Homemade rose jelly and hibiscus tea flavor these buttery little sponge cakes. Rose hibiscus Victoria sponge cakes are dainty so these are perfect for afternoon tea or parties.
Last week I made some rose jelly with roses from my garden. The jelly has a subtle rose flavor – perfect for an old fashioned tea cake like a Victoria sponge.
Victoria Sponge Cakes are familiar to Brits. I’d never heard of them until I watched the Great British Baking Show. I learn a lot from that show.
Victoria sponge cakes are perfect for someone like me who hates cake decorating. They are undecorated sponge cakes with jam in the middle. Dust them with powdered sugar and you have a perfect treat for tea.
These simple cakes were Queen Victoria’s favorite and it’s easy to see why. The other reason they are named after the queen is that baking powder was invented during Queen Victoria’s reign. These sponge cakes use baking powder in addition to whipped eggs.
I baked my sponges in a mini cheesecake pan. Mini-cheesecakes are only two inches (5 cm) in diameter so the cakes bake quickly. It’s also easy to slice small cakes in half and the size is perfect for parties.
The batter is incredibly buttery so I put a pan underneath the cheesecake pan to catch melting butter and any batter leaks. There was about a tablespoon of melted butter in the pan after I baked the cakes so it saved cleaning my oven.
The hibiscus glaze complements the subtle rose flavor of the jelly in the middle. I let my guests top theirs with whipped cream and I added raspberries on top to give them a finished look. If you’re up to it, candied rose petals would be even more pretty.
Rose Hibiscus Victoria Sponge Cakes
Ingredients
Cakes
- 1 cup flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 4 eggs, separated at room temperature
- 1 ¼ cups unsalted butter at room temperature
- ¾ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
Filling
- rose jelly
Hibiscus Glaze
- ¼ cup boiling water
- 2 hibiscus tea bags
- 1 tablespoon butter at room temperature
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 - 2 tablespoons lemon juice
Instructions
Cakes
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly coat the cups of a non-stick mini-cheesecake pan with cooking spray. Place the pan on a baking sheet.
- Cream together butter, almond extract, and sugar for 5 minutes. Add egg yolks one at a time, beating well between each addition.
- Mix in flour and baking powder.
- In a separate bowl, beat egg whites until stiff but not dry. Fold into butter mixture. Add a little egg whites to get the mixture loosened and then fold in the rest but only fold until just mixed.
- Distribute the cake batter between the cups. They should be almost full. Bake for 15 minutes or until the tops are golden and a cake tester comes out clean.
- Remove the cakes from the pans and cool completely on a wire rack.
Hibiscus glaze
- While the cakes bake, put 2 hibiscus tea bags in the boiling water. set aside to cool.
- Mix the butter and powdered sugar together.
- When the tea is cooled, whisk it to the powdered sugar mixture until there are no lumps.
- Add enough lemon juice to make the glaze thick but pour-able.
Assembly
- Cut each cakelet in half.
- Put 1 heaping teaspoon of rose jelly on the bottom half and top with the top half.
- Pour about 1 tablespoon of glaze on top.
- Top each cake with a raspberry or crystalized rose petals.
- Dust with powdered sugar if desired.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
12Serving Size:
2 cakeletsAmount Per Serving: Calories: 377Total Fat: 22gSaturated Fat: 13gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 115mgSodium: 162mgCarbohydrates: 41gFiber: 0gSugar: 32gProtein: 3g
Nutrition information is provided as a guide only. Please consult a dietician for specific dietary neds.
