Recipe revised December 2017
I originally published this recipe in December 2010. Over the years I’ve discovered new tips which have helped yield a better cake. As I keep learning, I will keep sharing with you all. The previous recipe was a little heavy because of the addition of milk, but if you enjoyed that recipe, see below. It also yielded one cake which was half the recipe. I think this sponge cake (pound cake) recipe is perfect for me. It doesn’t taste eggy and it bakes up beautifully. It’s soft and so moist. Please see updated instructions below.
Growing up, I always remembered my mom baking up a storm during Christmas time. Christmas cookies were never really a staple, but cake, definitely. She would also make delicious beverages like mauby, sorrel, and ginger beer. There was one cake, in particular, that was my favorite; sponge cake (which is not actually a sponge cake, but rather a pound cake). Yesterday we had a gathering at our house and it definitely gave us a reason to start our Christmas baking.
In my research, I have discovered that the sponge cake is really a pound cake and all this time, Guyanese have been terming this cake something that it is not. Fellow blogger and journalist, Cynthia Nelson, discusses more here. She highlights what makes a sponge cake a sponge cake and what makes a pound cake a pound cake. It all has to do with the egg to flour ratio. In a sponge cake, there is more egg than flour which allows it to have a very foamy, springy texture (think of angel cake here). A pound cake has heavy fat content that comes from the butter, making it a pound cake, not a sponge cake. I suppose we call in sponge cake because of the appearance to an actual sponge cake. Nonetheless, it is my favorite cake of the season. Enjoy this new recipe, it is fantastic!
Tips:
- This recipe uses 9in pans, but I have also used two 8in pans when making sponge cake. It gives the cake a nice height and the batter divides perfectly between the two pans. These are the pans I bought from amazon, you’ll need two of them- http://amzn.to/2kqh96q
- Darker cake pans will make your cake brown up faster than lighter ones. I prefer to use light colored pans for this reason.
- When butter and eggs are at room temperature, the cake blends better. To speed up process of bringing eggs to room temperature, place eggs in a bowl of warm water. Be careful not to make the water too hot, otherwise it can start to cook the eggs.
- We remove the little white membrane from each egg, my mom says when it’s in the batter it leaves little rubbery bits in the cake. Some say it also makes the cake renk.
- I used my stand mixer to cream the butter and sugar and used a hand mixer to whip the eggs. You do not need two mixers to make this cake. If using a hand mixer, cream the butter and sugar until fluffy. Rinse beaters then whip eggs in separate bowl until foamy.
- When mixing in flour, add a little at a time and mix gently. Over mixing the flour can yield a stiff cake.
- My mom likes to put a small pan of hot water on the very bottom of the oven (not the rack, the actual floor of the oven). She says the steam helps the cake rise nicely. I have tried this and it works beautifully!
- We sometimes add red and green food coloring to the batter to make it more festive. To do this, remove equal parts of batter into separate bowls. Add food coloring then pour into baking pans. Swirl with a butter knife.
- Baking pans may be lined with parchment paper. I like to butter and flour my pans for extra flavor.
Christmas Sponge Cake
Ingredients
- 1 lb unsalted butter (4 sticks)
- 1 lb light brown sugar or white granulated, about 2 level cups
- 8 or 9 eggs, room temperature
- Zest of one orange
- Zest of one lemon
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon almond extract or mixed essence
- 3 cups all-purpose flour, level
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- Dash of salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Bring butter and eggs to room temperature. Butter and flour 2 9-inch baking pans, set aside.
- Add flour, spices and baking powder to a mixing bowl, set aside.
- Cream butter and sugar until fluffy using a stand mixer or hand mixer, about 10 minutes. Add vanilla and almond extracts.
- In a separate mixing bowl, crack eggs one at a time and remove little white membrane from each egg using a fork or spoon. Add orange and lemon zests, beat until frothy, about 7-8 minutes.
- Add egg mixture to butter and sugar mixture a little at a time. Scrape sides of bowl as you go.
- Once egg mixture is incorporated, add flour mixture a little at a time. Fold in gently. Spatula should stand up when placed in the center of the mixing bowl.
- Pour batter into prepared pans.
- Fill a small tray or pan half way with water. Place on bottom of oven.
- Place cake in middle rack of oven. Bake 36-38 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean.
Notes
I used my stand mixer to cream the butter and sugar and used a hand mixer to whip the eggs. You do not need two mixers to make this cake. If using a hand mixer, cream the butter and sugar until fluffy. Rinse beaters then whip eggs in separate bowl until foamy.
Brown sugar may be used in place of white sugar. Salted butter may be used entirely, just do not add the additional "dash of salt" recipe calls for.
Previous Recipe
If you enjoyed the previous recipe prior to my update (December 2017), here it is:
Ingredients:
- 8oz salted butter/ 2 sticks (not margarine)
- 1 cup light brown sugar or white granulated sugar
- 4 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 ½ cups flour
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- ¼ lemon zest (I used ½)
- ¼ orange zest (I used ½)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- ¼ cup milk
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees while you mix the batter.
- Sift all dry ingredients together.
