Baking, Recipes to make with the Kids
Victoria Sandwich
If you only ever make one cake, let it be the glorious Victoria sandwich. The simple mix of equal quantities of eggs, butter, sugar and flour, sandwiched together with raspberry jam, is unquestionably the queen of British cakes. It has long reigned supreme at the tea table, the village fête and the garden party – indeed, a freshly baked Victoria sandwich will lend itself to almost any occasion. Originally, to make a perfect cake, the eggs were first weighed in their shells and the exact equivalent weights of butter, sugar and flour were measured out. With the strict grading of eggs these days, it’s not essential to do this, but I would stick to this rule if you’re not sure precisely what size your eggs are – for instance, if you keep hens yourself. If you are buying eggs in a shop, I recommend using medium ones to equal the quantities of the other ingredients in this recipe. Get to know this recipe if you can, not least because it forms the basis of all manner of other cakes. With the addition of a few well-chosen extra ingredients, the classic Victoria can swiftly be altered to almost any flavour you fancy (see variations overleaf). You can also use this recipe to make cup cakes….