Mini Spruce Tip Cakes

In the mood for something fresh, wild, and melt-in-your-mouth delicious? If you’ve been out foraging spruce tips, this sweet little dessert is the perfect way to use them. The combo of citrusy spruce tips and bright lemon is light, refreshing, and tastes like the forest after a gentle rain.

You don’t need to turn on the oven for these. Each little cake starts with a buttery cookie crust, then comes a creamy layer made with mascarpone, cream cheese, and spruce tips. For decoration, there’s a smooth lemon cream that’s light and full of flavour. And with a tender spruce tip on top, they look just as lovely as they taste.

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Foraging spruce tips

Spruce tips are the bright green, soft new growth found at the ends of spruce tree branches in spring. It’s best to avoid picking them right after rain, since rain washes away the natural oils and resins. After a few days, they will fully recover their flavor and aroma.

Spruce, fir, pine, and larch all have edible tips, but some can taste quite bitter – spruce tips are usually the most balanced and pleasant in flavour. With a bright, citrus-like fresh and piney taste, they are packed with vitamin C.

Only harvest spruce tips from clean areas — at least 300 feet (100 meters) away from roads or polluted places. The best tips are young, soft, and no longer than about 1.5 inches (4 cm).

If you’ll freeze them right after harvesting, they’ll keep for months. You can use them to make spruce tip cough syrup, spruce tip sugar or salt, spruce tip pesto, jelly and tea, but without a doubt they taste even more amazing in desserts like cakes, cookies or spruce tip ice cream.

Cakes kissed by the forest

• These cakes are no-bake, no flour and extremely low-effort forest inspired dessert. If you love light sweets like orange dandelion cake, blueberry chocolate cake or fruit tarts, with gentle, natural flavours, — I bet you’ll fall in love with these, too.
• Spruce tips bring a fresh, citrusy and herbal flavour you won’t find in store-bought treats. Paired with creamy mascarpone, cream cheese and a soft lemon topping, they melt in your mouth like a dream and won’t leave you too full.
• They’re budget-friendly, easy to make ahead, and they hold their shape beautifully in the fridge. Did I mention you can freeze them, too?
• And they’re flexible, a lot. Adjust the sweetness, change the crust, add another fruit layer, go gluten-free or keto — you can even serve them in jars. And hey, don’t they look downright adorable with that spruce tip tucked on top?

Ingredients you’ll need

FRESH SPRUCE TIPS – Head out for a little walk in the woods and look for those soft, light green tips growing on spruce branches. Just make sure not to take too many from one tree — it’s best to pick a few here and there so the trees keep growing strong.

COOKIES – We used French butter cookies (like Petit Beurre), but honestly, anything buttery and crumbly will work. Graham crackers are a great option too — just add a little sugar to bring out the flavor.

CREAM CHEESE – It’s kind of amazing how well spruce tips go with cream cheese. The combo is super fresh and just the right amount of tangy.

MASCARPONE – This is what gives that creamy layer its rich, smooth, melt-in-your-mouth feel. It adds a nice depth to the flavor too.

WHIPPING CREAM – You’ll whip this with thick lemon curd to make a light, fluffy topping that pipes beautifully. It gives the cakes that pretty, cupcake-style finish.

LEMON – A little juice goes into the spruce tip layer, and you’ll use a good amount for the lemon cream on top. Don’t forget the zest! Use an organic lemon if you can, since we’re using the peel.

EGGS – Two eggs will help thicken the lemon curd just right, so it holds its shape when you pipe it on top.

BUTTER – We used organic butter for the lemon layer. Once it chills, it helps keep everything firm and in place.

SUGAR – Regular sugar works great, but you can swap in honey or your favorite sweetener if you’re going for a more natural or keto-friendly version.

GELATINE SHEETS – You can also use powdered gelatine. It helps the spruce tip cream layer set up nicely so the cakes hold their shape when you take them out of the molds.

Easy spruce tip cakes recipe

STEP 1: Before you start, soak your gelatine sheets in cold water. When they soften, you’ll mix them into the spruce tip cheese layer to make it more solid. Skip this step if you’re using gelatine powder.

STEP 2: First, make the crust. Grind the cookies into crumbs — a food processor or even a blender works great, but you can also toss them in a zip-top bag and roll over them with a rolling pin. Either method gets the job done.

STEP 3: Add the melted butter and mix it well with the cookie crumbs. Once it sets, it’ll turn into a firm, crunchy base for your cakes.

STEP 4: Get your muffin tin ready and line it with paper liners. Spoon about a tablespoon of the cookie mixture into each cup and press it down firmly. You can use your fingers or the bottom of a small bottle or glass — whatever works best for you.

