Strawberries and Cream Sponge Cake
This light, fluffy strawberries and cream sponge cake is layered with rich whipped cream and homemade strawberry jam. It's the ultimate summer dessert or showstopping centrepiece for your Christmas spread. With the soft and fluffy sponges and sweet, tangy jam, this cake is a crowd-pleaser that looks as impressive as it tastes!
Servings: 8
Ingredients
For the Strawberry Jam
- 18 ounces fresh strawberries sliced
- ¾ cup caster sugar
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice from 1 lemon
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest from 1 lemon
For the Sponge Cakes
- ½ cup caster sugar
- 4 large eggs at room temperature
- ¾ cup all purpose flour sifted
- ¾ teaspoon baking powder sifted
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter melted and slightly cooled
For Cream & Garnish
- 1 ¼ cup heavy whipping cream chilled
- ¼ cup sifted icing sugar plus extra for garnish
- ⅓ cup homemade strawberry jam
- fresh strawberries for garnish
Instructions
Making the Strawberry Jam
- Macerate: Place the sliced strawberries, sugar, lemon juice, and zest into a saucepan and massage the sugar and juice into the strawberries with your hands until well combined. Leave to sit until the natural juices have been released, about 1 hour.
- Simmer: Put the saucepan over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until the jam is at a consistency you like. For a smoother jam, use a potato masher to mash up the strawberries.
- Store: You will not need all of the jam for this recipe. Store the remainder in a sterilised jar, and keep in the fridge for up to 14 days.
Making the Sponge Cakes
- Preheat: Preheat the oven to 355°F (180°C). Grease two 6-inch baking tins, and line their bases with parchment paper if desired.
- Beat Eggs & Sugar: Dump the eggs and sugar into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and beat on high until doubled in size and pale in colour, about 10 minutes.
- Fold: Add the sifted flour and baking powder in thirds and gently fold it in with a spatula. Be sure there are no lumps of unincorporated flour. Pour the melted and cooled butter to the batter and carefully fold it in, being careful not to overmix.
- Bake: Divide the batter between the two prepared tins and bake them for 15-16 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the centre of each sponge comes out clean.
- Cool: Remove the tins from the oven and leave them to cool for 5 minutes. Turn out the sponges from the tins and let them cool completely on a wire rack, or at least 20 minutes.
Assembling the Cake
- Whip Cream: Whisk together the heavy cream and sifted icing sugar on medium-high speed until the cream holds stiff peaks. Be careful not to overmix, or the cream will look dry.
- Decorate: Place one of the cakes flat side up on a serving plate. Spread half of the whipped cream on top of the cake, then spread the homemade strawberry jam on top. Carefully place the other cake flat side up over the jam and spread the remaining cream on it. Garnish with fresh strawberries and a generous dusting of icing sugar. Slice and enjoy immediately!
Video
Notes
- When making the sponge mixture, handle the batter gently and don't overmix. This will keep the cake light and fluffy when it's baked.
- There is one golden rule when icing and decorating a cake: let it cool down before decorating! That will prevent the whipped cream from melting and soaking into the cake.
- Decorating a cake is an art, but it’s also not that hard; have fun experimenting and finding your style. Try piping the cream with a star tip for an easy and fun effect!
Nutrition
Serving: 1slice | Calories: 357kcal | Carbohydrates: 37g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 22g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 140mg | Sodium: 87mg | Potassium: 92mg | Fiber: 0.5g | Sugar: 25g | Vitamin A: 848IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 66mg | Iron: 1mg
