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Just for a moment, can we forget about the news and the state of the world and instead talk about cake? I know this seems shallow and possibly verging on the politically incorrect but honestly, it’s starting to turn a bit chilly outside and somehow even the sunlight itself is becoming harsh and brittle – certainly, no longer gentle.
So I need cake.
A Victoria Sandwich cake is a simple iconic sponge cake. ‘Sponge cake’ in itself is a troubling term, since a true ‘sponge’ has little or no butter and relies on egg whites to be poofy which is definitely NOT the case here. Many sources suggest that this cake was Queen Victoria’s favourite and was served at tea parties to help with her endless grief after her husband’s passing. But to me, it was simply the go-to, working class cake of my childhood and was made from my mother’s only cookbook as seen here – a hilarious cookbook in retrospect too, almost Monty Python-ish at times but quite unconsciously so, which of course makes it even funnier.
I have tried many times to replicate this cake not only from my mum’s Trex cookbook but also via the always reliable Jamie Oliver and many others. I have come close but never quite satisfy what I remember. Marks and Spencer’s used to turn out quite a decent one and most recently I will be trying Mary Berry’s version which looks very encouraging.
That said, here is my own Victoria Sandwich gnosis so far:
I intend to try making it Sue so I will let you know how it goes.
Please do! Mary Berry’s recipe looks MOST promising 🙂
Yes! This! Victoria Sandwich is the unsung hero of cakes! I can attest that Mary Berry’s version is the authentic cake of my childhood, and cannot be improved upon. I am making Victoria Sandwich for my Book Club Ladies on Monday; no doubt they will become as enamored as we!
I’d very much enjoy a slice of this cake with a nice cup of tea, in a proper bone china cup, right this minute!