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Pink Grapefruit Cake with Tahini Cream

Pink Grapefruit Cake with Tahini Cream

By OcadoLifePublished on 02 February 2023Pastry chef Louisa Bergese’s Pink Grapefruit Cake with Tahini Cream is an easy, tangy twist on the classic Victoria sponge. It would also work well with blood oranges in place of the grapefruit. The trick to making sure your sponges are lighter than air? Use room temperature butter, eggs and milk – cold ingredients can cause your batter mix to curdle, leading to a dense cake. Looking for more cake recipes? Look no further.
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Time and servings

45 minsTotal time
12Servings
25 minsPrep time
20 minsCooking time

Ingredients

  • 295 g of unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus extra for the tins
  • 1 tsp of vanilla bean paste
  • 3 medium eggs, beaten
  • 200 g of self-raising flour
  • 25 g of cornflour
  • 1 tsp of baking powder
  • 65 ml of whole milk
  • 2 grapefruit, finely zested, ½ juiced and 1½ segmented and chopped
  • 400 g of cream cheese, beaten
  • 60 g of icing sugar, sifted
  • 1 tbsp of runny honey
  • 1 tbsp of tahini
  • 4 tbsp of pink grapefruit marmalade
  • 250 g of caster sugar

Method

  • Step 1

    Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/gas 4. Grease 2 x 20cm cake tins with butter. Line the bases with baking paper.

  • Step 2

    Using a stand mixer or electric whisk, beat 225g of the butter, the caster sugar and the vanilla bean paste on a low speed until smooth, then increase the speed to high and beat for about 8 mins, until pale and fluffy.

  • Step 3

    Gradually add the beaten eggs 1-2 tbsp at a time, beating well after each addition, until combined. Stop to scrape down the sides of the bowl every so often.

  • Step 4

    Sift the flour, cornflour and baking powder into a bowl, then begin whisking them into the creamed mixture a third at a time, alternating with the milk, until just combined – don’t overmix, or the gluten will develop and the sponges will become tough. Stir in most of the grapefruit zest (reserve 1 tsp to decorate) and all of the juice, then divide the mixture evenly between the cake tins. Smooth the tops with the back of a spoon.

  • Step 5

    Bake on the middle shelf of the oven for 20 mins – using the middle shelf and the oven’s fan setting will give the most even texture and rise. When cooked, the sponges should be springy to the touch and slightly shrinking away from the sides of the tins. Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the tins for 5 mins before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

  • Step 6

    Meanwhile, make the tahini cream by combining the cream cheese, the remaining 70g unsalted butter, the icing sugar, honey and tahini in a bowl or stand mixer; beat until smooth.

  • Step 7

    To assemble, place one sponge onto a plate; top with half the tahini cream and half the grapefruit segments. Spread the marmalade over the second sponge; turn it over and sandwich on top of the grapefruit. Spread the remaining tahini cream over the top of the cake and decorate with the remaining grapefruit segments, reserved 1 tsp zest and the rose petals, if using. The cake will keep well in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.