When it comes to seasonal drinks I’m more of a peppermint mocha kind of girl. Eggnog has never really been my thing. Maybe it’s just the thicker consistency I don’t like because when it comes to baking I’m all about it! A couple years ago I made an eggnog bundt cake, which was really flavorful and moist (I know so many people hate this word, but how else do you describe a perfect cake?!). This year I decided to make a layered eggnog cake and was inspired by these cute snowmen cupcake toppers, which I came across at HomeGoods (also available on Amazon). To go along with the winter wonderland theme, I created some edible snow-capped mountains with almond bark and ice cream cones. They were really easy to make and look so cute! You just melt some almond bark in a microwave-safe cup (a cup works better than a bowl since it’s deeper). Then dip the cone in, tilt it around and add sprinkles! I find almond bark to be much easier to work with than white chocolate because it doesn’t get as thick and goopy if it’s over heated. Not gonna lie, I ate a couple of these dipped ice cream cones just plain after taking these photos. Who needs the ice cream?! It’s like a sweet, crispy cookie! Hope you enjoy the recipe :)
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Eggnog Cake
Ingredients
Eggnog Cake:
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
- 1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup eggnog room temperature
Eggnog Buttercream:
- 1 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 4 Tbsp. eggnog
- 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
- pinch of salt
Mountain Ice Cream Cones
- 3 sugar cones
- 4 oz. almond bark
Instructions
Eggnog Cake
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Preheat oven to 350F. Grease and flour four 6" round cake pans. Set aside.
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In a medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, nutmeg, cinnamon and salt. Set aside.
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In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter until creamy. Add sugars and mix on medium-high until fluffy and lighter in color. Reduce speed and add one egg and mix until fully incorporated. Repeat with the second egg. Add vanilla and mix until combined.
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Add 1/3 of the flour mixture and mix until combined. Add half of the eggnog and continue mixing. Repeat and then finish with the last 1/3 of the flour mixture. Mix just until combined.
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Pour evenly into prepared pans. Bake for 20 - 25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Let cool and then level the cake layers.
Eggnog Buttercream
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In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter until smooth. Add 1 cup of powdered sugar and 1 Tbsp. of eggnog and mix until combined. Continue alternating until you get the desired consistency.
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Add cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla extract and pinch of salt. Mix until combined. Increase speed to medium-high and continue mixing until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Frost the cooled cake.
Snow-capped Mountains
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To create the snow-capped mountains, melt the almond bark in a glass cup (I microwaved it for about 1 1/2 minutes and then stirred until smooth).
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Dip the tip of the cone into the melted almond bark. Place on a wire rack (round side down) and sprinkle with white or clear sprinkles. Place on top of cake to decorate!
