Make a Victoria Sponge Cake

This is a classic English tea-time treat. Traditionally filled with jam (US: jelly) and whipped cream, it was a favourite of Queen Victoria - hence the name. It is quick and easy and requires no special expertise, so have a go!

Cake

 * 3 medium eggs
 * 6oz butter or margarine
 * 6oz sugar
 * 6 oz self-raising flour
 * 1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence

Filling

 * jam
 * whipping cream
 * strawberries

Steps

 * 1)  Clear and clean your work surface before you begin! You need to work quickly, so you don't want things in your way.
 * 2)  Gather all your ingredients and utensils and preheat your oven to 180C. It must be up to temperature when you put your cakes in so it cooks well.
 * 3)  Line your sponge tins by putting a circle of greaseproof paper in the base and then grease the sides.
 * 4)  Cream the butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Cream simply means mix with a wooden spoon until every grain of sugar is coated with the mixture.
 * 5)  Break one of the eggs into the mixture and beat it in using your wooden spoon. Beating means mixing vigorously to get air into the cake. Stop when all the egg is incorporated and the mixture has stiffened up.
 * 6)  Repeat the process with the other eggs. Sometimes the mixture "curdles" This means that it seems to separate out and looks lumpy. If this happens do not worry - simply sift some of your flour in and give it a stir, then carry on!
 * 7)  Add the vanilla essence.
 * 8)   Sift in the flour and fold it in to the mixture. Fold means carefully bring the mixture from the outside of the bowl into the middle with a sort of folding motion. The object of the exercise is to incorporate the flour without losing any of the air, so never beat the mixture at this point!
 * 9)  Divide the mixture into the two sponge tins  - gently push the mixture towards the edges of the tins, but don't worry too much about having an even top - the mixture will sort itself out.
 * 10)  Put the cakes in to the oven for 20 minutes.Never be tempted to open the door during cooking because the cake will not rise properly.
 * 11)  After 20 minutes, have a look at your cakes. They should have risen and be golden brown. If they are cooked, they will have come away slightly from the sides of the tin and when you gently press the top of the cake it will spring back. If they are not yet cooked, give them another 3-5 minutes but no longer.
 * 12)  When they are cooked, turn them out as quickly as possible onto a cooling rack and remove the greaseproof paper if it is still stuck to the bottom of the cake.
 * 13)  Once the cakes are cool you can spread them with jam and sandwich them together with whipped cream.
 * 14)  Traditionally, the top of a victoria sponge is undecorated but they do look nice sprinkled with cake decorations.

Tips

 * For the best results, make the cake quickly and put it straight into the oven.
 * Never leave a cake sitting around its tins once it is cooked - it will go soggy.
 * To make a chocolate version, simply replace some of the flour with cocoa powder.
 * Make a coffee version by adding a paste of instant coffee to the mix before you add the flour.
 * Make a lemon or orange version by grating lemon or orange peel in.
 * Experiment with fillings - butter, icing sugar and lemon juice works well.
 * if it all goes horribly wrong and your cake does not rise, don't throw it away - cut the cake into pieces, add sherry and make a trifle!
 * Eggs vary in size and weight, so if you want to express this another way, you need the weight of the eggs to be the same as each of the other ingredients. You can make a 2 egg or a 4 egg cake - just adjust the weight.

Things You'll Need

 * Large mixing bowl
 * Sieve
 * 2 round sponge tins
 * Greaseproof paper
 * Butter
 * Wooden spoon
 * Cooling rack
 * Spatula or palette knife

Related Tips and Steps

 * How to Bake a Plum Cake
 * How to Cook a Roman Sweet Cake
 * How to Make a Quick and Easy Cake
 * How to Bake a Chocolate Chip Cake
 * How to Bake a Pound Cake