Victoria Sponge
The classic two-layer sponge with jam and buttercream, named after Queen Victoria.
- Prep
- 25 min
- Cook
- 20 min
- Total
- 1 hr 15 min
- Makes
- one 20 cm cake
- Difficulty
- Easy
The Victoria sponge is built on equal weights of butter, sugar, eggs and flour. The simplest way to get it right is to weigh your eggs in their shells and match the other three ingredients to that weight.
Ingredients
Sponge
- 200gunsalted butter, softened, plus extra for greasing
- 200gcaster sugar
- 4medium eggs, at room temperature
- 200gself-raising flour
- 1tspbaking powder
- 2tbspmilk
Filling
- 100gunsalted butter, softened
- 140gicing sugar, sifted, plus extra to dust
- ½tspvanilla extract
- 170ggood strawberry or raspberry jam
Equipment
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- 20 cm sandwich tinHow to chooseShop on Amazon UK(affiliate link, opens in a new tab)
- Electric hand or stand mixerHow to chooseShop on Amazon UK(affiliate link, opens in a new tab)
- Digital kitchen scalesHow to chooseShop on Amazon UK(affiliate link, opens in a new tab)
Method
Sponge
- 1
Heat the oven to 190°C / 170°C fan / gas 5. Grease two 20 cm sandwich tins and line the bases with baking paper.
- 2
Beat the butter and sugar with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- 3
Beat in the eggs one at a time, adding a spoonful of the flour with the last egg to stop the mixture curdling.
- 4
Fold in the remaining flour and baking powder, then the milk, until the batter drops softly from a spoon.
- 5
Divide evenly between the tins (weigh them for identical layers) and smooth the tops.
- 6
Bake for about 20 minutes, until golden and the sponge springs back when pressed lightly.
- 7
Leave in the tins for 5 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely.
To finish
- 1
Beat the butter until smooth, then gradually beat in the icing sugar and vanilla until light.
- 2
Spread the buttercream over the underside of one sponge and the jam over the other.
- 3
Sandwich together and dust the top with icing sugar.
Using a different tin? Change "Your tin" and the ingredient quantities above update automatically.
Convert tin sizes
Multiply every ingredient by
1.00
If it goes wrong
| Problem | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Sponge sank in the middle | Oven door opened too early, or oven too cool | Keep the door shut for the first 15 minutes and check your oven with a thermometer |
| Mixture curdled when adding eggs | Cold eggs, or eggs added too quickly | Use room-temperature eggs and add a spoonful of flour; the cake will still bake well |
| Domed, cracked top | Oven too hot | Reduce the temperature by 10°C and bake a few minutes longer |
Guides for this recipe
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