- Cream butter and sugar together until fluffy and light.
- Add eggs a little at a time.
- Add lemon zest, orange zest, and vanilla.
- Add a little bit of flour and mix into wet ingredients. Add a little milk and keep alternating flour and milk until it is all incorporated.
- Butter and flour your pan and pour prepared mixture into pan.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes.
- Let cake cool before turning it onto a cake platter. Makes one 9in round pan.
Cynthia says
Christmas is really being celebrated on this blog! 🙂
Your sponge/pound cake looks very moist!
You know, that book is still in print, I have the current edition and the one before that. It is sold in Guyana and other Caribbean book stores. Here is the Amazon link for the book: http://www.amazon.com/Cooking-Guyana-Carnegie-School-Economics/dp/1405013133/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1292955815&sr=1-1
Merry Christmas to you and the family.
Lorrianne says
Can you please say where I can find the old edition? Would love to have a copy.
Ms. Gourmet Express says
Thanks so much Cynthia! I will have to purchase the updated version for my mom and maybe one for me too 😉 Merry Christmas to you and your family as well!
Cindy Palmer says
I love your recipes & this blog always makes me feel to cook & bake! Luv it! Thanks for sharing your recipes!
Napfrocurlzgirl says
OMG, you're going to make me fat!
Shauna says
So it is a thumbs up from the family regarding this. The batter smelled and tasted delicious, a clear indicator that this was going to be a great tasting treat!
Anonymous says
Wonderful Recipe!! I'll Be Trying This Recipe Without Eggs For Temple And Let You Know How It Comes Out!
I Have Been Testing All Black Cake Recipes That I Can Get A Hold Of -And Was Wondering If You Can Post The Black Cake Recipe On Your Blog. Just So I Can Test It Out For The Holiday Season! I Would Really Appreciate This!
Alica says
Hi Anonymous! Please email me at innergourmet@gmail.com for a recipe for sponge cake without eggs! If you omit the eggs from this one it will not rise. I will also send you a black cake recipe when you email me. Thanks for visiting! 🙂
Diana says
I was looking for a basic cake recipe and this seems like a winner! My mom forgot the guyanese fruit cake recipe that she keeps locked in her head. I've tried many times to replicate it to no sucess. And wow, that cookbook is awesome. I'm so glad I stumbled across this blog! I can tell I'll be a fan =) Happy Holidays!
Vix P. says
Making this cake tomorrow or the next….thanks again for the recipe – Cindy P
Yahya says
I made this today and it came out perfectly….was sooo good too. I think i ate half of it by myself, lol. Thank you for posting and keep the good work up.
Anonymous says
Hi Alicia,great recipe. I was wondering if I wanted to add some candied cherries to this recipe, will it make my dry? Do I need to increase the amount of milk the recipe calls for?
Thanks
Preya
Anonymous says
This cake looks so moist a delish, definitely gonna try this one .
Toni says
Made this cake for Christmas and although it was good, my cake was a little dry.
It has nothing to do with the recipe (was in the shower and left the cake in the oven too long) but showing the recipe to other they said the butter and egg should be a 1:2. So will try it both ways. Again with this recipe, and then doing the 1 butter to 2 eggs.
Just waiting for the colder months to come back.
Alica says
Hi Preya,
No it won't make it dry, just toss the cherries in some flour just to coat them, it will keep the cherries from sinking to the bottom.
Abi says
Hi Alicia
I really enjoy reading your blogs as much of them brought back a lot of memories of my mom cooking all these wonderful Guyanese dishes.
In the past, my mom would make the sponge cake for our birthdays, sometimes at christmas too. Reading your blog about this, it's totally different from how my mom makes hers. Your recipe didn't say how long to beat the eggs to get the airy feel of the eggs. I'm surprised to see only 1 and 1/2 cup flour used for this cake… it looks small.
The way my mom makes, oh my goodness, it was a lot of work. She would weigh each ingredient by 1 pound. One lb of flour, one lb of butter, and one lb of sugar. Mix the butter with sugar until finely creamed. She would have my brother or me to mix 12 eggs (omg) for exactly 20 minutes. I think after 15 minutes of beating, she would put a peel of orange skin (didn't have to grate it) in the egg. Then after that, she would mix the butter mixture with the flour until well mixed, then finally add in the egg for final mix. I might be forgetting some other small ingredients she added in there. But the sponge cake always came out delicious and soft!
But thank you so much for doing this as it always make me feel good about my Guyanese culture and food!!
GRACE DEAN says
Abi That’s the way my Mom made it also, dozen eggs with lemon peel,as kids, my sister and I use to cream the butter sugar, then get the spoon to lick! She’d add the eggs to the sugar butter mixture, I remember the Almond essence, nutmeg and maybe cinnamon, don’t remember, then she’d put the flour and baking powder, mix until well incorporated, and then put in the cake pan to bake. She’d use lard to grease the pans, Good memories!
