Celebrate the upcoming coronation of King Charles with my easy and delicious Coronation Cake! This Union Jack cake decorated with whipped cream and fresh berries is perfect for sharing and fit for royalty.
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My kids are very excited by the coronation of King Charles, possibly because it offers them another Bank Holiday and the chance to eat cake 😉
If you are celebrating the coronation with a street party or a Bank Holiday gathering, then you will need a crowd-pleasing cake that can feed a crowd.
This delicious Victoria sponge traybake is perfect for the occasion – let’s call it a King Charles cake 🙂
CORONATION CAKE INGREDIENTS
A Victoria Sponge cake is named after Queen Victoria and I think her descendant King Charles is likely a fan too 🙂
I baked it in a 9×13 inch cake pan to create a simple vanilla sponge tray bake that’s the perfect canvas for decorating. Here’s what you will need:
- Self raising flour – make sure it is within date!
- Sugar – caster sugar or granulated sugar.
- Stork (baking spread) – this is more economical than butter and works great straight out of the fridge so I prefer using it. Softened unsalted butter will also work.
- Milk and lemon juice
- Eggs – medium eggs at room temperature
- Vanilla –I love using vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
- Lemon zest (optional)
- Strawberry jam (optional)
FOR THE DECORATION
Whipped cream is made simply with double cream, icing sugar and vanilla paste or extract. It is a delicious addition to this Coronation Cake keeping it fresh and light.
The Union Jack is a simple but effective theme for this cake and so easy to create by using raspberries and blueberries.
HOW TO MAKE MY CORONATION CAKE
Full measurements and instructions can be found on the printable recipe card at the bottom of the page. Please take a look at the steps and video before attempting this recipe!
MAKE THE CAKE
Place the self raising flour and sugar into a large mixing bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer. Stir to combine. Add the lemon zest, vanilla, Stork, eggs and milk / lemon juice.
Beat together with an electric hand mixer / stand mixer until the batter is completely smooth. Use a spatula to scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl to make sure all the ingredients are well mixed. This will only take a minute or so!
Transfer to a greased and lined 9×13 traybake pan and level. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until the cake is golden, springy to the touch and just coming away from the edges of the cake pan. A toothpick inserted in the middle should come out clean. Leave the cake in the tin and allow it to cool down.
Make holes over the entire cake using a straw, without piercing all the way down. Spread warm strawberry jam over the cake, encouraging it to sink into the cake. This is entirely optional but adds a lovely flavour and keeps the cake beautifully moist.
MAKE THE WHIPPED CREAM
Add the cold double cream, icing sugar and vanilla into a mixing bowl and whisk at medium speed until the cream holds peaks. Don’t beat for too long or on high speed as the cream can curdle. You will need to use the cream straight away so prepare it just before using.
DECORATE THE CAKE
Carefully lift the cake out of the pan and invert onto a large board so that the underside is uppermost (the jam can cause the whipped cream to slide off that’s why I am flipping the cake). Spread the whipped cream over the cake in an even layer just before serving.
Use the raspberries and blueberries to create the flag – I suggest lightly tracing the outline of the Union Jack on the whipped cream using a knife so that you can position the berries easily.
EXPERT TIPS
- This Coronation Cake is best eaten as soon as it is decorated as it uses fresh cream and berries. You can prepare the sponge up to a couple of days in advance and keep it, wrapped, at room temperature until ready to assemble.
- This cake will look just as stunning simply topped with a medley of fresh berries if you don’t want to decorate as shown.
- Leftover cake needs to be stored in the fridge where it will keep for up to a day. It is not suitable for freezing.
MORE CORONATION BAKING IDEAS
HAVE YOU MADE MY CORONATION CAKE RECIPE? Please leave a rating, post a photo on my Facebook page, share it on Instagram, or save it to Pinterest with the tag #supergoldenbakes and make my day!
Coronation Cake
Ingredients
For the cake
- 350 g ( 2¾ cups) self raising flour
- 330 g (1 ⅔ cups) caster sugar
- 200 g (7/8 cup) Stork or softened butter
- 4 large eggs
- 120 ml (½ cup) milk + 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp lemon zest (optional)
For the jam
- 4 tbsp smooth strawberry jam
- 2-3 tbsp water or gin (if serving adults)
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
For the cream
- 300 ml (1 ¼ cups) double cream, cold
- 4 tbsp icing sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla paste
To decorate
- 400 g (14 oz) fresh raspberries
- 400 g (14 oz) fresh blueberries
Instructions
MAKE THE CAKE
- Preheat the oven to 180°C (160° Fan). Mist a 9×13 tin with cake release and line with baking paper letting the edges hang over the sides.
- Place the self raising flour and sugar into a large mixing bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer. Stir to combine.
- Add the lemon zest, vanilla, Stork, eggs and milk / lemon juice. Beat together with an electric hand mixer / stand mixer until the batter is completely smooth. Use a spatula to scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl to make sure all the ingredients are well mixed.
- Transfer to the prepared pan and level. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until the cake is golden, springy to the touch and just coming away from the edges of the cake pan. A toothpick inserted in the middle should come out clean. Leave the cake in the tin and allow it to cool down.
ADD THE JAM (optional)
- Combine the jam, lemon juice and water or gin if using in a saucepan and stir over low heat until slightly runny and smooth.
- Make holes over the entire cake using a straw, without piercing all the way down. Spread warm strawberry jam over the cake, encouraging it to sink into the cake. This is entirely optional but adds a lovely flavour and keeps the cake beautifully moist.
MAKE THE WHIPPED CREAM
- Add the cold double cream, icing sugar and vanilla into a mixing bowl and whisk at medium speed until the cream holds peaks. Don’t beat for too long as the cream can curdle. You will need to use the cream straight away so prepare it just before using.
DECORATE THE CAKE
- Carefully lift the cake out of the pan and invert onto a large board so that the underside is uppermost (the jam can cause the whipped cream to slide off that’s why I am flipping the cake).
- Spread the whipped cream over the cake in an even layer just before serving.
- Use the raspberries and blueberries to create the flag – I suggest lightly tracing the outline of the Union Jack on the whipped cream using a knife so that you can position the berries easily. Slice and enjoy!
Video
Notes
- This Coronation Cake is best eaten as soon as it is decorated as it uses fresh cream and berries. You can prepare the sponge up to a couple of days in advance and keep it, wrapped, at room temperature until ready to assemble.
- This cake will look just as stunning simply topped with a medley of fresh berries if you don’t want to decorate as shown.
- Leftover cake needs to be stored in the fridge where it will keep for up to a day. It is not suitable for freezing.
- You will likely have leftover berries after decorating this cake but it is handy to have extra as you will need to group them by size.
Trish Shuker says
fab cake. I made it and grandchildren decorated it. So pleased with the result.
Fe says
delicious, fluffy and full of flavor even without the jam but nice with the jam! I didn’t have self-rising flour so used regular flour + 4 tsps baking powder plus 1/2 tsp salt. Seemed to be a good sub. Thank you for this keeper recipe – will make again!
Archie says
Demolished in an hour!
Malaki Barker says
the texture of the cake is amazing! Was so easy to make even tho am no baker! I used sprinkles instead of berries
anya says
Loved this!
Uthsman says
looks amazing and packed with flavour 10/10
Archie says
This tasted ** chef kiss **