yer basic sponge….

This is one cake I dont use a mixer for, I dont know why..i think one time i just couldn't be bothered to get the mixer out and thought 'ahh..ill do it by hand' My mixer has to live 'away' unfortunately i dont have a big enough kitchen that the Kenwood can sit on the side and munch up half my workspace…anyway….

The time i have used the mixer it just hasnt worked right….

So here we are….

You need:

3 eggs

8oz/225gms Self Raising Flour

8oz/225gms Caster Sugar

80z/225gms Butter

few splashes of vanilla extract (please use this, not essence..)

about a tablespoon of milk.

so first you grease and paper if you wish, two sandwich tins…

then you get your butter and sugar and cream them together. I generally use Stork for this cake but obviously if you are putting on a show – get out the butter baby!

and this is is what you should get…well something like this…

then you need to creak and beat the eggs (i tend to do this in another bowl first!)

or i get my little helper to do that, she is incredibly good at not adding shell to my recipes 😉

then weigh out your flour…and add a spoonful (ish) of egg with a spoonful of flour to the mixture and mix in, I use a whisk…

and whilst your at it, add a dash of vanilla extract…

once you have mixed it all in, you should end up with something like this…

I usually then add about a tablespoon of milk and whisk it in. You can leave this out, dont think it will ruin it 🙂 then spoon the mixture as evenly as you can between the two sandwich tins…but i wouldnt worry too much if they are uneven. Embrace the uneven.

in the oven for about 20 mins at about 180degreesC

whilst it is cooking you may or may not want to partake in this activity…

so out of the oven and it should look something like this..

okay so you let it cool and get it out…and then you can pretty much fill it with what you like, the classic strawberries and cream is good (mix your whipping cream up with a bit of sifted icing sugar) and then have fun making a little mini strawberry sky scraper…

or my usual filling of choice is

you can use a whole tub if you want to be indulgent have a big old step of a filling or a little less. Add to it about 150gms of sifted icing sugar…

and then add some lemon curd. You need at least a quarter of a jar. I did not have enough for this particular cake but i used it anyway and added a squeeze of lemon juice too….

mix it all up to a lovely yellow/white mixture…try to resist dipping your finger in and scooping out a hoooge dollop just for testing purposes…of course 🙂

slap it in the middle and stick 'em together…dust some icing sugar over the top and there you have it the most basic recipe for a sponge. It just works y'know