Battenberg Cake
A delightful British cake featuring a beautiful pink and yellow checkerboard sponge, all wrapped in a sweet layer of almond marzipan. It looks impressive, but this recipe makes it simple and fun to bake at home.
- Prep Time: 40 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 40 minutes
- Yield: 2 cakes (20-22 slices) 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Cuisine: British
Ingredients
Scale
For the Cake:
- 360g very soft unsalted butter
- 350g golden caster sugar
- 280g self-raising flour
- 100g ground almonds
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 6 medium eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ tsp almond extract
- Pink food colouring gel
- Yellow food colouring gel
For Assembly:
- 2 x 500g blocks of marzipan
- 300g apricot jam
- Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting
Instructions
- Prep Oven and Tins: Preheat your fan oven to 180°C (350°F). Line two 20cm (8-inch) square tins with baking parchment.
- Make the Batter: In a large bowl, combine the butter, sugar, flour, ground almonds, baking powder, eggs, vanilla, and almond extract. Beat with a mixer until just smooth and creamy.
- Colour the Batter: Divide the batter evenly between two bowls. Mix pink food colouring into one and yellow into the other. Spread each colour into a separate prepared tin.
- Bake the Cakes: Bake for 25-30 minutes, until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Let them cool in the tins for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Trim the Sponges: Once cool, trim the brown crusts off the sides and top of each cake. Cut each cake into four long, even strips.
- Assemble the Cake: Warm the jam until it’s runny. Roll out one block of marzipan on a surface dusted with confectioners’ sugar. Brush jam onto the marzipan and sponges to “glue” two strips (one pink, one yellow) side-by-side, then stack the remaining two on top in a checkerboard pattern.
- Wrap and Finish: Fold the marzipan tightly over the cake, pressing the seam to seal. Place the cake seam-side down and trim the ends with a sharp knife to reveal the pattern. Repeat the process for the second cake.
Notes
- Serving Suggestion: This cake is perfect with a simple cup of tea or coffee. It needs no fancy additions!
- Tip for Success: Use a ruler when cutting your sponges to get those sharp, even checkerboard squares. And remember, the cakes must be completely cool before you try to assemble them.
- Storage: Keep the cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. Do not refrigerate it, as this will dry out the sponge. You can also freeze the whole cake or individual slices for up to 3 months.
Find it online: https://recipesh.com/battenberg-cake/