British · Dessert
Battenberg Cake
An iconic British cake featuring alternating pink and almond sponge squares wrapped in marzipan to create a distinctive checkerboard pattern. This elegant tea-time treat requires patience but delivers a stunning visual presentation and delicate flavors.
The Method
Instructions
First things first, let's get the oven ready. Set it to 180C if you're using a conventional oven, or 160C if you have a fan oven . For gas ovens, that's around gas mark 4 . While it's warming up, take a 20cm square cake tin and line the base and sides with baking parchment. To make this easier, grab two strips of parchment about 20cm long each and cross them over the base of the tin so it's like a little parchment hammock. This way, your cake won't stick and lifting it out later will be a breeze.
Now, let's dive into making that delicious almond sponge. Grab a large bowl and add the butter, caster sugar, self raising flour, ground almonds, baking powder, eggs, vanilla extract, and almond extract. Using an electric whisk, beat everything together until the mixture is smooth and comes together nicely,no lumps here! It should have a lovely, light texture. Once it's ready, scrape it all into your prepared tin. Use a spatula to spread the batter evenly, reaching out to every corner so your cake bakes evenly. Pop it in the oven and bake for about 25 to 30 minutes . You'll know it's done when a skewer poked into the centre comes out clean, with no sticky batter clinging to it. When it's baked, let it cool in the tin for about 10 minutes; this helps the sponge set so it won't break apart when you move it. Then carefully transfer the cake onto a wire rack to cool completely while we get on with the pink sponge.
For the pink sponge, you're basically going to repeat the same process. Line the tin just like before with your crossed strips of parchment. Mix all the same ingredients again, just this time leave out the almond extract since we want to keep it a bit simpler in flavour. Once everything's combined nicely, gently fold in your pink food colouring until you get a lovely even shade. Be careful not to overmix here because we want the sponge to stay light and fluffy. Pour this mix into the tin, spread it out evenly, and bake using the same temperature and timing as your almond sponge. When it's done, cool it completely on a wire rack too.
Alright, now for the fun part,assembling your Battenberg cake! Start by warming a little apricot jam in a small pan until it's runny and easy to brush. Once warmed, push the jam through a sieve to get rid of any lumps or fruit bits,this gives you a super smooth glaze that helps everything stick together beautifully. Take your almond sponge and gently trim just two opposite edges, aiming to keep the cake as intact as possible. Then, trim a third edge more heavily so you have a neat, straight side to work with. Use a ruler to measure the height of your sponge, then cut four slices from that well trimmed side. Each slice should be the same width as the height of the sponge for perfect proportions. Don't worry about the leftover bits,you can nibble on them or save them for a snack! Repeat this slicing with the pink sponge too.
Next, pick two almond slices and two pink slices and trim them so they're all exactly the same length. This is going to make your checkerboard pattern look neat and tidy. Now, dust your work surface lightly with some icing sugar and roll out one block of marzipan until it's just a little over 20cm wide. Then keep rolling lengthways until it's about half a centimetre thick,thin enough to be flexible but thick enough to hold everything together. Brush the marzipan with some of that apricot jam, then place a pink slice and an almond slice side by side at one end. Brush a little jam between those slices too so they stick together nicely. Leave about 4cm of marzipan clear at the end without any sponge on it. Now brush more jam over the top of these slices and sandwich the remaining two slices on top, again alternating colours so you get that classic Battenberg checkerboard look. Trim the marzipan to match the length of your cake slices.
Carefully pick up the marzipan with the cake slices on it, and use your hands to gently smooth the marzipan around the cake. When you get to the bottom edge, leave a small fold of marzipan before sticking it to the first side,this helps give the cake a nice neat finish. Trim the opposite side of the marzipan to match the size of that fold. Then use your fingers and thumb to crimp the edges together, pressing firmly but gently so you seal it well. If you want, you can use the prongs of a fork to press along the edges instead,this also makes a cute decorative pattern. For an extra touch, use the fork prongs to lightly mark where the cake will be sliced into 10 pieces. It's a subtle guide that makes cutting easier later on.
