Recipe Highlight: Classic Victoria Sponge

My favourite thing to do is bake for any occasion really!
But I think that a homemade cake is a lovely way of spoiling someone, perfection is not necessary!

So a classic Victoria sponge is my bake for any occasion this year.
Here is the recipe, have a go, you definitely won’t regret it – you can pop any of your favourite jams in the middle to suit your mother’s (or your) taste!

You could use buttercream in the middle to pre-prepare ahead of time if you wish – I’ll be using fresh cream, mixed with vanilla pods and castor sugar – delicious!

Ingredients

Pre-heat the oven to 180c
Grease and line a cake tin ready for the cake batter.

• 250g unsalted butter (at room temperature) plus extra for greasing
• 250g golden caster sugar
• 4 large free-range eggs
• 250g self raising flour, plus extra for dusting

For the filling

• 1/2 a vanilla pod
• 1 lemon
• 1 tablespoon of icing sugar, plus extra for dusting
• 100ml double cream
• Jam of your choice (I love apricot or strawberry!)

Method

1. Beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy – you can do this by hand or in a food processor
2. One-by-one, beat in the eggs then sift the flour and fold through. Split the vanilla pod lengthways, then scrape out the seeds and add to the mixture
3. Divide the mixture between the prepared tins and spread out evenly. Bake for 45 minutes or until golden, risen and an inserted skewer comes out clean
4. Leave to cool slightly in the tins, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely
5. Finely grate lemon zest into a bowl, add icing sugar and cream, then whisk into soft peaks
6. To assemble, spread an even layer of jam over one of the cakes, followed by a layer of the lemon cream, then dot raspberries over the top. Sandwich the second cake on top, dust with icing sugar, then serve on a beautiful plate or cake stand.