Classic Battenburg Checkerboard Cake

Preheat the oven to 175°C (350°F). Grease the two 20cm square cake tins with butter and line the bases with parchment paper.

In a mixing bowl, beat the softened butter and caster sugar together with an electric mixer on medium-high speed for 4-5 minutes, until the mixture is pale, light and fluffy.

Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. If the mixture begins to curdle, beat in a tablespoon of the sifted flour to bring it back together.

Mix in the vanilla extract briefly. Sift in the self-raising flour and fold gently with a spatula until just combined, taking care not to overmix.

Divide the batter evenly between two mixing bowls. Add the pink gel food coloring to one bowl and fold gently until the color is uniform and vivid throughout.

Spoon the plain batter into one prepared tin and the pink batter into the other. Spread each level with a spatula and tap the tins firmly on the counter to release any large air bubbles.

Bake both tins on the middle rack of the preheated oven at 175°C (350°F) for 22-25 minutes, until the sponges are golden, spring back when pressed lightly, and a skewer inserted into the centre emerges clean.

Leave the sponges to cool in their tins for 10 minutes, then turn them out onto a cooling rack, peel off the parchment and cool completely to room temperature before assembly.

Using a long sharp knife and a ruler, trim each cooled sponge into a neat rectangle of equal dimensions, discarding the dark crusts. Slice each rectangle in half lengthwise to produce four long strips of identical size.

In a small saucepan over low heat, warm the apricot jam with the lemon juice for 2-3 minutes until loose and spreadable. Sieve out any fruit pieces for a smooth glaze.

Place one pink strip on a sheet of parchment. Brush its long cut side with warm jam, then press a yellow strip against it to form a paired block. Repeat with the remaining two strips, joining yellow to pink in the opposite order so the colors alternate.

Brush the top of each paired block with warm jam. Stack one block on top of the other, offsetting so the colors create a four-square checkerboard when viewed from the end. Press gently to adhere.

Brush the remaining warm jam over all exposed sides of the stacked cake, coating evenly so the marzipan will stick firmly to every surface.

Dust the work surface lightly with powdered sugar and roll the marzipan into a rectangle roughly 30cm by 25cm, about 5mm thick.

Place the jam-coated cake in the centre of the rolled marzipan. Lift one long edge of marzipan up and over the top of the cake and smooth it down, then bring the opposite edge up to meet it and press the seam together. Trim any excess at the ends.

Turn the cake seam-side down and trim the marzipan flush with the ends. Crimp the edges decoratively with a knife or your fingertips, then slice with a hot, dry knife to reveal the checkerboard pattern within.