Mascarpone and Fig Sponge Cake - Kate Gibbs recipe

Last night, I went to see Ringo Starr and his All Starr Band at Festival Hall in Melbourne.  It was an amazing evening on all kinds of levels.  Ringo is 72 years old, but jumped around on stage, despite the stifling heat, and has the physique of a man half his age.  His voice is still good, and his sense of humour is still sharp as a tack.  Can you spot Ringo in the photo below:

The All Starr Band was comprised of guys from a number of famous bands who played a range of hits from the 70s and 80s.  However, for me, the best part was Ringo himself.  When I was a little girl in kindergarten, one of the songs we learned was Yellow Submarine by The Beatles.  Imagine my delight when all these years later, Ringo led me and the rest of the audience in a rousing rendition of Yellow Submarine!  He also led us in A Little Help From My Friends.  It was a brilliant evening, and I am so glad that I went.

Now on to the cake.  This Mascarpone and Fig Sponge Cake recipe is by Kate Gibbs, and was published in a recent Sunday Life  magazine.  It caught my attention because it contained two ingredients that I just happened to have on hand - fig jam and mascarpone.

This cake is light and delicious, making it a perfect tea time treat.

To make this cake, you will need:

Cake

95g self raising flour
25g cornflour
4 eggs, separated
100g + 2 tbs sugar 
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

Filling

320g fig jam

2 egg whites
500g mascarpone
2 tbs icing sugar
extra icing sugar and dried figs to decorate

Preheat your oven to 200 degrees Celsius and grease and line a 22cm springform pan.

Sift the flour and cornflour together into a bowl.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together the egg yolks, 100g sugar and vanilla until thick, then set aside.

Beat the egg whites until they start to foam, then add the cream of tartar  and beat the mixture until stiff peaks form.  Fold in the 2 tablespoons of sugar.

Fold a third of the egg whites into the egg yolk mixture, then fold in the flour, and finally, fold in the remaining beaten egg whites.

Place the batter into the prepared cake pan, reduce the oven temperature to 170 degrees Celsius, and bake the cake for 30 minutes or until cooked through.  Remove the cake from the oven and allow it to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before unmoulding onto a wire rack to cool completely.
To make the filling, beat the egg whites until firm peaks form, then fold in the softened mascarpone and the icing sugar. 

Cut the cake into two layers using a serrated knife.  Place the bottom layer cut side up onto a cake plate or board.  Spread the layer with the fig jam, spreading right to the edges,  then spread the mascarpone mixture over the jam.  Place the second cake layer, cut side down, on top of the mascarpone.  Dust the top of the cake with icing sugar and decorate with dried figs as desired.

Slice and enjoy.