Nothing’s easier than a sponge. The rule was drummed into me
at an early age -it’s equal weights of all of the primary ingredients. It
almost doesn’t matter what you are making; a classic Victoria Sandwich, a Coffee
and Walnut Cake, or even a Celebration Cake. I was honoured to make a wedding
cake for a very close friend recently, and I chose to make one of the tiers out
of a classic sponge flavoured with rosewater and vanilla. I slathered this with
white chocolate ganache and decorated with fresh flowers, and I’m delighted to
say it was a great success. Most important of all, it was easy.
For this issue of Cotswold Style I’m baking one of my
personal favourites. I’m a sucker for all things citrus. Lemon cakes have an
all-round appeal, which will hopefully have the rookies reaching for the mixing
bowl. The recipe is so straightforward even the children can make this
successfully, and the mix will make light and fluffy fairy cakes too.
Forgive me if I am teaching my Grandmother to suck eggs, but
with the popularity of shows such as Great British Bake Off it seems that even
the most kitchen phobic are getting in touch with their inner Marry Berry, so I
present for your pleasure a simple sponge with a classic flavour and the American
twist of added sour cream. This makes all cakes moist and seems to add a couple
of days to their staying power, assuming there is anything left of such a
delicious cake bar the crumbs. I’ve been baking every week for my workmates,
and this recipe has been voted ‘cake of the month’ by my discerning colleagues.
Ingredients
275 g softened butter or ‘Stork’
275 g caster sugar
5 medium eggs
275 g sr flour
1 level teaspoon baking powder
I tablespoon lemon oil
2 tablespoons lemon curd for the batter, 1 tablespoon for
the filling
2 tablespoons sour cream
Zest of one lemon
You will need 2 x 8 ”
tins
Method
Cream the butter and sugar in a large bowl until pale and
fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time and beat lightly. Then incorporate the
lemon oil. Sift the flour and baking powder into the bowl and mix by hand,
gently beating air lightly into the batter, or use an electric whisk on a
fairly slow speed. Then add the lemon curd and sour cream, and about 15 ml of
hot water. Split between 2 greased and lined tins. Bake the cake at 160 C for
about 30 minutes, or until lightly golden on top. Test with a skewer to ensure
the cake is cooked inside. Cool in the tins for 20 minutes, and then turn out
into a rack. When completely cooled, sandwich together with the remaining lemon
curd. Add some freshly whipped cream if you want to be especially decadent. You
can also drizzle a wet lemon flavoured icing on top, to make the citrus flavour
really pop.
