For the cake
175g/6oz unsalted butter, softened
175g/6oz caster sugar
3 free-range eggs, lightly beaten
175g/6oz self-raising flour
1-2 tbsp milk
For the syrup
50g/1¾oz caster sugar
50ml/2fl oz water
¼ tsp lemon essence
For the filling
150g/5½oz icing sugar
75g/2¾oz butter, softened
3-5 tbsp strawberry jam
For the topping
2 tbsp apricot jam, warmed gently, then passed through a sieve
250g/9oz marzipan
450g/1 lb fondant icing sugar
green, pink and yellow food colouring
sugar flowers, to decorate
Method
Preheat the oven to 190C/375F/Gas 5. Grease and line a 20cm/8in square cake tin.
Beat together the butter and sugar in a bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, a little at a time, until well combined. (If the mixture looks like it is curdling add a spoonful of the flour.) Fold in the flour and add a little milk if the mixture looks a stiff.
Spoon the cake batter into the cake tin and level using the back of a spoon. Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until golden-brown and a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.
Remove the cake from the oven, set aside to cool for five minutes, then turn out and allow to cool completely upside down, on a wire rack.
Meanwhile, for the sugar syrup, heat the sugar and water in a saucepan until the sugar has dissolved. Stir in the lemon essence.
For the filling, beat the butter in a bowl until soft and smooth, slowly beat in the icing sugar. Continue to beat until fluffy.
Very carefully, using the longest knife you have, remove the dark crust from the top of the cake and turn the cake upside down. Then cut the cake in half horizontally…
