Vanilla Sponge Cake
The plain vanilla sponge every other cake is built on: fine, even crumb, real vanilla, and enough structure to layer, soak or split. Made by the reverse-creaming method, which coats the flour in butter before any liquid goes near it.
Photograph credit: Making sponge cake at home 16 by Peacearth · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons · this resized copy is shared under the same licence
Vanilla Sponge Cake, Step by Step
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Heat the oven to 175°C / 350°F. Butter and line two 20 cm tins.
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Put the flour, cornflour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a mixer bowl and mix on low for 30 seconds.
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Add the softened butter and the oil and mix on low for 2 minutes, until the mixture looks like damp sand and no loose flour remains.
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Whisk the milk, eggs and vanilla together in a jug.
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With the mixer on low, add half the liquid and beat 30 seconds until smooth. Scrape down.
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Add the rest in two goes, beating 20 seconds after each. Stop the moment it is smooth — this batter does not need air beaten into it.
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Divide between the tins and bake 26 to 30 minutes, until the tops spring back and a skewer comes out clean.
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Cool in the tins 10 minutes, then turn out onto racks and cool completely before filling.
Related guide: Prep, cook and total time.
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Notes for Getting It Right
- Butter genuinely softened — 19°C / 66°F, dents under a finger without greasing it. Cold butter will not rub into the flour and warm butter will not hold the structure.
- Do not substitute the cornflour away. It is what makes this a sponge rather than a pound cake.
- For a birthday cake, soak each layer with 2 tablespoons of sugar syrup before filling.
What Goes With Vanilla Sponge Cake
- Raspberry jam and whipped cream
- Lemon curd
- Strong tea
Keeping and Reheating
Wrapped at room temperature for 3 days. Unfilled layers freeze for 3 months; thaw wrapped so the condensation lands on the wrapping rather than the crumb.
Vanilla Sponge Cake FAQ: Common Questions
How long does Vanilla Sponge Cake take to make?
25 minutes of preparation and 28 minutes of cooking, so at least 53 minutes. The method also needs time for cooling completely, which it does not time, so treat that as a minimum. The recipe serves 10.
The Numbers per Serving
Per serving, calculated from the ingredient list with USDA FoodData Central figures (SR Legacy). A calculation, not a laboratory analysis: brands, cuts and how you measure change the real numbers. How the figures are worked out.
Your notes on this recipe
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Compiled by Turab
Checked by script for timings, diet labels and nutrition arithmetic. How the recipes are checked. Found a mistake? Tell us.
First published ; last changed .
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