Mini Victoria Sandwich Cakes

 

Even though I'm not from England I have to admit I'm a fan of the British royal family.  (Especially the Duke and Duchess of Sussex who are favorites of mine!)  I just love the history, traditions and pomp and circumstance that goes hand in hand with the institution.  In honor of Queen Elizabeth's Platinum Jubilee celebrations this weekend I made Mini Victoria Sandwich Cakes, named after the second longest reigning monarch, Queen Victoria.  She was known to enjoy a slice of cake along with her afternoon tea.

 

 

If you've been to England I'm sure you've seen this tempting cake at a tea salon or bakery. It's  comprised of two vanilla cake layers that are "sandwiched" with berry jam and buttercream or whipped heavy cream.   What makes it so appealing to me is its simplicity; there's no need to cover the entire cake with frosting or other embellishments.  In fact, you could say it was the original naked cake.   

 

 

Recipes abound on the internet and you'll have no trouble finding one, e.g., Mary Berry's.  Most call for self-raising flour, widely used in British baking, but I've found that cakes made with self-raising flour can be hit or miss because the type sold in the US isn't exactly the same as those sold in the UK.  Plus, I like being able to control the amount of leavening in a recipe.   

 

Luckily I found Nigella Lawson's Victoria sponge recipe, which used all-purpose flour (aka "plain flour"), cornstarch and baking powder.  Cornstarch was a new ingredient I hadn't seen before and was supposed to make the cake tender and light.  The process to make the batter couldn't be simpler either.  Just throw everything into a food processor and whiz it up for a few minutes until creamy.  

 

To mini-size the cake I used a nonstick cheesecake pan with removable bottoms, which made releasing the cakes super easy.  They did bake up with a bit of a hump on top, but I leveled them off with a serrated knife after they were cooled.  Baker's treat!  The cake gets a 5-star rating from me with it's tender, light crumb and delicious taste.  

 

I sandwiched the mini cakes with some leftover Swiss meringue buttercream that I had thawed from the freezer and homemade raspberry jam.  The smaller cake was the perfect portion and would satisfy anyone's sweet tooth.  All that remained was a light dusting of powdered sugar and a nice cuppa. 

Many congratulations to the Queen for her selfless years of service.  God Save The Queen!

Rigó Jancsi

For someone who's traveled quite extensively throughout Europe I never managed to make it to Hungary.  Had I known earlier about their famous cake, Rigó Jancsi, I might have made it more of a priority to visit.   Named after a famous Hungarian violinist, the cake is composed of two layers of  chocolate sponge filled with a whipped chocolate cream then covered in chocolate ganache.  A true chocolate extravaganza!

I had no idea this classic dessert existed until I saw it included in the latest volume of Bake from Scratch.  To be honest I'm not the hugest fan of chocolate but there was something about the sharp, clean lines of this entremet that really stood out to me.  Plus, the fact that it didn't use too much sugar is always welcome in my book.  For any chocoholic in your life this dessert is right up their alley.  Light and creamy but still decadent it's the perfect companion to a cup of coffee or tea. 

 

For portioning the cake I started with long rectangular slices, but after having a taste of how rich the cake was I ended up cutting the rectangles in half.  This yielded 36 perfectly sized pieces that can easily feed a crowd. 

Swedish Princess Cake (Prinsesstårta)

I'd been looking for a cake to celebrate spring and Easter and the first thing that popped in to my head was a Swedish Princess Cake (or Prinsesstårta).  It's been on my baking bucket list for what seems like an eternity so it was finally time to have a go.  Fittingly, I think my introduction to these beautiful cakes was at IKEA many, many years ago...ha!  What could be more delicious than moist vanilla genoise sponge cake filled with layers of raspberry jam, diplomat cream a gorgeous dome of whipped cream and then covered in verdant colored marzipan?   Nothing, I tell you!

For the recipe I turned to Mary Berry, of The Great British Bake Off fame.  Princess cake was the technical challenge in the Continental Cakes episode of Series 5.  At first glance this recipe is daunting, there's a lot of ingredients and a lot of steps!, but don't be deterred. While the contestants were given just over two hours to complete their cakes I made my life easy and decided to make it over the course of a weekend.  Some of the components (pastry cream, jam, marzipan and fondant rose) were made on the first day and the sponge cake and assembly were done on the second day.   

  

I passed on the chocolate decorations from Mary's original recipe and kept it sweet and simple with a light dusting of powdered sugar.  I just think it looks so stunning in an elegant and understated way. I don't know about you, but I seriously love all the spring feels this cake is giving me.  The beautiful pastel green marzipan exterior and cream and pink interiors are just so refreshing and light.  No doubt this beauty will banish any wintertime blues you may have.  

Happy Spring!

