4-Ingredient Sponge Cake (Video Recipe)
I love this sponge cake recipe. It’s easy and you can make hundreds of different cakes with this base. This is a classic European sponge cake (aka Genoise). Once you have this recipe down (you’ll memorize it after a couple rounds), you’ll be baking things that look and taste like they are from a fancy bakery.
This cake base takes on moisture really well from fruit, frostings, liqueurs and syrups. As you can tell from my cake recipes, I’m a sucker for moist cakes. Read on to see 11 marvelous recipes you can make using this sponge cake base.
Over the years, I’ve tested countless different ways to make this cake and this is the best, most fail-proof method for genoise that I’ve tested. This is not like American cakes and readers often question if it can really be that easy and only have 4 ingredients.
I want you to discover this gem of a cake and succeed EVERY TIME you make it. I hope you find this video helpful. We had you in mind! 🙂
Watch How To Make Sponge Cake:
Tips for Success (Read First!):
1. When no streaks of flour remain in the dough, fold a few extra times to ensure you aren’t missing pockets of flour at the bottom
2. Bake the cake layers right after folding in the flour – they should not sit too long
3. Always use a conventional oven setting (not a convection/fan setting)
4. An electric hand mixer will take 2-4 minutes longer to beat the eggs
5. Tip from reader, Hilda: “How do you know u get the right consistency? Lift up your beater (whisk) from the batter. Make a figure “8” using the batter that drip off the beater. Then count to 10 seconds. If the figure 8 still remains on top of the batter, then u have the right consistency. If the figure 8 sinks into the batter before 10 secs, then u need to beat it longer.”
6. Bake in the center of the oven
7. Place cake in a fully pre-heated oven
8. Do not open the oven door to check on the cake until towards the end
9. Let the cake cool in a room without any outdoor draft which can make it seem eggy
Sponge Cake Recipes you can master at home:
Blackberry Lemon Cake – soft and moist and has a fluffy lemon blackberry buttercream frosting.
Charlotte Cake – layers of raspberry mousse, lady fingers and fluffy cake.
Poppy Seed Cake – fluffy and moist with a hint of rum and it’s not overly sweet.
Strawberry Cake – boasts 1 1/2 lbs of fresh strawberries. You’ll love the simple and delicious whipped cream cheese frosting.
Black Forest Cake – A chocolate version of classic genoise with 1 lb of kirsch infused cherries and whipped cream. So good!!
Russian Apple Cake (Sharlotka) – Just 5 ingredients and 15 min of prep then your oven does the rest!
Poppy Seed Cake Roll – Moist, generously filled with a cream cheese frosting, covered with velvety chocolate ganache and pummeled with salted pistachios.
Pomegranate Christmas Cake – With a crown of glistening pom seeds, this one’s a stunner for the holidays.
Story Book Cake Roll – This cake roll is moist, rolled with a vanilla butter cream, covered in decadent chocolate and the cookie crumbs give it a subtle crunch.
Kiwi Berry Cake – If you love fruit, this cake will make your dreams come true. Layer after layer of gorgeous berries.
Tiramisu – if you like tiramisu, you will love this!
I told you I loved this cake base. I’m Completely smitten 🙂
4-Ingredient Sponge Cake (Video Recipe)
Ingredients
- 6 large eggs room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar 210 grams
- 1 cup all-purpose flour 130 grams
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
Instructions
Prep:
-
Preheat Oven to 350˚F. Line bottoms of two 9″ cake pans with parchment paper (do not grease the sides).
How to Make this Sponge Cake:
-
In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment (this is the one I have), beat 6 large eggs for 1 minute on high speed. With the mixer on, gradually add 1 cup sugar and continue beating 8-10 minutes until thick and fluffy.
-
Whisk together 1 cup flour and 1/2 tsp baking powder then sift this mixture into fluffy egg mixture one third at a time. Fold with a spatula with each addition just until incorporated. Scrape spatula from the bottom to catch any pockets of flour and stop mixing when no streaks of flour remain. Do not over-mix or you will deflate the batter.
-
Divide evenly between prepared cake pans (it helps if you have a kitchen scale to weight the pans). Bake at 350˚F for 23-28 minutes (my oven took 25 min), or until top is golden brown. Remove from pan by sliding a thin spatula (here’s the one I love for cakes) around the edges then transfer to a wire rack and remove parchment backing. Cool cakes to room temperature then slice layers equally in half with a serrated knife.
If you make this recipe, I’d love to see pics of your creations on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! Hashtag them #natashaskitchen
natashaskitchen
Strawberry Cake Recipe 
Blackberry Lemon Cake Roll (VIDEO) 
Strawberry Jello Cake Recipe 
Here you'll find classic Ukrainian food and other favorite recipes with easy step-by-step photos and videos. 
what is different between Genoise sponge cake and Traditional sponge cake in the recipe?
Hi Anna! ’m so happy you have enjoyed our recipes! The main ingredient in this classic European sponge cake (genoise) is egg. The cake relies on the volume of the whipped eggs to rise. Butter is not traditionally used in this classic European sponge cake. Also, using butter on the pan is not recommended because the cake pulls away from the sides and ends up mis-shaped. I’m sure there are several different versions of it but the classic European genoise does not require butter.
This is my first shot at sponge cake. It doesn’t have sugar as an ingredient. So it is not the traditional sweet cake?
That is correct! this is a simple sponge cake! 🙂
Can we use the same recipe for a roll?
Hi Nora. I have not tried this one specifically but if baked thin enough it may work! We have this recipe here you may enjoy
This will be my first time trying to make a sponge cake!! D:
I do have a question though…could I bake the batter together as one cake, instead of dividing it into two round cakes?
