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Home » Recipes » Cake

Easy Victoria Sponge Cake Recipe

September 13, 2020 by Lynn Hill 12 Comments

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This easy vanilla sponge cake recipe is perfect for everyday baking. Keep it simple with a dusting of caster sugar and your favorite filling, or turn it into a traditional Victoria Sandwich by filling it with raspberry or strawberry preserves. It's the perfect sponge cake recipe for any application.

Victoria Sponge cake on a glass cake stand

This Classic Victoria Sandwich is great for a last minute tea time dessert. When you don't want to go to a lot of trouble, but still want to give your family something of a treat to eat after they've eaten all their greens.

It really is an easy victoria sponge cake recipe and is the perfect way to start your cooking journey if you are new to baking. Let me show you how to bake a cake step by step. 

eggs butter sugar in a mixing bowl
Grease and line two cake tins.
Cake batter evenly spread in the cake tins

How to Make a Sponge Cake Step by Step

You only need 4 basic ingredients to bake this simple sponge cake: Butter, Sugar, Eggs and Flour. Vanilla Extract is added once all your ingredients are beaten together. Grease and line the loose bottomed baking tins or cake tins with baking parchment on the bottom.

When the cake batter is well mixed, spread it evenly between the two cake tins.

sponge cake baking in the oven
baked cakes in baking tins
two baked sponge cakes

It only takes 20 mins to bake! Even with cooling time, you can have a freshly baked cake within the hour. I love it.

two baked vanilla sponge cakes on a wire rack cooling for victoria sandwich

Do I need to remove the cake dome?

Both cakes will have risen slightly, so rather than cut one of the domes off, turn one over on the cooling rack and flatten it just a little. Why waste perfectly delicious vanilla sponge cake if you don't have to? The two bases will be sandwiched together with jam.

If you do decide the slice the dome from the top of the cakes, save and freeze the pieces of sponge to use in a trifle.

vanilla sponge cake on a cake stand
Layer of jam and sponge cake on a glass cake stand is the basis for classic victoria sandwich cake
Traditional Victoria Sandwich Cake on a cake stand

Use your Favourite Sponge Cake Filling.

No need for fancy buttercream, icings or fillings. Sandwich both cakes together with your favourite preserve and dust with a light coating of caster sugar.

For a traditional Victoria Sponge Cake, raspberry or strawberry preserves are warranted. A delicious alternative would be Homemade Lemon curd. 

Use this easy cake recipe as a basis for all the bakes that you make from now on, and you will soon build a repertoire of cake recipes.

I have an easy recipe if you fancy making your own Vanilla Extract. But you will need to wait at least 6 - 8 months for it to mature.

If you ever fancy making your own Homemade Butter with any leftover fresh double cream. Give it a try. You can make Apple and Blueberry Muffins using the buttermilk that's left. Or these Easy Vanilla Buttermilk Scones

This is A Simple Guide to Different White Sugars to help you understand the differences between many white sugars and their different brand names.

 You may like to bake these other easy recipes.

Cake Recipes

  • Chocolate Tray bake which has a lovely firm chocolate topping that doesn't crack when sliced.
  • Apple Sponge (Eve's) pudding Stewed Apple Stopped with a Vanilla Sponge cake batter
  • Quick and easy Date and Coffee loaves
  • Chocolate Cake filled with a hazelnut chocolate spread
  • Cranberry and Almond loaves

Or this Vanilla Loaf Cake topped with buttercream and Sprinkles and these Strawberry Butterfly Cakes that uses a simple Victoria Sponge Cake recipe.

Bread Recipes

  • Easy White Bread Recipe This recipe uses Plain Flour as an alternative to Strong Bread Flour that's normally used in bread making. It's also made using fresh yeast.
  • Easy Brown Bread Recipe - This recipe uses Fast Action Dried Yeast

Keen to Bake More?

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If you make this recipe, please leave a comment with a rating, to let me know how you got on.

victoria sandwich on a glass cake stand with a serving knife

Victoria Sponge Cake Recipe

Lynn Hill
A very easy Victoria Sponge Cake. Filled with Raspberry or Strawberry Jam. Topped with a dusting of Caster sugar.
4.63 from 8 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe Save Recipe Saved Recipe!
Prep Time 15 mins
Cook Time 20 mins
Total Time 35 mins
Course Afternoon Tea, cake
Cuisine British
Servings 8 - 10
Calories 446 kcal

INGREDIENTS

  • 225 g butter softened
  • 225 g white caster sugar
  • 4 medium eggs
  • 225 g self raising flour
  • 1 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 tablespoon milk optional
  • Raspberry or strawberry jam
  • Caster sugar for dusting
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Instructions
 

