How to make a sponge cake

How many times have you seen those fluffy and juicy biscuits in the bakery and wondered “how they will make them”? What is the trick to making a sponge cake that is fluffy and easy at the same time? Well, although it may sound like a cliché, love is one of the keys to success in these cases, since without this feeling it is very difficult for us to be able to cook a good cake, don’t you think?

If you already have a passion for baking and a desire to learn, you are already halfway there! Now you just need to know some tricks and techniques that you must take into account when preparing the recipes to obtain foamier dough, which will transform into beautiful biscuits in the oven. Keep reading and discover how to make a sponge cake without dying trying.

Ingredients, weighed and at room temperature

Although it may seem obvious, it is essential to respect the measurements of the ingredients as much as possible. Likewise, we must know that every good cake includes solid and liquid ingredients in its recipe, despite the fact that the proportion between them may vary depending on the type of cake we are looking for. In general, the most used liquid is milk, which can be of animal or vegetable origin, but it is also common to find milk cream, water or juice instead.

On the other hand, for a sponge cake to be very fluffy, it is necessary to include some type of fat, such as olive oil, butter or sunflower oil. Depending on the product that we have in our pantry, or the flavor that we are looking for in the cake, we will opt for one or another ingredient. If we are interested in a cake with a more intense flavor, we will opt for olive oil, while if we want a slightly softer one, we will choose sunflower oil or butter.

Finally, when preparing the ingredients to make a sponge cake, it is essential that they are at room temperature. If they are too cold, the dough will not be the same because it will not retain as much air. The only exception is the milk cream in case you want to beat it, a trick that we will talk about in the next section.

Do I have to follow an order in the ingredients of a sponge cake?

There is no predetermined order applicable to all recipes to make perfect cupcakes. Thus, in some recipes they will ask to beat the eggs with the sugar first, while others will indicate that the first ingredient should be butter. What is certain is that the following is recommended:

1. Add the eggs one by one to integrate them well into the dough and add enough air.
2. Leave the liquid ingredient for last. There are many recipes that indicate adding the flour in the last step, however, the best way to get a very fluffy and soft cake is to let the last ingredient be milk, or the liquid used. Of course, as we have said, it must be at room temperature. If it is not, it is as simple as putting it in the microwave for a few seconds.

The trick to making a sponge cake is in the dough

It is obvious to think that good dough is synonymous with a good sponge cake, but what should this dough be like so that it is so perfect? Very simple, airy. In other words, for a homemade sponge cake to fluff up in the oven, it is important to introduce as much air as possible into the dough during its preparation. Dough with less air does not manage to rise in the same way, and that is when we get cakes that are caked, compact or that have not risen enough. Next, we explain in detail how to introduce air into the cake batter:

1. Separate the yolks from the egg whites

By separating the yolks from the whites we can beat the whites to the point of snow to introduce more air and volume to the dough. Thus, the whipped egg whites should be added at the end of the process, making gentle enveloping movements.

As for the yolks, they also have to be beaten vigorously to add as much air as possible. In this way, the result is foamy and yellow yolks.

2. Always sift the flour

Perhaps we can think that sifting the flour is a step that we can skip; however, it is one of the most important. When sifting it, a lot of air is introduced and the lumps are broken up, so the dough is much more aerated, soft and homogeneous, essential characteristics to obtain a sponge cake. The only exception is whole meal flour, which should not be sifted. In this case, we will introduce air with some manual rods or a fork, moving it energetically before introducing it to the dough.

What flour is the best to make a perfect sponge cake? The so-called “soft” or “loose” flour, which is the one with the lowest percentage of gluten. Currently we already find prepared flours on the market, called “pastry flour” or “biscuit flour”, which also includes baking powder. However, if we do not have this flour, or we want to make a sponge cake without gluten, the most recommended flours are corn flour or rice flour.

3. Add some kind of booster

The eggs already act as an impeller by introducing air during the beating; however, it is always advisable to include an extra to get perfect sponge cakes. These boosters can be classic baking powders (Royal type), sodas (El tiger type) or baking soda.

Now, if more impeller is added, will the cake be spongier? NO! This is a false myth that has nothing to do with reality. Again, sticking to the measure is key, and if the recipe calls for a teaspoon of baking powder, you don’t need to add more. Likewise, if prepared flour is used, which already includes an impeller, it is not necessary to add more quantity, however, if a little is incorporated, nothing would happen either.

4. If there is heavy cream, whip it up!

The whipped milk cream provides more air to the dough, so if the recipe includes this ingredient, assemble it and add it at the end to integrate it with enveloping movements.

5. Use electric rods or blender

An infallible trick to make perfect biscuits is to use electric rods or, directly, the blender.  These devices allow more air to be introduced into the dough than we could add manually, so if we have them at home, why not use them.

The mound, in its right measure

If we take the trouble to weigh the ingredients one by one and prepare good dough, why don’t we pay attention to the mold? Of course, the size of the mold directly influences the final appearance of the cake, since if the amount of dough prepared is for a small cake, and we pour it into a large mold, what will happen? That the result will be a practically flat cake.

For all these reasons, if the recipe does not indicate the size of the mold, we can choose to leave a comment to the author or try to calculate approximately the appropriate mold based on the ingredients. In general, 300 grams of flour usually give medium-sized biscuits, so a mold with a diameter of 25 cm is usually adequate. And if we still don’t have it clear, the best trick is to place the dough in the mold and see how far it goes. In order for it to fluff up in the oven without the dough coming out and the cake falling apart, one finger must extend beyond the middle of the mold.

