I don’t buy jaffa cakes nearly as often as other biscuits, but when I do, I’m reminded how much I love them. They’re surprisingly easy to make from scratch, too. The base is an incredibly light genoise sponge that’s topped with a layer of jelly, and it’s this section that allows for some creativity. I chose to go down a summery route with passion fruit. Juicing enough passion fruit to get 200ml of liquid is tedious (and expensive), so by all means use a carton of juice instead.
Passion fruit jaffa cakes
Prep 5 min
Chill 3 hr+
Cook 45 min
Makes 9
For the jelly
3½ sheets platinum-grade gelatine
200ml passion fruit juice, fresh or from a carton
For the cake
Butter, for greasing
35g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
1 large egg
35g caster sugar
¼ tsp salt
75g dark chocolate, chopped
Start by making the jelly. Put the gelatine in a small bowl of cold water and leave to soften for five minutes. Meanwhile, line a small, roughly 20cm x 15cm baking dish or tray with baking paper.
Put the passion fruit juice in a saucepan, heat gently until steaming, then, before it comes to a boil, take off the heat. Squeeze out the excess water from the softened gelatine, add the sheets to the juice and stir to dissolve. Pour into the lined dish and chill in the fridge for three to four hours, until firmly set.
Heat the oven to 190C (170C fan)/375F/gas 5. Lightly grease nine holes of a cupcake tray, then lightly dust them with flour.
Put the egg and sugar in a bowl and use an electric whisk to whip until thick and fluffy. Sift on the flour and salt, then fold in gently, taking care not to knock out too much air. Spoon about a tablespoon of batter into each greased cupcake hole, then bake for 15 minutes, until golden and springy to the touch. Remove from the oven, leave to cool in the tin for a few minutes, then turn out the cakes.
Use a cutter slightly smaller than the width of the cakes to stamp out nine discs of the set jelly, then place one on top of each cake.
Melt the chocolate in short bursts in the microwave (or over a bain-marie), then leave to cool a little. Spoon a little chocolate on to each cake, nudging it around evenly, then leave to firm up before serving.
