We Baked The Cake

My first attempt to bake Victoria Sponge cake

Well, I made it. As you know from my recent post I fell in love with Victoria Sponge during our visit to England this past July. And, if you recall, I found such a variety of recipes it was hard to decide which one to use for baking my own cake.

In the end, I decided to use the ingredients list from Mary Berry's cake recipe, except, I added 1 tsp vanilla to the batter (some recipes use vanilla; others do not). I followed the preparation instructions from a BBCgoodfood.com video I watched here; and for the filling I used raspberry jam and made a buttercream. To finish it off, I sprinkled caster sugar on top and surrounded the layer cake with fresh raspberries from my brother-in-law's garden.

It smelled delicious as it baked, all buttery and vanilla-y. When the cakes came out of the oven, I noticed the cakes weren't as high as the recipe pictures. That's when I realized I'd used the two 9" round pans I had in my kitchen; I should have used 7" or 8" pans, which I didn't have, but will soon purchase for next time. For, yes, there will definitely be a next time for this fine cake.

I baked the cake the day before my adult nephew's birthday dinner. It sliced beautifully -- moist and flavorful, but not crumbly. It tasted even better the following day for, yes, we had slices left over from the party. A sit down in the middle of the afternoon, with a sliver of a slice and a cup of tea -- oh yes, it fit the bill perfectly.

Come along inside...

We'll see if tea and (cakes) can make the world a better place.

~ Kenneth Grahame

Wishing you a beautiful day,

Brenda

xox