Comparing Victoria sponge cake recipes from Nigella Lawson and Paul Hollywood, one recipe came out on top in both looks and taste—and it wasn't the one expected. The winning recipe produced a lighter, moister sponge with more flavour, thanks to a few extra ingredients and a longer method.
Paul Hollywood's Victoria Sponge
Paul Hollywood's recipe uses basic ingredients and the all-in-one method. It calls for 230g of plain flour, four teaspoons of baking powder, a pinch of salt, 230g of caster sugar, 230g of softened unsalted butter, four medium eggs, 150ml of whipping cream, 100g of raspberry jam, and icing sugar for dusting.
The sponges were baked at 160°C Fan for 30 minutes. They came out golden brown but hadn't risen as much as expected, despite the four teaspoons of baking powder. The cake was filled with jam and whipped cream, then dusted with icing sugar.
Taste-wise, the sponges were great and definitely moreish, even with the limited rise. The whipping cream was preferred for its lightness compared to double cream.
Nigella Lawson's Victoria Sponge
Nigella's recipe uses more ingredients, including cornflour, which she says “creates cakes that are exceptionally light and tender.” It also requires more steps and took longer to follow.
The ingredients include 225g of very soft unsalted butter, 225g of caster sugar plus two teaspoons for dusting, one teaspoon of vanilla extract, 200g of plain flour, 25g of cornflour, two and a half teaspoons of baking powder, a pinch of salt, four large eggs at room temperature, two to three tablespoons of milk at room temperature, 75g of seedless raspberry jam, 150g of fresh raspberries, and 150ml of double cream.
The method involves creaming the butter and sugar, then beating in eggs one at a time with tablespoons of the flour mixture. The batter looked incredibly light and airy. The cakes baked for about 28 minutes and came out with golden, springy tops.
A Clear Winner
For the filling, Nigella's recipe adds lightly crushed fresh raspberries to the jam layer, which brought freshness and balanced the sweetness. The cake was topped with caster sugar instead of icing sugar, which was more subtle.
Nigella's Victoria sponge was light, moist, and had more flavour than Paul's—a surprising result. The cornflour did help achieve a lighter, more tender sponge, though the creaming method also contributed. Both cakes were delicious, but Nigella's recipe was the clear winner in terms of looks and taste.
