Biscoff (speculoos) S'mores Campfire Cake
Bring the camp vibes indoors with this Biscoff s’mores inspired campfire cake. A delightful twist on the classic campfire treat.
Layers of Biscoff cake, layered with toasted marshmallow buttercream, Biscoff crumbs, and ganache. Not to mention that that is all topped off with the grand spectacle that is a mini campfire made of pretzels and marshmallows.
Jump to photography thought process
Yes, the smoke and fire are real.
In fact, at times it worked a little too well and I became legitimately concerned about the amount of smoke I had built up from all the shots I took.
Also, who knew that slightly charred pretzel sticks would taste kind of amazing???
I chose to go with my Biscoff cake as the base cake flavour. When you think about a s’mores, the biscuit/ cracker is what sandwiches everything together, and that’s what the cake portion does too. So it only makes sense for the cake portion to be the flavour of the biscuit.
It might sound controversial, but I also brushed each layer with some coffee simple syrup. I actually think it really brought out the flavour of the cake. Plus, again it only makes sense to do so since clearly Biscoff was named Biscoff because it’s a biscuit that goes with coffee.
Also yes, I have slowly transitioned to calling it ‘Biscoff’ from ‘speculoos’, even though I still think Biscoff sounds like it would be the name of a cough lolly or cold and flu medicine. Simply because I mostly use the Lotus brand anyway, and more people understand ‘Biscoff’.
If not the Lotus brand, then of course I’m back to speculoos.
For me personally, the appeal of a s’more is less the bulk of the marshmallow and more the biscuit, chocolate, and charr. So, the marshie flavour throughout the whole cake is rather mild, IMO.
Should I have filled the layers with some toasted marshmallow fluff or something? Probably. Did I know that my taste-testers (family) and I would cry that it’s too sweet (not to be stereotypical, but we’re Asian, so ofc)? Absolutely.
So if you LOVE marshmallow fluff, by all means add it to your layers!
To enhance toastiness without adding full on marshmallow squish, you could also broil jumbo marshies, peel the broiled top off, and add them between the layers.
Photography thought process
The idea of the shoot was ‘cosy campfire in the woods’. Hence, I went with greens and browns, as well as other natural elements. I chose to use that specific plate for the cake as well because to me it was reminiscent of tin/ metal dishes people bring camping.
The candle in the back was to reinforce the idea of ‘cosiness’. I was initially planning on adding some kind of knitwear in the foreground, however the colour was too light and so competed for attention with the cake (which I did not want - all attention should be on the cake! The star!).
The moodier lighting was chosen to emphasise cosiness as well as the woods/ forest vibe. It also helped to highlight the smoke and fire.
To get the flame to spark, I sprinkled cinnamon onto it. Though perhaps a little too much, because you can see it so clearly in most shots oops.
As for editing, in most shots you can see that I edited them slightly warmer. This again emphasises the cosiness and is perhaps closer to the autumnal vibe. In the image just before the recipe, you can see that I edited it slightly moodier and cooler. Which do you prefer?
Tips for making a Biscoff S’mores Cake
To enhance the toasted-mashmallowiness (you know what I mean) of the cake, feel free to add in more toasted mini marshmallows between each layer. I’d recommend squishing them into the buttercream, topping with Biscoff crumbs, then drizzling on the ganache. This will help keep the layers together. OR, you could broil jumbo marshies and peel the toasted top off to layer between the cake layers.
When working with melted marshmallows, having wet hands helps. If your hands are wet/ damp, they won’t stick to them.
Brushing each layer with some coffee syrup is optional, but I find that it brings out the flavour of the cake.
If you want to decorate the top as I’ve done here, use above two images as references. I stacked the pretzel sticks in a square shape first, put some mini marshmallows in as both support and kindling, then stood more sticks up, leaning them against each other.
I understand that this recipe uses A LOT of eggs, so feel free to use a classic American buttercream instead. I just personally much prefer the Swiss.
Recipe
For the Biscoff cake
Makes 2 20cm round cakes
INGREDIENTS:
400g plain flour
1/2tsp baking soda
4tsp baking powder
1tsp salt
240g unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
250g brown sugar
400g speculoos spread (e.g., Biscoff)
50g oil
8 eggs
300g sour cream
METHOD:
1. Line and grease 2 20cm round pans, and preheat oven to 170°C.
2. In a medium bowl, sift the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl of a stand mixer, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the spread and the oil. Beat in the eggs one at a time.
4. On the lowest speed, beat in a third of the flour mixture until only just combined, then beat in half of the sour cream. Repeat with half of the remaining flour mixture, then all of the remaining sour cream. Finish off by folding in all the remaining flour mixture.
