British Victoria Sandwich – Sponge Cake

Filipinos love to follow Britain’s Royal Family and I found many Americans are just as obsessed. In solidarity, I baked my version of the British Victoria Sandwich, a popular sponge cake in the UK. A few years ago, while my son was studying in London, we visited Great Britain and did what most tourists do. We went to Windsor Castle, to Buckingham Palace, to Kensington Palace at The Orangery and had afternoon tea. I imagined I was royalty as I poured my steaming pot of Earl Grey into the dainty cup. And following everyone’s whispers around me about the Victoria Sandwich, I had a slice.

Whenever we travel, one of the things I like to bring back home with me, as a souvenir, is a recipe. Usually, a recipe of a dish we enjoyed. Recreating it in my American kitchen is always a delight. When I do, then the good memories of the vacation come rushing back. In this case, we had tasted the Victoria Sandwich more than once, so that I had an idea how to do it.

The Victoria Sandwich is  a sponge cake. It is said to have been named after Queen Victoria. The Queen was said to have adopted the craze for afternoon tea time started by one her ladies-in-waiting. By 1855, the Queen and her ladies were in formal dress for the Victorian tea time parties. This simple sponge cake was one of the queen’s favorites and was named in honor of the Queen (see Food.com).

The Victoria Sandwich we enjoyed at The Orangery consisted of two moist layers of vanilla sponge cake, and had a tangy raspberry jam and heavy cream in the center . But other versions of the cake have used lemon curd. My sons relish desserts and dishes that have lemon and citrus flavors so I slathered on the lemon curd between cake layers. Lemon curd is best when it’s homemade. The tart sweetness is a scrumptious contrast to the rich, heavy cream, and complements the sponge cake’s vanilla flavor. If there is no time to make homemade lemon curd, there are good artisan brands available.  If lemon is not preferred, spread a layer of seedless raspberry jam in between both sponge cakes. Follow the rest of the process with the heavy cream.

While I put the finishing touches to this luscious coffee cake, I recalled interesting facts about Filipinos living in Europe. In my article about Filipino-British Chef Roni Bandong which published on Positively Filipino. My research revealed that the UK has a Filipino population of about 100,000 and London is the gateway to Europe for many kababayans. So, like the rest of the British fans around the world, with this recipe, we’ll always have our slices of a Victoria Sandwich to go with a pot of tea.

Print Recipe

British Victoria Sandwich - Sponge Cake

This Victoria Sandwich is a two-layer sponge cake with a lemon curd filling. I enjoyed slices of this popular British dessert during afternoon tea while visiting London a few years ago. I tried baking this cake when I returned to my American kitchen and it was marvelous. The Victoria Sandwich we enjoyed at The Orangery in Kensington Palace had a raspberry-cream filling. I chose to use lemon curd for my version and it was unforgettable. Enjoy slices of this easy-to-bake cake any day you feel the craving for a superb dessert. This Asian in America recipe by Elizabeth Ann Quirino recipe was inspired by recipes from Food. com and the Food Network.

Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time25 minutes mins

Resting Time1 hour hr

Total Time1 hour hr 35 minutes mins

Course: Dessert, Merienda, Snacks

Cuisine: American, Asian, British, Filipino

Keyword: British Victoria Sandwich Sponge Cake

Servings: 6 people

Calories: 293kcal

Author: Asian in America - Elizabeth Ann Quirino

Equipment

• Two Round Cake Pans - 8 Inches in diameter each

Ingredients

• 3 whole eggs
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter softened at room temperature
• 1/2 cup + 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 cup self-rising cake flour
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup sweet lemon curd homemade or artisan store-bought
• 1 cup heavy cream whipped
• 1/4 cup confectioners' sugar to sprinkle on cake
• 1 to 2 pieces fresh ripe strawberries sliced, for garnish
• for serving: tea

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 F degrees.
• Grease and flour 2 round cake pans, about 8 inches in diameter. Line both with parchment paper. Set aside.
• Using a cake mixer, cream butter with the sugar in a large bowl till light and fluffy.
• Beat in the eggs, making sure to beat well after each addition.
• Sift the self-rising cake flour together with salt and fold by hand with a large spatula into the mixture .
• Beat at high speed in the mixer for about 2 minutes.Lastly, add the vanilla.
• Divide batter equally between the 2 prepared cake pans. Bake for 23 to 25 minutes at 350 F degrees. Test if done by sticking a toothpick on top. If toothpick is clean, cake is done.
• When done, turn cakes over and cool on cake rack for at least 1 hour before filling the heavy cream and lemon curd.
• When cake layers have cooled, spread some lemon curd on one layer.
• Then spread the beaten heavy cream over the other cake layer. Using a spatula, spread both center fillings evenly.
• Put together the Victoria cake layers like a sandwich, with the curd and cream in between.
• Sprinkle the top and sides with confectioner's sugar. Serve a generous slice with a big pot of freshly made tea.
• Copyright Notice:

  Hello, Friends! All the images and content on this blog are COPYRIGHT PROTECTED and owned by my media company Besa-Quirino LLC. This means BY LAW you are NOT allowed to copy, scrape, lift, frame, plagiarize or use my photos and  recipe content I wrote, on your website,books, films, television shows or videos  without my permission. If you want to republish this recipe or content on another website, video, news article,or media outlets mentioned above please ASK my permission, re-write it in your own words and simply link back to this blog to give proper attribution. It’s the legal thing to do. Thank you. Email me at [email protected]

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 293kcal | Carbohydrates: 6g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 30g | Saturated Fat: 19g | Cholesterol: 97mg | Sodium: 66mg | Potassium: 30mg | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 1056IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 30mg

Nutrition Notes: The nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking or baking methods and brands of ingredients used.

Did you love this recipe? I have more Philippine dessert recipes in my popular cookbook How to Cook Philippine Desserts, Cakes and Snacks.

If you need Filipino Instant Pot recipes, find more in my newest cookbook Instant Filipino Recipes: My Mother’s Traditional Philippine Cooking in A Multicooker Pot. Buy my cookbooks and books on Amazon.com sold worldwide in paperback and Kindle format.

Hello, Friends! Please DO NOT LIFT OR PLAGIARIZE my original recipe, stories, photos or videos. All the images and content on this blog are COPYRIGHT PROTECTED and owned by my media company Besa-Quirino LLC. This means BY LAW you are NOT allowed to copy, scrape, lift, frame, plagiarize or use my photos, essays, stories and recipe content on your websites, books, films, television shows, videos, without my permission. If you wish to republish this recipe or content on media outlets mentioned above, please ASK MY PERMISSION, or re-write it in your own words and link back to my blog AsianInAmericaMag.com to give proper attribution. It is the legal thing to do. Thank you. Email me at [email protected].