Snow Cake Recipe (From Scotland)

This Scottish Snow Cake recipe starts with a rich short crust pastry bottom, raspberry jam, light cake topped with icing and then coconut. It’s a coconut lover’s dream.

Little did I know before starting to post this recipe that there’s a film from 2006 named Snow Cake, which, incidentally, has absolutely nothing to do with this snow cake recipe.

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I always research before posting a recipe because I don’t want anyone to think I copied them. I was surprised to see so much about the movie, but it was great to see that no one else has shared this recipe before. This is most likely due to the fact that I probably have the last remaining copy of this old Scottish cookbook!

You may recognize the photo above from my award-winning snow cookies recipe post. My snow cookies were inspired by this snow cake my mother used to make from a Lofty Peak paper cookbook when I was a little girl in Scotland. My snow cookies won two separate contests! Click the link or photo for the full recipe.

Snow Cookies

So there’s not much else to tell you about this cake except that it’s rather unique, and extremely delicious! You may have noticed that many of the Scottish recipes I’ve shared include raspberry jam and coconut. Like these snowballs or the coconut tartlets I’ve shared below.

You’ve probably also realized that I love coconut by now, so if you’re like me, you simply have to try this cake. (For best results, please use a scale.) However, if you are a “coconut hater”, simply skip the last step and leave the coconut off the icing. And avert your eyes on the following recipes! 🥥 Haha!

Unlike this banana coconut bundt cake

Or these Scottish coconut tartlets.

Scottish Snow Cake Recipe

adapted from a Lofty Peak recipe         makes one 9 x 13 cake

FULL PRINTABLE RECIPE BELOW

Ingredients

Short Crust Pastry

•  flour
• butter, cold
• sugar
• egg yolk
• raspberry jam 

Cake 

• butter
• superfine or Baker’s sugar (caster sugar in the UK)
• eggs
• self-rising flour, or all purpose flour with baking powder
• a pinch of salt

Topping

• confectioner’s/powdered sugar
• milk or water
• finely shredded, unsweetened coconut Oven temp 375˚F (190˚C) for pastry.

Make the Pastry Base

Using two knives or a pastry cutter, cut the butter finely into the sugar, but do not cream.

Add the egg yolk and stir to combine.

Add the flour. 

Using your fingertips, rub the butter into the flour until it has a breadcrumb texture.

Press the mixture into the bottom of a 9″x 13″ cake pan, pressing firmly.

Bake for about 10 minutes. Don’t let it start to brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool, while making the cake batter.

Lower the oven temperature to 350° F (180°C)

Make the Cake

In a stand mixer or using a handheld mixer, cream the butter and sugar until very light and fluffy. It will begin to pale in color, too.

Add about one third of the beaten eggs, and mix well at medium speed.

Then add about a third of the sifted flour. Repeat this step. Add the rest of the eggs and mix well, then turn the mixer to low and add the final flour and just mix until well combined. 

Prepare the Cake for Baking

Spoon the jam evenly onto the pastry base taking care not to let it reach the side of the pan.

Place dollops of cake batter all over the jam to make it easier to spread. (Try not to let the jam get mixed into the batter.)

Spread the batter evenly all over the jam and pastry.

Pop the cake into the oven for approximately 30 minutes. Do not open the oven until you start to smell the cake and it looks well risen (through the glass). Gently insert a cake tester or skewer into the center of the cake to check that it’s completely cooked before removing from the oven. Allow to cool completely in the pan.

Decorate the Snow Cake.

Run a knife around the cake, down to the pastry, then shake the pan. You should feel that the cake is loose in the pan before decorating it. Don’t worry about any imperfections as the icing and coconut will hide everything!

Put the confectioner’s sugar in a bowl and slowly add the milk or water a little at a time (1/2 tsp) until a thick, but runny consistency is reached. Adjust with more sugar or liquid if you see the icing isn’t spreading nicely. Cover the cake with this icing.

Before the icing begins to dry, sprinkle generously with finely shredded, unsweetened coconut.

Allow the icing to dry and set completely which will take a few hours. Once it’s set, use a serrated knife to cut the cake into squares (cutting into 18 pieces is a good size). Alternatively, you can cut the Scottish snow cake into fingers or even diamond shapes. Keep covered at room temperature.

 

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