Serves: 12, Calories: 437

Ingredients

Cake:

• 200g butter, softened.   1502
• 200g self raising flour, sifted.   670
• 200g caster sugar.   800
• 4 eggs.   300
• 2 tsp vanilla essence (or 1 tsp extract)
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 2 tbsp milk.   60
• 100ml sour cream (optional).   187

Filling:

• 100g butter (125g), softened.   751
• 140g icing sugar (175g), sifted.   560
• 1 tsp vanilla essence (or ½ tsp extract)
• 2-3 tsp milk (optional - use if piping).   30
• 150g strawberry jam.   378

Method

1. Preheat oven to 160°C Fan/Gas Mark 4.
2. Grease and line 2x 8" sandwich tins.
3. Cake: In large mixing bowl; Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well between additions. Add 2 tbsp flour with last egg.
4. Optional: Whisk in sour cream.
5. Fold in remaining flour and baking powder with 2 tbsp milk. Divide between tins.
6. Bake for 20-25 mins.
7. Remove from tins after 10 mins cooling.
8. Filling: In medium Pyrex bowl; Cream butter, icing sugar and vanilla, with a fork.
9. Spread filling over flat side of one cake.
10. Spread ayer of jam on other cake.
11. Sandwich two cakes together. Dust with icing sugar.

Calories = 5238

• 5238 / 12 = 437

Tip: Sour cream increases life of cake from 3 days to 5.

Alternatively: For Orange and Plum Sponge, mix zest from 1.½ oranges into batter and substitute milk for orange juice. Mix zest from ½ orange into buttercream. Spread with plum jam too.

Alternatively: For Custard Buttercream (with blackberry/ apple/ raspberry/ rhubarb jam);

• 100g butter
• 140g icing sugar
• 20-30g custard powder
• 2-3 tsp milk. (optional - use if piping)