In an earlier thread in November under 'Icing Query', I thought of making a
Battenburg with choc frosting, but instead, I opted for royal icing, but I
have used chocolate in the recipe.
The battenburg recipe in my cookbook, suggests cementing the 4 'squares' of
sponge together, using a pound of choc nut spread (Nutella?). However, I
discarded this for a choc/coffee-cream recipe, popular as a filling for
stuffed dates.

Ingredients for sponge :-
6oz softened butter
6oz s/fine sugar
6oz plain flour + half tsp baking powder
3 eggs beaten
3 tbsp milk
few drops of vanilla
half oz of cocoa powder.
The cocoa powder will be added to half the sponge batter and give a slightly
more contrasting 'harlequin' effect than the one in this pic
http://bronmarshall.com/?p=381

Filling, for sticking sponge squares together :-
8 floz double cream
1 oz course ground coffee
4oz dark chocolate

Final frosting:- (royal icing)
8oz icing sugar
1 egg white
half tsp geletine

8oz of marzipan or white almond paste, to cover sponge + half oz of warm
jam, to glue marzipan to sponge.

Sponge method : Grease 2 bread pans size 8" x 4" each. Mix butter and sugar
together and beat in the 3 eggs, add the vanilla drops. Fold in the flour
and baking powder and mix. Add enough milk to give a soft dropping
consistency.
Pour half into one bread tin. Mix the cocoa powder with remainder and add to
the other tin.
Bake for 15mins at 350F/180C, reduce heat by 25F/20C for a further 15mins or
until top is just firm. Leave in tins for 3mins, turn out onto board. Cut
each sponge in two and trim. You should be left with four shaped sponges 2"
x 2" x 8". Leave to cool.

Filling : Half fill a saucepan with water and bring to the boil. Place a
pirex bowl on top of saucepan and remove from the heat. Immediately, place
squares of choc in pirex and cover pirex with lid or plate, no further heat
required.
Meanwhile place dbl cream in another pan and bring slowly to the boil,
remove from heat (just short of boiling) and add the ground coffee and
infuse for 4mins. Then remove plate from pirex, place flour sieve over pirex
and pour coffee-cream thru' sieve onto the melted chocolate. BTW, the coffee
should be course ground (as for Cona vac), or it won't go thru the sieve.
Don't use a caffatiere as the coffee-cream is too heavy for the plunger. If
you can't get course ground then sub with instant coffee.
Use the coffee cream to cement the 4 sponge 'logs' together, but no cream on
the outside. Roll out the marzipan/almond paste into a flat16" x 8" oblong
shape. Coat the sponge with the warmed jam and cover sponge with the
marzipan. Cover with clingfilm and refrigerate overnight.

Sugar glaze : As per royal icing i.e. stir the egg white and slowly add the
sugar until the mother-of-pearl sheen appears and the soft peaks slowly
subside into the mix. Add the gelatine and cover for half hour. Then brush
the warm jam onto the sponge cake and lay the icing over, with the back of a
bread knife or glazing ruler. Serve thin slices - cos it's very filling.
Enjoy.

Bertie