Sophie wears the Visitor Cake Ruffle Trim Apron, part of a Christmas collaboration she did with South Australian clothing label Binny. The napkins are from the same collection.
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Start now and you'll have this simple butter cake in the oven in the next 15 minutes.
Sophie wears the Visitor Cake Ruffle Trim Apron, part of a Christmas collaboration she did with South Australian clothing label Binny. The napkins are from the same collection.
This is one of the most useful ‘basic’ recipes I can think of. Pretty much bombproof, it’s based on the traditional French ‘quartre-quarts’ butter cake recipe, so the quantities are easy to remember and the method is très simple. It’s delicious served on its own or topped with whipped lightly sweetened cream and a couple of handfuls of raspberries.
Serves: 6–8
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 35 minutes
250g butter, softened
250g (1 cup) caster sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
4 eggs
250g (12/3 cups) self-raising flour
1. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Grease and line a 24cm springform cake tin.
2. Combine the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat until pale and fluffy. Add the vanilla and then the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
3. Fold in the flour. Spoon the batter into the prepared tin and bake for about 35 minutes. The cake will be ready when the sides are just beginning to pull away from the tin and a skewer inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean.
Cook’s tip: Let the cake cool in the tin for about 5 minutes before releasing it and transferring it to a wire rack to cool.
This recipe is adapted from Sophie’s book, In Good Company (Murdoch Books, $45). The apron and napkins shown are part of a Christmas collection she designed with South Australian label Binny.
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