Hi Sandy! That should work! Be sure to adjust your bake time to at least 30 minutes if doing that.
Hi there,
I normally don’t do reviews but with this one I had to take the time to share. It was my first time making sponge cake and it turned out AMAZING! Made a vanilla flavour. So moist and fluffy. I’m on my 3rd batch already as the first one I made just to try the recipe. It was so simple to follow. Thanks so much for taking time to share this recipe 😉
Wow! Thank you so much for this amazing and thoughtful review, Angela!! I appreciate you sharing this with all of us!
It’s a beautiful recipe which I tried for many times and every time it’s perfect.for my 15 months baby i skipped baking soda and made with 3 ingredients but reduced the whole wheat flour to 3/4th cup instead of 1 cup.thank u Natasha for the superb easy recipe.btw the tips u given are very much useful.
I’m so happy those tips helped! Thank you for the wonderful review, Keerthy!
Hi, I’ve been trying to duplicate a limencello cake from my favorite restaurant. I have the icing down pat, but I can’t seem to get the right consistency of the sponge cake. I want to try this recipe, but I’m not sure if adding the limencello liquor would ruin the recipe. Help!
Hi Virginia, are you planning on adding it as a syrup to moisten the cake? I haven’t tried adding liquor to the batter itself but if you create a syrup out of it that may work.
I have no idea how the baker used it. Could you please give me a syrup recipe using limencello to try? I’m not adventurous when it comes to making up a recipe. Thanks
Hi Virginia. Here is a simple syrup recipe we use, Simple Syrup: 1/2 cup water, 1 Tbsp lemon juice, 1 Tbsp granulated sugar I hope this helps
How to cook cake in one 9″ pan.. how long it takes to cook
HI Sharon, you would need a pan with tall walls such as a 3″ tall springform pan. A regular 1 to 1 1/2″ tall cake pan will overflow. Bake about 30 minutes.
Hi Sharon. It should be baked for about 30 minutes.
I made the strawberry version of this cake for my mom’s 95th birthday. It was a hit and she was disappointed when it was gone. I will make it again, it was a refreshing dessert on a very warm night. Thanks for the recipe.
Thank you for sharing that with me, Linda! I’m so happy you enjoyed this recipe.
I used your recipe to make my first ever sponge cake and I have to say this come out great! Although I have nothing to compare, I think I will not let it bake as long next time I think it may have been a little dry? I also added some pumpkin spice in the batter which was okay but not great, lesson learned. For the frosting I whipped egg whites and added hot maple syrup and further whipped.
I will use this recipe again as it was “kid” approved!
Hi Tara, If you like a moist cake, simple syrup is always a nice edition. You can lightly brush the layers with syrup since the cake itself is pretty dry without it.
This was so simple, light, and delicious! I let some sliced strawberries macerate in the fridge while I baked the cake, and quickly whipped up some unsweetened cream to pile between each layer. Really fresh and delicious. It took no time at all, and it tasted like I spent all day working on it. Thanks for this recipe! I’ll definitely make it again.
That’s so great Laura! I’m so happy you enjoyed that!
It is very easy. But turns out very dry for mine. Not sure what have went wrong.
Hi! If you like a moist cake, simple syrup is always a nice edition. You can lightly brush the layers with syrup since the cake itself is pretty dry without it.
Hi Natasha,
Love your recipes, including this version of sponge cake. They are always work beautifully and I have made many recipes from your site. This cake though is not really Genoise, is it? My understanding that classic Genoise cake has also addition of melted butter and more baking powder, so it’s not so eggy.
Hi Anna! I’m so happy you have enjoyed our recipes! The main ingredient in this classic European sponge cake (genoise) is egg. The cake relies on the volume of the whipped eggs to rise. Butter is not traditionally used in this classic European sponge cake. Also, using butter on the pan is not recommended because the cake pulls away from the sides and ends up mis-shaped. I’m sure there are several different versions of it but the classic European genoise does not require butter.
Hi. Can I substitute plain flour with cake flour instead? Will I be able to achieve the same result as you? I am planning to build a birthday cake for my Daughter soon. Thks.
Hi James! I have made it with cake flour and it does work well if you prefer to use cake flour 🙂
My mother would like a sponge cake for her 95th birthday and I’ve never made one. With so many options on the internet I’m feeling overwhelmed. I am wondering, what makes this better than ones that have butter, vanilla and milk? Thank you
Hi Linda, this European sponge cake is a completely different type of cake than traditional American cakes with butter, vanilla, milk and added leavening. I hope you give it a chance and experiment 🙂
I tried this today and it smells too eggy for me. What should I add?
Middle slightly sank and the texture is a bit rubbery. 🙁
(Confused)
Hi Jeanne, I would suggest whipping it a couple of minutes longer and also, I have found that any egg based cake or meringue is best when it is kept out of outdoor draft – I’m not sure why or how but those items can have a pronounced eggy smell after that. Maybe I’m just sensitive to it, but I have noticed that. Regarding the sinking, did you possibly use a convection oven rather than conventional? And was the oven pre-heated fully when you placed the cake onto the center rack? P.S. I added a “Tips for Success” section at the top of this post which should help.
Natasha – I added 1 tsp of vanilla and 1/2 tsp of salt when I made this. I have only hand-held electric mixer so I whisked it for maybe 12 minutes – I did it until it seemed thick enough. I added the vanilla half-way through and the salt with the flour.
Thank you for sharing that, Elizabeth!
Just came across this recipe and am eager to try it! I don’t have an electric blender, but…. I do have a normal blender. Might be a silly question but would using it work as an alternative?
