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- 175 g (6oz) butter, softened, plus extra to grease
- 175 g (6oz) caster sugar
- 3 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 200 g (7oz) self-raising flour
- 25 g (1oz) ground almonds
- Few drops almond essence
- Pink and yellow food colourings
- 3-4 tbsp lemon curd
- 500 g (1lb 2oz) marzipan
- Icing sugar, to dust
- Step 1
Preheat oven to 180°C (160°C fan) mark 4. Grease a 20.5cm (8in) square, straight-sided roasting/brownie tin. Cut a rectangle of parchment paper that measures exactly 20.5cm (8in) wide and 30.5cm (12in) long. Fold it in half (short end to short end), then make a 5cm (2in) wide fold down the length of the closed side, bending it both ways to mark a pleat. Open up the parchment, then pinch the pleat back together (so it stands perpendicular to the rest of the parchment). Position the parchment in the base of the tin - it should line the base exactly and have a 5cm (2in) tall divider down the middle.
- Step 2
Beat the butter and caster sugar together in a large bowl with a handheld electric whisk until pale and fluffy. Gradually beat in eggs, then fold in flour, ground almonds and almond essence with a large metal spoon.
- Step 3
Spoon half the mixture into a separate bowl. Tint one half yellow and the other pink with food colouring. Spoon one batter in to each side of the lined tin (making sure parchment doesn't shift) and level. Bake for 30-35min or until a skewer inserted into the cakes comes out clean. Leave to cool in tin.
- Step 4
Take cakes out of tin and peel off the parchment. Use a bread knife to level the top of each cake and remove any browned sponge. Stack cakes and trim sides and ends to reveal coloured sponge. With sponges still stacked, halve the cakes lengthways to make four equal strips of sponge.
- Step 5
Spread a thin layer of lemon curd along one long side of a yellow strip, then stick to a long side of a pink strip. Repeat with remaining two strips. Stick the pairs of sponges on top of one other with more curd to give a checkerboard effect. Trim to neaten. Spread ends of the cake with more curd.
- Step 6
Roll one-eighth of the marzipan out on a work surface dusted with icing sugar until 5mm (¼in) thick. Stick to one end of cake and trim with scissors. Repeat with other end.
- Step 7
Roll out remaining marzipan into a long 5mm (¼in) thick strip - it needs to be at least 22cm (8½in) wide and 35.5cm (14in) long. Brush with lemon curd. Place cake on the marzipan at one of the short ends, then trim the width of the marzipan strip to match the cake. Roll the cake, sticking it to the marzipan as you go. Trim end to neaten. Serve in slices.
Per serving:
- Calories: 526
- Protein: 8g
- Total fat: 24g
- Saturates: 10g
- Carbs: 68g
- Total sugars: 52g
- Fibre: 2g

The GH Kitchen Team are Good Housekeeping’s resident recipe developers and all-round food obsessives. GH Kitchen Director Sarah Akhurst is our resident hosting pro and loves nothing more than putting on a foodie feast for friends. Our GH Kitchen Manager Linzi Pucino is our very own Italian food expert (originally hailing from the North East of Scotland!) and can be found working her way through midweek recipes that cover all bases, from haggis to ragu! Our Kitchen Editor Nadine Brown loves digging into the stories behind her favourite foods and enjoys applying her eclectic tastes to more modern, flavour-forward recipes - just don't give her too much chilli! Our Junior Food Content Produce Frankie Prichard combines a love of beautiful presentation and flavour-led, seasonal cooking in her recipe development, along with a passion for bringing people together through food. With a wealth of professional kitchen experience between them, they’re dedicated to ensuring every Good Housekeeping recipe is the best it can be, so you can trust they’ll work every single time
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