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Best ever sponge cake
The Australian Women's Weekly Test Kitchen leads the field in baking and this sponge cake recipe (from their book, Classic Cakes), proves the point: it is simply the best ever sponge cake.
The filling of cream and rose-scented strawberries is our own variation.
(You can buy Classic Cakes: Sponges, Tea Cakes, Fruit Cakes online from Fishpond.co.nz)
Ingredients
Sponge cake
- 4 eggs
- 3/4 cup (165 gram) caster sugar
- 1 cup (150 gram) self raising flour
- 1 tablespoon cornflour
- 10 gram (2 teaspoons) butter, softened
- 1/3 cup (80 ml) hot water
Strawberries-and-cream filling
- 3/4 cup (200 ml) cream, whipped
- 2 tablespoons caster sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla or rose water (according to taste)
- At least 1 punnet (250 gram) of strawberries
Method
- Pre-heat oven to 180°C for a normal oven or 160°C for a fan-forced oven.
- Grease two deep 20 cm round cake pans, and line the base with baking paper.
- Beat eggs in a bowl, using an electric mixer, for about 10 minutes, until thick and creamy.
- Gradually add sugar, beating until dissolved.
- Triple-sift self raising flour and corn flour together and fold it into the egg mixture (see notes below).
- Combine the butter and the water, pour it down the side of bowl and fold through gently but thoroughly.
- Pour mixture evenly into pans and bake about 25 minutes.
- Immediately turn out the sponges too cool, top-side up, onto a wire rack covered with baking paper.
- Whip cream, sweeten with sugar and flavour with vanilla or rose water.
- Sandwich the sponges with cream and hulled strawberries.
- Dust with sifted icing sugar.
Notes:
Folding in flour:
Folding in flour and other ingredients can be tricky when you use a spoon or spatula, but you can use your fingers to pull the dry ingredients up and through the egg mixture.
Making self-raising flour:
To make 1 cup of self-raising flour, sift together:
- 1 cup plain or high grade flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon of salt
Comments
Klink en lyk heerlik
Donker koud en nat hier in SA
Sterkte met die koue! Dis maar koud hier ook. Kaggeltjie knetter darem vanaand
Aarbeie is so 'n lekker herinnering aan die somer - met die koek saam was dit 'n smullekker kombinasie. Dalk bak ek die koek sonder aarbeie binnekort
Dit lyk mond water lekker. Ek is op soek na mikrogolf resepte vir soort gelyke koek. Asseblief
Jakes, ongelukkig is ons nie so erg behendig met mikrogolwe nie. Ons sal wel 'n oog oophou, net ingeval ons iets raakloop.
Probeer gerus hierdie vulsel vir julle sponskoeke.
1 Blik kondensmelk
"n Half koppie vars suurlemoensap
2 Pakkies Orley whip styf geklits
Meng suurlemoensap en kondensmelk en laat dik word.
Klits die Orley whip styf en vou dit by die eerste mengsel.
Gebruik dit tussen en bo op die koek.
Geniet.
I'm baking the cake right now, I put it over stewed apples to make an apple sponge. Instead of folding I just beat the whole thing! I hope it turns out good!
Thankyou for this recepie!
We hope your variation came out as lovely as it sounds :-)
It is very important to incorporate air in the beating, whisking, sieving and folding in stages for a sponge cake. The more air you add to the mixture will result in a lighter cake. With other recipes, I would sometimes just beat everything together but with a sponge cake I do take care to add more air. Do take the time to beat well, sieve flours thoroughly and fold in as per the recipe. You will taste the difference in the results
How long would a sponge like this keep? Longer if iced/frosted?
They freeze well if not iced, but we don't know how long they keep if not frozen: ours are always eaten within a day or two!
I have just baked this cake to use as a trifle base
It has turned out beautifully. I am not a baker but this cake has given me confidence to bake again