Hi Liz, this recipe really does need an electric stand mixer or an electric hand mixer, otherwise it will take FOREVER to reach the whipped consistency that is needed for the cake to rise.
Hi Natasha!
Will try your recipe next week for my birthday. Im doing a strawberries and cream sponge cake. Currently in Philippines 🙂
That’s so great! Enjoy!
I’ll bet the Sponge cake is the most commented-on recipe in your repertoire, isn’t it? There is a comment and reply in my emails nearly every day about it! Love your recipes. I took the avocado chicken to a cookout, and it was devoured. I was asked for the recipe..I gave you full credit and am always telling people to check out your site!
I appreciate the credit and you sharing Patricia! Thank you for the feed back 🙂
Hi Natasha,
Just baked the sponge, and it came out perfect, so light and airy :)… Thank you for such an easy recipe… I used to bake sponge earlier, but used to whip egg whites and yolks separately first… But this one is so simple and easy to make… Planning to make mixed fruit cake to beat the heat…
Thanks again :*
Romi
That’s awesome Romi! Thank you for the wonderful review!
Hi, this cake looks amazing, I was thinking of trying out sponge cake for the foundation of a whipped cream & strawberry cake I was thinking of making; However, I assume that you would need to flatten the rounded tops of the cakes before layering them together with a long bread knife, right? Thanks!
-Michael
Making them as even as possible will look better of course. You can definitely cut the layers in half with a long bread knife 🙂 If you are planning on using a frosting that should hold it together just fine, most bakeries finish the shape with the frosting to make the edges more clean. I hope this helps Michael.
I used your 4 ingredient sponge cake recipe to make an upside down pineapple cake and I loved it! Question is can I use one 12 inch pan or is the recipe made for only two 9″ pans?
Hi Tracy. According to one of our readers it should be enough batter for a 12″ pan. I haven’t tried it myself however. Please let me know how you like it if you experiment!
would you keep the same bake time for the 12″ cake pan at 28 minutes and if not what would you change the bake time to?
I would recommend watching it closely. I would assume there would need to be some sort of time adjustment.
Hi Natasha
I read your sponge cake recipe many times and saw the video and made the cake following each step carefully. I beat the egg well enough and made an eight in the batter to check consistency as per your tip. I did not open the oven door in the middle. But sadly my cake sunk in the middle and i’m feeling that the cake is a bit chewy/rubbery 🙁
Hi Prathi, were you using a stand mixer or an electric hand mixer? A hand mixer would take a few minutes longer of beating since it doesn’t whip as efficiently as a stand mixer. Also, did you possibly use a convection setting? This recipe is written for a conventional oven. And lastly, be sure to bake the cake right away in a pre-heated oven without letting the batter sit for too long on the counter. I hope that helps!
Thanks for ur reply. Yes i used stand mixer, conventional and pre-heated oven. Have to try again!!
Thank you for this easy recipe of sponge cake. Now i can make my ube cake using this recipe as my base.
Yes! This is the perfect recipe for that!
Please give a recipe on how to make icing for cake
Hi Vanessa! We have so many cakes with different options for frosting! I would recommend looking here and seeing if any of these are what you may like to try. I have a Swiss Meringue Buttercream that is very good or my cupcake frosting which is easy and delicious.
The cakes came out beautiful and tasty – I did add 1 tsp of vanilla and 1/2 tsp of salt – just to suit our tastes. I’ll follow up when we have the dessert – which is chilling in the fridge waiting for dinner tonight.
Yes! I’d love to hear how you like it! Thank you so much for sharing this with me!
The cake was wonderful. 10″ pans would have worked better. I didn’t have a proper pan to put it in so it was a little messy but it got raves. I gave all the rest of my scraps to my friend because she makes trifles and it will be perfect for that.
I’m so happy you all enjoyed that Elizabeth!
I want to use this recipe to make the BBC Good Food Strawberry-Elderflower Gateau. The recipe says “sponge flan cases” but since I’m in the US, we don’t have these – or I don’t know what they are. Do you think this will work?
Sounds like it uses a sponge cake as a base! If you try it with this recipe I’d love to know how it turned out!
My guests are coming Thursday so I’m making the cake tomorrow early and the dessert late tomorrow since it can sit for 24 hours.
Hi Elizabeth, this cake can sit covered at room temperature or refrigerated overnight. 🙂
Hi Natasha. Can we make a day or two in advance and keep in the fridge?
Yet, that will work, just keep it covered 😀
Hi Natasha,
I was wondering if you think this recipe is enough to fill a single 12″ round cake pan?
Thanks so much in advance!
Hi Elita. It may work but also may come out fairly short. I would recommend maybe making 1.5 times the recipe. Let me know how it works it you experiment. 🙂
V=πr2h
12″cake pan 3.14x6x2x1 = 37.68 cu inches
2 9″cake pans 2(3.14×4.5x2x1) = 50.24 cu inches
This means if you make the regular recipe (~50 cubic inches) you will have more batter than you need to fill a 12″ pan. You can make the extra batter (approx 12 cub inches) into a smaller cake or bake it in a small steel bowl and have a little treat. Making 1.5 of the recipe will give you A LOT of extra batter. Enough to make 2 – 12″ pans, plus some left over.
High Altitude adjustments? Technically, we are a few hundred feet lower than typical high altitude values, say, on cake boxes. I know how to adjust for cookies, but not for this cake. The one time I made it, it was fine before removing from the oven – then it sank when cooling. I read somewhere a suggestion to turn off the oven and leave it in for 5 minutes longer or something like that. I wondered if you have an easy “fix” to resolve the sinking problem. Thanks! P.S. It’s so hard to believe that with only 4 ingredients it is SO TASTY!