STEP 5: Blend fresh spruce tips with ¾ cup of heavy cream and ⅓ cup of sugar. If you don’t have heavy cream, you can use half-and-half instead.

STEP 6: Blend for at least two minutes — this will break down the spruce tips really well, giving you a smooth texture, a nice green color, and no big pieces left behind.

STEP 7: Pour the mixture into a small saucepan and gently heat it until it’s warm enough to melt the gelatine. Keep the heat low — it should never boil, just get warm.Once it’s ready, add the soaked gelatine sheets and stir gently until they fully dissolve and blend into the spruce tip mixture.

STEP 8: Set the spruce tip mixture aside and let it cool to room temperature. Once it’s no longer warm, gently mix in the cream cheese and mascarpone. You can use a spatula or a hand mixer on low speed — just mix until smooth and creamy.

STEP 9: Now, take the muffin tin out of the freezer. Gently spoon the spruce tip cheese mixture into each muffin cup and smooth the tops using a spatula or whatever tool you have on hand. They don’t need to be perfectly even — the lemon cream topping will cover it all and make them look great.

Place it in the fridge so the cakes have time to chill and set. Here’s a little trick — if you want to speed things up, pop them back in the freezer instead!

STEP 10: Now it’s time to make a quick lemon curd. In a small saucepan, combine ⅓ cup (60 g) of sugar, ⅓ cup of lemon juice, 2 eggs, and 2 teaspoons of lemon zest. Cook it slowly over very low heat.

Whisk gently but often, until the mixture thickens a bit and reaches 170°F (77°C) — this takes about five minutes. Once it’s ready, take it off the heat and whisk in ¼ cup of butter until it melts and the curd is smooth. Set it aside to cool to room temperature.

STEP 11:  Whip the cream in a bowl until it forms stiff peaks, adding sugar to taste. Once the lemon curd has cooled to room temperature, gently fold it into the whipped cream using a spatula until smooth and fully combined. Chill in the fridge while you unwrap the cakes.

STEP 12: Take your spruce tip cakes out of the fridge, carefully remove them from the muffin tin, and gently unwrap the paper liners.

STEP 13: Now for the final touch — decoration! Fill a piping bag with the lemon cream and swirl it on top of each cake, just like you would with cupcakes. Add a fresh spruce tip or a few soft needles on top to make them look extra special.

That’s it! I hope your mini cakes are glowing (just like you) with a spark of forest magic!

Here’s to spring and fresh, sweet new beginnings!

Mini spruce tip cakes – tips, tricks, and easy twists

Pick your spruce tips while they’re still young and look like soft green buds. Once they get older, the needles get longer and tougher. Always forage away from roads and places that may have been sprayed with chemicals. And remember — be kind to the trees. Don’t take all the new growth from one spot. Grab a few tips here and there so the tree can keep growing.

This recipe makes 12 mini spruce tip cakes using a regular muffin tin. If you’d rather make one small cake instead, you can adjust the amounts slightly and use a 6-inch springform pan (two layers).

Let the cakes chill long enough to set before adding the lemon cream topping. It’ll help everything stay in place and make it way easier to peel off the paper liners.

Spruce tip cakes taste even better the next day. Letting them chill in the fridge overnight gives the flavors time to blend and intensify, and both layers soak everything up just right.

Want to make them gluten-free? Swap the cookie crust for a simple blend of nuts and dates. For a keto-friendly version, skip the crust altogether and use your favourite sugar-free sweetener.

If you’re in the mood to play with flavors, try adding a second layer made with cream cheese, mascarpone, and mashed raspberries or blueberries. Just reduce the spruce tip layer a bit to make room.

And here’s a tip — freeze any extra spruce tips in zip-top bags. You’ll be able to make these cakes anytime or brew up a cozy spruce tea in winter. You can also use the leftovers to make spruce tip pesto or traditional spruce tip syrup, a traditional remedy that’s great for coughs.

How to store them

You can keep these mini cakes in the fridge for up to 3–4 days — just make sure they’re stored in a covered container to keep them fresh.

And yep, you can freeze them too! I recommend freezing the crust and spruce tip filling with the muffin liners on. First, freeze them on a tray until they’re solid, then transfer them to a plastic bag or container.

When you’re ready to enjoy them, let them thaw in the fridge, then top with fresh lemon cream and a spruce tip bud. They’ll keep in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Spruce tip cakes FAQs

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Blueberry chocolate cake

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Baobab ice cream

If you liked our mini spruce tip cakes, please rate it in the comments below.

We’re excited to share that our recipe was featured over at Sew can do!

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