I wanted to come up with something special for my blog’s second birthday and this is it! In the two years since I launched my alter ego on the world I haven’t made a Victoria sponge as I always default to my favourite sponge recipe.
While there’s nothing wrong with a classic Victoria sponge i.e. sponge filled with either jam and cream or buttercream, I wanted something with a little more pizzazz and more fitting for a dessert. Taking the classic Victoria sponge filling of strawberry and cream, I went one stage further and used Eton mess as a filling. Eton Mess is a classic dessert in its own right and comprises of strawberries, cream and crushed meringue.
The hidden crunch of the meringue in the creamy filling compliments the sponge perfectly and was a lovely mix of tastes and textures.
Don’t worry about having any leftover – keep it in the fridge and it stays just as delicious for a day or so. If you wish to keep it longer than that hang your head in shame and vow, right now, to increase your cake consumption!
Ingredients
For the sponges:
200g caster sugar
200g unsalted butter, at room temperature
3 eggs
200g self raising flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons milk
For the Eton mess filling:
6 meringue nests, crushed (I used Marks & Spencer’s as they use only egg white and sugar i.e. just like if you’d made them yourself...which of course you could if you wanted!)
225g strawberries, washed and hulled
1 tablespoon icing sugar
300ml double cream
Method
- Preheat the oven to 190°C/fan oven 170°C/375°F/Gas mark 5.
- Line the base of two 20cm round sandwich tins with baking paper.
- Place all the ingredients for the sponge into a bowl and beat together until smooth and well combined.
- Divide the mixture evenly between the tins and level the surfaces.
- Bake for approximately 20 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out cleanly. Mine took 25 minutes.
- Leave to cool on a wire rack before turning out of the tins.
- While the sponges can be made in advance and stored in an airtight container, the Eton Mess filling can only be made when you need it.
- Blitz half the strawberries in a blender or processor to make puree.
- Stir in the icing sugar then pass the puree through a nylon sieve.
- Chop the remaining strawberries into small chunks.
- Whip the cream until you have soft peaks.
- Fold in the crushed meringues and the chopped strawberries, then fold in the puree.
- Place one sponge on a serving plate and cover with the Eton Mess. Don’t worry if you can’t use it all – simply spoon any leftovers into small glasses and you have a dessert for another meal!
- Top off with the second sponge.
- Dust with icing sugar, if desired.
- Bask in the glory of the wonderful thing you have made.
- Eat.
9 comments:
Oh Yum, drool......
April xx
Happy Blog-day!!!
I feel I am unlikely to ever hang my head in shame for that reason.
Happy Bloggy Birthday.
Happy blogaversary! The Eton mess strawberry filling is inspired!
Yum! A definite step up from your average Victoria sponge.
PS Happy 2nd blogoversary!
Happy Blog Anniversary!
That is a wonderful cake, how inventive to fill it with Eton Mess.
Happy Blogiversary. Wow what a way to celebrate. That is one heavenly idea.
Oh sweet Mary, Joseph and all the little cakey saints
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