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Chocolate Refrigerator Cake aka Queen's Cake

Decadent no-bake chocolate loaf cake with crunchy bites of digestive biscuits decorated with ganache and Cadbury eggs. Foolproof dessert that is infinitely more than the sum of its parts.
Course Dessert
Cuisine British, Irish

Ingredients
  

  • 1 14 oz pkg McVitie's Digestive Biscuits
  • 4 oz butter 1 stick
  • 16 oz 60% cacao (bittersweet) Ghirardelli chocolate chips Divided 12 oz for cake / 4 oz. for ganache
  • 6 oz Lyle's Golden Syrup or Karo Light Corn Syrup
  • 4 oz Heavy or Whipping Cream
  • 1 bag Cadbury mini eggs OPTIONAL

Instructions
 

CAKE

  • Line a loaf pan (either 8 or 9 inch will work; one will be taller, the other longer). You can either line with heavy duty plastic wrap or spray non-stick with a parchment sling. Set the pan aside
  • Break the cookies into pieces of different sizes; no bigger than a bite; no smaller than a bean. You don't want cookie dust. I do this by hand. If you can use the Ziploc bag/mallet method without making dust, have at it. I think I use it too much as a therapy session and get very little useable cookie action... though do feel better. Set the cookie bits aside.
  • Put a large saucepan (that will eventually hold all of the ingredients, including cookies, over medium heat and melt the butter. Either remove from the heat or let it brown a bit if you'd like browned butter. It'll give a toasty flavor which is delicious. I did not brown the butter this go.
  • When melted (or browned to you liking, remove from the heat.
  • Add 12 ounces of the bittersweet chocolate chips and all of the Lyle's or Karo syrup. Let sit a few minutes to melt and then stir until smooth and shiny.
  • Add the cookie bits and stir bottom-to-top until all of the cookies are coated. Be quick but gentle.
  • Pour half of the chocolate cookie mixture into the prepared pan and press firmly so that all of the corners of the pan are filled. Put the remaining mixture in and press down firmly. I put a piece of parchment down and use a second loaf pan to do the pressing. I keep the parchment there and then cover the entire loaf pan in plastic wrap.
  • Refrigerate for a few hours or overnight until the cake is solid.

GANACHE

  • Put the remaining 4 oz. of chocolate chips into a heatproof bowl.
  • In a small saucepan, heat the whipping or heavy cream over medium heat until bubbles just start to form at the edges.
  • Pour the cream over the chocolate and let sit 5 minutes.
  • Stir the ganache until smooth and shiny. If you want to pour the ganache over to make a mock-mirror coating, use when the ganache is at room-temperature but still pourable.
    For piping, continue to stir the ganache (or the part remaining after you've poured some) every 5-10 minutes until the ganache is pipeable. Put into a piping bag and decorate to your heart's desire.`
  • Top with Cadbury eggs. Or not. Or whatever speaks to your decorating heart.
Keyword birthday cake, chocolate, dessert, no-bake