Victoria sponge may seem like an overly simple cake now, however in its time it was quite revolutionary. Victoria sponge cake was among the first cakes to include baking powder, this gave the cake a lighter airier texture and meant that more butter could be added to the batter making it richer. It was said to have been enjoyed by Queen Victoria as part of her afternoon tea, however it was also a very standard competition cake of the period, candidates were judged on the texture and quality of jam and cream. I think this beautiful light and simple cake holds its own in any afternoon tea and is the perfect place for beginner bakers to start!
Ingredients
8 ounces sugar
8 ounces butter (room temp)
8 ounces flour
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla essence or vanilla bean paste
Strawberry jam (to decorate)
Butter cream or whipped double cream (to decorate)
Method
- Preheat your oven to 180°C and grease and flour two shallow 8-inch tins or 1 deep 8-inch tin (this will affect the cook time so make sure you remember which your using).
- Cream your butter and sugar together until pale yellow in colour and soft.
- In a separate bowl whisk your eggs and vanilla before incorporating them into the butter mixture gradually.
- Sift your flour into the mixture and fold to combine.
- Tip into your prepared dishes and place in the oven. If you are using two shallow cake tins it should take 12-15 minutes, where as if you are using one it should take 20-25 minutes. You can tell when your cake is finished by skewering it, if the skewer comes out clean it is ready.
- Once removed from the oven leave your cake to cool on a cooling rack.
- When your cake is cooled you can begin to decorate it, however if you have used a full size cake tin you will need to first slice your cake in two (I recommend using a bread knife, and gently cutting/scoring your cake into the middle from all directions before slicing through as this will ensure you get two even flat pieces of cake.)
- Now you have two pieces of cake spread a thick layer of jam followed by a thick layer of cream or butter cream onto your first layer of cake, place the other layer of cake on top and dust with icing sugar.
- Consume on the same day as baking if you used cream or within 2 days if you use butter cream.
#Accessibility (image description: the image has a black background, we can see one slice of Victoria sponge cake in the centre of the frame. The cake is dusted with icing sugar on the top and filled with a thick layer of jam followed by a layer of cream. The jam is starting to drip down the side of the cake.)