Now your Battenberg cake is ready to enjoy! If you want to make a second one, just repeat the assembly steps. Once done, store your beautiful cakes in an airtight container or wrap them well with cling film to keep them fresh. They'll stay lovely for up to 3 days. If you want to keep them longer, they freeze really well for up to a month, so you can enjoy a slice whenever the craving hits.
Now, let's dive into making that delicious almond sponge. Grab a large bowl and add the butter, caster sugar, self raising flour, ground almonds, baking powder, eggs, vanilla extract, and almond extract. Using an electric whisk, beat everything together until the mixture is smooth and comes together nicely,no lumps here! It should have a lovely, light texture. Once it's ready, scrape it all into your prepared tin. Use a spatula to spread the batter evenly, reaching out to every corner so your cake bakes evenly. Pop it in the oven and bake for about 25 to 30 minutes . You'll know it's done when a skewer poked into the centre comes out clean, with no sticky batter clinging to it. When it's baked, let it cool in the tin for about 10 minutes; this helps the sponge set so it won't break apart when you move it. Then carefully transfer the cake onto a wire rack to cool completely while we get on with the pink sponge.
For the pink sponge, you're basically going to repeat the same process. Line the tin just like before with your crossed strips of parchment. Mix all the same ingredients again, just this time leave out the almond extract since we want to keep it a bit simpler in flavour. Once everything's combined nicely, gently fold in your pink food colouring until you get a lovely even shade. Be careful not to overmix here because we want the sponge to stay light and fluffy. Pour this mix into the tin, spread it out evenly, and bake using the same temperature and timing as your almond sponge. When it's done, cool it completely on a wire rack too.
Alright, now for the fun part,assembling your Battenberg cake! Start by warming a little apricot jam in a small pan until it's runny and easy to brush. Once warmed, push the jam through a sieve to get rid of any lumps or fruit bits,this gives you a super smooth glaze that helps everything stick together beautifully. Take your almond sponge and gently trim just two opposite edges, aiming to keep the cake as intact as possible. Then, trim a third edge more heavily so you have a neat, straight side to work with. Use a ruler to measure the height of your sponge, then cut four slices from that well trimmed side. Each slice should be the same width as the height of the sponge for perfect proportions. Don't worry about the leftover bits,you can nibble on them or save them for a snack! Repeat this slicing with the pink sponge too.
Next, pick two almond slices and two pink slices and trim them so they're all exactly the same length. This is going to make your checkerboard pattern look neat and tidy. Now, dust your work surface lightly with some icing sugar and roll out one block of marzipan until it's just a little over 20cm wide. Then keep rolling lengthways until it's about half a centimetre thick,thin enough to be flexible but thick enough to hold everything together. Brush the marzipan with some of that apricot jam, then place a pink slice and an almond slice side by side at one end. Brush a little jam between those slices too so they stick together nicely. Leave about 4cm of marzipan clear at the end without any sponge on it. Now brush more jam over the top of these slices and sandwich the remaining two slices on top, again alternating colours so you get that classic Battenberg checkerboard look. Trim the marzipan to match the length of your cake slices.
Carefully pick up the marzipan with the cake slices on it, and use your hands to gently smooth the marzipan around the cake. When you get to the bottom edge, leave a small fold of marzipan before sticking it to the first side,this helps give the cake a nice neat finish. Trim the opposite side of the marzipan to match the size of that fold. Then use your fingers and thumb to crimp the edges together, pressing firmly but gently so you seal it well. If you want, you can use the prongs of a fork to press along the edges instead,this also makes a cute decorative pattern. For an extra touch, use the fork prongs to lightly mark where the cake will be sliced into 10 pieces. It's a subtle guide that makes cutting easier later on.
Now your Battenberg cake is ready to enjoy! If you want to make a second one, just repeat the assembly steps. Once done, store your beautiful cakes in an airtight container or wrap them well with cling film to keep them fresh. They'll stay lovely for up to 3 days. If you want to keep them longer, they freeze really well for up to a month, so you can enjoy a slice whenever the craving hits.
Pairs Well With
