Victoria Sponge

Before you start

A Victoria sponge is a British teatime cake: two shallow butter sponges with jam in the middle and a dusting of sugar on top. It is built on the old pound-cake logic of equal weights of butter, sugar, eggs and flour, scaled down and lightened with baking powder so each layer stays tender and moist.

Because the formula is so simple, technique carries the flavor. Cream soft butter and sugar long enough to look pale and fluffy, add the eggs gradually so the batter never splits, and fold in the flour just until combined. Bake in two shallow pans so the layers cook evenly without doming. Fill only when the sponges are completely cold, or the cream will melt and slide.

Ingredients

• Sponge200 g (¾ cup + 2 tbsp) unsalted butter — very soft, plus extra for the pans
• 200 g (1 cup) caster or superfine sugar
• 4 large (about 200 g without shells) eggs — room temperature, lightly beaten
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 200 g (1⅔ cups) all-purpose flour
• 2½ tsp baking powder
• ¼ tsp fine salt
• 2 tbsp whole milk — room temperature
• Filling150 g (½ cup) raspberry jam — seedless or with seeds
• 150 ml (⅔ cup) cold heavy cream
• 1 tbsp powdered sugar — plus more for dusting

Method

1. Heat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Butter the pans and line the bottoms with parchment circles.
2. Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together in a bowl.
3. Beat the butter and caster sugar on medium-high speed for 4 to 5 minutes, scraping the bowl twice, until the mixture is almost white and very fluffy.
4. Add the beaten eggs about one-quarter at a time, beating well after each addition. If the batter starts to look curdled, beat in a spoonful of the flour mixture before adding more egg. Beat in the vanilla.
5. Fold in the flour mixture in two additions with a large spatula, then fold in the milk. The batter should drop off the spatula in soft clumps.
6. Divide the batter evenly between the pans, weighing them if you can (each should hold about 400 g). Spread it level, pushing it slightly higher at the edges to limit doming.
7. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until golden, springy to a light touch, and a toothpick in the center comes out clean. Cool in the pans for 5 minutes, then turn out onto a rack, peel off the parchment and cool completely.
8. Whip the cream with the powdered sugar to soft peaks. Set the flatter layer upside down on a plate, spread it with jam, then spread the cream over the jam. Top with the second layer, right side up, and dust with powdered sugar.

Tips for success

• Butter should be soft enough that a spoon slides through it. Cold butter will not cream properly and gives a heavier, tighter crumb.
• Spread the jam first and the cream second; the jam acts as a barrier so the cream does not soak into the sponge.
• If one layer domes, trim it level with a serrated knife and use it as the base.

Substitutions

All-purpose flour and baking powder

Use 200 g self-rising flour plus 1 tsp baking powder and omit the salt. The texture is very similar and slightly more tender.

Whipped cream

Use a vanilla buttercream (about 150 g) instead. The cake will keep at room temperature for a day, unlike the cream-filled version.

Caster sugar

Regular granulated sugar works; cream a minute longer so it dissolves more fully. The crumb may be a touch coarser.

Variations

Strawberry Victoria sponge

Use strawberry jam and add a layer of thinly sliced fresh strawberries on top of the cream.

Lemon sponge

Add the zest of 1 lemon to the butter and sugar and fill with lemon curd and cream.

Troubleshooting

Batter curdled while adding eggs

The eggs were cold or went in too fast. Add a spoonful of flour, keep beating, and add the remaining egg in smaller amounts. The cake will still bake well.

Layers domed and cracked

The oven ran hot or the batter was overmixed after the flour went in. Check the oven with a thermometer and fold the flour in by hand.

Cream slid out of the middle

The sponge was still warm or the cream was overwhipped and grainy. Cool the layers fully and whip just to soft peaks.

Storage

Once filled with fresh cream, keep the cake refrigerated and eat it within 2 days; do not leave it out more than 2 hours. Unfilled layers keep, wrapped, at room temperature for 2 days or frozen for 2 months.

Safety notes

Raw batter contains raw egg and flour and should not be tasted. Contains wheat, egg and milk.