This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.
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 Sponge 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
I want to make a cream tart letter or number cake with this recipe instead of a cookie base. Can I make this in an 18×13 sheet pan? It would be a thinner cake. Would this work? Would I have to adjust the temperature or anything?
Hi Anna, yes, it will be a very thin cake. I have not tested it that way to advise but if you do try it I’d love to know how it turns out!
Hi Natasha, i just found your page and ready to try this sponge cake but can you clarify something for me.if a regular 1cup says 236gram, why do you have different measurement for flour and sugar since they both say 1 cup.
Hi Chi, sugar will weigh more than flour. I recommend checking our post on measuring here.
In a nine inch pan how tall is the cake in the video?
Hi Eric, I’m using cake pans that are about 1 3/4 inches tall. If using a springform to make one tall cake you can use a 9″ springform that is 3″ tall.
Thank you for your timely response. I am having problems w getting height. I will take your suggestions and practice
You’re welcome! I hope this works out for you.
Thank you for responding so quickly.
Hi Natasha,
My oven is heating only from the bottom. Do you think I should somehow adjust the baking time? Any tips for such ovens?
Спасибо!
Hi Alina, that should still work. Were you having trouble with baking it with heat coming from the bottom?
I am having problems with getting height on the sponge cake. It is coming out flat and dense. What are my typical mistake?
Hi Eric, I’m more than happy to troubleshoot. This sponge cake should not be dense. I would highly recommend reading the tips in the recipe above for what the batter should look like. Since the cake relies on the volume of the eggs for leavening, it is critical to beat the eggs and sugar adequately in this classic sponge cake, or it will be flat and dense. I also recommend checking out our post on measuring here that happens to be the culprit often.
Hi Natasha, I have to make a “letter cake”, I think I need to do a sponge cake for this, my question is, I need to make it two days in advance, it’s going to have cream cheese in the middle so I am going to have to store it in the refrigerator, will this dry out the cake? I am not sure I can cover it because is going to have stuff on top…
Hi Giovanna, If it is for a few days, you might be better off refrigerating it. If it is for longer, it freezes really well for several months. If you’re stacking the layers, make sure to place one of the round sheets of parchment paper between the layers so they do not stick together at all.
Is it possible to freeze this cake?
Hi Amy, Yes, you can make the cake base ahead of time and store it either in the fridge or at room temperature for a day or 2 or wrap and freeze up to 3 months.
Hi Natasha, I just had to leave a comment, I am a rookie cook and baker and made this cake for the first time for my birthday 5 days ago, it was a success from the first try it was light and so easy to make! I made my own filling I started following a lot of your recipes and they are all a success! I just have to say I prefer the video receipes this receipe is the best thing ever! Thank you
Hello Aleksandra, great job on your first try! I’m happy that you loved and enjoyed the end result, thank you so much for your excellent review and feedback!
Hi Natasha! I have a question. Whenever I use your recipe I always end up with a dense and actually spongey cake. Is it supposed to be like that? Please let me know!
Hi Bella, it should not be dense. I would highly recommend reading the tips in the recipe above for what the batter should look like. Since the cake relies on the volume of the eggs for leavening, it is critical to beat the eggs and sugar adequately in this classic sponge cake, or it will be flat and dense.
Is it possible to make a chocolate variation? If so, what would the measurements be? Thanks!
Hi Jen, to make 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.
Hi Natasha,
I was wondering if it would be ok to add vanilla to the batter? Also, probably an obvious answer, but I only want one 8″ layer (my son wants the cake to look Neopolitan so I need to also make a chocolate and strawberry cake) – should i just cut the ingredients in half for one layer?
Thank you!!
Hi Phoenix, you can add 1 tsp of vanilla extract (or any), folding it in quickly before adding flour. It will be close but it should work with 2 8inch pans. If you cut it in half it should work in just pan.
Can this recipe be adapted for cupcakes?
Hi Ilene, 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.
Hi Natasha,
I made a raspberry and whipped cream filled cake using this sponge cake for my niece’s birthday last year and she loved it!! Sof did everyone else in the family. This year, my niece is turning 30 and has requested the same cake to celebrate her special day. The cake needs to serve 20 to 25 people. Could this sponge hold up to 4 layers (if I double the recipe and make a 4-layer cake) or do you think that it would squish too much? I was thinking of perhaps using a swiss meringue butter cream rather than using whipping cream to provide a bit more stiffness. Any suggestions would be very much appreciated.
Thanks for all your wonderful recipes.
Hi Margaret! I haven’t tested that with 4 layers but I think that could work! I imagine it may need some support.
LOVE this sponge cake recipe!!! It has become a favorite with my family when I make a Victoria Sandwich cake.
Question: If I wanted to use 6 inch cake pans would I use 3 eggs, 1/2c sugar, 1/2c flour, and 1/4tsp baking powder? Your help would be greatly appreciated!
Hi Alicia, I’m so glad you love our sponge cake. I have not tested this in two six-inch round baking pans to say for sure. It sounds like you are on the right track but I would guess that 4 eggs might work better or the cakes may be a little flat. Let me know if you experiment since others may have the same question.
Hi, curious if you tried this in the 2 6″ pans and if so….was it a success? What was the baking time?
Hi Shelly, I have not tested this in two six-inch round baking pans to say for sure. Alicia, have you tried it with good results?
I have not tried this recipe yet, but was wondering if this sponge cake can be used to make a layered ice cream cake?
