The Queen’s Chocolate Biscuit Cake

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Hi Bold Bakers!

WHY YOU’LL LOVE THIS RECIPE: My fudgy Chocolate Biscuit Cake (The Queen’s Chocolate Biscuit Cake) is the best of both worlds—a no-bake, foolproof dessert that’s special and elegant enough to have been the favorite of Queen Elizabeth II!

• Chocolate is the star: Your chocolate-obsessed family and friends will fall in love with this cake.
• Candy bar delight: Biscuit cake has amazing Kit Kat vibes!
• Secret ingredient: Golden syrup adds a buttery, caramel flavor that gives excellent depth.
• Straightforward and no-fuss: This elegant dessert takes only 25 minutes to prep.
• Your new holiday tradition! Make Chocolate Biscuit Cake once, and you’ll be hooked!

I can’t speak highly enough about this delightful refrigerator cake. As a child in Ireland, I often made biscuit cakes because they were so simple, and this chocolate biscuit cake recipe has remained a family favorite ever since!

Often, bittersweet is my go-to choice for chocolate, but for this cake, semi-sweet chocolate, with its milder flavor and softer texture, really works best. Since chocolate and cocoa powder are the main ingredients in this recipe, please use the highest-quality you can find—you really want it to shine. I use golden raisins in my chocolate biscuit cake—the fruitiness is perfect for the holidays, and they pair beautifully with the chocolate, and their lovely chewiness is the ideal balance to the crispy biscuits. For more no-bake options that are scrumptious time-savers, you’ll also love Salted Caramel and Peanut Chocolate Tart, No-Bake Hot Chocolate Pie, and Coconut Cream Pie.

Table of Contents

• What is Chocolate Biscuit Cake?
• Tools You Need
• Key Ingredients and Substitutes
• How to Make the Queen’s Chocolate Biscuit Cake
• Gemma’s Pro Chef Tips
• Make Ahead and Storage Instructions
• FAQs
• More Holiday Treat Recipes

What is Chocolate Biscuit Cake?

Chocolate Biscuit Cake, also known as Queen’s Chocolate Biscuit Cake, Fridge Cake, or British Biscuit Cake, is a no bake cake made by folding biscuit pieces and raisins into a mixture of butter, chocolate, cocoa, and golden syrup. The batter is placed in a cling-wrap-lined cake pan, chilled in the fridge, unmolded, and topped with ganache.

According to the royal chef, Chocolate Biscuit Cake was Queen Elizabeth’s favorite cake at afternoon tea, and her love for the confection was passed on to her grandson—Prince William’s groom’s cake at his wedding to Kate Middleton was Chocolate Biscuit Cake! This beloved dessert grew in popularity as home refrigerators became common in England in the 1920s, and fridge cakes made with pantry ingredients became favorite budget-friendly, time-saving desserts.

Tools You Need

• Mixing bowl
• Measuring spoons
• Measuring cups
• Glass measuring jug
• Kitchen scale (optional)
• 8-inch (20-cm) round cake pan
• Cling wrap
• Ziploc bag
• Rolling pin
• Spoon

Key Ingredients and Substitutes

For the cake

Digestive biscuits

• Digestive biscuits are what give this chocolate cake structure and delightful crispiness. Their sturdiness holds up well to the chocolate.
• Importantly, they contribute a buttery, nutty, mildly sweet flavor in this chocolate biscuit cake recipe.
• Break the digestive biscuits into small pieces before using.
• Make delectable homemade Digestive Biscuits with my easy 6-ingredient recipe.
• Substitute: Use the same amount of Graham crackers, or store-bought Rich Tea biscuits,

Butter

• Butter adds richness, helps bind the biscuit cake, and gives it a fudgy, yet sliceable texture.
• Additionally, butter contributes a luscious flavor.
• Substitute: Use the same amount of coconut oil. Note that using coconut oil will make the cake firmer when it’s cold.

Semi-sweet chocolate

• Semi-sweet chocolate gives this biscuit dessert an ideal level of flavor and sweetness.
• Importantly, semi-sweet chocolate is soft enough to be slicable.

Unsweetened cocoa powder

• Unsweetened cocoa powder deepens the chocolate flavor and gives the biscuit cake a flavorful intensity.
• Substitute: Use an equal amount of Dutch-process cocoa if you prefer.

Golden syrup

• Golden syrup, an amber-colored syrup made from cane sugar, is essential for creating the cake’s signature silky yet pleasantly chewy texture.
• Additionally, golden syrup helps keep this British chocolate biscuit cake moist.
• Importantly, golden syrup prevents the chocolate and butter mixture from crystallizing.
• Golden syrup, with its buttery, caramel flavor, gives the cake a wonderful caramel flavor.
• If you can’t find golden syrup, use my recipe for Golden Syrup Substitute!
• Substitute: You can use the same amount of honey or light corn syrup, but your cake won’t have the same buttery flavor.

Golden raisins

• Golden raisins, sweeter than regular raisins, add a delightful, fruity, honey-tinged flavor.
• Additionally, the golden raisins add another layer of texture with their wonderfully soft chewiness.
• Substitute: Use the same amount of sultanas if you like. Sultanas are very similar to golden raisins (some people use the names interchangeably).
  • If you prefer, use an equal amount of regular raisins, chopped dried cherries, or dried apricots instead.

Vanilla extract

• Vanilla extract enhances the flavor of the chocolate and biscuits. Don’t omit it, or the cake could taste flat.
• Substitute: Use the same amount of Vanilla Bean Paste.

