Professional cake maker Juliet Sear shows us how to split a sponge cake into three, and fill it with jam and buttercream neatly in preparation for icing.
1. Grab your sponge cake and trim it with a bread knife so that you have a flat top.
2. Cut a guideline across the height of the sponge, so that when you split it into three parts you can stack it back together accurately.
3. Use a leveller to cut the cake into three layers.
4. Use a dollop of buttercream to stick the base cake to a base board (the board should be the same size as the cake).
5. Cover in jam (a turntable helps) then pop the middle cake on top. Spread buttercream all over this cake - don't worry if some of it overlaps the edges. Top with the final sponge.
6. Balance a larger cake board on top on the three-tier cake and push down as necessary, to ensure that the cake stands even.
7. Using a palette knife and a side scraper, cover the cake in a very thin layer of buttercream in preparation for icing. This ensures a smooth surface, and gets rid of any outside crumbs.
8. Refigerate for at least half an hour before icing. Juliet shows us how to ice a sponge cake here...
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