  • Grease and line the base of two 19cm/7.5ins loose bottomed cake tins.
  • Preheat the oven to 180 deg fan assisted.
  • Using an electric mixer. Beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
  • Gradually add the eggs, one at a time, adding a little flour between each one. This will help prevent curdling. Mix together until well combined.
  • Add the vanilla extract and the remaining flour. Mix until well combined.
  • Your batter should be of a dropping consistency. (drop off your spatular easily) If not, add the milk and mix until well combined.
  • Pour the cake batter evenly into the two cakes tins. Use scales to ensure you have an equal amount in each tin, or this will affect your baking times.
  • Bake in the centre of the oven for 20 mins. Or until baked. Testing the centre of each cake with a skewer until it comes out clean.
  • Leave in the tins for 5 - 10 mins to cool a little, before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
  • Turn one of the cakes upside down to flatten the dome.
  • When cooled completely place the flattened domed cake on a cake stand with it's base facing upwards. Spread a layer of Raspberry or Strawberry jam. Place the second layer on top.
  • Dust with a light coating a caster sugar.

Notes

This cake will keep for a few days in an airtight container. But is best eaten on the day it's made.
If you keep it in the fridge, the sponge will harden due to it being made with butter. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Nutrition

Calories: 446kcalCarbohydrates: 49gProtein: 6gFat: 25gSaturated Fat: 15gCholesterol: 142mgSodium: 234mgPotassium: 65mgFiber: 1gSugar: 28gVitamin A: 820IUCalcium: 25mgIron: 0.6mg
Keyword Easy to make,, Vanilla Sponge
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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. ChrisiAnne Jackson

    April 12, 2020 at 10:46 am

    5 stars
    Wonderful! This is now my go-to sponge recipe as it’s never let me down! Also love Clandestine Cake Club book for more ambitious bakes! Try the St. Paddy’s Day cake!

    Reply
    • Lynn Hill

      April 12, 2020 at 11:36 am

      Thank you. I'm so pleased that you like the recipe. And the cookbook.

      Reply
  2. Alfrieda Saksena

    February 16, 2020 at 10:34 pm

    Tried and tested this cake was easy I filed it with raspberry preserve and dusted the top with icing sugar it was gone in a day will certainly make it again

    Reply
    • Lynn Hill

      February 17, 2020 at 8:46 am

      I'm so pleased that you like the recipe.

      Reply
  3. Shelagh

    August 25, 2019 at 6:27 pm

    5 stars
    I recently got my baking mojo back and decided to start again with the classics. I had already made another victoria sponge but I thought I would give this one a whirl as it had the addition of vanilla and the method was slightly different. It is lovely. The only thing that I did differently was to put cream in with the jam but that’s just a preference for me and my husband and a number of others who loved the cake! Thanks Lynn, I enjoy your blog, your tireless baking energy and your recipes!

    Reply
    • Lynn Hill

      August 25, 2019 at 7:04 pm

      Hi Shelagh. I'm so glad to hear your baking mojo is back. I always think the classics are a good place to start. With them, you are able to adapt them to suit your needs and tastes. Thanks for your kind words too. Happy baking.

      Reply
  4. Janet Constance Bellamy Woodward

    February 05, 2019 at 7:49 am

    Need to test this one for yourself, please. Base line and grease only the bottom of the tin. Leave the sides bare. Level the batter in the tin. Slight indentation only. Apparently, this should result in an almost flat top on baking. Vic sponges are always a good test of things.... It was explained to me as to why....but I am not techie at this hour on a Tuesday morning. Happy Chinese New year...

    Reply
    • Lynn Hill

      February 05, 2019 at 8:00 am

      Thanks for the tip Janet. Worth me trying next time. For tins like loose bottom shallow ones, I usually grease the base and sides and place a circle of parchment on the base, as per my images. When baking deeper cakes, I will always line the sides with baking parchment too. It seems to help prevent over baking of the sides.

      Reply
  5. Janet Constance Bellamy Woodward

    February 04, 2019 at 2:18 pm

    It helps if I wear my glasses...tin size and greasing etc is on the sheet. I have a nosy kitten on my lap and she wants to pat the keys... Sorry!!!

    Reply
  6. Janet Constance Bellamy Woodward

    February 04, 2019 at 2:16 pm

    Need to grease lightly and base line with a circle of greaseproof paper.

    No size of tin stated. Usually when cake is done, it shrinks a little from the edges. Happy baking...

    Reply
    • Lynn Hill

      February 04, 2019 at 2:55 pm

      Hi Janet. Thanks for commenting. The tin size is noted on the recipe section. It's Grease and line the base of two 19cm/7.5ins loose bottomed cake tins. I agree, I often line the base with circles of greaseproof paper. You're right, the sponge does start to come away from the sides of the tin when baked.

      Reply
    • Lynn Hill

      February 04, 2019 at 2:57 pm

      Ha Ha. Just realised you'd added a second comment. What are we both like. 🙂

      Reply

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