Isn’t it great how something so simple turns out to be so amazing! Besides altitude issues. The main culprit of the cake sinking is often under-beating the eggs and sugar. Did you start with room temperature eggs and use a high powered stand mixer to beat together the eggs and sugar and then fold the flour in with a spatula so as not to deflate the batter? I sure hope that helps some. Let me know if I can help troubleshoot some more.
Yes, I did, indeed, follow those instructions. I tried it again tonight. Same issue. I may need to try a different recipe, as I need to have this type cake for a birthday cake I need to make in September – MINE! And I don’t want to ask a bakery to make it for me, as I like to use organic ingredients. I really like that there aren’t a whole bunch of things to measure in this – it’s (supposedly) easy enough to make quickly for unexpected dessert whims. There is only so much, though, that we can keep on hand or in the freezer while I’m practicing to get it right. Fortunately, my husband likes it plain and doesn’t mind taking it to work in his lunch box. Ha! Thanks for getting back to me, though.
Hi, I wonder if it has to do with using course sugar (which is often the case if it is organic sugar). In that case, you would need to mill the sugar to reach a granulated sugar consistency, otherwise it would take longer to whip with the eggs in order for the sugar to dissolve. I hope that helps!
Hi Natasha. Ur recipe sounds easy. Im gonna try it today. Can i make these in cup cake moulds to make mini sponge cakes? Please let me know the Temperature & heat to bake them too. Thanks.
Hi Ruwani, this cake base is not ideal for cupcakes since it will stick badly to the wrappers as there is no butter or oil in the cake.
I’d like to know the answer to the original question.
Can this batter be used to make mini cakes? Batter to be poured into a cupcake tin instead of a cake pan.
You clearly misunderstood the original question as she did not ask you about turning this into a cupcake.
Hi Louise, if you could line the mini cake pans with parchment on the bottom that could work and you would have to run a spatula around the edges first on each one. It ends up being a fair amount of trouble for mini cakes like it would be for mini cupcakes.
You say to remove cakes from pans after few minutes?? How long is that, lol 5 minutes, 10 minutes?
Hi Ali, 3 minutes will do. I don’t usually wait longer before removing them from the pans.
I love this recipe and have made several birthday cakes. If I wanted to use a 12x16x2 inch pan, should I double up the portions? Thanks!
Hi Amy, that is a large pan! I haven’t tested it that way but I think it should be safe to double it.
This is where HS math comes in handy. The area of a circular pan is 3.14 x (width/2) x (width/2) – or in this case 3.14 x 4.5 x 4.5 – approx. 64″ – or the same as an 8″ square pan. A 12×16 inch pan is 192 square inches. So more than doubled.
Thank you Elizabeth!
The formula for area of a circle is: A=πr2
Pi is 3.14
r is the radius of the pan
She’s using a rectangular pan at 192 sq in
The area of the 2 round pans is:
2(3.14 x 4.5 x 4.5) = 127 sq inches
1.5x the recipe should fill the 12×16 pan
Do I just use regular maple syrup to make the cake more moist and flavourful?
Hi Paige, If you like a moist cake, simple syrup is always a nice edition. You can lightly brush the layers with syrup since the cake itself is pretty dry without it.
I followed the instructions exactly except that I baked it all in 1 rectangular 9×13 aluminum pan for 30 minutes. It came out perfectly! Going to use it in a berry tiramisu recipe in place of Lady Fingers. Thanks for the wonderful recipe!
Yum! That sounds so good! Thank you for sharing that with us!
Natasha,
Could I do this cake with just egg whites and cake flour? Would that make it more airy?
Thanks!
Hi Mari, that would be more of an angel food cake and has a slightly different method.
Hi! Just to start off I LOVE this recipe; it’s amazing!! I’ve made it many times before and it’s always turned out great! I wanted to ask how I should alter the recipe to bake two 8 inch round cakes instead of two 9 inch cakes?
Hi Avi, you may want to do 2 sets of 5 eggs each and adjust the flour and sugar proportionally. So each sponge cake recipe would have 5 eggs.
Hello; I just made the cake but could only find 10” pans, so I did the recipe 1 1/2 times. Now I’m about to take them out of the oven and they look like they have sank a bit in the center. What did I do wrong? I made sure all the flour was incorporated, didn’t look like the mixture deflated. So frustrated
Hi Dawn! the main culprit of the cake sinking is often under-beating the eggs and sugar. Did you start with room temperature eggs and use a high powered stand mixer to beat together the eggs and sugar and then fold the flour in with a spatula so as not to deflate the batter? I sure hope that helps!
Baked this cake with my grandaughters for my 77th birthday. Filled it with strawberries and whipped cream. Perfect! About 16 minutes using a hand mixer. Thank you!
Thank you for the wonderful review, Judith! & Happy 77th Birthday! I’m sure your granddaughters will cherish this memory baking with you forever!
Hello,
I absolutely love the sponge cake recipe! Thank you for it. I was wondering if it was possible to make slightly larger cake layers? In some recipes I would like a little more cake. If I were to increase the recipe by half, how long would I bake the layers?
Thanks
Rita Scanlon
Hi Rita, it can be done but keep in mind you will probably need a 6Qt mixer bowl and add 5 minutes to the eggs and sugar mixing time to make sure enough air is incorporated. Also, You would probably need larger pans or divide into 3 pans. If you divide into 3 pans, the bake time should be about the same; possibly 2-3 minutes longer.
Hello Natasha 🙂 I making a birthday cake for my daughters and I am wondering what I can soak the sponge cake with so it’s nice and moist. I am making it with your Swiss meringue buttercream frosting. Thank you,
Alena
Alena, If you like a moist cake, simple syrup is always a nice edition. You can lightly brush the layers with syrup since the cake itself is pretty dry without it.
