Pindsvin is a traditional Danish cake made with rich chocolate sponge, chocolate glaze, and almond decorations—a festive favorite that's absolutely delightful.

The Danish cake Pindsvin (translated: "hedgehog") is a traditional pastry that's especially popular for festive occasions. It consists of a moist chocolate cake coated with chocolate glaze and decorated with sliced almonds or chocolate sprinkles to mimic the appearance of a hedgehog.

Here I've made it once with vanilla buttercream and chocolate pieces, and once with chocolate buttercream and coconut flakes.

🇩🇰 Recipe for Pindsvin (Danish Hedgehog Cake)

🧁 Ingredients

For the cake:

200 g soft butter
200 g sugar
4 eggs
200 g flour
2 tsp baking powder
50 g cocoa powder
100 ml milk

For the glaze:

100 g dark chocolate
50 g butter

For the decoration:

Sliced almonds or chocolate sprinkles
2 raisins or chocolate pearls for the eyes
1 small red fruit or candy for the nose

👩‍🍳 Instructions

1. Preheat the oven:

Preheat the oven to 180 °C top and bottom heat (160 °C convection).

2. Prepare the batter:

Cream together the butter and sugar in a bowl.
Add the eggs one at a time, stirring well after each addition.
Mix the flour, baking powder, and cocoa powder, then alternately fold into the butter-egg mixture with the milk until you have a smooth batter.

3. Bake:

Pour the batter into a greased and floured half-round baking pan (such as a bowl).
Bake in the preheated oven for approximately 45-50 minutes. Test with a wooden skewer to ensure the cake is cooked through.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely.

4. Prepare the glaze:

Melt the dark chocolate together with the butter in a small saucepan over low heat, stirring until smooth.

5. Decorate:

Coat the cooled cake with the chocolate glaze.
Sprinkle sliced almonds or chocolate sprinkles over the glaze to represent the hedgehog's "spines."
Use raisins or chocolate pearls to form eyes and place a small red fruit or candy as the nose.

🎉 Serving Suggestion

Pindsvin is not only a showstopper on any coffee table but also tastes wonderfully chocolatey and moist. It's perfect for children's birthdays or as a special highlight at festive occasions.

Enjoy your baking!