 There is nothing quite like the satisfaction of assembling the double-decker sponge, golden, light, and buttery, smoothing on the best seeded strawberry or raspberry jam, adding fresh fruit and thick – whipped cream if you will – then closing the top lid of sponge upon it until the scarlet stickiness just squishes out. Add a dusting of unrefined icing sugar and the world is definitely a better place.
Ingredients
110g (4oz) unsalted butter
110g (4oz) unrefined caster sugar
2 eggs
110g (4oz) self raising flour, sifted
Water
2 tablespoon jam, the best, whatever flavour you like, damson, raspberry, loganberry, strawberry or apricot
Unrefined icing sugar for dusting
Method
Preheat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF/Gas 4. Grease 2 x 15cm/6in sandwich tins, non-stick if possible, with a butter paper. Line the bottom of each with a circle of non-stick baking parchment to fit the base and grease that with the butter.
Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Best the eggs together in a bowl and gradually beat them into the creamed mixture a little at a time, adding a tablespoon of sifted flour if the mixture begins to curdle.
Lightly and swiftly fold in the flour with a metal spoon, adding a little water to bring the mixture to a soft dropping consistency. Scrape the mixture into the two tins immediately and smooth the tops with a rubber spatula.
Bake in the middle of the oven for 20 minutes, or until the cakes are well risen, golden and feel spongy when touched with a fingertip. Let the cakes cool for about 5 minutes before turning them out on to a wire rack and peeling away the greased paper. Invert them so they cool right side up. Cool completely.
Using a palette knife, spread the jam over the top of the sponge that is going to be your bottom layer. Add some freshly sliced strawberries or whole raspberries if you feel like it and they are in season. Or whisk some Jersey or double cream, a small carton will do, until slackly stiffened and spread that over the jam.
Place the top sponge on the jammy sponge and sieve over a little unrefined icing sugar, a restrained amount!
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