Call it a Victoria cake, a Victoria sponge cake, or a Victoria sandwich cake—any way you go, the tower of billowy whipped cream, tart raspberry jam, and plush vanilla sponge, is worth mastering. Named for Queen Victoria of England, the signature British bake’s history is noteworthy as it marks the entry of baking powder into the baking equation. Our modern take on this very English dessert borrows a few American elements, such as a hot milk sponge for an even loftier crumb and a smidge of instant vanilla pudding powder in the whipped cream filling. The modified cornstarch in the pudding mix does a spectacular job of absorbing excess moisture, making the whipped cream both creamier and more stable, able to hold its shape for days in the fridge. Your cake won’t last long enough to see this for yourself, but it’s still nice to know.
Hot milk cake occupies the coveted intersection in the Venn diagram of pound cake (tender, buttery) and sponge cake (light, airy). Here’s how it works: When whole eggs and sugar are whipped to a froth, they form a voluminous but somewhat fragile foam. Adding scalded milk (with a temperature around 180°F) to the mixing bowl while beating on low speed cooks the eggs gently, strengthening their proteins, so the foam remains stable.
The sponge in a classic Victoria sponge cake recipe is traditionally baked in a single cake tin; after a trip to the cooling rack, it is sliced through the center and sandwiched with whipped cream (or buttercream) and raspberry jam. We make things a little easier for you here by splitting the batter between two round cake pans—no slicing necessary. Finish the cake with a dusting of powdered sugar and transfer it to a fancy serving plate or cake stand to serve at a proper afternoon tea or any other event of your choice.
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What you’ll need
Scale
$26 At Amazon
8-Inch Cake Pan
$10 At Amazon
Stand Mixer
$330 $250 At Amazon
Round Parchment Paper Baking Sheets
$11 At Amazon
Wire Cooling Rack
$18 At Amazon
Small Offset Spatula
$9 At Amazon
Recipe information
Yield
8–12 servings
Ingredients
Cake
2
1
2
1
1
1
½
6
Filling and assembly
⅓
2
¾
1
1
1
1
Preparation
Cake
Step 1
Place a rack in middle of oven; preheat to 350°. Line two 8"-diameter cake pans with parchment paper rounds (do not grease). Beat 2 large eggs, room temperature, 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar, 2 tsp. vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract, and 1 tsp. Diamond Crystal or ½ tsp. Morton kosher salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment on medium speed until pale, fluffy, and nearly tripled in volume, 10–15 minutes (mixture will form an unbroken ribbon when whisk is lifted from bowl). Reduce speed to low, add 1 tsp. baking powder, and beat, scraping down sides of bowl halfway through, until well combined, about 1 minute. Add 1 cup (125 g) bleached all-purpose flour and beat until incorporated, about 1 minute (batter will be very thick); scrape down sides and bottom of bowl.
Step 2
Meanwhile, heat ½ cup whole milk and 6 Tbsp. unsalted butter, cut into 1" pieces, in a small saucepan over medium, stirring occasionally with a heatproof rubber spatula, until butter is melted and milk is steaming (but nowhere near boiling), about 4 minutes. Pour milk mixture over batter, scraping saucepan to get every bit. Beat on low speed until combined and batter is smooth, about 2 minutes. Scrape down sides and bottom of bowl and fold gently once or twice to ensure batter is well combined (it will be runny).
Step 3
Divide batter between prepared pans (about 325 g per pan). Bake cakes until golden brown and tops spring back when lightly pressed, 20–25 minutes. Transfer pans to a wire rack and let cakes cool 10 minutes. Run an offset spatula around sides of cakes to loosen, then invert onto rack; peel away parchment. Let cool completely, about 1 hour.
Do ahead: Cakes can be baked 1 day ahead. Store tightly wrapped at room temperature.
Filling and assembly
Step 4
Stir together ⅓ cup raspberry or strawberry jam, 2 tsp. fresh lemon juice, and ¼ tsp. Diamond Crystal or Morton kosher salt in a small bowl.
