Vanilla Layer Cake with Cherry Berry Jam and Vanilla Bean Buttercream

I don’t know if you have heard, but apparently it is the Queen’s 90th birthday this year. Her actual birthday is in April but for some reason it is celebrated in June – perhaps hoping for better weather which is actually pretty unlikely at the moment. It is freaking COLD outside. But whether an actual or official birthday what the occasion calls for is, of course, cake! I was lucky enough to attend a Tesco royal cake decorating masterclass hosted by master pâtissier Eric Lanlard recently. Eric knows a thing or two about royal cakes, having delivered a cake for the Queen Mother’s birthday not so long ago. He has teamed up with Tesco to create a ‘Cake fit for a Queen‘ to help everyone celebrate and with two layers of pink velvet, a contrasting layer of chocolate sponge, raspberry conserve, white chocolate buttercream and prosecco flavoured buttercream roses he has definitely outdone himself.

Images above ©Tesco

Eric is always a very charming and engaging speaker and a font of helpful hints when it comes to cake decorating. I must say my cakes have a tendency to be lopsided and his advice to combat this is to bake the cake a day in advance and then level it just before you fill and frost it. Oh and don’t forget to put a little buttercream to stick the cake on your stand or plate to prevent those very entertaining ‘flying cake’ moments – I have had my share of those… Eric got us to decorate vanilla layer cakes and the results where very colourful – practically rave-like in some cases! My cake was very modest and tidy compared to the rest but it won Eric’s seal of approval as I was the lucky recipient of his latest baking book Afternoon Tea*.

Afternoon Tea is a such beautiful book – illustrated with gorgeous photography by Kate Whitaker (am so in lust with the props used) and with recipes ranging from savoury to sweet there’s really something for everyone. The savoury recipes are particularly innovative: salmon mousse Paris Brest, cacao beef on pain perdu, parma ham and fig macarons as well as many delectable tartlets and mini bites. There’s also a whole section on scones (what Afternoon Tea would be complete without them) and cakes of all shapes and sizes. I have my eye on the chocolate ganache hearts and I really want to recreate the white chocolate and raspberry domes – one of the most complicated recipes. If you would like the chance to win a copy of Eric Lanlard’s Afternoon Tea enter via the giveaway box at the end of the post.

Inspired by Eric’s tips and the fabulous cake we decorated – then carried home on the tube which was quite entertaining – I set out to bake a similar layered vanilla sponge cake. Vanilla cake may not sound very special but nothing could be further from the truth! This cake not only tasted sensational it kept fresh for five days. I sandwiched the five layers with homemade cherry and red berry jam, the recipe for which I will be sharing in a future post, and frosted the cake in softest vanilla bean buttercream. I added a little thinned jam in the buttercream which gave it the subtlest pink colour and an added touch of deliciousness. This cake was baked in Wilton Round Easy Layer Cake Pan Mould Set* which creates fairly thin and small (15cm/6in) layers. If you wish to bake a 20cm (8in) cake you will need to double the recipe for the cake and frosting.

Win a copy of Eric Lanlard’s Afternoon Tea Book

 

The limited edition Tesco finest* Cake Fit for a Queen is available in over 500 stores nationwide
3 –16 June 2016 at £10 and serves 14. Items marked with an asterisk are affiliate links.