If i want to try this moisturizing trick, how should i prepare the simple strip? Thanks!
Hi Julie, it depends on the cake, but generally, this is what I prepare for cakes that are not chocolate cakes: Ingredients for Simple Syrup: 1/2 cup water, 1 Tbsp lemon juice, 1 Tbsp granulated sugar
My favorite cake is one in which I soak the cake with a hot almond syrup, which is just simple syrup with almond extract….it’s breathtaking!
That sounds so good, Patricia! Thanks for sharing that with our readers.
It sounds nice for a yammy cake .. Gonna try soon.. Thanks for the recipe
You are very welcome, Shinjeeny!
Hi dear, can u please tell me what is the weight of this cake with this proportion of ingredients? And please also share if you have any eggless sponge cake recipe.. Wanna try both..
Thanks much,
Hi Shinjeeny, I don’t currently have an eggless sponge cake. Also, I have the grams measurements in the print friendly recipe below. I hope you love it!
I am trying to make a mango mousse/whipped cream cake – would this cake base be a good starting point? Once it’s baked – can a light syrup be added on top to make it moist? Thinking of making 2 layers and then do a butter cream frosting outside with a frill or roses … ?
That sounds amazing, Mohammed! If you like a moist cake, syrup is always a nice edition. You can lightly brush the layers with syrup since the cake itself is pretty dry without it.
Hey Natasha!
Your blog is lovely. Is it possible for you to give the sponge cake measures by weight? I’m disastrous at measuring by cups and spoons.
Thanks much,
Mala
Hi Mala, if you scroll down to the bottom where the print friendly recipe card is, I have the measurements in grams 🙂 I hope you love it and make sure to read through the tips before starting 🙂
Thank you. Will do!
You’re welcome!
I just want to say that I tried this sponge cake recipe today and was really impressed. I had lost my old one, as I hadn’t made in quite a few years, I knew the ingredients, but had forgotten the amounts. This one seems close to the that I had. I like the texture of the cake and the simplicity of it as well, I tried a piece and was very good, the big test will be tonight when hubby tries it. I have copied recipes of the internet before because they seemed good and looked delicious, there has been some good ones, AND there have been some disasters that have litterly hit the garbage after one bite, This one is a KEEPER.
That’s so great Doreen! It sounds like you have a new favorite! Thanks for sharing that with me.
Hello, is this recipe suitable for a funfetti layer cake, by adding sprinkles to the batter?
HI Anna, I haven’t experimented that way but I think it’s worth testing! If you try it out, let me know how it goes 🙂
I made the sponge cake as directed, everything went fine left it to cool and the cake from being nice and high, fell to half the size what did I do wrong? The taste is. Bit eggy but still good. Thank you
Marysa, Oshawa, Ontario.
Hi Marysa, I am always happy to help troubleshoot. The #1 reason for not rising uniformly is if the eggs and sugar are underbeaten. If you are using an electric hand mixer, add a few minutes to the mixing time on high speed. Also, did you possibly open the oven door while the cakes were baking – that could cause it to fall, or if the cakes are removed from the oven too early. I hope that helps!
Hi Natasha! I wanna make a lemon cake, what kind of syrup can I make to apply to the layers of the cake?
Hi Tanya, a simple syrup with water, lemon juice and sugar would work. For a lemon cake, I would add extra lemon juice to taste to really bump up the lemon flavors.
hi Natasha !! I tried your vanilla sponge cake ….it was awesome
thanks for the recipe
You are very welcome Joannah and thank you for the nice review 😀
Hi Natasha,
I want to make a chocolate sponge cake. Do I omit something or just add cocoa? And how much?
Thanks
Hi Sharon, just replace some of the flour with equal amount of cocoa.
Thanks, you’re the best!
Natasha, I used your sponge cake recipe to make a version of the Lemon Elderflower Royal Wedding Cake and it was a huge hit. I’ll be making it again and again this summer with various fruits. Thanks!
My pleasure Lorna! That sounds amazing just reading about it. I’m glad you enjoy the recipe so much, thanks for sharing your great review!
Hi Natasha, I’m looking to make this recipe as a rectangle/sheet cake – I’m not even sure what size it is at the moment – would there need to be any alterations made to the measurements? Probably not helpful if I don’t have my cake size sorry!
Hi Caroline, I would suggest following the instructions from our sponge cake roll 🙂 It’s not the ideal sheet cake cake as you do have to remove it to remove the parchment paper underneath or it would stick badly to the pan.
Hi Natasha! Your sponge cake tutorial was AMAZING! I’m only 13 and I never baked a cake before. Tomorrow is mother’s day and this is the best present she could ever wish for! She always wanted me to start baking but I never had any interest. Your videos made it seem so easy and I tried it. I never thought I would start baking or cooking until now. Your really the best baker ever. Thank you so much:)
You’re welcome Diyora! I’m happy to hear how much you enjoy the recipe. How sweet of you to do this for your Mom! Thanks for sharing your excellent review and I hope you continue cooking!
Hi Natasha,
I would like to put flavor in the sponge cake, I’ve tried putting 1TBS while beating the egg and the sponge does not rise as usual. Any suggestions? Thank you
Hi Abbie, I would suggest adding flavor to the final cake unless it is something like vanilla which you would want to fold in gently at the end just before transferring batter to the pan for baking.
Loving the recipe and am using it for a strawberry cake. Yum! But, I’ve got a problem-I’ve got an eggy cake. Also, I was short on vanilla, coud that be the cause of the eggy-ness? My kitchen isn’t drafty that I’ve ever noticed. Could making a vanilla simple syrup to put on the cake before icing help with the egg taste, or would it just make for a sloppy cake?
