Home › Cakes › True Sponge Cake
True Sponge Cake
6 eggs 1 cup sugar 1 tablespoon lemon-juice 1/2 teaspoon grated lemon-rind 1 cup flour Separate the whites and yolks of the eggs, beat the yolks until thick and lemon-colored, add the sugar gradually, then add the lemon-juice and rind. Cut and fold in the sifted flour and cut and fold in the stiffly beaten egg-whites. Bake in an ungreased pan in a very moderate oven, 300 degrees to 350 degrees F.
A true sponge cake rises on beaten egg alone -- no butter, no baking powder -- so the folding and the cooling matter more than anything else on the list.
- The hinge: fold, don't stirThe yolk foam and the whites are the only leavening. Sift the flour over the surface and cut down through the batter with a spatula, turning the bowl, until just no streaks remain. A dozen strokes too many and the cake bakes dense and rubbery.
- Oven temperatureThe original gives the number, which is unusual and welcome: 300-350F. Start at 325F for an even bake. A hotter oven sets the crust before the interior has finished expanding and the cake domes and cracks.
- Pan and timeThe recipe specifies only 'an ungreased pan'; a tube pan is the usual modern choice for a cake of this type, and the batter must climb the sides, so nothing greased will do. Reckon on roughly 45 to 55 minutes, until the top springs back under a fingertip and a skewer comes out clean.
- Cool it upside downInvert the pan the moment it leaves the oven and leave it suspended on its feet or over a bottle neck until fully cold. A hot sponge cooling right side up collapses under its own weight.
- Egg size and temperatureEgg sizes were not standardised when this was written, but six large eggs will serve. Have them at room temperature -- cold whites will not whip to the volume this cake needs.
- Beating the yolks"Thick and lemon-colored" means five to seven minutes with an electric mixer, until the yolks fall from the beater in a ribbon that holds its shape for a moment.
- SaltNone is called for, and older sponge recipes often omit it. A scant 1/4 teaspoon sifted with the flour sharpens the lemon without affecting the structure.
- YieldOne tube cake, 10 to 12 servings. It is dry by design, and cakes of this kind are commonly served with fruit, a sauce, or whipped cream.