Victoria Sponge
Victoria sponge: a classic afternoon tea centerpiece, featuring two layers of sponge cake filled with buttercream and strawberry jam.
Ingredients
self-raising flour / cake flour
175 g
butter
175 g
caster sugar / superfine sugar
175 g
eggs (medium, free-range)
3
baking powder (heaped)
1 tsp
vanilla extract
1 tsp
milk
1 tbsp
butter (for filling)
85 g
powdered sugar (for filling)
175 g
lemon juice (for filling)
a pinch
high-quality strawberry jam
2 tbsp
Instructions
1
Preheat oven
Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F, gas mark 4). Place a small amount of butter on kitchen paper and wipe the insides of two 8x8 inch round cake tins to grease them. Dust with a thin layer of flour and shake off any excess.
2
Mix batter
Weigh the flour and baking powder and sift into a large bowl. Add the butter, eggs, sugar, vanilla extract and milk. Use an electric hand mixer to beat all ingredients at full speed for 2 minutes. Pause, scrape the mixture around the sides of the bowl back into the center, then beat at full speed for another 2 minutes until the mixture is pale and smooth.
3
Bake
Divide half of the mixture into each tin and smooth the surface. Place on the middle rack of the oven and bake for approximately 20 minutes until golden brown.
4
Check doneness
Insert a clean wooden skewer into the center of the cake and wipe it on kitchen paper. If the skewer comes out clean, the cake is done; if it has batter on it, return the cake to the oven for 2 more minutes and repeat the test.
5
Cool
Let the cakes cool in the tins for 5 minutes. Run a clean knife around the edge of each tin, then invert the cakes onto a wire rack to cool.
6
Make buttercream
Place the butter, sugar and lemon juice in a bowl and beat for 1 minute until pale and smooth.
7
Assemble
Once the cakes are cool, spread the buttercream on the flat underside of one cake layer, and spread the strawberry jam on the flat underside of the other cake layer. Sandwich the two layers together, then sift powdered sugar over the top of the cake.