Hi Claire, is the cake dense or fluffy? If the cake is not whipped properly, it can be dense and seem eggy. Vanilla helps a little bit but it normally should not be “eggy”
Love this Recipe. I was wondering if you could use it to make shortcakes like you see in the store ? Thanks !
I haven’t tried that but this would be a different texture from shortcakes.
Ive been hand beating the eggs and sugar for over 15 minutes now and it’s still not yet light and fluffy. Do I just pour in the flour like that or add more eggs or keep beating?
Hi Gift, I think it would be extremely difficult to adequately beat this by hand. I haven’t attempted with anything besides a high powered mixer. Since the cake relies on the volume of eggs and sugar to rise, it is extremely important to beat them adequately. I would highly suggest switching to an electric hand held or stand mixer with whisk or egg beater attachments and beating on high speed.
Have you ever made this replacing the sugar with something such as zylitol? It is granular like white sugar but not sure whether it would work or not!
Hi Cathy, I honestly have not tried that so I’m not sure how it would beat together with the eggs. Maybe someone else has tried? If so, please let us know and thanks in advance! 🙂
Thank you Natasha. This sponge recipe is really a must have.
Thank you
You’re welcome, I’m glad you love the recipe! Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Hi Natasha! Thank you for the recipe! I’ve made it so many times and it’s so good. But I just now read your tips. Why should it be on a conventional setting? I have a convention oven with a fan. Does the fan make it rise less? Just curious. Again, you’re awesome and keep up the good work! 🙂
Hi Yana, I have only been able to test it in a conventional oven so the recipe is written for a conventional oven. A convection oven circulates the air and bakes recipes faster so the bake time would have to be modified.
I am SO pleased that this recipe turned out beautifully. The cake is moist, and soft and was the perfect base for my raspberry/whipped cream filling. I bisected each of the two cake layers and put raspberry jam and simple whipped cream in between each layer; the topper was whipped cream and fresh raspberries. I got so many compliments on the cake and I’ve shared your recipe with everyone. The most significant pro on this recipe, besides the time and ingredient saving factor, was that the cake could be easily eaten without any topping, it is genuinely a lovely European style cake (I’m from Russia). I can’t say enough good things. If you’re thinking about making this cake, just do it, and be sure to beat those eggs for the full 8-10 mins.
YAY! I’m happy to hear the recipe is an absolute hit!! Thanks for sharing your excellent review with other readers Anna!
Taste and texture were perfect. And it would have made a lovely cake, but it stuck like heck to the sides of the nonstick pan, and running a sharp knife around the edge ruined it. Will try it again, but I’ll grease and flour the sides of the pan next time.
Hi Nadja, you can butter the sides but I have found that buttering the sides causes the cake to pull away from the sides a little and isn’t as level but the cake will still work 🙂 It sticks because there is no oil or butter in the batter but we have found that a thin edged spatula works best, scraping along the inside wall of the pan as you loosen it from the pan.
Hi! Just to let you know that I baked the cake in the instant pot, (my oven doesn’t work), and came out great! I set it for 12 minutes manual with 200 ml of water and the trivet, and let it rest for 5 minutes and then quick release. Thanks for the recipe!
You’re welcome Sara! I’m happy to hear the recipe works in the IP, I’ll have to try that sometime. Thanks for sharing your helpful tip with other readers!
Hi. I just made this cake and it turned out chewy. What do you think I did wrong?
Hi Violeta, after watching the video tutorial, I would strongly suggest reading through the tips for success which which should answer most frequently asked questions. Chewy texture is almost always due to under-beating the eggs and sugar. Make sure you are using a high powered mixer with whisk attachment and beating for the time indicated and the right consistency.
Hi,
What about using a 1:1 gluten free flour? I have been looking for a good sponge base.
Hi Anne, several of my readers have reported that this works great as a gluten free sponge cake using a 1:1 gluten free flour. 🙂 I made a similar cake with almond flour over the weekend and will be posting it soon but gluten free flour for this one should work great.
Hi Natasha,
I have a little one who is dairy/soy allergic and this recipe would fit the bill. The only problem is that she wants a fondant covered cake as she has never had a “special birthday cake.” Is the structure of this cake suitable for a ganache and fondant covering? Thank you.
HI Shirley, I have put ganache on it but I honestly don’t have any experience with fondant. It may be a little soft for fondant unless you put a stiffer buttercream over it first – that may work.
Hi Natasha
I tried the easy sponge cake. The method is pretty easy but it was just way too sweet. Is there a reason why you do not add milk and oil/butter?
It was my first cake and less intimidating than any recipe I had ever seen.
Hi Maki, this ratio of eggs to sugar is pretty standard for this classic European sponge cake and for a 2-layer cake is a fair amount of sugar. Most of our cakes are not overly sweet but I guess it depends on taste preference. Milk, oil and butter are not necessary in sponge cake and can actually deflate the batter.
Help! My cake sank. I followed all of the instructions and tips but it still sank.
Hi Marice, the main culprit of the cake sinking is often under-beating the eggs and sugar. Did you start with room temperature eggs and use a high powered stand mixer to beat together the eggs and sugar and then fold the flour in with a spatula so as not to deflate the batter? I sure hope that helps!
Hi Marice:
My two cents. Mine sank too the first time. The reason was that I used ‘cake’ flour, meaning flour that had already baking powder in it. I didn’t click Natasha’s link for cake flour that explains regular flour and corn starch. Reading on the internet, I discovered that another reason sponge cakes sink is because of too much baking powder. Using the cornstarch/flour mixture the next time solved the problem for me.
