This White Chocolate Traybake is sweet, creamy and just absolutely delicious. It’s a fantastically simple bake that’s easy to dress up for a special occasion.
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I love making traybake cakes.
They are so simple, always taste great and are easy to cut into squares to serve as quick treats, or for things like kid’s parties.
This white chocolate traybake is one of my favourites. I love white chocolate sponge cake. It’s got a subtle, but sweet and creamy flavour, and it’s really light, so you still get a lovely sponge.
Even better, is white chocolate buttercream. Again, super simple, creamy and sweet. It’s such a gorgeous flavour I could probably just eat it straight out of the bowl.
Everything You Need to Make a White Chocolate Traybake
A stand mixer is always ideal if you bake a lot. But, you can easily whisk this White Chocolate Cake Mix with a stand mixer, or just a good hand whisk. I usually use my stick blender with the whisk attachment, just because it’s faster. (The links in this section are all affiliate)
I bake my Easy White Chocolate Cake Recipe in a brownie tin. It’s a great size, ideal for either 12 large squares, or 24 bite-size pieces, that are about an inch thick.
You could just any kind of baking tray with deep sides though. My brownie tray is around 21cm x 31cm x 4cm. If your baking tray is smaller, your cake will be thicker, and it might take longer to bake. If your tray is larger, you can either decrease the bake time, because the sponge will be thinner, or increase the mixture.
I also use reusable baking paper. I buy it in a big roll and then cut it to size for all on my cake tins and trays.
Ingredients for White Chocolate Traybake Cake
I follow the same recipe I use for basic loaf cakes when I bake a White Chocolate Tray Bake and just decrease the bake time, to reflect the thinner sponge. When I make this Cake Recipe with White Chocolate I use:
Margarine – I always use butter for buttercream but typically use margarine for cakes, it’s cheaper and works really well. Something like Stork or a supermarkets own version is ideal.
Caster Sugar
Eggs
Self Raising Flour – If you only have plain flour, add a teaspoon of baking powder.
White Chocolate – I use Aldi’s white baking chocolate. It’s not expensive but it tastes great and is ideal for baking. I know some people also add vanilla extract, but I never think it needs it.
How to Make a White Chocolate Traybake
I bake my White Chocolate Traybake Recipe like any other basic sponge.
First, I carefully melt the white chocolate, leaving it to one side to make sure it’s got a little while to cool down before I add it to the cake mix.
Then I whisk together the butter and sugar, before whisking in the eggs, then the flour and then the melted white chocolate. I pour all of this into a lined brownie tin, and bake for around 15 minutes, using a skewer to make sure the centre is cooked.
Finally, I leave it to cool completely in the tin if I’ve got the time. If you are in a rush, try to leave it for at least 10 minutes, before tipping out to cool completely on a wire rack. Make sure it’s completely cool before adding the buttercream.
To remove the baking paper, I flip the cake over onto the wire rack, or a chopping board, and carefully peel the paper away from the cake. I tend to then leave it upside down, so what was at the bottom of the tin becomes the bit that you ice on the top of the cake. It’s just easier than flipping it again, and it tends to be more even and level.
How to Melt White Chocolate
I’m going, to be honest, I usually melt chocolate in a little pan like this (affiliate link).
With dark chocolate, this works really well. We don’t have a microwave, and I can never be bothered with a Bain Marie.
With milk chocolate, you have to be a little more careful, but I typically still use my little pan (totally recommend the microwave and 10-second bursts though).
But this doesn’t work with white chocolate. It seizes completely. I always use a Bain Marie to melt white chocolate, and even then I try to do it very gradually. You can get some tips on using a bain-marie here.
Ingredients for White Chocolate Buttercream
Making a Moist white chocolate cake recipe from scratch is great, but to finish it off, you need creamy white chocolate buttercream. It’s such a simple recipe, and it always tastes fantastic. I use:
Butter – Margarine is oil-based, so it’s a lot looser and you’ll end up with runny buttercream, or having to use that much icing sugar that you’ll change the flavour. Make sure you take the butter out of the fridge when you start the cake, weigh out what you need and cut it into small blocks, before putting any leftovers back in the fridge.
