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Snowball Cakes


Are you looking for a festive dessert for Christmas? I made these little cakes for our Christmas party this year. (I always plan the dessert first…) We had three guests who were gluten intolerant so these desserts were perfect because I could make extra gluten-free cakes without looking any different. I just bought Bob's Red Mill gluten-free chocolate cake mix and made them the same way as the regular ones. (I put them on different plates so I wouldn't get them mixed up.) They were delicious and everyone loved getting their own little snowball for dessert.


Makes approximately 10-12 snowballs


For the cakes
vegetable oil cooking spray
1-1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup almond flour (like Bob's Red Mill)
1-1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup cocoa powder
1-1/2 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. baking powder
coarse salt
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup sour cream
3/4 cup warm water
1 large egg plus 1 large egg yolk

chocolate syrup
powdered sugar

For almond syrup
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. pure almond extract

For the frosting
3/4 cup plus 1 Tbsp. sugar
1/3 cup water
1 Tbsp. light corn syrup
3 large egg whites, room temperature
1/2 tsp. pure almond extract
2-1/2 cups sweetened shredded coconut


Make the cakes:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degree. Generously coat two round cake pans.

2. Sift flours, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and 3/4 tsp. salt into the bowl of a mixer.

3. Beat in oil, sour cream, warm water, egg, and egg yolk with mixer on low speed. Continue to beat until smooth, about 2 minutes.

4. Pour into prepared cake pans.

5. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Let cakes cool on a wire rack.

Making the frosting.

1. Bring 3/4 cup sugar, the water, and corn syrup to a boil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook until a candy thermometer reaches 230 degrees.

2. Meanwhile, beat egg whites to soft peaks with a mixer on medium-high speed. Whisk in remaining tablespoon sugar.

3. Once syrup reaches 230 degrees, immediately pour it down sides of the bowl of the egg whites in a slow, steady stream with the mixer on medium-low speed. Raise speed to medium-high. Beat until cooled and stiff peaks form, about 5 minutes.

4. Add almond extract and continue to beat 1 minute.


Assemble the cakes:

1. Remove cakes from cake pans and break up into a bowl. 
 

2. Add about 1 cup of frosting into the bowl of broken up cake and mix together. 
 
3. Form balls with the cake mixture into snowball sized cake balls.


4. Make almond syrup. Heat water and sugar in a small saucepan over high heat, stirring, until sugar dissolves. Stir in almond extract. Brush cakes all over with warm almond syrup. Let stand for 15 minutes.

5. Frost cake balls with frosting on individual plates, then coat each with coconut.


Before serving, drizzle each snowball cake with chocolate syrup and dust with powdered sugar.
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