Mini Victoria Cakes
on Mar 19, 2024
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This easy, no-bake recipe is inspired by classic Victoria Sponge Cakes. These adorable 6-ingredient mini cakes are quick to assemble and perfect for tea time.
Easy Mini Victoria Cakes
Mini Victoria Cakes are a twist on the traditional British dessert, Victoria Sponge Cake. The major difference between this no-bake recipe and a traditional one is that it uses store-bought pound cake since that’s much easier to find at the supermarket.
Both styles of cake are light and fluffy, but there is butter in pound cakes so they are richer than sponge cakes, which don’t include any butter.
The best part about these Mini Victoria Cakes is the buttercream and raspberry jam layers. These will be the star of your afternoon tea or dessert spread, so you might want to double, or even triple, the recipe.
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Recipe Highlights
- This recipe for Mini Victoria Cakes saves time by using store-bought pound cake and raspberry jam.
- Instead of the whipped cream that’s traditionally found in Victoria Sponge Cake, these mini cakes are assembled with a homemade buttercream frosting.
- Buttercream won’t make the layers of these cakes soggy, so you can also assemble them a day in advance.
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Ingredient Notes
- Pound cake: Easy to find at the supermarket in the bakery section, you can use any brand.
- Butter: This is to make the buttercream. Take the butter out of the fridge in advance so it can get to room temperature.
- Powdered sugar: To sweeten the buttercream, powdered sugar is used. Sift the powdered sugar to avoid clumps in the frosting.
- Heavy cream: If you have half and half on hand, you can use that instead of heavy cream.
- Vanilla extract: Vanilla adds richness to the flavor of the buttercream, so don’t skip using it.
- Raspberry jam: You can use raspberry jam or strawberry jam.
- Fresh raspberries and mint leaves: These are optional garnishes.
For full ingredients and detailed instructions, please see the recipe card at the bottom of the post.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Cut circles out of the pound cake slices using a cookie cutter.
Step 2: Make the vanilla buttercream by using a hand mixer to whip the butter, powdered sugar, heavy cream, and vanilla extract.
Step 3: Put buttercream into a plastic sandwich bag. Put raspberry jam into another sandwich bag.
Cut a small hole on one corner of each sandwich bag. This is to create a makeshift piping bag.
Step 4: Assemble the cake.
Squeeze a layer of buttercream onto the top half of a pound cake circle.
Step 5: Squeeze a layer of raspberry jam on top of the buttercream.
Step 6: Top with a second pound cake circle and add a layer of buttercream on top.
Optional: Garnish with a raspberry and mint leaf.
Tea Sommelier’s Tip
To pair these mini cakes with a pot of tea, go for black tea, like Earl Grey or English Breakfast, or green tea, which always go well with sweets.
Recipe Notes
Make sure the butter is very soft.
You want the butter to be very soft and creamy so that no lumps form in the buttercream. The frosting should be as smooth as possible after it’s whipped.
To soften your butter in a hurry, you can microwave it for 15 seconds on low power. Don’t use full power, which will melt the butter.
Prepare the mini cakes in advance.
You can prep these cakes in advance by cutting out the pound cake circles and making the buttercream the day before, then assembling the cakes ahead of time. Add any garnishes on the day you’ll be serving them.
Use raspberry or strawberry jam.
Classic Victoria Sponge Cakes are made with either raspberry or strawberry jam so you can use whichever jam you prefer. In recipe testing, the raspberry jam tasted better than the strawberry jam so that’s what was used in this recipe.
Expert Tips
- Don’t layer on too much of the buttercream or jam since it’ll make it messy to eat.
- For cleaner edges, chill the pound cake before slicing and cutting.
- Take the leftover trimmed pound cake and make a trifle by layering pieces in a cup with pudding and fresh berries.
Questions You May Have
Yes, you can use whipped cream like a classic Victoria Sponge Cake. However, the cakes will need to be assembled just before serving since whipped cream is softer and deflates over time. Homemade whipped cream would taste best, but you can also use store-bought.
Yes, since the buttercream is sturdier than whipped cream, these mini cakes will hold up overnight without getting soggy. Wait until the day of serving to garnish them.
You can, but keep the cookie cutter shape super simple. The pound cake can easily fall apart if the cutter is too detailed in shape.
Related
- Mini Banana Cake
- Fluffernutter Tea Sandwiches
- Mini Matcha Mille Crepe Cake
- Matcha Tiramisu
- Easy English Scones
- Matcha Pancakes
If you tried this Mini Victoria Cakes recipe, please leave a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ star rating and let me know how you like it in the comments below.
Mini Victoria Cakes
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 slices pound cake
- 2 tablespoons butter, very soft at room temperature
- 1 tablespoon powdered sugar, sifted
- 2 teaspoons heavy cream, or half & half
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons raspberry jam
- 4 raspberries, (optional garnish)
- 4 mint leaves, (optional garnish)
Instructions
- Cut circles out of the pound cake slices using a 2" cookie cutter. Cut 2 circles out of each slice of cake.
- Make the vanilla buttercream.Add the butter, powdered sugar, heavy cream and vanilla extract to a medium bowl and use a hand mixer to whip it until soft.
- Add the vanilla buttercream and raspberry jam to separate zip-top bags.Cut a small hole in one corner to use as a piping bag.
- Assemble the mini cakes. Pipe a layer of buttercream on top of a pound cake circle, followed by a layer of raspberry jam. Add another pound cake circle, then pipe a final layer of buttercream. Optional: Garnish with a raspberry and mint leaf.
- Repeat until there are 4 mini cakes.
Notes
- Take the butter out of the fridge in advance so it can get very soft before making the buttercream. To soften your butter in a hurry, you can microwave it for 15 seconds on low power. Don’t use full power, which will melt the butter.
- Sift the powdered sugar to avoid clumps in the frosting.
- Vanilla extract adds richness to the flavor of the buttercream, so don’t skip using it.
- Classic Victoria Sponge Cakes are made with either raspberry or strawberry jam so you can use whichever jam you prefer.
- You can prep these cakes in advance by cutting out the pound cake circles and making the buttercream the day before, then assembling the cakes ahead of time. Save the garnishes and add them on the day you’ll be serving them.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