Step 5
Whip 1 cup heavy cream, 1 Tbsp. plus 2 tsp. granulated sugar, 1 Tbsp. instant vanilla pudding mix, 1 tsp. vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract, and remaining ½ tsp. Diamond Crystal or ¼ tsp. Morton kosher salt in the clean bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment on medium speed until medium-firm peaks form (it’s okay if there are tiny lumps of pudding mix; they’ll be imperceptible), about 4 minutes. Scrape down sides and bottom of bowl and fold gently to ensure mixture is uniform.
Step 6
Place 1 cake layer, right side up, on a cake stand or large plate. Spread jam mixture over top, leaving a ¼" border around the edges. Dollop whipped cream over and spread evenly all the way to the edges with an offset spatula. Place second cake layer, upside down, on top and press gently to adhere. Dust lightly with powdered sugar.
Step 7
To serve, slice cake into wedges with a serrated knife, wiping clean between cuts.
Do ahead: Cake (without powdered sugar) can be assembled 1 day ahead. Cover loosely and chill. Bring to room temperature before serving.
Leave a Review
Reviews (11)
Back to TopI was really disappointed with all three parts of this cake. I am an experienced baker and followed the recipe carefully. The cake layers were thinner than in the picture and didn’t rise enough. The jam was too salty and made at least double the amount needed. The instructions for the whipped cream instructed to whip w whisk attachment for approx. 4 min. My cream mixture was whipped in leads than 2. When all assembled it looked like a sloppy cream cheese and jelly sandwich. I actually question whether your test kitchen tested this one…I’d love to hear back…
Anonymous
Westchester NY
3/1/2023
I was very pleased with this cake, it was moist, even with the filling and being in the refrigerator. Also the filling held up, something that is a problem with just the whipped cream. Will definitely made again.
Daphne Leonard
Fredericksburg, VA
3/3/2023
While it does look like a PB&J, that was not terribly off putting to me. None of the stated jams in the were in the house so subbed some blueberry fruit spread which was fine. Love the whipped cream (reminiscent of a cream filled doughnut) and agree 4 minutes is a bit much. My biggest issue was expected amount of batter. Recipe states I should get a total of 650g - I was lucky I got 550g - needed to ladle some from one pan to the other - not a show stopper just annoying. All in all easy to make, tasty, and well-received. Will make again.
Steve
South New Jersey
3/10/2023
This cake infused with raspberry jam was delicious! I’ve not seen a cake eaten so quickly! Simply double the recipe for a three layer cake and you have hit. Enjoy!!!
Just Bake
Yardley
3/18/2023
This was seriously delicious! After reading the reviews, I decided to double the cake batter. This allowed me to fill my 9” pans generously to get those pretty layers. I had a little leftover batter. The fillings were so good and I loved the texture of the sponge.
Sarah Perez
3/20/2023
Tastes great but my cakes turned out literally less than an inch thick after baking. I have lots of experience baking (cakes included!) and followed the recipe exactly. There was essentially no rise at all to the cake. I beat the egg, sugar, vanilla, and salt mixture for 30 minutes with whisk attachment but it never got “fluffy”. (At the 15 minute mark it was still extremely thin, and after 30 it had only thickened a little bit.) I have never seen a cake recipe that required over half an hour of beating eggs and sugar. Luckily this was a “just for fun” weekend bake because it looks so ridiculous I wouldn’t want to bring it anywhere. Taste is 5 stars, final product is 1 star. Sounds like others had success with doubling batter so I would suggest just doing that from the get-go to anyone making this!
Julia
3/25/2023
I think there's likely something awry here; after mixing for 15 minutes, my batter absolutely wasn't where this recipe said it should be. Wasn't there after 25 minutes, either. I also realized quickly that indeed, as others have noted, this is not enough batter to match what you see in the picture so I made another batch of batter...same deal, it just won't get to where you want it (sidenote: some bon appetit recipes have in-recipe videos for portions; I honestly wonder if that'd help here so people really get a sense of where the batter needs to be). With a doubled batch (not using all the batter, mind you) and my 8 inch pans, I definitely think the cake-to-filling ratio worked better. It tastes good, I just think there's some sort of mistranslation going on here or there was sorcery afoot when the recipe was tested.
Rach
San Francisco, CA
3/27/2023