Savoy Cake

Are you a fan of Netflix's The Crown as much as I am?  To say that I'm an enthusiast is a huge understatement.  More like a complete groupie, bar none.  I loved Season 1 and was so excited when Season 2 was released just last month.  Can you say binge-watching...and repeat?  

The further exploration of Queen Elizabeth II's relationship with Prince Philip and Princess Margaret's life were absolutely riveting and I thought the latest ten episodes were outstanding.   Maybe it's because we have no royalty to speak of in America that I'm so fascinated?  And please, Z-list "celebrities" like the Kardashians don't count as royalty!

 

I'm a self-confessed Anglophile and anything with a hit of British or English royalty will undoubtedly capture my fancy.   When Victorian Savoy cakes were featured as the showstopper challenge on the Season 8 quarterfinals of The Great British Bake Off (another favorite Brit show) I knew I had to make it.  What really intrigued me were the cakes' gorgeously intricate details and sugar crust. 

Those who are unfamiliar with Savoy cakes have probably already eaten them.  How? Well, if you've tasted a ladyfinger, then you've had a Savoy.  That's all they really are - a fatless sponge cake.  Because there is no leavener like baking powder or baking soda used in the cake's recipe it's vital that you get lots of volume in to the batter from the whipped egg whites and yolks.  I can't tell you how invaluable a stand mixer is for this job.  I cringe at the thought of having to make a Savoy by hand back in Queen Victoria's day.

For the Savoy's design I turned to my ever growing collection of Nordic Ware Bundt pans.  The pan I chose could not have been more perfect and fittingly named,  The Crown Bundt Pan.  A critical step to success is taking the additional time required to prepare the pan for baking.  A quick spray of Pam will not be sufficient here, people! You have to grease every single nook and cranny of the mold with butter and then generously coat the entire pan in sugar to ensure your baked cake un-molds with that beautiful crust.  Trust me, it's so worth the extra effort!

So as I anxiously await Season 3 of this beloved series (crossing my fingers it will be in Dec'18) I will have to make do with my own makeshift "Crown."  God Save the Queen!

Tres Leches Cake

Need a delicious cake to celebrate Cinco de Mayo (or any occasion for that matter)?  You've got to try this Tres Leches Cake from Cook's Country.   If you're not familiar with this Mexican dessert it's a sponge cake that is soaked in three types of "milk" (heavy cream, condensed milk and evaporated milk) and frosted with lightly sweetened whipped cream. 

I'm not a fan of versions that are completely drenched in milk; so much so they leave a puddle of liquid on your plate.   Rather, I prefer mine to be moist, not mushy.  This recipe gets it right.  

I've included the full recipe here which makes a 9x13 inch cake, but for the blog I made half the recipe and baked it in an 8x3 inch round cake pan.   Came out great!  

Note: Be sure to use all the milk mixture when you soak the baked cake.  I didn't (had about 1/4 cup of the liquid leftover) and found that I had a few dry pockets in the cake.   

TWD French Strawberry Cake

Here's a fabulous dessert that showcases summer's quintessential fruit.  While this week's Tuesdays With Dorie recipe, French Strawberry Cake, may look and feel decidedly American, the French factor comes from the vanilla genoise cake. 

Unlike most of the genoise I've made or encountered this sponge cake was quite delicious and not dry in the slightest.  The whipped cream is out of this world.  I strayed slightly from the cookbook recipe by adding softened cream cheese.  It's a trick I learned from Cook's Illustrated and provides a slight tang and additional stability to the heavy cream that is truly scrumptious. 

For the cake recipe please make your way over to Sophia's Sweets or Think, Love, Sleep, Dine who are this week's hosts.  I've included the whipped cream recipe below if you'd like to try it for yourself...you won't regret it!

Battenberg Cake

Reading about all the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations this week inspired me to make a quintessential British dessert.   Ironically enough the origins of Battenberg Cake are actually German.  Pastry chefs in the court of Queen Victoria, herself of German ancestry, created the marzipan covered sponge to celebrate the wedding of Victoria's namesake granddaughter, Princess Victoria of Hesse and by Rhine, to Prince Louis of Battenberg.  

In all the times that I've visited England I never actually tasted Battenberg cake but knew of it, especially because of the pink checkerboard design.   How cute would it be at afternoon tea or a bridal or baby  shower? 

The recipe can be found here from the BBC website.  The sponge cake itself was a bit dry for my taste so next time I think I'll make it with either pound cake or high ratio butter cake.   Hmmmm...now that I think about it maybe I'll try to get my hands on a real Battenberg cake tin.  One more pan couldn't possibly make a difference in my already stuffed pantry, right?

On another note.....

Today is my very dear friend Gullet's birthday so I am sending her my best wishes.  Wish I could be in Norway to celebrate with you but I'll definitely be there in spirit!  Have a glass of Veuve for me!