Alica says
Hi Abi,
Thanks for leaving such a detailed comment! Glad to have brought back memories of cooking with your mom, days we will always remember! Based on the number of eggs, it sounds like the batter your mom whipped up made more than one cake, this recipe only makes only one 9in round pan. It looks like the main thing your mom did differently is add the egg last vs. adding the flour mixture last. Very interesting! I'll be doing a lot of holiday baking this season so I will certainly give her method a try. Oh, I forgot to mention, you are correct, I didn't say how long to beat the eggs only because everyone may be using a different vessel for mixing ex. whipping eggs or creaming anything for 20 min using a kitchen aid stand mixer vs a hand held mixer will yield different volumes. Some people still prefer using a whisk the whole way through so it's more important these days I think, to look for the texture of the batter/eggs vs. the time, hopefully that made sense! Again, thanks for your comments and I will be sure to follow up here and let you know how the cake turned out using your mom's variation in method :).
Alica
Lisa Lustlashes says
Iove reading the above and looking at the book! Wow I must say keep the book safe!
Mandy Shew says
Hi Alicia, thanks so much for sharing all of your great recipes. I have tried a number if new things my mom doesn't normally make and they come out yum especially the patties and cheese rolls. They are defintely a crowd pleaser! I'm making a batch of cupcakes today using this sponge cake recipe.. it's in the oven and I hope it comes in great! I made this sponge cake for Christmas and it came out very dry I think I left it in the oven for longer than I shouldve so I will try again…but thanks again!!
Alica says
Hi Mandy, thanks and glad you are enjoying the recipes. How long are you baking the cupcakes for? I've never tried this recipe for cupcakes so do let me know how it goes!
CaribbeanLGBT says
I'm from South Ruimveldt Park and miss my moms sponge cake terribly! I'm gonna try your recipe!
Jodi Hall - Cameron says
Hi Thanks for the recipe, I married a Guyanese so I'm trying this out for the first time. What happens if your spoon/spatula doesn't stand up in your mix, I added a-lot (alot) more flour and it still wouldn't stand for long, i didnt want to overmix it.
Thanks in advance
Mandy Shew says
Hi Alicia, thanks so much for sharing all of your great recipes. I have tried a number if new things my mom doesn't normally make and they come out yum especially the patties and cheese rolls. They are defintely a crowd pleaser! I'm making a batch of cupcakes today using this sponge cake recipe.. it's in the oven and I hope it comes in great! I made this sponge cake for Christmas and it came out very dry I think I left it in the oven for longer than I shouldve so I will try again…but thanks again!!
Unknown says
What kind of flour should I use? All purpose or cake? And its vanilla extract I'm assuming?
Alica says
Hello, all-purpose flour and yes, you are correct – it's vanilla extract.
Mr&Mrs Swaby says
Thanks for sharing your recipe! It's easy to follow and well it's yummy. Trying my hand at a traditional Christmas cake after many years. I can't wait to share with my family and friends
Onaella Toon says
Just tried this…I think it maybe needs a little more flour as mine came out with a line at the bottom where the butter settled. Granted I used margerine, white sugar and 2tsp of Orange juice instead of orange zest (did not have any). But the taste is great! Exactly what I was looking for…definitely keeping this one!
Alica says
Hi Onaella,
The line at the bottom means too much liquid in the batter. Glad you enjoyed the taste!
Unknown says
Thanks for all the great recipes, I've tried quite a few. For the sponge cake can you use cake flour? Thanks Bee!
Fiona Lewis says
What kind of flour should I use? All purpose or cake? And its vanilla extract I'm assuming?
Alica says
Yes all-purpose and vanilla extract.
Richard Khusial says
Hey, I made this cake today. The taste was great but the cake was a lot darker than your pictures. I doubled the recipe and placed it in a 9×13 aluminum pan. It took an hour and a half to bake. I am not sure if I did something wrong.
Karina says
Hi, did you change up this recipe? I thought I remembered the butter was salted before.
Alica says
Hi Karina,
I did update the recipe. The new recipe is much softer and light. I just added the previous recipe above in purple for your reference.
Karina says
You are the best! Thank you. I’m making it right now. I live by that recipe! Lol
Ann says
just took my cake that i made from your recipe out of the oven , cant wait to taste it
Pam says
Hi again. Just left you a post on the pistachio cookies.
I loves me sum sponge cake too.. So here I am.
Thank you for all that you do here on this site.
I forgot, and wanted to wish you and your family a happy and Blessing filled New Year’s. 🙂
Alica says
Thank you! Happy New Year to you as well! Hope you enjoy this recipe :).
Ann says
I love this recipe and it is a hit at my home! Can I use a bundt cake pan with this recipe or your original version? I have to admit I’ve only ever baked the original recipe.
Alica says
Hi Ann, so glad to hear that and yes you can use a Bundt pan.
Nikisha says
I accidently used salted butter would that be an issue ? I used the recipe you had before ..but it’s taking longer to bake
Alica says
Hi, no it won’t be an issue, the cake will still taste good.
Karina says
Hi! I tried the new recipe this year and noticed right away that it was missing salt. It was too sweet, I think it needs a little salt to balance the sweetness since it uses regular sugar and not salted sugar.
Alica says
Hi Karina,
Oh so sorry to hear that, I know you like the previous recipe :), which is no problem! Happy holidays to you and your family!