There are few cakes that can be adjusted as easily as sponge cake. You can bake in a cake pan, or tube pan, garnish with frosting, icing, and whip cream, or serve a little sweet to enjoy with tea. Sponge cakes depend on eggs being beaten well to get their volume up, but you can modify the texture of the sponge cake with the fat you use. Regular sponge cakes that use butter can be baked in cookie or cake pans. Smooth, light and rolls easily. Chiffon cakes depend on oil and use more flour. This results in a sturdier cake that can withstand heavier frosting or butter cream. Choose the sponge cake you like, bake it in the pan of your choice, and decorate it to your liking.
Ingredients
For Simple Sponge Cake
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled, a little more for the pan
- 1 1/2 cups cake flour, plus a little for the pan
- 9 large eggs, room temperature, whites and yolks separated
- 1 1/2 cups sugar, divided
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- pinch of kosher salt
- powdered sugar for garnish
For Chiffon Cake
- 2 1/4 cups flour
- 1 1/2 cups sugar, divided
- 2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup neutral oil, such as canola, vegetable, or sunflower (don't use olive oil)
- 7 large egg yolks
- 9 large egg nipples
- 3/4 cup milk
- 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Step
Method 1 of 2: Making a Simple Sponge Cake
Step 1. Preheat the oven and prepare a baking sheet
Set the oven temperature to 180°C, or number 4 on the oven. Grease a 22.5 cm diameter round tin or a 30 x 42.5 cm cookie tin with butter. Line the bottom of a baking sheet with parchment paper, grease the paper with butter, and sprinkle flour on top. Gently swirl the flour around the pan and remove the excess.
Don't give in to the temptation not to use parchment paper. The parchment paper keeps the cake from sticking to the pan and makes it easy to remove
Step 2. Prepare the bain marie
Pour water into your saucepan and heat it to a simmer over low heat, just slightly bubbling. Place the bowl over the pan, making sure it doesn't get wet.
You can also purchase and use a double boiler, which is similar to two pots stacked on top
Step 3. Add egg yolk and 1 cup sugar in a bowl
Beat egg yolks and sugar over boiling water until sugar dissolves, about 3 or 4 minutes. When there are no grains of sugar, remove the bowl from heat.
Step 4. Beat the yellow/sugar mixture
Use a hand mixer on medium-high speed to beat the dough until it is lighter in color and slightly thickened, about 3 to 5 minutes. Add the vanilla extract and salt and pour the batter into a large bowl.
Step 5. Beat the egg whites
Place the egg whites in a separate large bowl and beat with a mixer on high speed. Beat until soft. The dough will wilt slightly when the whisk is removed from the bowl. After this, beat the remaining sugar until stiff and glossy. This takes a few minutes.
Make sure you use a very clean whisk and bowl. There is very little fat remaining, the egg white will not reach its rigid shape
Step 6. Put the egg white mixture into the egg yolks
Do it little by little, adding one third of the egg white mixture at a time. Then, slowly sift the eggs over the batter and mix. Stop before all the flour is mixed well.
Stir the mixture, using a spatula and hands to stir the light solution into the heavy solution. Avoid kneading, or you lose the volume of the light dough. Just stir it by twisting your wrist
Step 7. Pour in melted butter
Pour over the rim of the bowl and stir into the mixture until smooth, but don't over-beat.
Step 8. Pour the batter into the pan and bake
Divide the dough into two pans. Bake the cake pan for 25 minutes or 15 minutes for the cookie pan. To ensure an even browning, rotate the pan halfway through baking. The cake is ready when the toothpick inserted will come out clean.
Step 9. Remove from pan
If you are using a cake pan, hold the plate over the cake, then flip it over until the cake pops out on the plate. Remove the parchment paper and use the same method to flip it onto a serving plate.
If you are using a cookie sheet, spread out a few kitchen towels and sprinkle with powdered sugar. Quickly turn the hot cake over onto a towel that has been dusted with sugar. Sprinkle the top of the cake with powdered sugar and roll the cake in a towel. Let it cool for at least an hour. Unroll before filling
Step 10. Frost or fill if desired
Sponge cake baked in a cake pan can be filled between layers. Sponge cakes baked in cookie tins can be filled and rolled before being frosted on the outside.
- Try making Buche de Noel. Take a sponge cake made with a cookie sheet and fill it with your choice of chocolate, chestnuts, coffee, or cream cheese. Roll and coat with the frosting of your choice (usually chocolate). Decorate the cake rolls until they look like wood by adding the mushroom meringue, holly and rolled cranberries. Sprinkle with powdered sugar.
- Try making a Victoria Sponge. Place one sponge cake made in a cake pan onto a serving plate. Brush with raspberry jam or sprinkle with fresh berries. Sprinkle whipped cream or butter cream over the jam or fruit. Arrange the sponge cake on top for the dank rim, then sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve.
Method 2 of 2: Making Chiffon Cake
Step 1. Preheat the oven and prepare your baking sheet
Preheat oven to 165°C or oven setting number 3. Prepare a tube tin but do not grease it.
Step 2. Stir in dry ingredients
Stir cup sugar, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl.
Step 3. Stir in the wet ingredients
In another bowl, mix the oil, egg yolk, and milk until smooth. Slowly add the dry mixture into the wet mixture.
Step 4. Beat the egg whites
In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites with a mixer on high setting, until the mixture is smooth. Add cream of tartar and vanilla, beat until dough is stiff. Slowly beat the sugar side (3/4 cup) and continue beating until stiff and glossy. This takes about 5 minutes.
Step 5. Add the egg whites to the mixture
Start by incorporating a third of the egg white into the mixture. Then use a spatula and stir gently and add the egg white side to the mixture. Stop stirring once all the flour is mixed well.
Stir the mixture, using a spatula and hands to stir the light solution into the heavy solution. Avoid kneading, or you lose the volume of the light dough. Just stir it by twisting your wrist
Step 6. Put the dough into the tube pan
Cook the cake until it thickens to the touch, about 50-55 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool upside down on top for an hour before removing from pan.
To leave the cake upside down, try setting the pan upside down over a bottle inserted in the center of the pan
Step 7. Garnish with frosting or fill as desired
Chiffon cakes can be sliced vertically, like Angel Food cake, or cut horizontally and filled like Victoria Sponge.
