THIS week, it’s all about cake. I’m sure you understand why!

With our new cafe open in Almondbury we’ve done nothing but bake all week!

The comforting aspect of a nice slice of cake, and a freshly-brewed cup of tea or coffee, is much under-appreciated.

Or rather, it’s perhaps more just forgotten about, as we try to get on with our busy lives.

Think of the modern office. Tea breaks are now snatched in brief moments away from the keyboard, in poky little cupboards filled with stained mugs, bowls of cold used tea bags, and hastily-opened packets of biscuits, usually with a personalised ‘Hands Off!’ sticker, attached in vain.

I can vaguely remember that in the 70s there was often a tea-trolley doing the rounds in large offices, pushed by a cheerful lady in matching tabard and hat, pouring fresh cups from a Baby Burco tea urn, and offering biscuits.

How about bringing that back? Wouldn’t it be delightful?

Not only is it good to have properly-made tea or coffee on a regular basis (we wouldn’t stand for soup or bread made in such a variety of ways, would we?) but it provides a valuable social element to one’s working day.

I’m a great advocate of the work/life balance (I think most people get it terribly, irrevocably wrong), and rectifying this starts with little things like taking a proper, thoughtful break every now and then.

Empty the head, read a few pages of a book, listen to Radio 4, that sort of thing. And soothe the furrowed brow with a lovely hot drink, and perhaps a slice of cake.

And perhaps the quintessential teatime cake is what we’re making today. The classic Victoria Sandwich, also known as the Victoria Sponge.

It’s a superb, simple cake that punches well above its weight; a simple egg and butter sponge cake base, with a splodge of jam, but it’s an immensely satisfying ‘proper’ cake.

There is heated controversy about the filling, though, a long-standing schism that gets the tea-cosies and lace doilies fluttering in parlours and tea-rooms across the nation.

Cream, or no cream? Some say that the addition of whipped cream makes a Victoria sponge a proper Victoria sponge, while others say that merely the jam filling is enough for the classic cake. Not so, say the cream brigade.

It’s at round about this point that my eyes glaze over. Quite frankly, who cares?

I always say that, if you fancy adding cream, go for it.

I don’t, personally, but that’s mainly for the reason that once you’ve added cream, you drastically reduce the life of the cake, whereas the jam-only version, covered correctly, will last for a few days.

If you do add the cream, make sure it’s not over-whipped; just a light medium peak will do, and refrigerate it overnight if you have any left.

The recipe is simplicity itself, and traditionally one of the easiest to remember for the cook in a hurry, eight ounces of everything, essentially.