A simple cake recipe for beginners and professionals, this sponge cake is easy to make and the best. It is moist, light, fluffy, soft, and just perfect! Let me show you how to make sponge cake from scratch.
I'm about simple, quick, and easy cake recipes and this sponge cake recipe is as easy as my Madeira cake, victoria sponge, chocolate cake, and the other cake recipes on this blog.
It is a straightforward, plain sponge cake that is soft, not too sweet, moist, light, and delicious.
This was the first cake I learned how to bake due to its simplicity and versatility. It is a basic sponge cake that can be served as a snack to entertain, as dessert, for tea, or put icing and decorate for party celebration.
What is Sponge Cake
If you are wondering why it is called a sponge cake, it's because the cake texture is foam-like similar to how a sponge looks. It's airy, light, and absorbent.
Sponge cakes are made with eggs, flour, sugar, and butter. Flavoring like vanilla, or lemon is sometimes added to the batter. It is a very popular cake all over the world especially in the UK, Australia, the US, Canada.
It is commonly made in a round cake pan but a square or loaf pan can also be used.
Simple Cake Recipe (Sponge Cake)
This sponge cake recipe is not only simple, but it's also easy, quick, and the best.
The cake is light, fluffy, moist, not overly sweet but not bland, baked evenly, light-colored, spongy, delicious, and just perfect!
You need just a few ingredients to make it and the ingredients are inexpensive and easily available in stores.
Unlike cake box mix, this simple cake recipe does not make use of artificial flavorings, color, or preservatives.
It's perfect for entertaining, for tea, serving as desserts, or making party cakes.
You can't go wrong with this simple sponge cake recipe with my detailed step by step instructions and tips.
This is an 8 inch sponge cake recipe but you can also make it in two 6 inch round cake pans.
It serves 8-10 people but you can double the ingredients, and bake in two 8 inch cake pans and then sandwich them.
Sponge Cake Ingredients
The detailed measurements both in grams and in cups can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of this post. I advise you to measure in grams using a measuring scale as this gives accurate results than using cup measurements.
Flour - You can use self raising flour or all purpose flour also known as plain flour. See notes in the recipe card.
Baking powder
Butter
Sugar
Eggs
Flavoring - Vanilla extract.
How To Make Sponge Cake (Simple Cake Recipe)
Rub the inside of the baking pan with some butter and line it with parchment paper. Set aside.
Add baking powder to the flour and sift. Set aside.
Preheat the oven at a temperature of 180C/360F (160C fan).
Add butter and sugar into a mixing bowl and mix with an electric mixer for 15 minutes or until it's pale in color. This is the creaming method for making cakes.
Break the eggs one at a time into the butter-sugar mixture and whisk until the mixture comes together.
Add the sifted flour into the wet mixture and mix with a spatula till well combined then use the electric hand mixer to mix for about 30 seconds to smoothen the batter.
Pour the cake batter into the butter/parchment paper lined cake tin.
Place the cake tin in the middle rack of the oven and bake at a temperature of 180C/360F (160C fan) for 25-30 minutes.
Test for doneness after 25 minutes. If the cake tester or skewer dipped in the middle of the cake comes out clean, then it is ready.
When the cake is cooked, bring it out of the oven and leave it to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before turning it on to a cooling rack.
When it is completely cooled, cut and serve or proceed to decorate the cake.
Sponge Cake Icing
There are different cake icing that goes with sponge cake and below are some of the ones I recommend and you can get the recipes by clicking on the listing.
Lemon buttercream
Whipped cream frosting
How To Store
To store the cake, first, leave it to cool completely.
If not frosted, wrap in clingfilm, and it can be left on the countertop for up to 3 days. If you need to preserve it for longer than 3 days, store it in the fridge or freezer and not on the countertop.
To store it in the fridge, wrap it in clingfilm, put it in an airtight container, and put it in the fridge where it will store well for 5 days.
To store in the freezer, wrap in clingfilm, put in an airtight container, and store in the freezer for up to 3 months.
When you bring it out of the refrigerator, leave it out to come to room temperature before serving.
How long can you store for?
3 days on the worktop, or 5 days in the fridge, or 3 months in the freezer.