Hi Gaila, I have not tested that but I imagine that should work. One of our readers mentioned they planned on trying it as well. If you experiment, let me know how you liked the recipe.
I have a 2 6″ pans that are 3″ thick. How long do you recommend cooking the genoise for in those pans?
Hi Dina, one of our readers halved everything proportionally and baked it in 6″ pans with good results. I haven’t tested that t advise on time. If you experiment please let me know how you like that recipe.
I just love, love, love all of your recipes. Thank you so much xx
You’re welcome! Thank you so much for sharing that with me.
I agree
Hi Natasha!
Just wondering what the estimated bake time for your sponge cake is for (THREE) 8” round pans? Thank you!
Hi Cheryl, I imagine that cook time will not change much from the original recipe. I would watch it closely in the last few minutes.
Hi Natasha,
I have used 8” pans and the cakes turned out perfect , didn’t overflow.
But they were smelling eggy when I took the back out of the oven. As you mentioned in your tips I did not open windows/doors. What could be the reason?
Is there any way to mask the egg smell ?while moisturizing with syrup or frosting ?
Or do you advise to redo the entire cake again and just trash those eggy smelling layers?
Thank you!
Hi Mikki, I’ve made this cake so many times that I have noticed it smells eggy only when I have a window open. I don’t know why it happens but it is similar to meringue where an outdoor draft can make that smell eggy as well. Was that the case with your cake? Do you remember if the windows were open when you had it out of the oven?
Natasha,
Windows were born open but the vent was on. Do you advise to use cake and frost them?
Do you want me to re-bake them?
Thank you,
Mikki
Hi Mikki, if they rose properly, you should still be ok with adding syrup and frosting them.
The eggy smell is because you used eggs. The cake still tastes good even with the smell as it goes away quite quickly.
Not sure how helpful or accurate that comment is, as I’ve baked lots of cakes and other pastries that use a number of eggs and never had an eggy smell. My first time with this cake was just lovely, no noticeable odor, and it was delicious. Made exactly the same a week later and the eggy smell was obvious on taking the cake out of the oven — the last piece in the fridge 5 days later still had a strong egg odor and flavor. Now I’m a bit less enthused and wish I knew the reason why. Really a great recipe for the most part.
Hi Kris, if everything else was the same, I wonder if maybe you got a bad egg in the mix? Also, was there outdoor draft when you took it out of the oven. With any egg-based cake or meringue, an outdoor draft amplifies an eggy smell. I hope that helps!
Nina’s comment was very and I totally agreed with it. When I first made the cake, I was surprised at how eggy the cake smelt. I was going to redo it, but then I would be a waste of ingredients. I tried it and it tasted amazing. When the cake cooled down, the eggy smell disappeared. Great recipe Natasha!
Thank you for sharing that!
If you didn’t use eggs, it would not have an eggy smell. The sponge cake is supposed to taste a little bit eggy because there are eggs in it.
This cake recipe IS THE BOMB!!!
It’s my new go to sponge cake recipe and i have now made it several times, perfect each time!!!
So Huge Thank You to you for sharing, Love, Love ,Love it!!!
I’m making it tonight again for a friend’s baby shower cake on the weekend….
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Leonie!
Hi Natasha,
I love this recipe and it always turns out perfect. I have question on baking temperature and time when you use 8 inch round pans and 6inch round pan. ALSo, does the recipe batter good enough to fit these pans. How do I scale them?
It’s my sons first birthday and I want to make a tier cake.
Thank you in advance.
Hi Mikki, I have not tested this in a six-inch round baking pan to say for sure, so I’m not certain if it would overflow the pan. That would be my main concern. You may need to scale the recipe back. Let me know if you experiment.
Do you think it will overflow 2 8inch round pans ?
Hi Mikki! It will be close but it should work with 2 8inch pans.
Thank you Natasha!
Can I half or double this recipe?
Hi Mikki, I have doubled this recipe for a 9×13″ cake pan before.
Hello,
I use this recipe now for 99% of all cakes I make. It’s got a reputation. Every time we’re invited to a party, I get asked to bring a cake. I can have a cake from idea to completely decorated in max. 2 hours.
What I do with mine: I make exactly as you outline – 2 round springform cakes per batch. Once the cakes have cooled I soak with a flavoured syrup (simple syrup and flavour that complements the filling – usually a fruit jelly or coffee or cacao powder). As a filling I make an easy mousse. 2 or 3 whipped egg whites, half a litre of whipped cream, gelatine and a flavour (chocolate or coffee or fruit puree, or jam/jelly). As the cakes tend to sink a bit in the middle, I take advantage of that to create a pocket for the filling – thus also giving me a flat top to frost.
As a frosting I normally use whipped cream or burned Italian Meringue.
It is a much loved cake in my community – thank you for posting this fabulous, easy recipe.
That’s just awesome & sounds amazing!! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review and tips with us!
Hi I was hoping to make this cake ahead of time but not frost it until the next day so my question is how long does this cake sit without drying? and would I store it in the refrigerator or room temperature?
Hi Anna, if it’s just for a day, it will keep really well covered at room temperature. Once it’s at room temperature, cover and let it sit on the counter until ready to use.
Hello Natasha,
Thank you so much.
I would like to ask about the step when we should add butter?
You did not include it in the ingredients list!!!
Thank you
Hi Florence, this recipe does not require butter. I hope that helps.