As I sat down to sample Victoria Sponge cakes from eight different supermarkets, I remembered that I am not actually a massive fan of them. Indeed, by the time I had finished, I was not feeling great. But hopefully my judgment will prove useful to someone, one day.
It is a classic, named after the Queen who reigned for just under 64 years, during what many would describe as Britain's zenith. Two layers of sponge cradle jam and buttercream, a common sight on tables during birthday parties. Often, people buy a pre-made Victoria Sponge to save time and effort and bring it along to celebrations. It may be useful to know which ones to steer clear of, lest you be embarrassed in front of underwhelmed friends and family.
I tried the cakes on offer from ASDA, the Co-op, Lidl, Marks and Spencer, Morrisons, Sainsbury's, Tesco and Waitrose. Read my thoughts on each below.
Morrisons
Price: £4.43
The sponge was a tad dry, but the jam had a nice taste, and the cream cut through.
Rating: 5/10
Marks & Spencer
Price: £4.75
Marks & Spencer was more generous with their cream, and had a plumper sponge. The jam, however, was a bit duller. You can easily taste the cream, though. I will mark it down because it was a tad more expensive than Morrisons'.
Rating: 4/10
Lidl
Price: £2.49
Lidl's offering did not have much filling, and the sponge had a weird flavour. But the price for what you get is quite good.
Rating: 3/10
Tesco
Price: £4.25
Tesco's cake was very, very neatly cut, looking as if it had come straight out of a factory. It definitely did not give a homemade vibe. It was very jammy - it tasted good - and very creamy. But the sponge was a bit dry, and the whole thing was very sweet. Perhaps too sweet.
Rating: 6/10
Co-op
Price: £4.10
As I got the Co-op's version out, my housemate said: "That looks like s***." It looked like a solid lump of cake, and I could not see any enticing ring of jam and cream. But it tasted better than it looked. The jam and cream was very nice, and the sponge was nice and light. Good amount of moisture. Up there with the best.
Rating: 7/10
Asda
Price: £2.37
Asda's cake made me exclaim: "Wow. Lots of jam." I could not see much cream. The jam and cake were very tasty. The cream was also nice. I have to say it was the best one yet. Asda said it was "exceptional" on their packaging - and it really is, especially for the price.
Rating: 8/10
Sainsbury's
Price: £4.25
Well, what a disappointment from the supermarket I probably visit most often, especially given its price tag. It was the only sponge without a cardboard or plastic ring around it, a worrying sign from the get-go. The cake was teeny tiny. It actually made me laugh when I took it out of the box. It looks very cheap - as if plucked straight from the times of rationing. The jam was alright, but you could not really taste the cream. The sponge was meh, too. There was also next to no sugar on top, when you would expect a thin dusting.
Rating: 2/10
Waitrose
Price: £6.50
A little more expensive than the rest - but it was a big one, and sometimes you have to pay for luxury. It looked homemade, with a good distribution of jam and cream. There was a good amount of sugar on top, and lovely jam inside. The sponge was also good and tasty, and the cream was perfect. The best one, by a mile. My only criticism would be that it needed a little more cream.
Rating: 9/10
