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Mini Victoria Sponge Cakes

A Victoria sponge is a sponge cake filled with jam and buttercream or fresh cream and then drenched in icing sugar.

Mini Victoria Sponge Cakes
Mini Victoria Sponge Cakes

It’s named for Queen Victoria who enjoyed the craze of afternoon tea made fashionable during her reign by Anna, the Duchess of Bedford.

Ingredients: for a 20cm Victoria Sponge
150g soft butter or margarine
150g caster sugar
3 eggs
150g self raising flour

For the icing:
100g soft butter
300g icing sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1 tablespoon milk
a jar of raspberry jam
extra icing sugar to drench

How to make a Victoria sponge… WASH YOUR HANDS

1.        Preheat the oven to 180c/Gas 4/AGA Baking oven or Roasting oven.

2.        Cream the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy.  It’s ready when it drops off the end of a spoon easily.  If using butter the mixture will change colour from yellow to light cream, if using margarine this won’t happen so you need to take a spoonful, tap it on the side of the bowl and if it drops off the spoon it’s creamed.  If you mixture isn’t sufficiently creamed your cakes won’t rise.

3.        Add the eggs and sift in two tablespoons of flour and mix, sift in the remaining flour and mix well with a metal spoon

4.        Grease and line a mini Victoria sponge cake tins, if you prefer to make one large Victoria sponge then grease and line two 20cm round cake tins.  Split the mixture between the tins and bake for 20-25 minutes.

5.        Beat the soft butter, icing sugar, vanilla essence and milk until well mixed and soft, add a little extra milk if required.  Cover and leave to one side until required.

6.        Remove the cakes from the oven and transfer to a cooling rack to cool,

7.        Once the cakes have cooled slice them in half across the middle and spread a layer of raspberry jam on the top of one of the cakes and top with the buttercream – or vice versa if you prefer, there are no rules about this. If you dislike buttercream leave it out and just use jam.  If you’re making a large cake spread the jam and buttercream on the bottom of one of the cakes

8.        Place the other cake on top and sieve over some icing sugar, you can cut out shapes or use a doily to make lovely patterns.  Serve with a nice cup of tea.