Cherry Blossom Petit Fours are delicate, pink bite-sized cakes layered with cherry jam and cherry-flavored buttercream. This version uses an easy candy-coating glaze for a smooth, less-fussy finish that still looks elegant and tastes delightful.
Cherry Petit Fours Recipe
I’ve always loved miniature desserts. Early in my career I imagined running a tiny bakery filled with two-bite cakes, macarons, and miniature sandwiches. Reality taught me that selling tiny items isn’t always lucrative, but I still make petite confections whenever I can. These Cherry Blossom Petit Fours were inspired by a pretty cherry-blossom pattern on a chocolate transfer sheet and evolved into small layered cakes filled with cherry jam and cherry-flavored buttercream.
These petit fours are perfect for spring showers, weddings, tea parties, or any occasion that calls for an elegant yet bite-sized dessert. The technique here emphasizes an accessible glaze so you can achieve a professional-looking finish without specialty ingredients or a lot of mess.
What Are Petit Fours?
Petit fours are one- or two-bite confections. In the U.S. they usually mean small squares or rounds of cake that are layered, filled, and coated in a smooth icing or glaze. Simpler versions use single squares of pound cake covered in icing, while more refined petit fours have multiple thin cake layers with jam or buttercream in between, then a smooth coating and delicate decoration.
How Do You Glaze Petit Fours?
Covering petit fours can be the most tedious part of the process. Traditional poured fondant gives an opaque, classic finish, and gelatin-based glazes offer high shine, but both have trade-offs. For a quick, reliable result I use a candy-coating glaze made from two ingredients: candy coating melts and heavy cream.
- Candy coating melts
- Heavy cream
Heat the candy coating with heavy cream in short bursts, whisk until smooth, then cool until it reaches a pourable but not watery consistency. The glaze should be thin enough to flow easily over the chilled cakes but thick enough to form an even layer that conceals the jam. This glaze reheats easily and dries firm enough to handle while remaining soft when you bite into the petit four.
Benefits of the candy-coating glaze
It’s smooth, simple to make, reheats well, and provides a pleasant texture—firm on the outside but soft on the inside. It’s also less fussy than traditional poured fondant and often tastes less overwhelmingly sweet.
Tip: create an ombré effect by tinting your glaze in stages—start pale and deepen the color as you dip batches of cakes. The gradual change in hue looks particularly striking when you display the petit fours together.
Ingredients
Yields about 72 1-inch squares (or about 48 1.5-inch rounds).
- For the pound cake: cake flour 9 oz (about 2¼ cups), ½ tsp salt, 8 oz unsalted butter (room temp), 8 oz cream cheese (room temp), 15.75 oz granulated sugar (about 2¼ cups), 5 large eggs (room temp), 1 tsp vanilla, 1 tsp almond extract.
- To assemble: 16 oz buttercream frosting (about 2 cups), tinted pink; ½ tsp cherry extract; 14 oz cherry jam (about 1½ cups); 18 oz candy coating melts; 2/3 cup heavy cream; assorted sprinkles or other decorations.
Instructions
To Make the Pound Cake
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line an 18×12-inch rimmed baking sheet with parchment and spray lightly with nonstick spray.
- Sift or whisk together the cake flour and salt.
- In a stand mixer, beat butter, cream cheese, and sugar on medium-high until very light and fluffy (3–4 minutes). Reduce speed to medium and add eggs one at a time, beating about 1 minute after each. Add vanilla and almond extracts. With the mixer on low, add the flour and mix until only a few streaks remain.
- Finish folding by hand, scrape batter into the prepared pan, and smooth into an even layer. Bake about 20 minutes until golden and springy. Cool completely. The cake can be made ahead and wrapped tightly.
To Assemble
- Stir pink buttercream with cherry extract, adjusting to taste.
- Flip the cooled cake onto a cutting board, remove parchment, and cut into six rectangles (slice lengthwise in half, then into thirds). Use a long serrated knife to split each rectangle into two thin layers, yielding twelve thin rectangles.
- Spread a thin layer of buttercream on one rectangle, top with a second layer, add a thin layer of cherry jam, then add a third layer to form a three-tiered rectangle. Repeat to make four assembled rectangles.
- Chill for about 45 minutes to firm up, then cut into 1-inch squares or 1–1½-inch rounds with a cutter. Press cutter flush and trim the bottom edge with a small knife if needed. Freeze petit fours until very firm, 1–2 hours.
- Make the glaze: combine candy melts and heavy cream in a bowl and microwave in 30-second intervals, whisking between, until smooth and glossy. Let cool slightly until warm and pourable.
- Skewer a frozen petit four from the bottom with a wooden skewer, dip and swirl into the glaze at a 45° angle, using a spoon to coat sides. Allow excess to drip off. Transfer to a wire rack to set and decorate while glaze is still tacky if desired.
- Once set, carefully remove any skewer marks and store petit fours in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Bring to room temperature before serving for the best texture and flavor.
Notes & Tips
- If you prefer a shortcut, use store-bought pound cake or a sturdy white cake instead of making the cake from scratch.
- Use your favorite buttercream; Swiss meringue or American buttercream both work. Tint the buttercream a soft pink before adding cherry extract.
- Temper the glaze temperature carefully—too hot and it will run thin; too cool and it will be too thick to coat evenly. Reheat briefly as needed.
- Decorate with tiny buttercream swirls, sprinkles, edible glitter, or gold leaf for a special finish.
Cherry Blossom Petit Fours are an elegant, bite-sized way to celebrate spring or any special occasion. The candy-coating glaze makes them approachable for home bakers while still producing a polished, attractive result.