Victoria Sponge

Name: Victoria Sponge
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 1 h 15 min
Total time: 1 h 45 min
Cuisine: United Kingdom
Ingredients: 4 large eggs (about 200 g without shells), at room temperature; weigh them and match the next three ingredients; 200 g (14 tbsp) unsalted butter, very soft, plus extra for the pans; 200 g (1 cup) superfine (caster) sugar; 200 g (1⅔ cups) self-raising flour, or 200 g all-purpose flour + 10 g (2½ tsp) baking powder; 1 pinch fine sea salt; 5 ml (1 tsp) vanilla extract; 30 ml (2 tbsp) milk; 150 g (½ cup) raspberry jam; 200 ml (¾ cup + 1 tbsp) heavy (double) cream; 10 g (1 tbsp) powdered (icing) sugar, plus extra for dusting

Britain's teatime sandwich cake: buttery sponge, jam and cream

Makes: 1 sandwich cake (20 cm / 8 in)
Hands-on: 30 min
Total: 1 h 45 min
Level: Easy

Two light butter sponges sandwiched with raspberry jam and softly whipped cream, with nothing on top but a dusting of sugar. The traditional method weighs the eggs and uses the same weight of butter, sugar and flour, which is the easiest way to make it come out right every time.

Ingredients

Sponge

4large eggs (about 200 g without shells)at room temperature; weigh them and match the next three ingredients
200 gunsalted butter, very soft (14 tbsp)plus extra for the pans
200 gsuperfine (caster) sugar (1 cup)
200 gself-raising flour (1⅔ cups)or 200 g all-purpose flour + 10 g (2½ tsp) baking powder
1 pinchfine sea salt
5 mlvanilla extract (1 tsp)
30 mlmilk (2 tbsp)

Filling

150 graspberry jam (½ cup)
200 mlheavy (double) cream (¾ cup + 1 tbsp)
10 gpowdered (icing) sugar (1 tbsp)plus extra for dusting

Diet: Vegetarian
Allergens: gluten, egg, milk
Origin: United Kingdom

Method

Heat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Butter two 20 cm (8 in) round cake pans and line the bases with baking paper.
Beat the butter and superfine sugar with an electric mixer for 3–4 minutes (or with a wooden spoon for about 8), until very pale and fluffy. 4 min
Beat the eggs with the vanilla in a jug. Add to the butter a little at a time, beating well after each addition. If it starts to look curdled, add a spoonful of the flour.
Sift the flour and salt over and fold in gently with a large metal spoon or spatula. Fold in the milk to a soft batter that drops easily off the spoon.
Divide evenly between the pans (weigh them for even layers) and smooth the tops. Bake on the middle rack 20–25 minutes, until golden, springy and shrinking from the sides. Don't open the oven in the first 15 minutes. 23 min
Cool in the pans 5 minutes, then turn out onto a rack and cool completely, about 40 minutes. 45 min
Whip the cream with the powdered sugar to soft, floppy peaks. Set one sponge upside down on a plate, spread with the jam, then the cream. Top with the second sponge, right way up, and dust with powdered sugar.

Why it works

Creaming butter and sugar forces air into the fat, and those tiny bubbles expand in the oven, helped by the baking powder in the flour, to make a light, even crumb. Adding eggs slowly keeps the emulsion stable; if it splits, the cake will be heavier. Equal weights of the four main ingredients give a balanced, reliable cake without needing to remember quantities.

Common mistakes

Cold butter or eggs, which won't cream or combine smoothly. Leave them out for an hour.
Opening the oven early, which can make the middle sink.
Filling the cake warm; the cream melts.

Variations

Lemon: Add the finely grated zest of 1 lemon to the butter and fill with lemon curd and cream.
Strawberry: Add a layer of sliced fresh strawberries on top of the jam in summer.

Make ahead and storage

Unfilled sponges keep 2 days wrapped or freeze for 2 months. Once filled with cream, eat the same day or keep in the fridge for 1 day.

Notes

Fan oven: 160°C (320°F). If your eggs weigh more or less than 200 g, scale the butter, sugar and flour to match.