(makes 15-18 portions)

Battenberg cake consists of four square lengths of cake. One square pink, one square green and two squares yellow stuck together with apricot jam, so when the cake is cut it has a chequered effect. Almond paste is wrapped around the outside of the cake.

INGREDIENTS
Ingredients below are for one pink and green cake. The pink and green mixtures are baked in the same tin. Ingredients below are repeated for yellow cake but minus red/pink and green food colouring

175g butter (chopped and softened)
175g (1/2 cup + 7 tbsp) castor sugar
3 eggs
175g (1 cup + 5 tsp) flour (sifted)
1 + 1/4 tsp baking powder
30ml (2 tbsp) milk
1/4 tsp Hansel’s red food colouring, or 3 pin prick drops Chefmaster pink food colouring
1/4 tsp green food colouring
250ml (1 cup) apricot jam (gently warmed}
400g - 600g marzipan (I prefer a Danish brand called Odense. Supermarkets stock various brands)
28g (4 tbsp) cornflour
32g (4 tbsp) icing sugar


METHOD
Preheat oven to 170°C. Lightly grease with baking spray or additional butter two 26cm x 8cm loaf tins. Line bases and sides with baking paper. One tin is for the Pink and Green Cake and second tin is for Yellow Cake.

Pink and Green Cake: Place butter and sugar into a bowl of an electric mixer fitted with paddle attachment and beat until pale and fluffy.

Add eggs, one at a time, adding dessertspoon of flour with each egg.

Remove bowl from beater, add remaining flour, baking powder and milk and fold into butter mixture. Divide batter in half.

Add red or pink food colouring to one half of the mixture and stir to combine. Pour into one of the prepared tins.

Place a piece of baking paper large enough to sit directly on top of cake batter and gently press down on the sides of the paper so that it comes about 3cm up the tin.

Add green food colouring to second half of batter and stir well to combine.

Spoon batter onto baking paper covering pink batter to make second layer in loaf tin.
Place into preheated oven and bake for 20-25 minutes or until firm to touch in the centre.

Remove from oven and cool in tin.

Yellow Cake: Repeat ingredients and recipe for the pink and green cake but exclude red/pink and green colourings.

Pour batter mix into the second prepared tin. Place into preheated 170°C oven and bake for 25-30 minutes. Remove from oven and cool.

To assemble and ice {you will make 3 logs which in total will cut into 15 -18 portions.}

Remove both cakes from tins and remove all baking paper.

Pink and green cake: Slide a sharp knife between the two coloured layers to separate. Trim any browned edges and make edges even. Cut each layer into three 20cm x 2cm lengths. (freeze any trimmings to incorporate into fudge cake or truffles).

Yellow cake: Cut cake in half horizontally and then cut each into three 20cm x 2cm lengths.

On a clean, flat surface place one yellow length and one pink length side by side.

Place a length of green cake on top of yellow length and a second yellow length on top of the pink length. It should look like a colourful dice with the two yellow layers on opposite corners.

Dismantle and brush apricot jam {this acts as the glue} on each side of the cake lengths. Place cakes back together.

Sift cornflour and icing sugar into a small bowl. Sprinkle a little of the icing sugar mix onto a clean, dry surface and roll marzipan out to a rectangle with 2mm thickness.

Cut a piece of marzipan to fit the cake. Place cake onto marzipan and lift and roll the marzipan around the cake, joining the two edges by rubbing them gently together with your fingertips. Place cake seam-side down. Trim ends to neaten.

Repeat this process to total three logs. Allow to rest at cool room temperature for at least one hour. Slice each log into 5-6 pieces.

Store in an airtight container in pantry for up to four days.