Victoria Sandwich with Raspberry Vanilla Creme

I love a sponge and can’t really go past a slice of Victoria Sandwich.  These cakes can be found on the counters of most tea shops in and around the UK.  Served in wedges, sandwiched together with lashings of deep red raspberry jam and fluffy light cream, it is the perfect accompaniment to a cup of English Breakfast tea. For sponge perfection – take your time adding the eggs.

Prep Time: 20 min

Cook time: 30 min

Serves: 4 - 6

Ingredients

Sponge
200 g margarine or butter (softened)
1 cup caster sugar
zest of 1 lemon
4 eggs, lightly beaten
1 ½ cups flour, sieved
3 tsp baking powder, sieved
2 tbsp milk

Vanilla and Raspberry Cream
200g raspberries, frozen is fine (extra to decorate)
4 tbsp icing sugar
200ml cream
1 vanilla pod, seeds scraped out

 

Instructions

Preheat oven to 190. Grease and line 2 x 20cm (8in) sandwich tins

Cream together the margarine, sugar and lemon zest until light, pale and fluffy. In small amounts add the beaten egg to the creamed mixture, you may end up doing about 6 additions here. Make sure you really combine the egg before adding more.

Sift together the flour and baking powder and fold into the creamed mixture in about 4 additions, with the last add the milk. Mix well then divide the mixture between your two tins. Smooth down the top, I use the back of a spoon for mine. Bake for 25 – 30min or until your sponges are golden and spring back when touched. Remove from the oven and cool completely in the tins.

For your vanilla and raspberry cream, in a small bowl take your raspberries and sugar and mash together with a fork, in another bowl, beat together the cream and vanilla seeds until you have firm peaks, then fold through the raspberry mixture.   When the cakes are completely cold, remove from the tins and peel off baking paper, place one sponge on your serving plate and spoon over your raspberry cream, spreading it out so it is about 1 cm from the edge. Then gently top with the 2nd sponge. Decorate with remaining raspberries.

Dust with icing sugar, slice into wedges and serve with pride.
Food : Jax Hamilton