These easy and adorable Mini Easter Nest Cakes are guaranteed to satisfy any chocolate craving! Soft, moist mini bundt cakes are topped with velvety chocolate buttercream, a scattering of chocolate flakes, and Easter chocolates to resemble little bird’s nests. Perfect for Easter baking, spring celebrations, or any time you fancy a chocolatey treat!
This recipe is part of my Mini Cake Recipe Series, which also includes these delicious Mini Carrot Cakes (perfect for Easter!). More recipes coming soon!
Your Ingredients List
Gather these ingredients to make these mini Easter nest cakes:
- Melted butter & plain flour: To grease the tin and stop the cakes from sticking. You could also swap plain flour for cocoa powder if needed.
- Self-raising flour: Binds the mixture together and gives the mini cakes a light and fluffy rise. If you are using plain all-purpose flour, add 1 teaspoon of baking powder.
- Cocoa powder: Gives the sponge a rich and chocolatey flavour. Use 100% cocoa powder for the best flavour.
- Light brown sugar: Sweetens the sponge and creates a moist crumb.
- Vegetable oil: Using oil instead of butter keeps the mini cakes soft and moist.
- Eggs: This recipe uses 2 medium eggs. Use the best-quality eggs you can find and make sure they are at room temperature.
- Vanilla extract: Adds a hint of fragrant sweetness to compliment the chocolatey richness.
- Milk: Adds richness and softness to the sponge. You can use whole or semi-skimmed milk.
- Chocolate buttercream: Made using salted butter, icing sugar, cocoa powder, milk and boiling water. Chocolate buttercream is the perfect pairing for these mini easter nest cakes.
- Decorations: Chocolate Flakes are crumbled on top for a ‘nest’ like appearance. Finish with your favourite Easter chocolates – mini eggs are a must!
About these Easter Nest Cakes
- FLAVOUR: This recipe is a chocolate lover’s dream! Enjoy rich, sweet, chocolatey goodness in the sponge, the buttercream and the decoration.
- TEXTURE: These mini bundt cakes have a soft, moist sponge with a light, tender crumb. The chocolate buttercream is creamy and velvety, whilst the easter treats bring a firmer bite.
- SERVES: This recipe makes 12 mini Easter Nest Cakes using this mini bundt cake tin.
Which Baking Tin To Use for Easter Nest Cakes
For these Easter nest cakes, I recommend using this mini bundt tin. It bakes the perfect nest-shaped cakes with lovely detailing around the outside. To ensure the cakes don’t stick to the tin, grease and flour each hole to create an extra non-stick barrier. First, brush the inside of each hole with melted butter, ensuring it coats all of the grooves and edges. Then sprinkle plain flour (or cocoa powder) into each hole, and tilt the tin in all directions until the surface has a light coating. Turn the tin upside down and tap out any excess flour.
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Start by making the Mini Chocolate Bundt Cakes
My quick and easy chocolate cake recipe makes the perfect sponge base for your Easter nest cakes. It uses the two-bowl method to prevent over-mixing for a perfectly soft and fluffy texture. Here’s a quick overview of how to make it:
- Mix the dry ingredients – Whisk the flour, cocoa powder, and sugar until combined. Break up any clumps of sugar with your fingers if needed.
- Whisk the wet ingredients – Whisk the oil, eggs, vanilla, and milk until smooth.
- Combine the two – Pour the wet mixture into the dry and whisk until combined.
- Pipe the mixture – Transfer the mixture to a large piping bag, snip off the end, and pipe into the mini Bundt tin, filling each hole just over halfway.
- Bake – Bake for 18–20 minutes, until the cakes have risen and spring back when lightly pressed.
- Cool – Leave the cakes to cool in the tin for 20 minutes, then use a knife to carefully peel the sponges away from the outside edge. Give the cakes a wiggle and when they feel loose, remove them from the tin. Pop them on a wire rack to cool completely.
Best Ever Chocolate Buttercream
The chocolate buttercream is smooth, rich, and glossy, with just the right balance of sweetness. It creates the centre of the ‘nest’ and makes every bite creamy and delicious. First, beat salted butter until soft and fluffy. Then beat in icing sugar, cocoa powder and milk until the buttercream is smooth. PRO TIP: Add boiling water! Boiling water draws out the chocolate flavour, creates a creamier texture, and gives the buttercream a glossy appearance. Spoon the buttercream to a piping bag fitted with a large round nozzle, now it’s time to decorate!