Icing Sugar
White Chocolate
How to Make White Chocolate Buttercream
I love this White chocolate buttercream recipe, I regularly use it as the crumb coat on celebration cakes.
First I melt the white chocolate, as with the white chocolate tray bake, and leave it to cool.
Then I beat the butter, which is hopefully at room temperature by now so that it’s much softer and easier to work with.
Next, I beat in the icing sugar until the mixture is smooth, before gently folding through the melted white chocolate. You can get the full recipe for white chocolate buttercream on the card below.
Does White Chocolate Buttercream Get Hard?
Ish. If left it will get firmer, and almost crust.
But it will never be rock hard.
When I bake my easy white chocolate cake recipe I leave it out on the side, in a covered cake stand for 2-3 days, and it’s fine. You might prefer to keep buttercream in the fridge though, and this is definitely a good idea if it’s very hot.
How to Decorate a White Chocolate Traybake
You don’t have to decorate this White Chocolate Cake at all, it’s lovely as it is.
I like to add some colour with Jelly Tots, which I love. Smarties would look great too, you could even add some ground almonds, dried raspberries or a whole range of other things.
Think about the flavours that you like.
How Can You Make Buttercream White?
White chocolate buttercream isn’t actually white.
Buttercream isn’t white. Nor is white chocolate.
Both are generally more of a cream, and sometimes even yellow.
Using butter gives you a whiter shade than margarine, and if you really want true white you can add white colour(affiliate link) but I never mind cream enough to try.
Can You Colour White Chocolate Buttercream?
Yes! If you wanted to add more colour you could mix a little colouring into your icing, or drizzle some coloured white chocolate over the top.
I tend to use these gels, as you need a lot less than liquid colour, so they don’t affect the texture or taste as much. (affiliate link)
Can You Add Other Flavours?
Absolutely. A great white chocolate sponge recipe is a great basis for adding other flavours.
White chocolate and lemon traybake would be great, with either lemon in the sponge, or a lemon buttercream on top.
White chocolate and raspberry traybake would also be gorgeous.
I’d recommend adding dried raspberries to the sponge or the icing. Try adding different fruit flavours and toppings for more cool recipes.
White Chocolate Traybake
Ingredients
For the White Chocolate Sponge:
- 150 g Margarine (or butter)
- 150 g Caster Sugar
- 3 Eggs
- 150 g Self Raising Flour
- 100 g White Chocolate (Broken up into squares)
For the White Chocolate Buttercream:
- 150 g Butter (not margarine – at room temperature)
- 150 g Icing Sugar
- 100 g White Chocolate (Broken up into squares)
- Jelly Tots or Smarties (to decorate – optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180 Degrees C (fan-assisted) and grease or line a deep baking tray.
- Carefully melt the white chocolate over a bain-marie and leave to one side to cool.
- Whisk together the butter and sugar until there are no lumps (this takes about a minute with an electric whisk).
- Add the eggs and whisk until smooth.
- Add the flour and whisk for 2-3 minutes until the mixture is even and there are no lumps.
- Pour in the cooled melted chocolate and fold together gently and thoroughly.
- Pour into the prepared tray and spread out evenly.
- Bake in the middle of the preheated oven for 15 minutes, checking the centre is cooked with a skewer before removing.
- Leave to cool in the tin.
- Once the cake is cool, using the bain-marie carefully melt the white chocolate for the buttercream and set to one side to cool.
- Beat the butter until soft.
- Beat in the icing sugar until there are no lumps.
- Pour in the cooled melted chocolate and fold together until smoother.
- Tip the cooled cake onto a wire rack or chopping board and peel off the baking paper if you used it.
- Spread or pipe on the buttercream, and decorate with sweets if desired.
- Leave to set for 1 hour before slicing into squares.
Video
Notes
- I use reusable baking paper (affiliate link).
- Whisk for longer if using a hand whisk or spoon.
Any nutritional information is given as a general guide only and may not be accurate. The information is provided using an online calculator and is specific to my ingredients. Please make your own calculations if you want precise information.
