I told you there’d be new iterations of the yoghurt loaf cake. And this is it, a Christmas Peppermint cake.

I used a Nordic Ware decorative loaf tin for this cake, as I felt it was appropriate, and the design really felt Christmas-y. The peppermint flavours don’t overwhelm the cake, but be careful with peppermint extract, it has a way of tasting like toothpaste if you use too much.

The simple syrup will make sure that the cake stays moist, so don’t skip it. This will be a great dinner party cake, or Christmas day dessert.

Ingredients

Cake:
150 grams yoghurt
300 grams caster sugar
2 eggs
300 grams self-raising flour
110 ml vegetable oil
2 tbsp cocoa powder
1 tbsp peppermint extract

Simple Syrup:
water (approx 50 ml)
caster sugar to taste (approx 4 tablespoons)

Glaze:
100 grams 70% dark chocolate
3 tbsp coconut oil
1 tsp peppermint extract

crushed candy canes

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Generously grease your loaf tin.
2. Combine the yoghurt and caster sugar together in a large bowl. Mix well.
3. Add the eggs. Stir until well incorporated. Separate the batter into two equal portions.
4. To one bowl of batter, sift in cocoa powder and 150 grams of flour. Beat until the flour is fully mixed through. Add 55 ml of oil to the cake batter and stir through. To the second bowl of batter sift the remaining flour, oil and peppermint extract.
5. Pour one third of the chocolate batter into the loaf tin, then half of the peppermint batter, and another third of the chocolate batter into loaf tin, then the second half of the batter and swirl it with a knife. Top with the remaining chocolate batter. Allow to bake in the oven for 30 – 40 minutes (or until a skewer comes out clean).
6. While the cake is baking, place the simple syrup ingredients in a saucepan and cook over low heat. Once the sugar has completely dissolved, cook for a few more minutes (maximum 5 minutes) but do not allow to boil.
7. When the cake is cooked, remove from the oven and poke holes through the cake. Pour the simple syrup over the cake, allowing it to seep into the holes.
8. Once cool, make the glaze. Place the chocolate, coconut oil and peppermint extract in a saucepan over low heat. Once fully melted, drizzle over the loaf cake. Sprinkle with crushed candy canes.