… one of the wonderful things about living in the middle of the countryside is that when you find your community they tend to stick to you like family and like any family there are those cousins you love, those annoying uncles you’d rather not have to sit next to at the family gatherings and those brothers or sisters who are more like best friends and whatever you think about them and however flaky you can be they’re still there for you through thick and thin… sometimes in fact they can easier than real family as there’s no guilt involved and no ‘must-do’s’ and ‘have-to’s’… also, like all families and unlike one’s contemporaries, there’s no age barrier whatsoever. The age-range of our little community starts with the newborn Gracie and reaches all the way to 92 year old John… I think it’s amazing that my amongst my very good friends I can count Tina and Mick who are my age alongside their son Mathew and his fiance, new ‘family’ member, Hayley…
triple layer strawberry jam cake
to celebrate Matt and Hayley’s engagement party I was asked to bake a cake… always happy to oblige but I knew i’d only have a few hours to get the baking in so it had to be a simple tried and tested recipe… I went for this swirly jam cake as I thought it was impressive enough for photo’s a little bit fun whilst also having that touch of romance about it… it went down very well and I apologise for the pictures but the sun came out as I was taking the shots and ruined my ambience and I quite literally had to run it over to the happy couple with seconds to spare…
… honourable mention goes to my neighbour Tracey for suggesting I use a little red food colouring to add the swirls when I was running out of time and the strawberry jam simply wouldn’t do the trick…
for the sponge
6 large free-range eggs
400g slightly salted butter – room temp
400g sugar
400g self-raising flour
3 tablespoons smooth strawberry jam
2 teaspoons rose water essence
fresh strawberries
for the icing
200g marscapone
200g full fat cream cheese
300mil whipping cream
1 tablespoon icing sugar
1 tablespoon jam
a little red food colouring
fresh strawberries – sliced
to make the sponge, place the butter and sugar in a very large bowl and beat with a wooden spoon until light and fluffy (this can of course be done with a stand mixer or electric whisk.)
add two eggs and beat in until combined, then follow this with a third of the flour, again beating in until combined. Continue adding eggs and flour alternately until it’s all gone and you have a smooth batter. Add the jam and the rose essence and beat in again.
divide between the three lined and greased cake tins and bake on 170C for 25-30 mins or until golden and risen. Take them out of the oven and cool on a wire rack for 5 mins before turning out to cool fully.
to make the icing simply combine all the ingredients except for the red colouring and whip until thick and spreadable
place one sponge on your cake stand and spread a nice thick layer of the icing evenly on the surface and then cover with sliced strawberries, place the second cake on top and repeat the process and then finally place the third cake on top.
now spread the remaining icing roughly onto the cake tower then take a small knife and swirl teeny drops of the red food colour into the white icing for a pretty finished look.
this cake makes the perfect entry for this month’s tea time treats bloggers challenge founded by Karen from Lavender and Lovage and hosted this month by Jane from The Hedge Combers as the theme for this month is Decorative Cakes.
eat and of course, enjoy!
It looks fabulous and sophisticated.
Anyone would be thrilled to be given a cake like this!
Love the pink swirly idea – thanks for the tip!
I think your community sounds lovely. Everyone needs good friends and it sounds like you have many. The cake looks delightful and I believe I followed your recipe for this yummy cake before. Is it still considered a sponge?
OMG this is stunning…and the heart is so cute!
xox
Perfect choice Dom. I love the colourful swirl in the icing that I am sure makes it doubly flavourful as well as photogenic.
Your photos are gorgeous as is the cake of course. Sounds absolutely perfect for the occasion and jolly delicious too.
It reminds me of our engagement cake! Thanks for taking me down memory lane. I'm sure your cake was as delicious and it was beautiful! I know the happy couple were too. It's always more special when the gift is made from the heart! Good Job!
Ah, family, for the most part, I'm lucky, I have a wonderful one. Did you know I'm one of 40 grandchildren on my mom's side! Yup, and I know every one of them! There's only 18 of us on my dad's side! LOL
Have a wonderful Spring!
we thank you Domestic from the bottom of our hearts. The cake was a huge success making our special celebration party even more special. We love our family community. thanks Dom
sorry Dom didn't mean to extend your name.
Such a beautiful cake!
I could fall, face first into that cake with my GOP open
Gob
I saw this glorious cake in Facebook and I wanted a slice then just as much as I do now! It looks FAB Dom and is the perfect engagement cake too! Karen xxx PS: Thanks for adding it to Tea Time Treats
Oh my goodness, that cake looks amazing! The perfect cake for any occasion in my book!!
I think it very unfair that you don't live in my part of the countryside! I'd be forever inventing things to celebrate if you were going to make a cake like that! Completely wonderful, very indulgent and beautiful too.
I love ten story, I love the cake, and I love the sun-shiny photos – they really add to the feeling that it was a happy, relaxed and smily day! Thanks..
How beautiful! I love the swirly top to this cake and would love to eat a huge slice in the Spring sunshine.
This is a great story and a great cake – loving the swirls.
Happy days Dom- what a beautiful and scrumptious cake to celebrate a romantic engagement with!
What a romantic and very modern look you've given your cake! Perfect for the party!
a beautiful cake for a romantic occasion. How lovely! love the filling too with the strawberries peeping through
Simply stunning. Bookmarking for the summer for when we go strawberry picking. Also useful to have a triple layer sponge cake recipe as I always seem to mess it up when increasing quantities from a two layer. Have a lovely weekend.
I love your stories about Belleau, it sounds just like Last Of The Summer Wine or something. And such a pretty cake. Actually, I love your big cakes, too – this one's right up there with that chocolate show-stopper x
what a beautiful cake and your description of your community is just lovely – I really need to learn to make show stopper adult cakes like this
Absolutely beautiful Dom, the most perfect cake to celebrate an engagement. Thank you so much for linking up to this months Tea Time Treats!
Janie x
Congrats for the engagement party!!Looks so romantic!! I love your work for cake and the way you describe details about your community. Thanks for sharing this post in this awesome season.