5. Pour cake batter evenly into prepared pans. Bake for 50 minutes or until it bounces back when lightly pressed and a skewer comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs. Cover with foil while baking if it’s browning too quickly.
For the toasted marshmallow Swiss meringue buttercream
INGREDIENTS:
8 egg whites
400g castor sugar
700g unsalted butter
300g marshmallows (slice in half if NOT using mini marshmallows)
100g milk (if using methods 2 or 3)
METHOD: (Make the buttercream base, then choose ONE of the methods to incorporate the marshmallows)
Make the buttercream base
1. Place the egg whites and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer or a large heatproof bowl and hand whisk to roughly combine. Place the bowl over a pot of boiling water or a double boiler, ensuring the water does not touch the bottom of the bowl.
2. Gently hand whisk the egg whites and sugar over the heat until it feels hot and no longer gritty or grainy when you rub it between your fingers OR until it reaches 72°C (to pasteurise the whites).
3. Remove from the heat and place the bowl back onto your stand mixer or onto your benchtop. Start beating on a low to medium-low speed with the whisk attachment or with your hand-mixer. When making meringue, the lower speed ensures the bubbles are smaller and more compact. Keep beating until you have reached soft peaks, then increase speed to medium to medium-high until stiff peaks form. This step may take a while. Feel free to give your mixer a rest from time to time.
4. Swap to the paddle attachment. With the mixer running on a medium-low speed, spoon in the butter, roughly a tablespoon at a time. Ensure the butter is fully combined before adding the next tablespoon. After adding all the butter, increase speed to medium-high or high and beat until it is thick and smooth. If it looks broken or loose, just keep beating it! It will come together eventually. It's like an emulsification. If it's still not coming together, place it in the fridge for 5-10 minutes then take it out and beat it again.
Incorporate toasted marshmallows - Method 1 (chunkiest result)
1. Place marshmallows onto a lined baking tray. Grill to your liking or at least until the middle of each marshmallow has melted and is gooey. Remove from the oven and quickly beat into the buttercream base.
Incorporate toasted marshmallows - Method 2 (partially chunky result)
1. Follow method 1 using HALF of the marshmallows.
2. Grill the other half of the marshmallows, then melt them with some milk (start with 50g), allow to cool a little, then beat into the buttercream.
Incorporate toasted marshmallows - Method 3 (least chunky result)
1. Place marshmallows onto a lined baking tray. Grill to your liking. Melt all of the marshmallows with the milk, allow to cool a little, then beat into the buttercream.
For the ganache
INGREDIENTS:
250ml cream
250g dark chocolate, roughly chopped
METHOD:
1. In a small pot over low heat, constantly stir together the cream and chocolate until chocolate has melted and mixture is smooth and glossy. Set aside to cool.
For the coffee simple syrup (optional)
INGREDIENTS:
100g water
55g sugar
approx. 1tbsp instant coffee granules/ freeze dried coffee granules
METHOD:
1. Heat all ingredients together in a small pot until boiling, stirring constantly. Set aside to cool.
To assemble
INGREDIENTS:
1 batch Biscoff cake (2 20cm cakes), levelled and halved horizontally
1 batch coffee simple syrup (optional)
1 batch toasted marshmallow buttercream
Additional marshmallows, toasted (optional) (See: Tips for making a s’mores cake)
95g speculoos biscuits (such as Biscoff), approx. 12 Biscoff biscuits, crushed/ processed
1 batch ganache, cooled but at a pourable consistency
Pretzel sticks and mini marshmallows for decorating (optional)
METHOD:
1. Place one layer of cake onto a cake board or serving dish.
2. Brush on some coffee syrup (optional). Dollop on some buttercream and spread to the edges of the cake. Into the buttercream, press in additional toasted marshmallows (optional). Sprinkle on some biscuit crumbs, then drizzle on a layer of ganache.
3. Place another layer of cake on top and repeat step one.
4. Repeat step 3.
5. Place the final cake layer on top and spread a thin layer of buttercream around the whole cake (crumb coat). Place in the fridge to firm up. The buttercream should not stick to your hand and should feel cool.
6. Remove from the fridge and spread a thicker layer of buttercream (final coat). Press any leftover biscuit crumbs onto the bottom sides of the cake.
7. Return to the fridge to chill slightly. Remove from the fridge and pour, pipe, or spoon more ganache on top. Decorate as you wish.
That’s it!
Store in the fridge. Bring to room temperature before enjoying.
