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Savoy Sponge
Beat the yolks of three eggs lightly, and with them four ounces of powdered sugar and a small pinch of salt. Stir in two ounces of cornflour, and beat the mixture again till it is quite smooth. Add the whites of the eggs whisked to froth; pour the preparation into a buttered mould, the inside of which has been lightly covered with powdered sugar. Flavour the cake with any suitable flavouring, and bake in a moderate oven. When done enough, turn it out carefully. Time to bake, about half an hour. Probable cost, 8d.
A three-egg sponge raised entirely by whisked whites, with cornstarch standing in for flour. It is a small cake and it lives or dies by how gently the whites are folded in.
- Cornflour is cornstarchBritish "cornflour" is what American cooks call cornstarch, not cornmeal. Two ounces is a scant half cup, and it gives the very fine, dry, faintly powdery crumb that distinguishes a Savoy sponge from a flour sponge.
- WeightsFour ounces of powdered sugar is about a cup by volume; two ounces of cornstarch about 1/2 cup less a spoonful. Weigh if you can, since sifted powdered sugar varies wildly in the cup.
- A moderate ovenUsually reckoned at somewhere around 325-350F. Half an hour would suit a mould of roughly 1 to 1.5 pints, which is about what this quantity of batter makes; the cake is done when it springs back and has just begun to shrink from the sides.
- The hinge: the whites"Whisked to froth" understates it. Take the whites to soft, glossy peaks and fold them in in two or three additions with a spatula, cutting rather than stirring. There is no chemical leavening here, so any air beaten out is gone for good.
- Preparing the mouldButter thoroughly, then dust with powdered sugar rather than flour. The sugar sets into a thin crisp shell that helps the cake release and gives the traditional sandy crust. A plain charlotte mould, small tube pan or 6-inch cake pan all work.
- Flavouring"Any suitable flavouring" would most likely mean vanilla, lemon or orange zest, a spoonful of orange-flower water, or a little brandy. Add it to the yolk mixture, not the whites, and keep liquid additions to a teaspoon or two.
- Turning outLet it settle five minutes in the mould, then invert onto a rack. Turned out hot it tears; left to cool completely in the tin the sugar crust sticks.
- YieldSix small servings. It stales quickly, being nearly fatless, and is best the day it is baked or served with fruit and cream.
The Savoy sponge is the English form of the French biscuit de Savoie, a light whisked cake traditionally traced to the medieval court of Savoy and long associated with tall fluted moulds and elaborate mounted set pieces. Nineteenth-century pastry cooks valued it because it was stiff enough to be sliced, layered and built up into architectural desserts while remaining dry and absorbent, so it took syrups and liqueurs well. The use of cornflour in place of wheat flour is a distinctly Victorian touch: refined cornstarch became a cheap, reliable household staple in Britain from the mid-nineteenth century, marketed heavily for puddings and light cakes, and Cassell's includes the "probable cost, 8d." as it does throughout, a reminder that these books were as much budgeting manuals as cookbooks.