Salt

• Salt brings out the chocolate flavor and keeps the cake from tasting too sweet.

For the Ganache

Semi-sweet chocolate

• Semi-sweet chocolate creates a ganache with a crowd-pleasing flavor similar to classic chocolate frosting.
• Using semi-sweet chocolate creates a softer and silkier ganache.

Heavy whipping cream

• Heavy whipping cream creates a smooth, glossy ganache.
• Use heavy whipping cream with a fat content of 36% for the perfect consistency.

For the Garnish

Semi-sweet chocolate

• Chopped semi-sweet chocolate adds the perfect finishing touch.

How to Make the  Queen’s Chocolate Biscuit Cake

To Make the Biscuit Cake

1. Prepare the pan: Butter and line an 8-inch (20 cm) round cake pan with 3 layers of cling wrap, leaving extra cling film hanging over the sides.
2. Break up the cookies: Put the biscuits in a ziplock bag and bash them into pieces using a rolling pin. Some big pieces are okay.

3. Mix the ingredients: Place the butter, chocolate, cocoa powder, and golden syrup in a medium microwave-safe bowl and microwave in 30-second increments, stirring after heating, for 60-90 seconds, until melted.

4. Add biscuits and raisins: Stir in the broken biscuits, raisins, vanilla, and salt.

5. Place mixture in pan: Spoon or use a spatula to add the chocolate mixture into the prepared pan, pressing down on the biscuits to level the surface.

6. Chill cake: Cover the top with the overhanging cling film, then place the pan in the fridge for about 2 hours, or until set.

Make the Ganache

7. Heat chocolate and cream: Place the chocolate and heavy cream in a small microwave safe bowl or pot and heat for 50 seconds.
8. Whisk ganache: Let the chocolate and the cream sit for 5 minutes for the chocolate to melt, then whisk until smooth and silky. (If there are any lumps remaining, microwave for 10 seconds and then stir. Continue this until smooth.)

Decorate the Cake

9. Remove cake from pan: Unwrap the biscuit cake and invert onto a serving plate.
10. Cover the cake with ganache: Pour the chocolate ganache over the cake and smooth the top with a spoon. Sprinkle the chopped chocolate around the edges of the cake.

11. Chill cake: Place the biscuit cake in the fridge for at least 1 hour to set the ganache and then slice and enjoy!

FULL (PRINTABLE) RECIPE BELOW! 

Gemma’s Pro Chef Tips

• If you can’t find golden syrup, use my Perfect Gold Syrup Substitute recipe.
• Use three layers of cling wrap:  The wrap can tear as you pull the cake out of the pan, making it difficult to unmold.
• If the cake won’t release and the plastic wrap is tearing a lot, you can dip the pan in a bowl of hot water for about 15 seconds to loosen the edges.
• Golden syrup is the binder: the original recipe calls for raw egg, but I’ve found that golden syrup is perfect for holding the cake together and adding amazing flavor.
• Use your favorite chocolate: This cake will be as good as the quality of chocolate that it is made with. 
• Pick any fruit: Any other dried fruit is fine. Chop fine if large.
• Eat at room temperature: This cake is quite firm right out of the refrigerator. Let it sit out for about 30 minutes before serving.
• Gift this cake by packaging it in a holiday tin to keep it firm, or make mini biscuit cakes and gift them in loaf pans wrapped in cello and tied with ribbon.
• Use Homemade Digestive Biscuits for a cake that’s even tastier (and healthier!). 

Make Ahead and Storage Instructions

Make-ahead tips

• Make the ganache ahead and store in an airtight container for up to one week in the fridge.
  • Let it sit at room temperature for up to 2 hours before using. Microwave in 10-second bursts if necessary to loosen.
• Make the biscuit cake ahead, wrap well, and refrigerate for up to five days.
  • Let the cake sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before serving.

How to store leftovers

• Store leftovers in the fridge in an airtight container for up to five days.
  • Let the cake sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before serving.

FAQs

How do I make this biscuit chocolate cake gluten-free?

• To make this biscuit chocolate cake gluten-free, use a gluten-free tea biscuit.
• Note that gluten-free biscuits will be crumblier and drier, so break them into larger pieces, fold them in gently, and let the cake sit overnight.

How do I keep the chocolate ganache mixture from seizing or breaking?

• Use evenly, finely chopped chocolate so that it melts smoothly.
• Be sure the bowl you use is completely dry. Even a drop of water can cause chocolate to seize.
• To ensure your chocolate ganache mixture is silky, avoid stirring it too much. Stop whisking when smooth.

What mix-ins and flavor variations can I use with this cake recipe?

• For citrus brightness, add 1 tablespoon of finely chopped orange zest and 1/2 cup (2 1/2 oz/71 g) candied orange peel in place of the raisins.
• Add crunch by mixing in 1/2 cup (2 1/2 oz/71 g) of walnuts, almonds, or hazelnuts.
• Give the cake minty coolness by adding 1/2 teaspoon of peppermint extract and 1/2 cup (3 oz/85 g) of chopped Andes Mints.
• Add a mocha note by mixing in 2 teaspoons of instant espresso powder and topping with cocoa nibs.

More Holiday Treat Recipes

• French Silk Pie
• Fruitcake Cookies
• Double Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
• Skilllet Gingerbread Cake with Brown Butter Frosting
• Baked Hot Chocolate

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Small Carrot Cake Recipe

Italian Lemon Ricotta Cake

Lemon Torta Caprese (Torta Caprese Bianca al Limone)