Vanilla Layer Cake

Ingredients

250g butter, at room temperature
1½ cups caster sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla essence
4 eggs, at room temperature
4 cups self-raising flour, sifted
1⅓ cups milk
1½ cups frozen raspberries,
plus 100g extra, to serve
600ml thickened cream
2 tablespoons icing sugar,
plus extra, to dust
2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste
100g packet vanilla mini meringues
250g strawberries, halved
2 tablespoons pistachios

Method

1- Preheat oven to 180ºC/160ºC fan-forced. Grease and line bases and sides of 2 deep 20cm (base measurement) deep round cake pans with baking paper. Using an electric mixer, beat butter, caster sugar and vanilla essence in a large bowl until pale and creamy. Add eggs, one by one, beating well after each addition. Fold the flour into mixture alternately with milk, beginning and ending with flour. Fold raspberries through.

2- Spoon cake batter into prepared pans; level surfaces. Bake for 1 hour or until a skewer inserted at centres comes out clean. Stand cakes in pans for 5 minutes, then turn out onto wire racks to cool completely.

3- Using an electric mixer, beat cream, icing sugar and vanilla bean paste in a large bowl until firm peaks form. Roughly chop half the meringues; fold through mixture. Split each cake in half horizontally. Reserve ½ cup of cream mixture. Layer cakes on a large plate with remaining cream. Spread reserved cream mixture over top of cake. Decorate with remaining whole meringues, strawberries, extra raspberries and pistachios. Serve dusted with icing sugar.