The sponge cake it is a basic recipe of Italian pastry making and of the whole world. It is prepared with a few simple ingredients: eggs, sugar, 00 flour, vanilla and a pinch of salt. Unlike what many people think, in sponge cake absolutely no yeast: its softness comes from the operation of carefully whisking the eggs and creating an airy and soft mixture. It is unclear why this preparation was named sponge cake: the most widespread version is that it was invented by the pastry chef Giovanbattista Cabona, who worked for the Genoese Pallavicini family and who went with them to Madrid for a few years. Here one of the pastry chef’s preparations, a soft base for cakes called Genoise pasta, was reinterpreted without butter by Spanish chefs and was therefore called sponge cake. There are many versions of this base, such as sponge cake with cocoa, but also with coffee, or flavored with limoncello. Sponge cake is perfect for being filled with creams, ganache and mousse, or for making special preparations such as the Saint Honoré cake or the ice cream cake with a sponge cake base.

Preparation

1

To prepare your sponge cake, start by pouring the eggs and granulated sugar with a pinch of fine salt into the bowl of the mixer (or into any bowl if you decide to use electric whisks). Also add the seeds of the vanilla pod, cutting the pod and scraping the inside with a small knife, adding the seeds directly into the bowl.

2

Attach the mixer whisk and turn it on at high speed. Knead the mixture for about 15-16 minutes, until it is well whipped and airy.

3

Line the base of a 22cm diameter cake tin fitted with an opening hinge, placing a sheet of baking paper between the base and the edges of the cake tin and closing the hinge so as to secure the baking paper correctly.

4

Sift the flour twice, the first time into a separate bowl, the second time into the bowl with the egg mixture. Start mixing with a spatula making movements from bottom to top.

5

Mix gently until the flour is perfectly incorporated and the mixture is still well swollen and soft. At this point, gently pour it into the baking pan lined with baking paper.

6

Cook the dough in a preheated static oven at 170°C for 40 minutes, placing the cake pan in the lowest part of the oven. Never open the oven door during cooking. When the sponge cake is ready, take it out of the oven and let it cool completely, still inside the mold.

7

When the sponge cake is very cold you can turn it out and cut it. With the doses in this recipe you will obtain a sponge cake high enough to make three discs. To cut three identical discs you can help yourself by placing two rows of toothpicks along the edges of the base. Then proceed to cut with a long-bladed knife, following the rows of toothpicks. You will thus obtain three perfect discs, ready to be used.

Tips and tricks

Your sponge cake can be flavored not only with vanilla pod, but also with the peel of an untreated lemon or orange. Alternatively, you can use natural flavourings: why not try, for example, using a vial of almond flavour?

The round springform pan that we recommend using for this cake must be 22 centimeters in diameter. If you want to make a square base you can use a mould 17×17 cm.

If you want to make a larger base you can increase the dose of ingredients: each egg added will correspond to 30 grams of 00 flour and 30 grams of sugar. We remind you that for every 2 centimeters of extra cake pan 1 egg and the resulting weights of flour and sugar will be added. So, if you wanted to make a sponge cake with a 24cm diameter cake tin, you will have to use 6 medium eggs, 180g of granulated sugar and 180g of 00 flour.

Never open the oven before the cooking time is over, otherwise you risk your sponge cake deflating completely. You can open the oven after 40 minutes of cooking and make the try toothpick, inserting a toothpick into the center of the sponge cake and checking if it is dry when removed. If it is still moist, continue cooking for another 5 minutes.

If your sponge cake crumbles when cut, it means that the eggs have been over-beaten.

storage

The sponge cake remains soft for about 2 days, covered with transparent film once cold. The sponge cake can also be frozen, wrapped in cling film, for a maximum of 1 month.