The classic checkerboard cake isn't quite as tricky to make as you might think.
Ingredients
"I think everyone has probably seen a Battenberg cake by this point, right? It’s famous for its shape and style, and even colours and flavours – so why not make a homemade version?" asks food blogger and recipe writer Jane Dunn.
"I want to show you that this bake is incredibly easy to achieve by yourself, and it’s far less scary than it may look or sound. I went for the classic yellow and pink colours for the sponge, flavoured with vanilla or almond, sandwiched with apricot jam and covered in marzipan. Of course, if you wanted to change up the colours for a theme, this is one of the best bakes in the world for that."
Battenberg cake
Ingredients
(Serves 8)
250g unsalted butter or baking spread, at room temperature
250g caster sugar
4 eggs
175g self-raising flour
75g ground almonds
1tsp baking powder
1tsp vanilla or almond extract
Pink food colouring
For the decoration
100g apricot jam
400g marzipan
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 180ºC/160ºC fan and grab a 23cm (9in) square tin. Make a foil division in the middle of the tin, then line both halves with parchment paper so you get two rectangles.
2. Beat the butter and sugar together in a large bowl until fluffy. Add the eggs, flour, ground almonds, baking powder and extract of choice and mix.
3. Split into two, and colour one half pink. Pour each into a half of the tin and bake for 30–40 minutes. Leave to cool fully in the tin.
4. Once cooled, cut each cake in half lengthways. Sandwich the cake slices together with apricot jam. Cover with more apricot jam and then completely cover with the marzipan. Serve with the join underneath the cake.
Notes:
- You can flavour the coloured sponges as you like, such as lemon for the yellow and raspberry for the pink, if you have the flavourings available.
- Trim the edges of the sponges so you can fit the layers together neatly.
- You can colour the sponges whatever colours you want to suit a theme.
- One good top tip: you can use two 900g loaf tins instead to make it easier – the bake time for these is 28–32 minutes.
Jane's Patisserie: Classic by Jane Dunn is published in hardback by Ebury Press. Photography by Ellis Parrinder.
