Recipe of the Month

July

In celebration of the Scottish soft fruit season I have come up with a great recipe for a sponge cake filled with wonderful Scottish strawberries and cream.  The soft fruit season in Scotland is short, so make the most of the world's finest strawberries and raspberries while you can.  I have tried out this recipe on my family several times lately (they were happy to oblige!), and we have eaten it while watching Wimbledon on TV!  During the Wimbledon fortnight around 27000 kgs of strawberries are consumed by visitors to the championships, along with 7000 litres of cream - that's a lot of strawberries & cream!  At the time of writing this, Scotland's very own Andy Murray is through to the men's quarter finals which is fantastic!  Whether you are a tennis fan or not I urge you to try out this recipe - you won't be disappointed!

 Wimbledon Cake

*I like to use 'Clover' spread as it has a similar fat content to butter but has half the saturated fat content, but you can use butter if you prefer.  The overall fat content is important in cake making - watch out for some sunflower/vegetable spreads which often have a lower fat content and so won't give the same results.  Whatever fat you use make sure it's soft otherwise this recipe won't work - remove from the fridge at least an hour or two before you need it.

**For a healthier option use yogurt instead of cream - thick, strawberrry yogurt works very well.

You will also need two 20cm sandwich tins, lightly oiled and base lined with baking paper.

Method:

1.  Pre-heat the oven to 180degC or equivalent.  Place the flour, 'Clover' or butter, sugar, beaten eggs, baking powder, vanilla and milk in a large mixing bowl and beat well to form a smooth, pale batter.  An electric mixer makes the job much easier!

2.  Divide the mix evenly between the two prepared tins and level the surface.  Place in the oven for 20-25 minutes or until golden in colour and springy to touch.

3.  Remove the cakes from the tins and place on a wire rack to cool completely.

4.  Whip the cream with a little icing sugar to sweeten.  Wash and hull the strawberries and cut into halves or quarters depending on size.

5.  Spread one of the sponge cakes with cream and top with strawberries - place the other sponge cake on top.  Dust with a little icing sugar and serve with any remaining cream and extra strawberries on the side.

 "Food is not about impressing people.  It's about making them comfortable'' 

Ina Garten