Battenberg cake
Battenberg or Battenburg (with either 'cake' or 'square' added on the end) is a light sponge cake with different sections held together with jam. The cake is covered in marzipan and, when cut in cross section, displays a distinctive two-by-two check pattern alternately coloured pink and yellow. The large chequered patterns on emergency vehicles in the UK are officially referred to as Battenburg markings because of their resemblance to the cake.
A homemade Battenberg Cake, showing the typical chequered pink-and-yellow squares | |
| Type | Sponge cake |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | United Kingdom |
| Region or state | England |
| Created by | Unknown |
| Main ingredients | Flour, jam, marzipan |
Charles Nevin wrote in The Independent: “Battenberg cake is exemplarily British. The first cake was baked in 1884 to celebrate Prince Louis of Battenberg marrying Princess Victoria, Queen Victoria’s granddaughter and Prince Philip’s grandmother.” Early Battenbergs had as many as 25 squares, and food historian Ivan Day states the simplified four-panelled cake occurred when large industrial bakers such as Lyons began producing it.