The traditional Jaffa cake is something of a British icon. These treats have a layer of sponge topped with a sweet orange jelly and finished off with plain chocolate. Well-loved in Britain, Jaffa cakes are easy to find and relatively cheap to buy. This recipe is super easy to make but I will say they take a little bit of time but they are completely worth it. I promise you won’t regret it.
These jaffa cakes are taken to another level by adding a marmalade-spiked orange jelly and the rich dark chocolate just adds an extraness to these jaffa cakes but does not take away from the orange centre and soft sponge.
Making the cakes is easy and a lot of fun; just keep in mind the chocolate coating won’t look as perfect as the store-bought versions but no-one will mind what they look like when they taste them because they are so yummy and will keep you going back until they are all gone.
Jaffa Cakes
Ingredients
Jelly
- 135 g Orange Jelly
- 150 ml Boiling Water
- 1 Orange finely grated zest only
- 1 tbsp Marmalade
Sponge
- 1 Egg
- 25 g Caster Sugar
- 25 g Self-Raising Flour
Topping
- 180 g Dark Chocolate
Instructions
Jelly
- Break the jelly into pieces and place in a small bowl. Pour over the boiling water and stir until the jelly is completely dissolved.
- Add orange zest, then pour into a shallow 30x20cm/12x8in tray. Chill in the fridge for 1 hour or until set.
Sponge
- Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees/ gas mark 4 and grease a 12 hole shallow but tin with butter.
- whisk the egg and sugar together for 4-5 minutes until pale and fluffy, then gently fold in the flour. Fill each well in the bun tin three-quarters full (dessert spoonful per hole) and smooth the tops. Bake for 7-9 minutes or until well risen and the tops of the sponges spring back when lightly pressed. Leave to cool in the tray for a few minutes the finish on a cooling wire rack.
Topping
- Break the chocolate into pieces then melt in a bowl set over a pan of gently simmering water. Remove the bowl from the heat and leave to cool and thicken slightly.
- To assemble: turn the jelly out onto a sheet of non-stick baking parchment. Cut 12 slices from the orange jelly using a 5cm/2in round cutter. sit one jelly disc on top of each sponge.
- spoon the melted chocolate over the jelly discs. Using the tips of the tines of a fork or skewer, lightly press to create a criss-cross pattern on top of the chocolate, then leave to set.
