Basic Sponge Cake
A basic easy to make sponge mix. Use this basic sponge to either leave plain or fill with icing or whipped cream or top with your favourite flavoured icing.
Preparation time: 15 minutes Quantity: Makes 6 - 8 portions Cooking time: 30 minutes
Ingredients
120 g / 4 oz self raising flour
1 level teaspoon baking powder
120 g / 4 oz butter - softened
120 g / 4 oz caster sugar
2 medium eggs
Flavour - Optional
Chocolate - replace 30 g / 1 oz of flour with coco powder
coffee - add 1 tablespoon of camp coffee to the mix
Coconut - Add 30 g / 1 oz of desiccated coconut to the mix and ice with coconut icing
Lemon - Add 1/2 fresh lemon juice and all the zest and top soak with a little lemon stock syrup
Method
- