A Parle G Chocolate Layer Cake is a dream come true, as this cake is rich in chocolate along with Parle G biscuit used in the form of a Parle G Biscuit Butter, Parle G Buttercream, and Parle G Milk Soak. This cake is delicious and decadent rich and oh-so satisfying. The rich chocolate sponges are drenched in some Parle G Milk soak, the cake is then slathered with some dark chocolate ganache, the Parle G Biscuit Butter is used as a filling in the middle and then Parle G Biscuit crumbs are sprinkled on top of the filling. The cake is then frosted with a Parle G Biscuit Buttercream, covered in chocolate ganache, and showered with biscuit crumbs. What you have is a cake that no one has ever tasted literally, this cake is the first of its kind and I am sure there are many to come after my blog with probably a dozen variations. This cake is a little fiddly but that shouldn’t keep you from enjoying it. The steps are easy and you have an incredible cake after you have done the hard work. Once you bite into it you will know what you missed all your life.
Parle G Biscuits bring such joy to my heart whenever I eat them, I have so many memories of this incredible Biscuit. We grew up eating them I remember when I was in boarding school every Saturday evening we used to rush to the dining hall for our tea because we used to get their biscuits with hot pipping tea. I remember dunking the biscuits in the tea and waiting for the right time to pull them out when they were a little soggy with the tea yet had a little bite. There were times we used to hide them in our pockets and take them to our dormitory to enjoy them late at night after lights out. I have such an attachment to these biscuits which have been an iconic brand in India. We all at some point in time have enjoyed munching these biscuits and have innumerable memories attached to it. But for those who don’t know what Parle G Biscuits are you have missed out on something.
What are Parle G Biscuits ?
Parle-G biscuits are a popular brand of biscuits in India, it’s a rectangular flat biscuit that is sweet and it has been around since 1939. Parle Products produces them. Parle-G stands for Parle Glucose, indicating its early positioning as a glucose biscuit. These biscuits have become an iconic and integral part of Indian households and are widely recognized for their affordability and nostalgic value.
The biscuits are typically made from wheat flour, sugar, edible vegetable oils, and malt extract. This combination is the reason why these biscuits have a unique flavor. The reason they are so popular is that they are versatile biscuits and can be enjoyed in different ways. They are sometimes dunked in tea or milk, and they can be used in recipes to create desserts like cakes, puddings, and more. Parle-G biscuits are packaged in a distinctive yellow and white wrapper with the iconic Parle-G logo. Over the years, the brand has become very popular and has become a household name in India.
Elements Of Parle G Chocolate Layer Cake
Eggless Chocolate Sponge: the eggless chocolate sponge is fluffy and light. I have used yogurt or curd with a little baking powder sprinkled on it, the yogurt reacts with the baking powder. When yogurt reacts with baking soda in a recipe, it’s also a chemical reaction known as an acid-base reaction.
- Yogurt (acid): Yogurt contains lactic acid, which is acidic.
- Baking Soda (base): Baking soda, or sodium bicarbonate, is a basic compound.
The reaction between the acid in the yogurt and the base in the baking soda produces carbon dioxide gas. This gas bubbles in the batter or dough, causing it to rise. The rising action leads to the light and fluffy texture in the final baked product. The reaction can also neutralize some of the acidity in the yogurt.
This acid-base reaction is commonly used as a leavening agent in recipes such as pancakes, cakes, and quick breads. It’s essential to remember that the ratio of yogurt to baking soda and the overall recipe formulation play a role in achieving the desired texture and flavor in the finished product.
Now, we come to the two ingredients used in the cake for the chocolate flavor coco powder and dark chocolate. Both give this cake an amazing chocolaty flavor, the cocoa powder is bloomed in the hot water. “Blooming” cocoa powder is a culinary technique where cocoa powder is mixed with a hot liquid to intensify its flavor and eliminate any lumps. This process is often used in baking and cooking to enhance the chocolatey taste of cocoa powder in a recipe. The dark chocolate I have used is 70 % this is what lends the cake a nice rich chocolate flavor.
I have also used regular coffee powder to enhance the flavor of the chocolate and no you don’t taste the coffee in the cake. Still, the coffee adds a punch of flavor to the chocolate and somehow makes the cake taste more chocolatey.
Dark Chocolate Ganache: The dark chocolate ganache is an element that enhances the chocolate quotient of the cake. I have used 55 % dark chocolate callets for the ganache and this lush rich smooth ganache has been used as one of the filings of the cake and has also been used to frost the cake from the outside.
Parle G Biscuit/Cookie Butter: A biscuit/cookie butter is like a spreadable butter or spreads for example Nutella, biscoff spread, etc. Please don’t confuse the term biscuit here, in India we use the terms biscuit and cookie interchangeably. So to make things simple Parle G is a cookie and we are making cookie butter or as in India, we would call them biscuit so biscuit butter. Here the biscuit is crushed and then pulsed in the grinder along with the other ingredients. You could use a food processor to make things easy for yourself. This cookie butter has the goodness of cinnamon powder and a little grating of nutmeg this is what makes this cookie butter delicious. Condensed milk gives the slight sweetness that is needed and the butter and fresh cream give it the richness that a biscuit/cookie butter has. Milk is added in a few tablespoons to adjust the consistency and make it spreadable.
Parle G Buttercream: A Parle G buttercream is a combination of the finally powdered crumbs of the biscuit/cookie along with the parle G butter/ biscuit butter. These two are added to the buttercream and then whipped along with the butter, icing sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. What you have is a cloud of fluff buttercream that tastes like a dream.
Parle G Milk Soak: Hot milk and parle g biscuit/cookie butter are whisked together and then used to make the cake moist. I poked a few holes in the cake and poured the soak on it with a spoon.
Parle G Cookie Crumbs: to sprinkle when we sandwich the cake and also to be sprinkled on the outside of the cake.
Common Questions
- Can I use any chocolate with Parle-G biscuits?
- Yes, you can use any type of chocolate that you prefer for the chocolate layer in the cake. But I would recommend dark chocolate with at least 50 – 55 % cocoa solids.
- Do I need to add sugar to the cake batter since Parle-G biscuits are sweet?
- Parle-G biscuits are sweet, but the additional sugar in the cake batter helps balance flavors. I would recommend you to use the amount of sugar that has been given in the recipe as the cake might not be sweet enough or you might disbalance the ratio of the cake.
- How do I crush Parle-G biscuits for the cake?
- You can crush Parle-G biscuits by placing them in a zip-top bag and using a rolling pin to roll over them until you get a fine crumb texture. Alternatively, you can use a food processor for quicker results.
- Can I make the cake with eggs?
- Yes, you can adapt the recipe to make it with egg. Use 2 eggs and whisk them in after you are done beating the butter and the sugar together for the cake batter.
- What can I use as a substitute for yogurt in the recipe?
- Sour cream or buttermilk can be used as substitutes for yogurt. Alternatively, you can make a buttermilk substitute by adding a tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice to milk and letting it sit for a few minutes.
- Should I refrigerate the Parle-G Chocolate Layer Cake?
- The cake has perishable ingredients like yogurt and cream also it has a chocolate ganache topping, so it’s advisable to refrigerate it. Keep the cake outside of the fridge at least two hours before you decide to consume it. If the weather is hot I would recommend an hour or a half. Do not place it in the freezer.
- Can I use other biscuits instead of Parle-G?
- Yes, you can experiment with different biscuits, but keep in mind that it might affect the flavor and texture of the cake. I have only used Parle-G biscuits for this cake so I cannot recommend any other biscuits.
- How can I make the chocolate layer ganache?
- You can make a simple chocolate ganache by heating cream and pouring it over chopped chocolate. Let it sit for a few minutes, then stir until smooth. Adjust the cream-to-chocolate ratio based on your desired consistency.
INGREDIENTS FOR THE EGGLESS SPONGE CAKE
DARK CHOCOLATE GANACHE
PARLE G BISCUIT/COOKIE BUTTER
PARLE G BUTTERCREAM
PARLE G MILK SOAK
INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE EGGLESS SPONGE CAKE
- Line and butter two 6′ round cake pans and preheat oven to 180 degrees C.
- Take the hot water and add the cocoa powder and the coffee powder mix well and set aside.
- Now, take the curd/yogurt (plain) and add the baking soda. Mix it well and keep it aside. Melt your chocolate.
- Beat the butter until light and fluffy add the caster sugar and beat well, and add the salt and vanilla here. For the curd/yogurt mixture that you have kept aside add it in now whisk it well and then add your melted chocolate. Give this batter a good mix.
