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As you all know, cupcakes are one of my favorite desserts to bake and eat, so I am incredibly excited for this guest post from the lovely ladies at Three Many Cooks. Pam, Maggy, and Sharon decided to share with us their fabulous recipe for Victoria Sponge Cupcakes with raspberry jam filling. Take it away, Maggy…

I can bake a lot sweet things, but there’s nothing I am more proud of than my English Nanny’s Victoria Sponge. Her simple, depression-era cake is perfection. I remember asking her for the recipe, half expecting her to mumble something about it being a family secret. But without hesitation, she rattled off the ingredients from memory and told me it was just a simple sponge cake. She didn’t think it was anything special, but I scrambled for a pen and paper and quickly jotted down the ingredients. That very evening I called Mom and said, “You have to make this cake.” She did. My mother (who has tasted many a cake) concurred that it was, in fact, spectacular. And so simple! We quickly converted it to U.S. measurements, made a few tweaks and pronounced it the cake to end all cakes. With Nanny’s permission, Mom published the recipe in her most recent book.

Victoria Sponge isn’t a bells & whistles, show-stopping, everything-but-the-the-kitchen-sink kind of cake. The ingredients list is relatively short and it can be thrown together and baked in under an hour. Two cakes with a layer of jam inside, dusted with powdered sugar. It’s a light and fluffy, afternoon tea cake. Without heavy frosting and toppings, it’s a sweet you can indulge in the afternoon and still be hungry for dinner. Nanny makes it when she’s having the ladies over for tea and she usually keeps one on hand should someone should stop by unannounced. How lovely is that?

ThreeManyCooks loved the fluffiness of this cake so much that we converted it to a cupcake recipe that we fill or top with anything–depending on the occasion or season. The big cake is delicious, but who doesn’t love their own little cake?


Three Many Cooks consists of Pam, cookbook author and mother to Maggy, hippie meets fifties housewife and Sharon, a recovering food snob on a grad school budget. They’ve been cooking together in Pam’s kitchen since the girls could walk, but now Maggy and Sharon are food experts in their own right. Together, they write Three Many Cooks as a way to be together and to further explore their family passion: food (and wine). You can also find Three Many Cooks on Facebook and Twitter.[/donotprint]

Victoria Sponge Cupcakes

Ingredients:

1 1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons) softened butter,
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups self-rising flour
1 tablespoon warm water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup raspberry jam (I like Smucker’s brand here because it is firm)
Confectioner's sugar for dusting

Directions:

1. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Grease and flour a 12-cup muffin tin.

2. Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Starting and ending with an egg, alternate adding eggs and flour, beating until each is thoroughly incorporated. Beat in water and vanilla until just incorporated.

3. Spoon two heaping tablespoons of batter into each cup followed by 1 teaspoon of jam (do not stir jam to loosen). Top with 1 heaping tablespoon of batter, spreading to ensure jam is fully covered.

4. Bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes. Remove from oven, let cupcakes stand a couple of minutes; turn onto a wire rack to cool. When ready to serve, dust with powdered sugar. Serve with tea and enjoy with friends!

Notes:

- While Victoria Sponge is typically made with raspberry jam, you can use any jam you like or have on hand. The best jams for putting into the cupcake, however, are harder jams, not the runny, more liquid ones.
- This recipe calls for self-rising flour, but if you don’t have any, simply whisk 11/2 teaspoons baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon salt into 1 1/2 cups bleached all-purpose flour.

All images and text ©

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50 Comments

  1. Shai says:

    The cupcakes are baking in the oven right now!! The batter itself tasted delish, the only thing that has me bothered is that when you mentioned two heaping tbsps of batter, mine seemed to over flow by the second : ) Im using the standardize 12 cup muffin tin… Oh well, still cant wait to see how they taste. Thanks for the wonderful recipe!!

  2. shondra says:

    i made this a while ago. and i loved the recipe. it turned out a little dry, but it was probably because i over cooked it. overall they were delicious. but when you but the jelly inside the little cakes make sure to put a lot of batter over them because i did not on mine and they fell apart!!!

  3. Danielle says:

    Made these in mini muffin pan….let’s just say it’s best to make then in regular size pan or like me, you will be popping these wonderful, light little bites non stop in your mouth and not have enough left to take to work. :) Just a lovely recipe, a nice light and tasty treat.

  4. anusha says:

    hey ,
    I m an amateur baker n i love the recipie by just reading it.. can u tell me how many cups of butter should i use? because thy dont measure butter in sticks here…. thanks and a very impressive cluster of recipies u ve here….

  5. Paula K. says:

    This is wonderful filled with lemon curd and topped with sweetened whipped cream!

  6. Jen @ My Kitchen Addiction says:

    These cupcakes are just lovely… And, so elegant!

  7. Afternoon Tea Fan says:

    You had me as soon as I saw the picture of the rasberry jam filling oozing out of the sponge cake – I can almost taste it.

  8. Cookbook Queen says:

    Simple cake-check
    Raspberry filling-check
    Dusting of powdered sugar-check check

    Yep…this is pretty much my cupcake soul mate!!

  9. Charlotte says:

    I made the microwave lemon curd today, do you think it work in these cupcakes? I think I’ll try and see.

  10. Happy When Not Hungry says:

    Wow these cupcakes look beautiful! Love the flavors too. Yum!