Chocolate Petit Fours Recipe
Easy Chocolate Petit Fours Recipe – Whimsical and sweet chocolate mini cakes filled with Nutella and coated in melted chocolate. Petit Fours are easier to make than you might think, and are great for customizing with colored sprinkles!
Why We Love This Chocolate Petit Fours Recipe
There’s nothing quite like lovely little square Chocolate Petit Fours to add a level of fanciness and fun to a party.
Most people think of petit fours as special treats that are complicated to make. Although there are several steps and plenty of freezer time, this is by far the easiest petit four recipe we’ve ever made…
No mousse. No baking racks. No poured fondant. Just a classic, moist and tender homemade chocolate cake filled with Nutella, and coated in melted chocolate.
Garnish your mini cakes with pretty sprinkles, or gold food coloring spray, and you have a party treat that’s perfect for sharing.
Ingredients You Need
This easy Petit Fours recipe features a perfect chocolate cake base, made with basic pantry staples.
To make the moist and tender chocolate cake you will need:
- Granulated sugar
- All-purpose flour
- Unsweetened cocoa powder
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Egg
- Buttermilk
- Vegetable oil
- Vanilla extract
- Hot coffee (or hot water)
For the chocolate coating you need:
- Dark chocolate chips – to balance the sweetness of the petit fours cake and filling
- Vegetable shortening – creates a smooth, dunk-able chocolate coating with a lovely shine
You also need Nutella for the filling, your choice of colored sprinkles for decorating the tops, plus mini muffin paper liners and skewers for dipping.
How to Make Petit Fours
The first step for the best Petit Fours recipe is to make the yummy chocolate cake base for the mini cakes.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F, and set out a 13X18 rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Spray the parchment with nonstick cooking spray.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, mix together the dry ingredients.
Then in a separate bowl combine the egg, buttermilk, oil, and vanilla extract. Whisk to combine.
Turn the mixer on low and slowly pour the wet mixture into the dry mixture. Once fully incorporated, scrape the bowl with a silicone spatula before mixing in the hot coffee until smooth.
Pro Tip: You can use hot water instead of coffee, but coffee adds depth and richness to the chocolate cake, making it even more delicious.
Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan, and gently shake the pan to even out the batter. Bake until soft and fluffy in the middle.
Cool the cake for 15 minutes at room temperature. Then move the cake pan to the freezer and freeze until hard, about an hour or two.
Once the cake is firm, cut it in half. Spread the Nutella in a thin layer over one-half of the cake.
Get the Complete (Printable) Chocolate Petit Fours Recipe Below. Enjoy!
Then use the parchment paper to lift the naked half of the cake over the top of the Nutella to create one cake with two layers. Peel off the parchment paper. Use a serrated knife to cut off the rough edges, then cut the cake into 1-inch squares. You should have approximately 100 petit fours.
Place the baking sheet back into the freezer until the cakes are hard, another 1-2 hours.
Once the cake is rock-hard, place the chocolate chips in a small sauce pot or in a microwave-safe bowl. Add the vegetable shortening. Warm over low heat, stirring until melted and smooth. Or, microwave in one-minute increments, stirring in between, until smooth.
Lay paper muffin liners on a large rimmed baking sheet. Press 1 or 2 liners flat at a time. (They will slowly pop back up, so don’t bother doing more than a couple at a time.)
Take only 1-2 mini cakes out of the freezer at a time, so they stay cold and hard. Working one at a time, poke a wooden skewer into the center of the cake and quickly dunk it in melted chocolate.
Tap the skewer on the edge of the pot, to remove excess chocolate and keep the petit fours coating nice and thin. Then quickly move the chocolate petit four to one of the flattened paper liners.
Twist the skewer to remove it from the cake and quickly fill the hole with melted chocolate, using a skewer or small spoon.
Before the chocolate hardens sprinkle with decorative candy sprinkles. It’s super fun to match colored sprinkles to your party theme!
Repeat, repeat, repeat the recipe steps with all of the petit fours. Be sure to keep the majority of the mini cakes frozen, and rewarm the chocolate as needed so it can thinly coat the cakes.
Serving Suggestions
Petit four chocolate cakes can be served at elevated parties and get-togethers. These would actually be perfect for a small, DIY wedding or maybe to celebrate New Year’s Eve! Serve them alongside some chocolate pomegranate petit fours for a fun variety! All of your guests will be so impressed!
