A side-by-side bake of Victoria sponge cakes using recipes from Nigella Lawson and Paul Hollywood produced a clear winner: Nigella's version won on both appearance and flavour, despite the tester initially expecting Paul's to come out on top.
The Victoria sponge, also known as the Victoria sandwich, is a classic British bake made of two light, moist sponges filled with raspberry jam and either fresh cream or vanilla buttercream. The tester had previously compared recipes from Mary Berry and James Martin, with Mary's coming out on top. With the latest series of The Great British Bake Off airing, the tester decided to pit recipes from Nigella Lawson and Paul Hollywood against each other, following both precisely as outlined on their websites.
Paul Hollywood's Minimal-Ingredient Sponge
Paul Hollywood's recipe uses a handful of basic ingredients and, like Mary Berry's method, employs the all-in-one technique. The ingredients are 230g of plain flour, four teaspoons of baking powder, a pinch of salt, 230g of caster sugar, 230g of softened unsalted butter (plus extra for greasing), and four medium eggs. To finish, the recipe calls for 150ml of whipping cream, 100g of raspberry jam, and icing sugar for dusting.
The method involved heating the oven to 160°C Fan, lining two cake tins with baking parchment, and lightly buttering the sides. The tester combined the flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, butter, and eggs in a large mixing bowl and blended with a hand-held electric whisk, being careful not to overmix. Paul warns that overmixing "will tighten the mixture and result in a rubbery texture".
The batter was divided between the two tins and baked for 30 minutes. The sponges came out golden brown, though the tester was mildly let down by how little they had risen, given the four teaspoons of baking powder. After cooling, the tester spread jam across the bottom layer, whipped the cream to soft peaks, layered it over the jam, and dusted with icing sugar.
While the sponges didn't reach a great height, they remained delicious and moreish. The tester found the lighter texture of whipping cream preferable to double cream.
Nigella's Richer Recipe with Cornflour
Nigella's recipe calls for slightly more ingredients, including cornflour, which the tester had never used before. Nigella maintains that cornflour "creates cakes that are exceptionally light and tender". The recipe also demands more steps and took longer to complete.
For the cake, the ingredients are 225g of very soft unsalted butter (plus extra for greasing), 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, and two to three tablespoons of milk at room temperature. The filling uses 75g of seedless raspberry jam, 150g of fresh raspberries, and 150ml of double cream.
The method began the same way, preheating the oven to 160°C Fan and preparing the tins. The tester beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, then incorporated the vanilla extract. In a separate bowl, the flour, cornflour, baking powder, and salt were mixed together. The tester then beat one egg into the creamed butter and sugar, followed by one tablespoon of the flour mixture, repeating until all four eggs were incorporated. This was the most time-consuming part. After scraping down the bowl, the remaining flour mixture was whisked in gradually, and milk was added one tablespoon at a time until the batter fell effortlessly from the beaters. The batter looked incredibly light and airy.
The batter was divided between the tins and baked for approximately 28 minutes. The cakes emerged with golden, springy tops. When serving, the tester spread jam across the bottom sponge, then gently crushed fresh raspberries with a fork and distributed them over the jam. This lent a pleasant freshness and offset the sweetness. Following Nigella's recommendation, the tester added whipped double cream on top of the jam, placed the second sponge on top, and dusted with caster sugar instead of icing sugar, finding it more subtle.
Nigella's Victoria sponge was light, moist, and more flavourful than Paul's, which caught the tester off guard. The tester noted that the cornflour contributes to a lighter, more tender sponge, though the airiness could also be attributed to thoroughly creaming the butter and sugar. The fresh raspberries and caster sugar finish were welcome touches. While both cakes were undeniably delicious, Nigella's recipe emerged as the clear winner in terms of both appearance and flavour.
