White Sponge Cake

White sponge cake is a light and airy dessert known for its delicate flavor and fluffy texture. Made with only egg whites, it boasts a brilliant white color and subtle sweetness. With minimal ingredients—egg whites, sugar, flour, and vanilla—it’s perfect with fresh fruit, whipped cream, or powdered sugar, offering a versatile base for various desserts.

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White Sponge Cake

Planning

  • Prep Time:

    15 minutes

  • Bake/Cook Time:

    25-20 minutes

  • Chill/Set Time:

  • Servings:

    Makes Two 8-9” cake layers. Approx 8-10 servings.

Preparation

  • Materials

    Stand mixer with paddle, whisk, and mixing bowl
    Hand mixer with whisk and mixing bowl
    Spatulas
    Scale and measuring cup or bowl

  • Prep

    Separate the eggs and set the egg whites on the counter an hour prior to bring to room temperature. Refrigerate the egg yolks.
    Preheat the oven to 325°F (165°C)
    Prepare two 8-9-inch pans with parchment paper. Grease the sides.
    Dry Ingredients: Soft together the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl.

  • Oven/Stove

    350F for 25-30 minutes

  • Shopping List

    Cake Flour (T45)
    Baking Powder
    Baking Soda
    Sea Salt
    butter
    Granulated Sugar
    Confectioner’s Sugar
    Cream of Tartar
    Eggs, large
    Vanilla Extract
    Buttermilk

Ingredients & Steps

  • Ingredients

    270 g (2 ¼ cups) cake flour
    1 ½ tsp baking powder
    ½ tsp baking soda
    ½ tsp salt
    150 g (⅔ cup) unsalted butter, softened
    270 g (1 ¼ cups) granulated sugar
    Confectioner’s Sugar -3 tbsp
    Cream of Tartar ½ tsp
    5 large egg whites, room temperature
    2 tsp pure vanilla extract
    220 ml (1 cup) buttermilk

  • Steps

    STEP 1: CREAM THE BUTTER
    Cream the butter and sugar in the stand mixer with the paddle on medium-high for 3 minutes until light and fluffy.

    STEP 2: EGG WHITES
    Whip the egg whites in a separate bowl to a soft peak. Add in a little cream of tarter and confectioner’s sugar (2-4 tbsp) to firm it up. Mix in the vanilla and whip to a medium firm peak.

    STEP 3: ALTERNATE WET & DRY
    Mix in the wet and dry ingredients in alternating portions with the butter in the stand mixer using the whisk attachment.

    STEP 4: FOLD
    Fold the egg whites into the batter in the stand mixture using a large silicone spatula.

    STEP 5: FILL
    Fill the cake pans with the batter and smooth the tops.

    STEP 6: BAKE
    Bake at 350F for 25-30 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

    STEP 7: COOL
    Turn off the oven, open the door and pull out the racks a bit. Let the cakes set there for 30 minutes, then remove the cake pans to the counter and let set 1 hour or until cooled to room temp.

    You can then refrigerate in the pans for about an hour to firm them for easier removal from the pans and easier dusting of any crumbs.

Notes

Do not let the cakes get too cool in the refrigerator. Just enough to dust the crumbs from the cool cakes. Then you can crumb coat the cakes, return to the refrigerator to harden the crumb coat a bit. Then you are ready to frost and decorate.

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