Frequently Asked Questions
Once finished, cover the baking sheet of chocolate mini cakes with plastic to keep fresh. Keep the sweet chocolate mini cakes at room temperature for 2-3 days, or in the refrigerator for up to a week.
You can easily make this a gluten-free petit fours recipe by swapping all-purpose flour with your favorite GF substitute. For the best texture, we recommend using a blend that includes potato starch and tapioca starch.
A simple decoration is adding sprinkles to the top of them before the chocolate coating has hardened! You can switch up the sprinkles and colors based on the time of year or special occasion. Or, instead of sprinkles you can pipe a little dollop of frosting on top for extra fancy petit fours!
When planning on making petit fours, plan for about 2-3 little pieces per person. Since this recipe makes 100 petit four cakes, this is great for your next gathering of about 30 people! But keep in mind, if you have leftovers, you can keep them in fridge and eat on them as the days go by.
Looking for More Classic Sweet Treat Recipes?
- Chocolate Pomegranate Petit Fours
- Chocolate Dipped Lace Cookies
- Nutella Chocolate Fondue Recipe
- Blackout Mini Cake Recipe
- Chocolate Dipped Strawberries (Strawberry Pops)
Chocolate Petit Fours Recipe
Ingredients
For the Chocolate Cake –
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 large egg
- ½ cup buttermilk
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup hot coffee or hot water
For the Filling –
For the Coating –
- 10 ounces dark chocolate chips 60% cacao
- 2 tablespoons vegetable shortening
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Set out a 13X18 rimmed baking sheet and line it with parchment paper. Spray the parchment with nonstick cooking spray.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, add the sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix well.
- In a separate bowl (or measuring pitcher) combine the egg, buttermilk, oil, and vanilla extract. Whisk to combine.
- Turn the mixer on low and slowly pour the wet mixture into the dry mixture. Once fully incorporated, turn the mixer on medium and beat for 1 minute. Scrape the bowl with a rubber spatula. Then turn on low again and beat in the hot coffee. Once smooth, turn off the mixer.
- Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan. Gently shake the pan to even out the batter. Then bake for 11-13 minutes, until soft and fluffy in the middle.
- Cool the cake for 15 minutes at room temperature. Then move the cake pan to the freezer and freeze until hard. (about 1-2 hours)
- Once the cake is firm, cut it in half. Spread the Nutella in a thin layer over one-half of the cake. Then use the parchment paper to lift the naked half of the cake over the top of the Nutella to create one cake with two layers. Peel off the parchment paper. Use a serrated knife to cut off the rough edges, then cut the cake into 1 inch squares. You should have approximately 100 petit fours. Place the baking sheet back into the freezer until the cakes are very hard. (about 1-2 hours)
- Once the cake is rock-hard, place the chocolate chips in a small saucepot or in a microwave-safe bowl. Add the vegetable shortening. Warm over low heat, stirring until melted and smooth. Or microwave in one-minute increments, stirring in between, until smooth.
- Lay paper muffin liners on a large rimmed baking sheet. Press 1-2 liners flat at a time. Take only 1-2 mini cakes out of the freezer at a time, so they stay cold and hard, until ready to dunk. Poke a wooden skewer into the center of one cake and quickly dunk it in melted chocolate. (Sometimes it helps to have a spatula to splash the chocolate over the top. Do this fast so the cake doesn’t soften and fall off the skewer.)
- Tap the skewer on the edge of the pot, to remove excess chocolate. (You want to keep it thin.) Then quickly move the petit four to one of the flattened paper liners. Twist the skewer to remove it from the cake and quickly fill the hole with melted chocolate, using a skewer or small spoon. Before the chocolate hardens, sprinkle it with decorative candy sprinkles.
- Repeat, repeat, repeat, making sure to keep the majority of the mini cakes frozen, and rewarming the chocolate as needed, so it thinly coats the cakes.
- Once finished, cover the baking sheet with plastic to keep fresh.
These petit fours were a big hit for Valentine’s Day! So easy to make and they disappeared fast lol!
Such a perfect chocolatey treat! My kids will love it!
These are the perfect little cakes. They taste so amazing!