Decorate the Easter Nest Cakes
Now for the fun part, turning the mini cakes into little nests. There are four steps to the decoration:
- First, pipe the chocolate buttercream into the middle of each mini bundt cake and create a mound on top.
- Use the back of a spoon to smooth out the buttercream into a nest shape.
- Crumble chocolate flakes over the top of the cakes to give it a ‘nest’ look.
- Add your Easter chocs, I topped each cake with a mini Lindt bunny for a bit of height, and a mini egg for a pastel pop of colour. How cute!
Recipe F&Q’s
I recommend using this mini bundt tin. It bakes the cutest Easter nest-shaped cakes.
No problem! You can use a muffin tin instead. The cakes won’t have the same hollow centre or shape, but you can carve out a little space for the buttercream nest effect.
Create an extra non-stick barrier by prepping the tin with melted butter and flour (cocoa powder).
Leave the cakes to cool in the tin for 20 minutes, then use a knife to carefully peel the sponges away from the outside edge. Give the cakes a wiggle and when they feel loose, remove them from the tin.
Yes! You can spoon the mixture directly into the tin, though a piping bag makes it neater and easier. For the buttercream, you can use a spoon or a zip-lock bag with the corner snipped off as a DIY piping bag.
Of course! Mini Eggs and Lindt bunnies are a classic choice, but you can use any Easter-themed chocolates you like – chocolate chicks, Mini Creme Eggs, or even Malteser bunnies work beautifully.
These Easter nest cakes will keep fresh for up to 5 days when stored in an airtight container at room temperature.
Easter Nest Cakes
Equipment
Ingredients
To prepare the bundt tin:
- 1 tablespoon Melted butter or cooking spray
- 1 tablespoon Plain flour or cocoa powder
For the mini chocolate bundt cakes:
- 130 grams Self raising flour
- 20 grams Cocoa powder
- 150 millilitres Vegetable oil or sunflower oil
- 2 medium Eggs room temperature
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
- 150 grams Light brown sugar
- 50 millilitres Milk
For the chocolate buttercream:
- 150 grams Salted butter
- 250 grams Icing sugar
- 50 grams Cocoa Powder
- 2 tablespoons Milk
- 2 teaspoons Boiling water
For the decoration:
- 1 Cadbury Chocolate Flake
- 12 Mini Lindt Bunnies
- 12 Cadbury Mini Eggs
Instructions
Start by making the mini chocolate bundt cakes:
- Preheat oven to 160°C fan / 180°C conventional. Brush the melted butter into the holes of the mini bundt tin, ensuring all the grooves and edges are fully coated. Then sprinkle the flour (or cocoa powder) inside each hole and tilt the tin in all directions to lightly coat the surface. Tip the tin upside down and tap out the excess flour.1 tablespoon Melted butter, 1 tablespoon Plain flour
- In a large bowl, whisk the dry ingredients together until combined (make sure there are no clumps of sugar). Make a well in the middle.130 grams Self raising flour, 20 grams Cocoa powder, 150 grams Light brown sugar
- In a separate bowl, whisk the wet ingredients together.150 millilitres Vegetable oil, 2 medium Eggs, 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract, 50 millilitres Milk
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry. Whisk until the mixture is smooth and combined.
- Pour the mixture into a large piping bag and snip off the end. Pipe the mixture in a circular motion into each hole of the bundt tin, filling them just over halfway. You can use spoons to fill the tin instead, but piping it is quicker and easier.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes until risen and golden. Leave the cakes to cool in the tin for 20 minutes, then use a knife to carefully peel the sponges away from the outside edge. Give the cakes a wiggle and when they feel loose, remove them from the tin. Pop them on a wire rack to cool completely.
Prepare the chocolate buttercream:
- Beat the butter until soft and fluffy. Beat in the icing sugar, cocoa powder and milk to make a smooth chocolate buttercream. Mix in the boiling water to make the buttercream creamy and glossy.150 grams Salted butter, 250 grams Icing sugar, 50 grams Cocoa Powder, 2 tablespoons Milk, 2 teaspoons Boiling water
- Scoop the buttercream into a piping bag fitted with a large round nozzle.
Decorate your Easter nest cakes:
- Starting from the middle of the cakes, fill each one with buttercream and pipe a mound on top. Use the back of a spoon to smooth it out into a nest shape.
- Crumble over the chocolate flakes and finish by arranging your Easter chocolates on top. Enjoy!1 Cadbury Chocolate Flake, 12 Mini Lindt Bunnies, 12 Cadbury Mini Eggs
