To make the cake:

1. Preheat the oven to 175°C.
2. Line one 9inch and one 7inch cake pans with baking paper and set aside.
3. Sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt and set aside.
4. Beat together oil and sugar in a mixer on a medium speed until well incorporated (it won't be fluffy like butter but should come together after a couple of minutes).
5. With the mixer on, add eggs, egg yolk, vanilla and almond extract, scraping down bowl as needed.
6. Add the flour mixture in three batches, alternating with the milk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture until combined. Slowly pour in the coffee and mix in - the mixture will be quite runny.
7. Divide the batter between your prepared cake pans and bake for 23-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean.
8. Leave to cool in their pans for 10 minutes before removing onto a cooling rack. 

To make the buttercream:

1. Place the egg whites and sugar in a medium saucepan with a small amount of water - place on a medium heat and whisk until the sugar has dissolved.
2. Whip mixture on high speed until it forms stiff glossy.
3. Add the salt and vanilla extract.
4. Continue whipping and add butter one small cube at a time - keep beating until you get a soft and silky buttercream.
5. Add the earl grey tea and mix until combined, then set aside.

To make the toffee sauce:

1. Put the sugar, syrup, molasses and butter in a pan and slowly bring to the boil, allowing the butter to melt and the sugar to dissolve completely (no lumps!)
2. Very slowly add in the cream (be careful not to get burned as it will bubble and steam) and mix until fully combined resulting in a thick glossy sauce. 
3. Take off the heat, pour into a glass container and let cool.

* Keep a very close eye on this sauce as it is easy to burn and a burnt toffee or caramel sauce is unsalvageable and not very nice. 

Assembly:

1. Make sure your cakes are completely cool, then cut in half (trim off the top if needed to get even layers).
2. Place the small cake on a cake turntable if you have one and cover with the buttercream, then do the same for the large layer. 
3. Cover the sides of the large layer in buttercream.
4. Place the smaller cake layer on top and follow same process, applying buttercream to the sides. 
5. Refrigerate until set.
6. Make sure your toffee sauce is cool but runny enough to drizzle over the sides of both cake layers - use a large spoon and drip, or pour into a sauce bottle and go around the outsides.
7. Cover the lower layer, spreading the sauce gently with a spoon, then pour onto the top layer, pushing from the middle to the sides with a spoon until it reaches your drip line.
8. Cut Toffee Pops in half and place carefully around the edges of both the large and small cakes.

Serve and enjoy!