This sponge cake recipe is from the recipe book of my great grandmother, Agnes Macfarlane (nee Gray). The only fat in this one is some milk. I am also in awe of anyone who would whisk sugar and eggs together with forks for a quarter of an hour!
Ingred :- 2 eggs, ¼ lb white sugar, ¼ lb fine flour, 2 large tablespoons milk, 1 good teasp baking powder, a little flavouring.
Prep :- Put sugar and eggs in a basin and beat them with a whisk or 2 forks for about a quarter of an hour. Then sift in the flour using a spoon to stir it. Add the milk and baking powder, the flavouring last. Stir it as little as possible. Grease and flour a cake tin. Pour in the mixture. Dust over the top with some white sugar and put in a moderate oven for ¼ hour or 20 mins.
Remarks :- A light cake requires a quiet oven or it rises at the sides and sinks in the middle. A fruit cake requires a hot oven at first else the fruit sinks to the bottom.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Butter Sponge ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This next sponge cake recipe is included here from the Townswomen’s Guild collection. It is very much the traditional sponge recipe of equal quantities found in the Peach Pudding recipe. I’ve included it here because it is attributed to Mrs Caine. Annie Caine was a great friend of my Gran’s and for years used to come and help my mum out with cleaning. My sisters and I knew her as Auntie Caine. I don’t know how many other families did this but we were besieged with Aunties who were really adults close to our family but not related. They were always Auntie followed by surname. If you’ve read my Guernsey story you’ll maybe have noted Auntie Reid. Other notables were my Auntie Peat (who deserves and will have her own page), Auntie Atkins, Auntie Spence and more.
Indredients :- 6oz. SR Flour, 6oz. butter, 6oz. caster sugar, 3 eggs.
Method :- Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs each with a little flour. Beat well. Fold in the rest of the flour and divide into two tins. Bake at 390 for 20 minutes.
Variations :
3 tablespoons of coconut.
1 tablespoon cocoa or chocolate powder and ½ teasp vanilla essence.
Craigachan 