Succession Looney Cake

In a saucepan, combine 600 g quartered strawberries, juice of 1 lemon, and 440 g sugar, stirring gently to coat the berries.

Let the mixture macerate at room temperature for 30 minutes to release the juices.

Bring the mixture to a simmer over low heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until thickened into a jam consistency, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

Remove from heat and allow the jam to cool completely before using.

Preheat your oven to 350°F (180°C) and grease and line two 8-inch round cake pans.

Place 226 g softened butter, 226 g caster sugar, 4 eggs, 226 g self-raising flour, 1 tsp baking powder, and 2 tbsp milk in a stand mixer bowl.

Mix on medium speed until the batter is smooth and fully combined, 2–3 minutes.

Evenly divide the batter between the two prepared cake pans.

Bake at 350°F (180°C) until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 20–30 minutes.

Remove the cakes from the oven and transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

Whip 300 ml cold heavy cream, 2 tbsp powdered sugar, and 1 tsp vanilla extract together until stiff peaks form, 3–4 minutes.

Place the flatter or less attractive cake round onto the center of a cake turntable or serving plate.

Spread a generous layer of whipped cream over the bottom cake layer, creating a slight depression in the center.

Spoon a thick layer of the cooled strawberry jam into the middle of the whipped cream.

Top with the second cake round and press down gently to settle.

Fill a piping bag fitted with a star tip with the remaining whipped cream and pipe small stars across the entire top surface of the cake.

Decorate the top with 200 g halved fresh strawberries placed strategically over the piped whipped cream.

The Victoria sponge configuration uses an all-in-one mixing method where all sponge ingredients are combined at once rather than creaming butter and sugar first.