It seems simple to make a sponge cake base, but it can go so wrong that you don't even recognise the sweetness. And beyond the basic pastry, there are also cocoa and seed variations that can be a brilliant base for cakes.
Sponge cake base or sponge cake dough is one of the most common ingredients in Hungarian confectionery. We love classic sponge cakes with different fillings and decorations, light filled cakes or somloi, which also have a sponge cake base. It sounds very simple to make a 3-ingredient pastry, but in practice it can have many pitfalls. It should not be flat, very dry, tasteless or too crumbly. And that's just the beginning, because even if you can make a good lemon-vanilla sponge cake, it's not enough to be saved. Exist cocoa version, and even very clever bakers can add seeds without the sponge base collapsing.
Did you know? Sponge cake dough is as much loved and used in Japan and Italy as it is in Hungary. The common point is that the more airy the dough, the higher the praise.
That's not what sponge cake was originally called
I think it is an incredibly exciting game to discover the origins of our great classics. Such is the case with sponge cake, which we usually pin on our forks rather than analyse the „where it came from”. But it is originally a Portuguese recipe. A lot of the delicacies came from Portuguese convents, from nuns who were busy in the kitchen, trying to find and preserve recipes for economical but delicious dishes. Their main characteristic was the use of many eggs, including yolks, because the whites were used to starch their clothes. They used the yolks of the eggs to invent various sweets and sweet creams. That's why, to this day, anyone who visits this country will come across the thick vanilla custard, sugary, cinnamon cakes in every small café. However, Portuguese sailors in the 16th century took the recipe to China, who also appropriated it and named it Kasutera. It reached France and Italy, who christened it Pao de Lo, and we know it as sponge cake. The original recipe starts with at least 15 eggs and a lot of yolks, but every country has tweaked it a little. But the main thing is that it is light, nice yellow, rich, slightly - but not too - sweet, fragrant and naturally filling.
Cocoa sponge cake base with seeds
The light sponge base can be made gluten-free, with different flours and cocoa. Cocoa replaces some of the flour in the dough and adds a little more character to the taste. It requires more routine and attention, but can be varied even further. The sponge base can hide dried fruit, if handled skilfully, seeds, but also the lighter versions and not in big chunks. Once you've made or bought a seeded, cocoa sponge base, all you need is a good recipe for a thick raspberry or chocolate cream to make the perfect dessert.
