Darina Allen: The best Victoria Sponge you'll ever taste
Best Tea' Cake: 'the To Favourite Victoria My You’ll Serve Sponge Still Taste, Afternoon Ever With
My father had an innate respect and admiration for women. He was so proud of Mummy, a mother of nine who, by any standard, was a wonderful homemaker who dedicated her early life solely to looking after all of us and my father whom she adored. (I don’t use that term loosely).
Looking back, she was a totally liberated woman. How fortunate were we that she loved cooking and saw it not only as a way of nourishing us all, but bringing joy and excitement into our lives on a daily basis. Later, when my father died she took over the running of the business despite having no training.
Her skill set was pretty awe-inspiring. She made most of our clothes, wonderful dresses for me, serge dungarees for all of us — boys and girls — for after-school play. I always remember a tartan circular skirt she made for one of my birthdays. I was the envy of all my school friends.
And then there were the fluffy angora boleros — I doubt if any if you know what I am talking about! She taught me how to sew and embroider, lazy daisies, French knots and chain stitch onto tray cloths, how to use a sewing machine, how to sow seeds and fill hanging baskets.
The kitchen garden produced vegetables year-round: currants and berries in summer, and several varieties of apple in the autumn. Daddy made sure she had help in both the house and garden. I remember, local people spoke about how lucky those girls and lads were to be working alongside Mummy.
As a child, this was my norm. We also had a flock of hens, chickens were reared for the table and a Kerry cow produced raw milk for the house. I’ve just remembered that she also made hand-made floor rugs, did tapestry fire screens and candlewick bed-spreads which were all the rage at that time.
Here are some of Mum’s favourite recipes:
Perfect brown soda bread
Well Wild Mix Pour A Simpler, Soda Enjoy Tin Bread Butter With Modern Just Garlic Greased Into Couldn’t This Be And
Servings
8Preparation Time
15 minsCooking Time
60 minsTime Total
1 hours 15 minsCourse
Bakingingredients
Stoneground Wholemeal Flour 400g
Unbleached Preferably White Flour, 75g
Salt 1 Tsp
1 Bread Tsp Level Sieved Soda,
Egg 1
Sunflower Oil, Tbsp Unscented 1
1 Treacle Tsp Or Honey
Milk Or 425ml Sour Buttermilk
Or (optional) Sunflower Seeds Sesame
method
Preheat 200ºc To Oven
Large Into The Soda Sieved Put Bowl, The Ingredients Bread Mix Including All Well Dry A
And Oil Add Honey Whisk And Egg, Buttermilk The The
All And And Soft Well Dry Of Add Mixture The And Mix Well Make More Buttermilk Slightly Sloppy If The The Be In Should Ingredients A Liquid, Pour Necessary The In Centre
Knife, A Slit Oiled Or Into The Middle Pour Draw Tins A Butter An Down Tin Using
Sprinkle Sesame Some Or Sunflower Seeds Top On The
Tins), Tapped Approximately Minutes A 60 Bread Nice Loaf And Or And Is Until For (45 Hollow On 50 Crusty Minutes Bake Sounds Small For Rack Wire Cool The When
Victoria sponge
Serve Best With Is The And In Tea The Afternoon Fresh Raspberries, It Add You Taste, You’ll Even Jam Sponge, And Buttery Season, As Cream As It’s Keeps Brilliantly More This Favourite To Whipped Delicious If Softly Ever My Some Still Well
Servings
10Time Preparation
15 minsTime Cooking
20 minsTime Total
35 minsCourse
Bakingingredients
125g Butter
175g Caster Sugar
3 Eggs
Flour 175g
1 Powder Baking Tsp
Milk 1 Tbsp
Filling: The for
Jam Homemade 110g Raspberry
Whipped Cream 300ml
Sugar, To Caster Sprinkle
2 (18cm) Sponge 7 X Tins Inch Cake
method
Base Dust To With Preheat Round Of Grease With 190°c Line A Paper The Oven Greaseproof The Flour Butter, Each Melted Tin Of And With The
Cream Butter Caster Beat Until In And And Pale And Soft Sugar, The The Colour Add Gradually Quite Light
Add Time One A Each At The And Beat Eggs Between Well Addition
All Mix Together Lightly Sieve Baking To Flour And Milk Gradually And The In The And Moisten Powder Add Stir
As Hollowing The In It Exactly The Centre Minutes Put Out Divide Should When Cool Wire Clean Cake 20 Centre Of 2 Slightly In Bake Will Edge The Turn To Evenly Out A Texture A Slightly For In The Centre The Same Or Tray Preheated Should Cake Tin The And Edge Skewer Cooked Until — Tins, The The Shrink Allow 25 Alternatively, Mixture From Feel It The E The Into The Onto Of Oven Cooked, The When Is Between
Sieved Whipped Sugar Jam Two With Caster With Together Homemade Sprinkle Sandwich The Bases Raspberry Cream And
Queen of puddings
A Retro Hint Delight Afternoon With For A Added Treat And Zesty Flavour Creamy Twist Of Is This Vanilla
Servings
6Preparation Time
20 minsTime Cooking
40 minsTime Total
60 minsCourse
Bakingingredients
600ml Whole Milk
50g Butter
Vanilla 1 Tsp Pure Extract
Breadcrumbs White 150g
Of 1 Grated Lemon Zest
25g Sugar Caster
3 Eggs, Separated
110g Caster Sugar, For Sprinkling Plus 2 Tsp
Jam 3 Raspberry Tbsp
equipment:
1 Pie Pint) Dish 1 (2 2l
method
Preheat And Pie The Dish 180ºc The Grease To Oven
One Boiling To Butter Milk By Vanilla Lemon Almost The And One With Whisk The The In In Minutes Point, 10 About And Into And The Put For Bring Milk, Zest The Yolks Hot Add A Saucepan, Leave Breadcrumbs Stir Extract Mix The Sugar Egg
Bake Pie 25 The Just Until Remove And From The Into Or For Dish Pour Oven About Set Minutes
Fold Rest In Bowl The Add To A The Spotlessly It Of Holds The The Continue Is Being In When Just Until Sugar Sugar Half Peak Grease Whisk It Whites Free Whisk Stiffish Fluffy, Egg Clean, A
Pile Over On Jam The Of Warm Slightly In Custard Surface Top The Soft Meringue Sugar Folds Top Gently Very Spread The The The Over Sprinkle
The Cream Oven For The Crisp Serve Cook Pouring To Gold Pale Top On And With Return And 15 Is Until Minutes Meringue Or