Tips
- Choose and use a mixing bowl that is deep enough to prevent splatter during the mixing of the cake batter.
- Use caster sugar as the first choice of sugar for sponge cake and if not available, granulated sugar works fine too.
- Cream the butter and sugar for at least 10 - 15 minutes before adding the eggs. The creaming process is one of the determinants of how fluffy the cake comes out.
- You can use any type of flavoring you desire from vanilla extract to strawberry, lemon, and others.
- Butter the pan before lining with parchment paper so it's easy to remove the cake from the pan after baking.
- Bake cake on the middle rack of the oven as this is the best place for even heat distribution.
- Don't bake for too long to avoid dry cake. Check the cake for doneness after 25 minutes.
- The cake should come out cleanly if you follow the above tip however if the cake is stuck to the pan, use a flat to loosen the edges before turning it onto the cooling rack.
- If you'll be icing the cake, make sure it's well cooled before covering with icing and decorating it.
More Sponge Cake Recipes
The below are other sponge cake recipes that are easy, simple, quick and delicious:
Chocolate sponge cake
Tools Used
No heavy tool is required to make this cake recipe, you'll need:
Mixing bowl
8 inch round cake pan
Electric hand mixer - You can use a stand mixer or wooden spoon to do the creaming.
Cooling rack
Spatula
Cake tester
I hope you like this recipe as much as I do. If you find this post helpful, please rate it 5 stars and leave me a comment below. I love reading from you.
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Simple Cake Recipe (Sponge Cake)
Equipment
- 8 inch round cake pan
- Mixing bowl
- Electric hand mixer
- Spatula
- Cooling rack
- Cake tester or skewer
Ingredients
- 125 g Flour Self raising flour ( If using All purpose flour also known as plain flour check notes below.)
- ⅛ teaspoon Baking powder
- 125 g Butter
- 125 g Sugar Caster or Granulated sugar
- 2 Eggs
- ½ teaspoon Vanilla extract
Instructions
- Rub the inside of the baking pan with some butter and line with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Add baking powder to the flour and sift. Set aside.
- Preheat the oven at a temperature of 180C/360F (160C fan).
- Add butter and sugar into a mixing bowl and mix with an electric mixer for 15 minutes or until it's pale in color.
- Break the eggs one at a time into the butter-sugar mixture and whisk until the mixture comes together.
- Add the sifted flour into the wet mixture and mix with a spatula till well combined then use the mixer to mix for about 30 seconds to smoothen the batter.
- Pour the cake batter into the butter/parchment paper lined cake tin. Place the cake tin in the middle rack of the oven and bake at a temperature of 180C/360F (160C fan) for 25-30 minutes. Test for doneness after 25 minutes. If the cake tester or skewer dipped in the middle of the cake comes out clean, then it is ready.
- When the cake is cooked, bring it out of the oven and leave it to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before turning it on to a cooling rack.
- When it is completely cooled, cut and serve or proceed to decorate the cake.
Notes
- If using all purpose flour (plain flour), add additional 1 teaspoon of baking powder.
- You can double the ingredients, and bake in two 8 inch cake pans.
- Choose and use a mixing bowl that is deep enough to prevent splatter during the mixing of the cake batter.
- Use caster sugar as the first choice of sugar for sponge cake and if not available, granulated sugar works fine too.
- Cream the butter and sugar for at least 10 - 15 minutes before adding the eggs. The creaming process is one of the determinants of how fluffy the cake comes out.
- You can use any type of flavoring you desire from vanilla extract to strawberry, lemon, and others.
- Butter the cake pan before lining with parchment paper so it's easy to remove the cake from the pan after baking.
- Bake cake on the middle rack of the oven as this is the best place for even heat distribution.
- Don't bake for too long to avoid dry cake. Check the cake for doneness after 25 minutes.
- The cake should come out cleanly if you follow the above tip however if the cake is stuck to the pan, use a flat to loosen the edges before turning it onto the cooling rack.
- If you'll be icing the cake, make sure it's well cooled before covering with icing and decorating it.
This is definitely the best sponge recipe!
Thank you so much.
It has been a while since I baked you made it easy to do after a long time.when the kids were at home I baked regularly.but this is for my bingo mates. Many thanks.