School Cake

SCHOOL CAKE

School Cake is such a nostalgic dessert (or pudding as we called it in school); I remember having it every week at school and I never got sick of it! It’s such a simple treat but it hits the spot every time, especially when paired with warm custard. There are three components to this pudding; sponge cake for the base, icing on top and the signature sprinkles. This is a classic vanilla sponge cake recipe so all you need to do is whisk together butter, self-raising flour, eggs, sugar and  vanilla extract, so simple! I’ve got the full ingredients list and instructions written out so you can follow those but here are a few top tips to getting a deliciously fluffy sponge cake.

@mysimpleeats

School Cake #spongecake #icing #sprinkles #foodtiktok #baking #easybakerecipes #dessertideas #bakingtok #delicious #90s #nostalgia

♬ original sound – mysimpleeats

WHY YOU’LL LOVE SCHOOL CAKE

So nostalgic! – Perhaps one of the best things about this recipe is how it takes you right back to your childhood. Eating this cake for pudding at school was what I looked forward to every week 😊

Really easy to make – This is a surprisingly simple recipe considering how delicious it is. It only requires a few ingredients and bakes for only 20 mins.

A family favourite – If you’re thinking of a dessert idea which will be great for the whole family then this recipe is a great idea. I’d be surprised if anyone decided not to have a slice with a cup of tea.

Can serve warm – You can serve this cake warm and don’t need to wait for it to cook before applying the icing. Unlike buttercream, which would melt on a hot cake, icing will be fine and can be eaten warm.

Goes great with custard – This cake pairs so well with custard and with a hot cup of English tea, you can’t go wrong!

INGREDIENTS YOU’LL NEED

Butter – Use room temperature butter because if its just come out of the fridge, it will be too hard to whisk and if you melt it in the microwave then it will make the cake quite greasy. Instead, take the butter out of the fridge a few hours in advance or even the night before.

Flour – Sift the flour! This one seems unimportant because you’re going to whisk your flour into the mixture but trust me, it will make such a difference to the cake if you sift the flour first. IF you don’t have a sieve then you can use a whisk or fork to give the flour a quick whisk before adding to the mixture.

Vanilla Extract – Don’t skip the Vanilla extract, it will give the cake such a lovely flavour! You can use vanilla essence if you have it but in my experience, extract tastes a lot better.

Sugar – Caster or Granulated sugar will work fine. I’ve tried both and haven’t noticed much of a difference so you don’t need to buy caster specifically.

Eggs – Make sure you use room temperature eggs because they will meld with the rest of the ingredients much more efficiently.

Icing Sugar – Add really tiny amounts of water into the icing sugar and mix it in before adding in more, you can better achieve the right consistency by doing this. You don’t want to make it too runny!

Sprinkles – Scatter on the sprinkles of your choice just after you put the icing sugar onto the sponge, this will ensure that they stick to the cake. They add a lovely crunch to the cake and have a nice flavour in my opinion.

TOP TIPS ON HOW TO MAKE SCHOOL CAKE

1. Quality Ingredients: Use high-quality, fresh ingredients for the best flavour and texture. This includes fresh eggs, real butter, pure vanilla extract as opposed to essence and plain flour.
2. Room Temp Ingredients: Use room temperature eggs, butter, and any dairy ingredients as they will mix more evenly and create a smoother batter.
3. Weigh Ingredients: Use a scale to measure ingredients accurately to ensure consistent results. This will directly impact the quality of your cake.
4. Icing using milk – I have always used water to mix with the icing sugar but I was advise by a friend to use milk. It was such a game changer and made the icing much more creamy in consistency.  
5. Cream Butter and Sugar Thoroughly: Cream the butter and sugar together until it is pale in colour, fluffy, and has doubled in volume. This incorporates air into the batter and creates a light and airy texture.

MORE TIPS

1. Scrape Down the Bowl: By scraping down the sides of the mixing bowl regularly, it ensure all ingredients are evenly combined. This helps prevent uneven mixing and ensures a more consistent batter.
2. Sift Dry Ingredients: Sift the flour and baking powder together to remove lumps as this will contribute to a lighter texture in the final cake.
3. Add Vanilla Extract: Use vanilla extract instead of essence for the best flavour. It provides a great taste and smell as well.
4. Fold Gently Fold the flour into the wet ingredients with a spatula. Overmixing can result in a dense cake, so mix until just combined.
5. Preheat the Oven: Ensure that your oven is preheated before placing the cake in the oven as this ensures even baking and rising.

EQUIPMENT YOU’LL NEED

In order to have an efficient and enjoyable baking experience, I like to get all of the equipment I’ll need before baking. This can take a lot of the stress out of baking and saves so much time in the process. There are a few staples everyone needs when baking a cake:

1. Mixing Bowl – You can really use any container to mix your batter in but using a mixing bowl will definitely be the most efficient. They’re inexpensive and will last forever so if you don’t have one, I’d highly recommend it! You want to make sure you use a bowl which is big enough to mix the cake batter in, especially if you’re using a hand whisk.
2. Whisk/ Electric whisk – You can use a traditional whisk or wooden spoon if you don’t have a hand whisk or stand mixer but this will require a little extra work. When I bought my first electric whisk it was an absolute game changer. I noticed that the batter was light and fluffy and it was much quicker to mix the dough as well.
3. Spatula – Using a silicon spatula is great for scraping all of the batter from the bowl. It’s flexible so it’s much easier to get all of the batter out from the edges.
4. Spoons – It’s good to have a few spoons on hand to help you scrape ingredients. You may need to scrape the butter when adding it into the mixture. You’ll also need to scrape the batter from the spatula when you pour it into the spoon.
5. Cake tins – You will need an 8 inch cake tin for this recipe; either square or circle will be fine. Non-stick cake tins are ideal, although I still line mine with baking paper to prevent the cake from sticking.
6. Baking paper – This is a must when baking! I always line my cake tins with baking paper even if I’m using a non-stick pan. This is because the sponge still sticks to the cake tin even when the tin claims to be non-stick! It’s always very frustrating when the cake sticks to the pan because it wastes your time, effort and ingredients.

When you have everything ready and laid out, you will notice that your clean up time is significantly reduced as well. Baking becomes relaxing rather than stressful and I find that it’s the perfect way to spend a rainy afternoon.

RECIPES YOU MIGHT LIKE

Jam and Sponge cake – Jam and Coconut Sponge Cake – My Simple Eats

Cookies and Cream Cupcakes – Cookies & Cream Cupcakes – My Simple Eats

Kinder Cheesecake – Kinder Cheesecake – My Simple Eats

CONCLUSION

School Cake is a family favourite because of its simple taste, nostalgic feel and its super easy to whip up. You can serve it warm, with custard or with a cup of tea. You don’t want to sleep on this recipe as its sure to be a crowd please. Happy Baking!