This is a real kitchen sink recipe that resulted from the leftovers from a couple of days of baking. In my fridge were a pot of chocolate ganache, some orange syrup, candied orange zest, cream cheese mousse and partridgeberry jam. I whipped up a quick Victoria Sponge Cake, threw it all together and sent it to the staff at my kids school for a recess treat.
Begin by making a Victoria Sponge Cake
1 cup sugar
½ tsp lemon flavouring
1 tsp vanilla extract
Sift together:
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
Beat egg yolks and ½ cup sugar until foamy and thickened.
Beat egg whites until foamy. Add ½ cup sugar gradually until eggs are stiff. Slowly and gradually fold in flour and baking powder until almost completely incorporated into the egg whites. Fold beaten egg yolks into batter along with flavourings until well blended but do not over mix.
Pour into greased and parchment lined 9 inch round cake pans and bake at 325 degrees F for 25-30 minutes or until center springs back when touched. Cool completely and cut each layer in half horizontally.
Boil gently for about 10 minutes
Juice and zest of 1 orange
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
Strain through a sieve and set aside to cool. You can reserve the candied orange zest to garnish the cake. Just spread it out on some paper towels and let it dry.
You can use store bought or you can easily make your own simply by boiling together for about 20 minutes:
1 ½ cups partridgeberries
¾ cup sugar
1/8 cup water
4 ounces cream cheese
1/3 cup sifted icing sugar
½ cup whipping cream
½ tsp vanilla extract
¾ cup sifted icing sugar
1 tablespoon Grand Marnier, brandy or rum (optional)
Whip cream to soft peaks with 1/3 cup icing sugar. Add cream cheese slowly, beating continuously. Add 3/4 cup sifted icing sugar beating well. Add vanilla and Grand Marnier and beat until smooth. Keep filling chilled until ready to use.
Chocolate Ganache
1 pound package semi-sweet chocolate chips
¾ cup scalded whipping cream
Heat gently over boiling water until smooth with absolutely no lumps.
Cover the entire cake with chocolate ganache that you can pour or spread over the entire cake. Decorate and garnish as desired.
Le Chef Secret
Sunday 10th of February 2008
Lord I must have been in a hurry writing this one. The 1/3 cup icing sugar sweetens the whipping cream but it probably makes little difference if you did not addd it. Sounds like you should continue as you did if it was a success. I have made the correction to the recipe. Thanks again, B.
Anonymous
Sunday 10th of February 2008
The cake was delicious! It was not too sweet. Everyone enjoyed it. I will make it again. Thank you.
I do have one question regarding the cream cheese filling. Your instructions state 1/3 cup of sifted icing sugar as well as 3/4 cup. Do you use both amounts? I was not sure so I whipped the cream cheese, added only 3/4 cup icing sugar and then the whipped cream. Is this correct?
Le Chef Secret
Saturday 9th of February 2008
Thanks for bringing that question to my attention. I have rewritten the end of the recipe to reflect better assembly instructions. The orange syrup gets brushed onto the sponge cake layers. Thanks again and good luck with your baking. Hope your mom likes it. Let us know how it turns out.
Thanks for reading, B.
Anonymous
Saturday 9th of February 2008
This cake looks absolutely delicious. I love partridgeberries and cream cheese. I am trying to make it for my mother's birthday today. How should the cake be assembled? What do I use the orange syrup for? Looking forward to trying it.