Baking a Classic Genoise Sponge
This is a dry, sponge-style cake that functions as a blank canvas for syrups, creams, and fruits. It is technically demanding because it leaves no room for error in the folding process, but it rewards you with a light, tight-crumbed base.
Temperature is your primary tool
Eggs whip best when they are slightly warm, and your butter must be melted and then cooled to room temperature so it doesn't collapse the batter.
- stand mixer with whisk attachment
- heatproof bowl
- saucepan for bain-marie
- sifter
- silicone spatula
- 9-inch round cake pan
What goes in.
- 4 largeeggs, room temperature
- 125gsuperfine sugar
- 125gall-purpose flour, sifted twice
- 30gunsalted butter, melted and cooled
- 1 tspvanilla extract
Aerating the eggs
When you lift the whisk, the batter falling back into the bowl should sit on the surface for several seconds, folding over itself like a ribbon before disappearing.
The method.
Prepare the pan
Grease the pan with butter and line the bottom and sides with parchment paper. Dust with a tiny amount of flour, tapping out the excess.
Create the bain-marie
Fill a saucepan with an inch of water and bring to a simmer. Place the bowl containing eggs and sugar over the steam. Whisk constantly until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is warm to the touch, about 110°F (43°C).
Whisk to volume
Move the bowl to the mixer. Beat on medium-high speed until the mixture is pale, thick, and has cooled to room temperature. This takes 8 to 10 minutes.
Fold in flour
Sift one-third of the flour over the eggs. Use a large spatula to fold from the bottom up, rotating the bowl. Repeat until all flour is incorporated, moving with purpose to avoid deflating the batter.
Incorporate butter
Pour the cooled melted butter around the edge of the bowl and fold in gently until just combined. Do not overwork.
Bake
Pour into the prepared pan. Bake at 350°F (175°C) for 25-30 minutes. The cake is done when the top springs back lightly when pressed and the edges pull away from the pan.
Other turns to take.
Chocolate Genoise
Replace 20g of the flour with high-quality unsweetened cocoa powder.
Citrus Genoise
Add the zest of one lemon or orange to the eggs during the whisking phase.
When it doesn't go to plan.
Sift the flour twice before adding it to ensure no lumps end up in your delicate egg base.
If you see butter pooling at the bottom of the bowl after folding, you haven't folded deeply enough.
Let the cake cool in the pan for 5 minutes before flipping it onto a wire rack to prevent it from tearing.
The ones that keep coming up.
Why did my cake sink in the middle?
The flour was likely folded in too aggressively, or the oven door was opened before the structure had set.
Can I use baking powder?
In a traditional Genoise, no. The lift comes entirely from the air in the eggs.
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