Union Jack Traybake Cake

Vanilla Traybake Cake

1. Preheat your oven to 180C / 160C fan / gas mark 4 / 350F. Grease and line a traybake pan (33 by 23cm / 13 by 9ins).
2. In a large bowl, beat together the butter and sugar thoroughly, until the mixture starts to look a little bit paler.
3. Add in one egg at a time and stir until each egg is completely mixed in before adding the next one.
4. Add in the vanilla extract and stir to ensure it is evenly mixed in.
5. Add in half the flour and stir gently until mixed in. Add in the remaining flour and, again, stir gently until the flour is mixed in.
6. Add in the 4 tablespoons of milk and stir until mixed in.
7. Tip the mixture into the lined traybake pan. Smooth over the surface with the back of your wooden spoon.
8. Put the traybake into your preheated oven for 35-40 minutes. After 35 minutes, remove from the oven and check to see if it’s done using a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake. If the skewer comes out clean, it is cooked. If the skewer is covered in batter, return to the oven for a further 3 minutes and test again. Repeat if necessary, until the skewer comes out clean. (See Note 2.)
9. Allow the cake to cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then turn it out onto a cooling rack (See Note 3.) and allow to cool completely. This should take approximately 1 hour.

Union Jack Icing and Decoration

1. Don’t try and ice the traybake cake until it is completely cold! For best results, decorate just before serving. (See Note 4.)
2. Put the softened butter, vanilla extract and sieved icing sugar in a bowl and beat together until smooth.
3. Trim off the top of the cake, if necessary, so you have a nice flat surface to work with.
4. Using a knife, smooth the icing over the top of the cake as evenly as possible. (It doesn’t matter if it’s not perfect!)
5. Finally, use the blueberries, raspberries and strawberries to create a Union Jack pattern on the top of the cake. Use strawberries for the red vertical/horizontal cross, raspberries for the red diagonal cross, and blueberries to fill in the gaps to make the blue background.