Baking, key to making sponge cakes

Knowing our oven is the key to knowing how to make a sponge cake. So much so that it has happened to many people that in one oven they have the cake in one way and in another in another. The ideal temperature to bake a sponge cake is 180 ºC, however, not all ovens heat the same, for this reason we emphasize the importance of knowing the product with which we are working. In this sense, if we have a kitchen thermometer, the better, since it will tell us exactly what temperature it is at. With this tool we can check if our oven reaches the optimum degrees by marking that figure or another.

In addition to temperature, the function of the oven plays a crucial role in the proofing of the cake. Take note of these tricks:

• To make a perfect sponge cake, preheat the oven while you prepare the dough, at 180ºC, with heat from above and below.
• When baking the cake, activate only the bottom heat. This will allow the dough to rise correctly, since if the heat is kept on top, the surface will cook, but the interior will remain raw.
• Do not open the oven during the first 30 minutes. The change in temperature destabilizes the dough and automatically causes it to lose its volume. After these minutes, you can start checking the status of the cake.
• About 10 minutes before the end of cooking the cake, you can turn on the heat on top to brown the top if you like it crispy.
• Five minutes before the end of the cooking time, it is recommended to turn off the oven so that, when it is removed once it is done, the change in temperature is less abrupt. In fact, it can be left inside the oven with the door half-open so that the heat comes out slowly.

Once out of the oven, let it cool down, unmold it and place it on a wire rack to finish cooling. If we skip this step, the cake will be wet on the bottom.

How to make a sponge cake, easy and fast?

Now that you know the best tricks to make a sponge cake, we are going to put them into practice with simple recipes. We will start with a very easy and quick one, using the blender!

Ingredients

• 125g butter
• 125g sugar
• 3 eggs
• 60 ml of milk
• 125g flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 60ml olive oil
• 1 pinch of vanilla essence

Preparation

1. Put the butter and sugar in the blender and beat. Remember that the butter and the rest of the ingredients must be at room temperature.
2. Add the eggs one by one and without stopping beating. As this recipe is in a blender, we can skip the trick of separating the whites from the yolks.
3. Add the olive oil, the vanilla essence and continue beating.
4. Sift the flour with the baking powder, add half of the mixture to the blender and integrate.
5. Add the other half of the flour and continue beating.
6. Lastly, pour in the milk.
7. Place the dough in the mold, this time a rectangular one about 26 cm long, and bake in the preheated oven for 35-40 minutes, or until ready.

How to make a sponge cake without yeast?

Thanks to the previous tricks we have already been able to verify that it is possible to make a sponge cake without yeast, since we can add baking soda instead. And if we don’t have this ingredient either, by beating the egg whites until stiff and sifting the flour we will already introduce enough air to propel the dough and get it to rise in the oven. Remember that the eggs already act as boosters, so the yolks must also be well beaten.

How to make a sponge cake without eggs?

We said before that the eggs act as boosters, but what happens if we eliminate them from the recipe? That we will have to look for effective substitutes. To make perfect sponge cakes without eggs, we can choose to add a yogurt instead, which provides protein, softness to the dough and a lot of flavor. It can be natural or flavored.

On the other hand, a good substitute for the egg in these cases is flax or chia seeds, since if we mix them with water they simulate the texture of the egg. To do this, we must dilute a tablespoon and a half of seeds in 60 ml of boiling water, let stand a few minutes and use the solution.

How to make a chocolate sponge cake?

Getting a spongy chocolate cake is not that complicated, you just have to take into account some factors that can influence its texture. For example, if we use melted chocolate we must bear in mind that this ingredient adds more density to the dough and can make the cake more compact, although equally delicious! For this reason, to make very fluffy chocolate biscuits, it is advisable to opt for previously sifted cocoa powder, chocolate yogurt or a mixture of both ingredients (plain yogurt and cocoa powder).

How to make a lemon sponge cake?

To obtain a sponge cake with lemon, you don’t need to do anything else apart from the tricks mentioned throughout the article. Of course, if we want a cake with a lot of lemon flavor, in addition to adding the juice, we recommend adding the lemon zest, since it provides much more aroma than the liquid. Likewise, we can add a lemon yogurt, which will also increase the intensity of the cake and sponginess.

How to make an orange sponge cake?

As with the previous case, to enhance the flavor of the cake we recommend including the grated orange zest in addition to the juice. Likewise, to obtain a fluffy cake, remember that you can beat the ingredients in the blender in order to add more air to the dough, or use electric rods.

Juices, in addition to vitamins and minerals, as long as they are at room temperature, make the dough retain more air and, therefore, the cake is more spongy, which is why cakes of this type always end up with a lot of volume. Also, they provide moisture and juiciness, which results in a perfect cake. As a trick, we recommend opting for recipes that add olive oil, which, as we have said, makes it even more fluffy.

How to make a sponge cake with Thermo mix?

The Thermo mix allows us to prepare all kinds of desserts and recipes with little effort, so it gives very little room for error. Of course, with it we can also make sponge cakes of all flavors, we just have to follow its instructions and that’s it. Of course, even if we use this machine, we recommend sifting the flour with the baking powder beforehand, since this trick is applicable to all recipes.

Why don’t I have the sponge cake?

The first few times it is normal that there is not a perfect sponge cake left, because we still do not know the oven, we do not take into account all the tricks and previous steps, we have not found a suitable mold, etc. For this reason, it is important to keep in mind that we must keep trying, thinking about all the advice given, such as removing the ingredients from the refrigerator in advance, beating the dough well, weighing the ingredients, checking the capacity of the mold or preheating the oven.