Classic Victoria Sponge Cake

This soft and fluffy Victoria sponge cake is sandwiched together with strawberry jam and freshly whipped cream. It’s a baking classic that’s simply delicious!

Victoria sponge cake dates back to 1861 and was named after Queen Victoria, who supposedly enjoyed a slice with her afternoon cup of tea. Traditionally the sponge layers were sandwiched together with a thin layer of jam, however, over the years the recipe has been tweaked and now it is most commonly filled with whipped cream or buttercream. Personally, I prefer my Victoria sponge cake to be filled with whipped cream. It’s lighter, easier to make and uses fewer ingredients. After all, a classic Victoria sponge is all about simplicity!

Ingredients used to make this Victoria sponge cake

To make this Victoria sponge cake, you will need 7 simple ingredients:

• Margarine or butter – I prefer to use Stork Original margarine instead of butter. It makes the sponge light and fluffy and helps the cake layers rise with a flat top.
• Sugar – you can use either white or golden caster sugar for this recipe.
• Self-raising flour – the raising agent in self-raising flour will help the cake layers rise. You can instead use 300g plain flour + 1.5 teaspoons baking powder.
• Eggs – you’ll need 3 large room temperature eggs for this cake, or you can use 4 medium eggs.
• Milk – full-fat or semi-skimmed milk will work just fine.
• Double cream – for the filling you’ll whip the double cream to soft peaks. Double cream can also be called whipping cream or heavy cream in the US. Do not buy single cream, it will not whip or thicken.
• Jam – Victoria sponge is traditionally made with strawberry jam, but you could also use raspberry jam or even lemon curd.

Which size cake tins to use

This recipe uses two 8-inch round cake tins to make a two-layer sponge cake, the tins I used were non-stick and loose-based which makes it much easier to remove the sponges. Using the same sized tin is important as otherwise the baking time will be effected. If you have different sized baking tins, here’s a rough guide for how to adjust the baking time:

• 6-inch round tin = increase the baking time by 10 minutes.
• 9-inch round tin = decrease the baking time by 5 minutes.
• This recipe could also be used to make cupcakes instead and will make roughly 18 in total. Bake the cupcakes 18-20 minutes at 180°C (fan).

Whisking the cream to soft peaks

Soft peaks are when the cream looks like soft, pillowy, clouds that hold their shape when you lift the whisk up.

To give a rough idea of timings, if you’re using an electric whisk, it should take roughly 5 minutes to whisk the cream to soft peaks. If you’re whisking the cream using a normal whisk, expect this to take up to 10 minutes (and expect an achy arm!).

Whipped cream can turn from soft peaks to a split, grainy texture in a matter of seconds. So to prevent this from happening, I recommend swapping the whisk for a metal spoon the moment the cream starts to thicken, that way you can gently fold the cream until the consistency feels right.

Sandwiching the Victoria sponge cake

Once the sponge layers are cool it’s time to sandwich them together. I’ve kept this recipe true to the Victoria sponge cake classic, using freshly whipped cream and strawberry jam for the filling. However, if you fancy trying something different, you could instead use buttercream, raspberry jam or even lemon curd.

Just like scones, there’s an age-old debate as to whether you should do jam then cream, or cream then jam. Either way, it helps to leave a border around the outside edge otherwise the filling will spill over when you place the second sponge layer on top.

For a simple decoration to finish off the cake, dust the top with a generous layer of icing sugar or if you fancy something more elaborate, garnish with sliced strawberries and more cream.

Classic Victoria Sponge Cake

This soft and fluffy Classic Victoria Sponge Cake is sandwiched together with strawberry jam and whipped cream. Simply delicious!

5 from 3 votes

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Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 45 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 15 minutes mins

Course Dessert

Cuisine Baking

Servings 10

Ingredients

  

For the sponge

• 300 g Margarine or unsalted butter If you're using Stork, use it cold straight from the fridge. If you're using butter, make sure it's at room temperature.
• 300 g Caster sugar
• 300 g Self-raising flour
• 3 large Eggs at room temperature
• 4 tbsp Milk full-fat or semi-skimmed

For the filling

• 200 ml Double cream use cold straight from the fridge
• 2-3 tbsp Strawberry Jam
• Icing sugar for dusting on top

Instructions

 

Start by making the sponge layers

• Preheat oven to 160°C fan / 180°C conventional.
• Lightly grease two 8-inch round cake tins with butter and line the base with greaseproof paper.
• In a large mixing bowl, cream the margarine and caster sugar until light and fluffy
  
• Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each.
  
• Fold in the flour and milk to make a smooth cake mixture.
  
• Divide the cake mixture evenly between the tins and bake for 40-45 minutes until risen, golden on top and a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean.
  
• Leave to cool for 15 minutes in the tin, before turning out onto a wire rack and cooling completely.

Whip the cream for the filling

• Whip the cream using an electric whisk until it reaches soft peaks (this will take roughly 5 minutes). The texture should look like soft, pillowy clouds.
  

Assemble and sandwich the cake

• Place one of the cake layers on a cake stand or plate. If the cake has domed on top, use a sharp knife to trim off the top and make the cake flat.
  
• Spread the jam on top. Don't take the jam right to the edge of the cake otherwise it will spill over when you add the cream and the second cake. You want to leave roughly 1inch around the edge.
  
• Spread the whipped cream on top. Again, leave roughly 1inch around the edge.
  
• Place the second cake on top and lightly press down to sandwich the layers together.
  
• Dust the top with icing sugar, slice and serve!
  

Notes

Cover and store your Victoria Sponge Cake in the fridge for up to 2 days. 

Keyword Caster sugar, Cream, Jam, Milk

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