
Fluffy, moist and packed with vanilla goodness, this is what my birthday cake dreams are made of.

It’s an incredibly soft and light cake which can be used with any frosting and filling, a perfect base for any celebration cakes you want to make.

When you make this cake, please note that it is important to use fresh eggs that are room temperature.
Egg whites are most effective when beaten at room temperature to stiff peaks. When eggs are cold, they will be difficult to expand.
And make sure all utensils clean and grease free, any residue of fat will prevent egg whites from beating up properly.

Remember DO NOT grease or use a non-stick pan. Essentially your sponge cake batter is using the sides of the pan to help it climb up so it doesn’t collapse.

Once it’s baked, remove the cake immediately from the pan so that the moisture can escape and not damage the structure of the cake.
Scrape the sides of the pan, turn it over and let it cool completely on a cooling rack.

Sponge cake is a type of cake that dries easily. Once it’s cool, this cake can be use immediately to build your cake of choice or wrap it tightly in a cling wrap and freeze until ready to use it.

To keep it moist, I brush it with simple syrup before using it as a cake base.
This cake is not too sweet, light and stays moist even if stored in the fridge for several days.

For the complete guide, please watch my video on how to make it.
Hopefully this recipe can be useful for you!
🍰 Love you All !
Watch How To Make “Fluffy Moist Vanilla Sponge Cake”
Tips for Success (Please Read First):
- Line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper (don’t grease of use a non-stick pan)
- Make sure all utensils clean and grease free (wipe the bowl and utensil with lemon juice or vinegar to helps remove grease)
- Preheat your oven before you start
- Use fresh eggs that are room temperature (other ingredients also must be at room temperature)
- Beat egg whites until stiff peak
- Sift the dry ingredients
- Mix each batches of the dry ingredients evenly until there are no lumps
- Make sure the wet ingredients are combined well with the batter
- Make sure the batter is stirred well (pay attention to the flow and consistency)
- Don’t let the batter sit too long before baking, bake it immediately
- Resist the urge to open the oven door while baking
- Once it’s baked, remove the cake immediately from the pan
- Let the cake cool completely on a cooling rack before wrapping
- Wrap the cooled cake tightly in a cling wrap so it doesn’t dry up
Recipe
VANILLA SPONGE CAKE
Yield: One 7-Inch (8 or 9 cm tall) Round Pan
* I used 6-Inch (10 cm tall) Round Pan in the video for taller cake
❄️ Ingredients
5 Egg Whites (165-175 g) ~ room temperature
1 tsp Lemon Juice
200 g Caster Sugar
5 Egg Yolks (85-95 g) ~ room temperature
140 g Cake Flour
3/4 teaspoon Baking Powder (Double Acting)
40 g Milk ~ room temperature
25 g Vegetable Oil
1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
Notes: you can substitute Lemon Juice with 1 tsp White Vinegar or 1/2 tsp of Cream of Tartar
❄️ Instructions
Preparation
- Place a piece of parchment paper on the bottom of the pan (don’t grease or use a non-stick pan)
- Make sure all utensils clean and grease free (wipe the bowl and utensil with lemon juice or vinegar to helps remove grease).
- Take the eggs and other cold ingredients out of the fridge
Separate egg whites and egg yolks; then let them come to room temperature. - Preheat the oven 150°C fan/ 170°C/ gas mark 3.
- Combine the dry ingredients (Cake Flour and Baking Powder)
- Mix the wet ingredients (Milk, Oil and Vanilla Extract)
To make Vanilla Sponge Cake
- Beat the Egg Whites over HIGH speed for about 30 seconds until foamy.
- Add Lemon Juice (or white Vinegar or Cream of Tartar) and continue beating for another 30 seconds.
* Acid in Lemon Juice/ Vinegar/ Cream of Tartar will help stabilizing the egg whites - Add sugar in 3 batches every 1 minute.
- Once all the sugar is added, continue beating on high speed until stiff peak for about 3 minutes (the mixture will gradually thicken and look shiny).
- Pour in the Egg Yolks; Using a hand whisk, stir gently until evenly mixed.
- Add sifted dry ingredients in 3 batches (don’t skip this process; by sifting the flour, it will break up any lumps, create a light, delicate, and fluffy results).
Stir gently; Make sure that you scrape the entire surface of the bowl so that there is no flour residue on the sides and bottom of the bowl (mix each batches evenly until there are no lumps). - Then take about 2 cups of this egg-flour mixture into the wet ingredients; mix really well.
* By using this pre-mix method, the milk-oil mixture will incorporated easily with the egg mixture.
It prevents the oil and milk from falling directly to the bottom of the bowl, which would cause the cake didn’t rise properly - Pour the pre-mix mixture back to the egg-flour mixture; using a hand whisk stir gently.
Then using spatula, scrape all the bottom and sides of the bowl, make sure it is evenly mixed.
How much you mix is very important
When you drop the mixture and it doesn’t flow; that’s means you haven’t mix enough and the batter won’t rise properly.
Drop it with a spatula and check, pay attention to the flow and thickness; When it flows smoothly, that’s means it’s ready. - Slowly pour the batter from a position of about 15 cm from the pan so that the excess bubbles can burst.
- Using a skewer make this circular motion to flatten the batter and break the large bubbles.
- Tap the pan to remove excess bubbles.
- Then immediately bake in the preheated 150°C fan/ 170°C/ gas mark 3 oven on the bottom rack for 55 minutes.
After 55 minutes, increase the temperature to 170°C fan/ 190°C/ gas mark 5 and continue bake for another 10 minutes.
* Resist the urge to peek until your cake is done; Opening the oven door while you bake will release some of the heat, this can lead to the cake being too damp in the middle or even falling - Once it’s done, remove the cake immediately from the pan (so that the moisture can escape and not damage the structure of the cake).
Using spatula, scrape the sides of the pan; turn it over and let it cool completely on a cooling rack. - Once it’s cool, this cake can be use immediately to build your cake of choice or wrap it tightly in a cling wrap and freeze until ready to use it.
Notes
- Cool the cake completely before wrapping (wrap in a cling wrap then put in a ziplog bag) for freezer storage up to 1 months or use immediately.
- Cake without filling can be store in the fridge for up to a week (the filling and icing will determinte storage time).