Hi! I’ve make this cake many times and love it! One question.. is it moist enough to be used for cake pops?
Hi Irina, you could use it for cake pops but would need to mix something else in to add moisture. Here is an example of our chocolate cake balls/pops.
Hi Natasha, my mother-in-law used to make a walnut torte with alternating layers of plain cake and layers with ground walnuts. Can I just fold the nuts in or do I need to remove some of the flour? I’m worried about the walnut layers being dry!
Hi Cathy, I have a walnut cake here – hopefully that gives you some good ideas 🙂
Thank you!
Hi Natasha…. Can you make this sponge cake ahead of time??
Hi Azmeina, you can make the cake base ahead of time and store it either in the fridge or at room temperature for a day or wrap and freeze up to 3 months.
Hi Natasha!
I made your Mango Cake and it was given rave reviews at my last dinner party.
When you say that if you use an electric mixer that you should beat the eggs 2 – 4 minutes longer, do you mean the eggs before the addition of the sugar or after the sugar, ie a total of 10 – 12 minutes, rather than the 8 – 10 for a stand mixer.
Hi Sylvia, I mean beating an extra 2-4 minute after the sugar is added so the eggs and sugar should beat a total of 10-12 minutes rather than 8-10 with a stand mixer. 🙂 I’m so glad you loved the cake!
Thanks! I figured, but wasn’t quite sure. My next challenge for Easter will be the Poppyseed Cake!
I’m wondering if the eggs should be at room temperature before using them.
Hi Sara, yes for best results, eggs should be at room temperature. I have that in the print-friendly recipe card towards the bottom. 🙂
Hi Natasha my concern the egge smell can we add some vanilla or lemon zest
Hi Salma, you could add 1/2 tsp or up to 1 tsp of vanilla after the flour is all blended in, just be sure not to overmix after adding vanilla .
which sugar are we suppose to use. Do we use caster sugar
Hi Rudo, you will need regular granulated sugar for this recipe. I have that in the print-friendly recipe towards the bottom. 🙂
Wow thank you so much the video and your tips really helped. However this time I would like to make a chocolate sponge cake. So the dough should be brown instead of pale. Do you have a receipe?
Hi Kiki, I have made a chocolate sponge cake before but don’t have a recipe posted yet. I’ll add it to my list 🙂
I would add in one cup of cocoa powder and remove half a cup of flour to compensate for the dryness, and maybe add a little vanilla.
Hi Jen, 1 cup of cocoa would probably be too much for this cake. In this sponge cake, I usually substitute cocoa with flour straight across – Tbsp for Tbsp.
Hi, I made a 1/2 batch today and the cake was super eggy. Any idea what went wrong?
Hi Yoona, it is typically due to underbeating the eggs and sugar. Even if you cut the recipe in half, you would still need to beat for the recommended time in the recipe since the cake relies on the volume of the eggs and sugar to rise, or it can be dense and seem “eggy”. I hope that helps for next time!
Hi Natasha I tried your Charlotte cake receipe and 4 ingredient sponge cake. Charlotte cake sponge was really good but my sponge cake slightly sank from the centre do you know what I can do to avoid this ?
Hi Ruchi, if everything was the same in the ingredients and timings in the recipe (no substitutions like raw sugar, etc), the usual culprit with this cake is underbeating the eggs and sugar. Since the cake relies on the volume of the eggs and sugar to rise properly, if they don’t whip adequately, it won’t rise as well. Also, if you are using a hand-held mixer, add a few minutes to the mixing time since a hand mixer is not as effective at whipping as a stand mixer with whisk attachment. I hope that helps for next time 🙂
Hi there, so I accidentally messed up my first batch by not making sure the sugar was fully dissolved before adding the flour.
is there any way I can still use this batter for some other kind of cake so I’m not wasting it?
Hi Autumn, unfortunately I don’t have any other recipes that are like it. Most of my cake recipes outside of my sponge cakes call for wet ingredients to be mixed separately from dry and then combined and often the order of adding ingredients will affect the outcome. I also don’t have any cakes that I can think of that call for this many eggs outside of sponge cake.
The worst that will happen is that the sugar may collect a little bit at the bottom of the cake. Probably not a major disaster, since most of it was dissolved. However, if the sugar wasn’t fully mixed in, that’s a good sign you didn’t beat the egga long enough lol.
Hi Natasha,
I tried this recipe and it came out great! I used the cakes for a lychee cake and everyone loved it!
I’d like to make a larger cake-13×9″ do I just double this recipe?
Hi Anna, here is an example of the doubled recipe we made for a 9×13 strawberry cake (note it was before we started adding baking powder). Anyways, also note that each batch of batter needs to be beaten separately unless you have an industrial electric mixer, otherwise it will overwhelm the mixer and not whip sufficiently for the cake to rise properly.
Hi Natasha
Thank you. However, I am not seeing the link you posted. Do you mind posting again please, thank you.
Hi Anna, so sorry about that! I must have clicked to reply too quickly. Here is the link to the 9×13 strawberry cake.
Thank you so much! 🙂
I should think this recipe could be made in the two 9″ cake pans, or a 9″X13″ pan, the same as a cake mix works. It’s around the same volume of cake batter.
Just made this and it turned out pretty well. I think it fell a bit from the kids opening the oven.
I’m glad to hear the recipe was a success Tina! Thanks for sharing!
Really a huge variety of cake. Thanks for sharing such an awesome post . It really useful to me.
You’re welcome Ravi! I’m glad you find it helpful!
Why don’t you use Butter? Isn’t that necessary?
Hi Kishore, butter is not traditionally used in this classic European sponge cake. I have used it in my Black Forest chocolate cake batter but it does make the batter a little trickier to work with and can deflate easier if the butter is not the correct temperature and if is not baked immediately after adding the butter.