- Add the flour in a separate bowl along with the baking powder mix well and then add it a few tablespoons at a time into the batter alternatively with the hot water coco mixture beginning and ending with the flour. Give it a mix till there are no white pockets of flour remaining. Do not overmix your batter. Pour it into the cake tin and bake it for 30 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the cakes cool down for at least 15 minutes before you keep them on a wire rack to cool completely.
- Heat the fresh cream on a hob till you see tiny bubbles on the outside Don’t let it boil, now pour this cream on the chocolate cover it, and keep it aside for 5 minutes. When the time is up stir it gently till the chocolate has melted and the ganache is smooth and shiny. Don’t over-mix your ganache as the chocolate can start becoming oily. Keep the ganache aside.
- Take the crushed Parle G biscuits and throw them into the food processor add the butter, and give it a pulse when the butter is mixed well add the condensed milk, cinnamon, nutmeg, and fresh cream along with the salt. Pulse it a couple of times till you have a slightly spreadable dough. Add the milk one tablespoon at a time till your cookie butter is nice and spreadable. Go slow on the milk because if you add too much of it there is no way you can save your cookie butter. It would be delicious still but too watery now we don’t want that do we?
- Take the butter and whip it well add the biscuit crumbs, the cookie butter, and the icing sugar. Whisk it for 1 minute then add the cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Whisk well and then add the fresh cream one tablespoon at a time till the buttercream is nice and fluffy and the icing sugar has melted into the buttercream making it smooth. Keep it aside. Don’t overwhip because that can make the buttercream too fluffy and difficult to frost.
- Take the hot milk and add the biscuit/cookie butter a teaspoon at a time till all the butter is well dissolved. Use it straight away.
- Take the chocolate cake now it’s your choice if you want to split the two cakes from the middle so that you have 4 layers or you could simply use the two layers. I didn’t split the cakes and just sandwiched the two layers. So now once you have your cakes ready place one cake on your cake stand and poke it with a toothpick well, once done sprinkle the hot milk soak on it till the cake absorbs at least a few tablespoons. Go slow with the sprinkling of the soak I sprinkled too much and made a mess. Just one tablespoon, till it soaks in the cake then the second tablespoon, this might take a few minutes, now fill your icing bag with the chocolate ganache and make a dam outside the cake. Once that is done drop dollops of parle g biscuit/cookie butter in the middle and smooth it out, on top of this take the parle g buttercream put it in an icing bag, and ice it on top of the biscuit/cookie butter, once smooth sprinkle the biscuit crumbs and place the second cake on top. Poke holes on the second cake and sprinkle with the hot milk soak, once that is done ice the whole cake with the parle g buttercream. Keep it in the fridge till the icing is hard, take it out from the fridge and ice the whole cake with the remaining chocolate ganache. Chill for 20 minutes and then cover the cake with the parle g cookie crumbs. Take the parle g cookie butter and thin it slightly with milk now put it in an icing bag with 1M tip in it and make swirls or roses. Decorate with Parle G Biscuits. Enjoy!
DARK CHOCOLATE GANACHE
PARLE G BISCUIT/COOKIE BUTTER
PARLE G BUTTERCREAM
PARLE G HOT MILK SOAK
ASSEMBLY
Can the Cake be made a day in advance?
I know what you are thinking is too much work like I said it does take a while but the steps are easy and you can start the preparation a day in advance. Make the chocolate sponge cover them with foil and cling film and keep it in the fridge, one day in advance. You can make the parle g buttercream as well as the parle g cookie/biscuit butter one day in advance. Even the ganache can be made a day in advance and then the next day all you have to do is make the hot soak and assemble the cake. The best thing about this cake is that it’s easy it just needs a few elements that need to be made the same day or a day in advance. Yes! it does need a bit of preparation but all good things come with patience.
If you have doubts please leave a comment and I will get back to you. Do try this cake it’s amazing. Please like and follow me on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.
A few more cakes that you might like to make
Eggless Almond Cake with Saffron
Chocolate Lava Cake: How to make a lava cake recipe?
Orange Blossom Water Cake with Almond, Cardamom and Saffron Buttercream
I would love to hear from you all please leave a message telling me how you liked the cake. Enjoy making this cake.
Love N
