Sultana sandwich cake

I wasn’t actually planning on baking this weekend – the old baking mojo is waning a bit of late – but then I really really wanted some cake and I discovered that greed is just about the only thing that can overpower my laziness!

This cake plays around with a classic Victoria sponge recipe; I added sultanas (love them!) and also decided to try out the little pot of custard extract I bought from Lakeland a while back but have never used.  My thinking was to try and create a dessert, like a spotted dick and custard, but in cake form.

I made a very light buttercream and used the custard extract in that too.  It achieved the aim of a pudding in cake form and was the perfect comforting cake to have with a cup of tea on a grey Sunday afternoon.

The custard extract was different to plain vanilla extract but wasn’t quite as powerful as I’d have liked.  I used it according to the instructions on the bottle – next time I might bam it up a notch.

Ingredients

For the sponge:

265g unsalted butter, at room temperature
265g golden caster sugar
4 eggs
12 drops custard extract – or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract if you prefer
265g self raising flour
150g sultanas
Dash of milk, if required

For the buttercream:

100g unsalted butter, at room temperature
200g icing sugar
6 drops custard extract – or a dash of vanilla extract
2 tablespoons milk

Method

Preheat the oven to 180C/fan oven 160C/350F/gas mark 4.

Line two 20cm round loose bottomed sandwich tins with baking paper.

Start by making the sponge: beat together the butter and sugar until light and well combined – it won’t turn pale and whippy because of the ratios.

Beat in the eggs, one at a time.

Beat in the custard extract.

Fold in the flour and sultanas.

Add a little milk if the sponge is too stiff - you want a consistency that will drop from the spoon with only a little encouragement.

Spoon into the prepared tins and level the surface.

Bake for approximately 45 minutes (but start checking after 30 minutes) or until a skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean.

Leave to cook in the tins for 15 minutes, before de-tinning and leaving to cool completely.

Now make the buttercream: beat the butter on its own until it is light and whippy.

Beat in the icing sugar and custard extract until you have a light, non-gritty buttercream.

Place one of the sponges on the serving plate.

Spread the buttercream over the top.

Place the other sponge on top and gently press down to ‘fix’ the cake.

Serve in generous slices with a mug of tea.

Bask in the glory of the wonderful thing you have created.

Eat.