Passionfruit Sponge
An Original Recipe by Lorraine Elliott/Not Quite Nigella
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 35 minutes
- 3/4 cup plain all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup cornflour or cornstarch
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 6 eggs, at room temperature
- 1 cup caster or superfine sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
- 1/4 cup oil (a flavourless one like almond oil or grapeseed)
Filling
- 1 cup Passionfruit & Mango curd (recipe here)
- 350ml/12.36 fl ozs. cream
- 2 teaspoons vanillin sugar
Icing
- 1 cup icing sugar, sifted
- 3 tablespoons passionfruit pulp
- 25g/1oz. butter
To decorate
- Lisianthuses
- Figs
- Passionfruit
- Black cherries
Step 1 - Preheat oven to 180C/350F. Line the bases of 2x 20cm/8inch round tins with parchment. Grease sides with butter or oil spray the sides. Sieve the flour, cornflour and baking powder three times at a height by tapping the side of the sieve (rather than pressing the flour against the sieve's base). Set aside.
Step 2 - Place the eggs and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer and whisk until triple in size. I whisked it on the maximum speed of my Kenwood for 5 minutes. Using a large metal spoon, fold in the triple sifted flour mixture making sure to incorporate it well (some does tend to pool at the bottom). Drizzle in the oil and vanilla and fold this in too.
Step 3 - Divide evenly into the two tins and bake for 30 minutes. Cool in the tin and then run a butter knife around the sides and remove from the tins. You can bake these 1-2 days ahead of time and just wrap them in cling film and store in an airtight container.
Step 4 - When you are ready to serve it, whip the cream and the sugar until soft peaks form. Place one cake tier on a serving plate and spread the cream on top. Then spoon over the passionfruit curd. Add the second tier on top with the bottom facing upwards (the smoothest side).
Step 5 - Make the icing by adding the three ingredients into a microwave proof bowl. Heat on 100% power for 30 seconds. Stir well and then heat for another 10 seconds at full power until melted. Mix well and spread onto the top of the cake.
Step 6 - Decorate with halved figs, cherries, halved passionfruit and lisianthuses. Be sure to tape the bottoms of the stems of the flowers with sticky tape so that the sap doesn't leak onto the cake.