Will it only work with white sugar? It won’t work with cane sugar or any other?
Hi Ana, I always use granulated sugar but it is so similar to cane sugar that I think it would work to substitute. Cane sugar can make some baked goods a little darker in color so that’s something to keep in mind 🙂
I’m planning to make a Boston Cream Pie with this recipe. How long will it keep (storing with Saran Wrap) prior to serving? Thank you!
Hi Deb, you can keep it at room temperature overnight, several days in the refrigerator or up to 3 months in the freezer.
Hi Natasha, thanks i made sponge cake it came out really fluffy. But i have few querries.
I found it little sweeter as per my taste…can a cut down little on sugar?
I want to add some flavour like vanilla,can i add it while beating eggs?
It was so soft that cutting layers was crumbling my cake …what should i do?
Last but not least my edges and top were little over done in fan mode. Should i check it after 15 minutes , will it not harm opening oven little earlier
Hi, I recommend baking this cake on regular conventional bake mode (not convection) which will help with the baking issues. You can fold in some vanilla after adding flour (I would do 1/2 to 1 tsp vanilla)
Hello Natasha, I’m a vegetarian and really excited to try this recipe out. Can you suggest any substitute?
Hi Jayashri, unfortunately there is no adequate substitute for the egg since that is the bulk of the cake and it relies on the eggs to rise.
Wow, thanks to you, I actually did this! I did follow your directions exactly and both pans turned out perfectly! This is a keeper with so many ideas on how to use this cake. Thank you so much for posting such a simple and easy recipe with video. Happy Holidays!
You’re welcome! I’m glad to hear how much you enjoy the recipe! Thanks for sharing! Merry Christmas 🙂
Thanks for the recipe Natasha. Looks super easy. i wish to make lemon sponge cake. Will adding lemon juice (acidic) impact the cake? what do you suggest?
Secondly how can i make a chocolate version of the same? Can you share proportion of cocoa powder in this case?
Hi Neha, For a chocolate sponge cake, you basically substitute some of the flour with cocoa. So you could try 1/4 cup sifted cocoa and 3/4 cup flour and sift them together before folding them into the batter. I haven’t tried putting lemon into the batter – I would probably try lemon extract rather than lemon juice since too much could harm the consistency of the batter and deflate it. I typically add flavoring to the baked and cooled cake layer. You can brush a lemon syrup onto the cake layers and give it great lemon flavor that way.
Thank you Natasha for your response! I must share with you and everyone how simple this cake is as long as one follows your instructions to the T! And i baked it for my bday and it turned out perfect!!
Thanks so much. It’s a keeper 🙂
I will try the chocolate version and let you know.
You’re welcome Neha! I’m happy to hear how much you enjoy the recipe. Thanks for sharing your fantastic review with other readers!
Hi, how many grams of flour, please.
130 grams
Can I use cake flour instead of all purpose flour?
Hi Jenelle, I have made it with cake flour and it does work well if you prefer to use cake flour 🙂
hello miss. i would like to use your recipe, but for 1 serving only. is it okay to divide all the ingredients into 2? does it okay?
Hi Fritzie, I think that would be ok to cut the recipe in half and just bake in 1 pan or use a non-stick loaf pan (line the bottom of it also) so it can grow taller and you can cut it in half.
What size cup do you use
Hi Natasha, I use a dry ingredients US measuring cup where you can level off the top.
Best cake ever!!!! Perfect with a cup of tea or even on its own! I have this recipe pinned to my fridge, always a hit. So soft, sweet, and light.
I’m glad you love the recipe so much Ally! Thanks for sharing your excellent review with other readers!
Why butter was not added or any essence?
Hi Uusha, you can add 1 tsp of vanilla extract, folding it in quickly before adding flour, but butter is not traditionally used in this classic European sponge cake. I have used it in my Black Forest chocolate cake batter but it does make the batter a little trickier to work with and can deflate easier if the butter is not the correct temperature and if is not baked immediately after adding the butter.
This is the kind of sponge cake I like. Could you use this recipe for cupcakes ?
Hi Maddy, this cake base is not ideal for cupcakes since it will stick badly to the wrappers as there is no butter or oil in the cake.
Thank you for your tips..actually i used to bake cakes.I didn’t know how to prepare sponge cake.so it helped me.its awesome.
My pleasure! I’m glad I could help! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Hi, can we use cake flour?
Hi Mandy, I think 1 cup of cake flour should still work fine, but the cake will be softer and lighter using cake flour.
Thanks Natasha for the sponge cake recipe, it is easy to make still yummy, finally i made a sponge cake perfectly 😄
My pleasure! I’m glad you enjoy the recipe! Thanks for sharing your great review!
best sponge cake ever! love ur recipes Natasha! 🙂
Awesome! I’m glad to hear that Liliana! Thanks for following and sharing your great review!
I admit I haven’t tried the cake, but I will. My comment: you are a cake artist! Beautiful, every one.
Thank you so much! Please let me know what you think of this recipe!
No salt in this sponge cake recipe?
Hi Sharon, that is correct. No salt 🙂
Anytime I do the sponge cake it sinks into it, I Dont over beat or open the oven till its almost done
Yes, I agree and thanks for sharing! I have found that the step that is most crucial to having the cake rise properly is beating the eggs and sugar long enough since the cake relies on the volume of eggs and sugar for leavening.
Same here, Dorcas. Mine sinks in the middle while baking and the cake becomes very sticky and flat. I thought I beat the eggs enough to reach the right stage that’s shown in the video but I guess I need to beat the eggs more? Can over beating cause the cake to sink in the middle?