make it!
Tips and tricks
- Chill biscuit dough before baking. Chilled dough does not spread out in the oven allowing for biscuits to maintain their round shape.
- When making the golden syrup, do not stir the initial sugar and water mixture as this will cause the sugar to crystallize.
- During the heating process of the marshmallow filling, stir constantly so the eggs won't cook.
- Wear gloves when releasing teacakes from the molds. You don't want to fingerprint the shiny chocolate shell!
- Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.
Making the biscuit dough
First, whisk together the flour, baking powder, granulated sugar in a bowl. Rub in the butter with fingertips and add in the milk. Just add enough milk to be able to bring the dough together in a ball.
Second, knead the dough until smooth. Roll out until it is about ⅛ inch thick. Cut circles with a 3 inch cookie cutter. Transfer to a baking sheet and put in the fridge for 15 minutes.
Lastly, bake for 15 minutes until the biscuits are a light golden brown color around the edges. Allow to cool and set aside.
Tempering the chocolate
First, using a double boiler, place ⅔ of the chocolate in bowl and stir until completely melted. Check temperature with candy thermometer and don't let it go about 115 F.
Second, remove from heat and let the chocolate cool between 95 to 100 F. Only stirring occasionally. Gradually mix in the rest of the chocolate and stir until it is fully melted.
Third, remove from heat. Let it cool until it has thickened. Line a 5 cavity half dome silicon mold with chocolate. Spoon it into each cavity and spread evenly with back of spoon. Set aside once all full to allow the chocolate to set.
Lastly, coat the biscuits with chocolate and line them on parchment paper. Set aside.
Marshmallow filling and assembly
First, add all the ingredients to a double boiler. Heat the filling until all of the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is frothy. This can take up to 10 minutes.
Second, remove from the heat. With an electric mixer fitted with a whisk, mix until stiff peaks form.
Third, put filling into piping bag fitted with 1 inch round tip. Pipe the filling into chocolate molds.
Fourth, reheat the chocolate over the double boiler again and then remove from heat. Add in the last remaining chocolate and mix until melted.
Lastly, spread the chocolate on top of the biscuits and spread out. Put in fridge to set. Carefully, release the teacakes from the molds. Trim bottoms if needed to make the cakes perfectly round.
Variations and substitutions
- Substitute light corn syrup or honey for the golden syrup
- Coat the outside of the teacake with different flavors of chocolate
- Drizzle different flavors of glaze on top
FAQ's
Yes, you can. Individually wrap them and freeze. Thaw before serving.
The center is a meringue marshmallow filling and jam will not set well in the center.
Tunnocks Tea Cakes
Equipment
- Electric mixer fitted with whisk attachment
- Mixing bowls
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Baking sheet
- Silicon mat
- Saucepan
- Whisk
- spatula
- Candy thermometer
- 5 cavity half dome silicon mold
- Off set
Ingredients
Biscuits
- 1½ cup all-purpose flour plus 1 tbsp
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 2 large egg yolks
- 3.5 tablespoon unsalted butter chilled and cubed
- 5 tablespoon heavy cream
Tempered chocolate
- 14 oz 60% cacoa chocolate bars or chips
Marshmallow filling
- 3 large egg whites
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 6 teaspoon golden syrup
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Biscuits
- Whisk the all-purpose flour, baking powder, and sugar together in a bowl. Rub in the butter with your fingers and then add in the milk to bring the dough all together.
- Gently, knead the dough until smooth. Roll out the dough until it is about ⅛ inch thick. Use a 3 inch round cookie cutter to cut out rounds from the dough. This will make 12 rounds.
- Transfer biscuits to the baking sheet and chill in the fridge for 15 minutes. This will help prevent the biscuits from spreading in the oven.
- Preheat oven to 325°. Line baking sheet with silicon mat or parchment paper. Bake until the bottoms of each biscuit are lightly browned (13-15 minutes).
Chocolate tempering
- Place two thirds of the dark chocolate into a double boiler (or stainless steel bowl over pan of boiling water). Stir the chocolate constantly with a silicon spatula until it has all melted. Do not let the temperature of the chocolate go over 115F.
- Remove from the heat and let it cool. Only stir occasionally. Slowly mix in the last ⅓ of the chocolate stirring until they are fully melted. If the chocolate will not fully melt, it is okay to put back over the simmering water for a couple of seconds.
- Remove the bowl from the heat and let it cool and thicken. Only stir occasionally.
- Line a 5 cavity half dome silicon mold with the chocolate. Spooning it in to a cavity and spreading it evenly with a back of a spoon. Work fairly quickly before it sets. Once filled, set aside to allow to fully set. Repeat the process for an additional 6 biscuits.
- Coat six of the biscuits with chocolate and set them aside to set on a piece of paper. Set the remaining chocolate aside for later.
Marshmallow filling
- Put all the marshmallow filling ingredients into a bowl over a double boiler.
- Heat the filling until all of the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is frothy (10 minutes). Stir constantly with a whisk so that the eggs don't scramble and cook.
- Remove from the heat and with an electric hand mixer mix until stiff peaks are formed. Place marshmallow filling into piping bag fitted with a 1 inch round tip. Pipe filling into chocolate molds and then place biscuit on top of marshmallow.
- Heat the chocolate over the simmering water and then remove from heat and add the rest of the chocolate to the bowl and mix until melted.
- Pour the chocolate over the biscuits and use the off set spatula to spread it out. Place in the fridge until set.
- When set, gently release the teacakes from the silicon molds. If needed, trim the edges of the bottoms to make perfect rounds.
Nutrition
Cultural desserts
Fun fact of the day!
Many expensive perfumes contain whale poop. Ponder that one next time you want something from Prada!
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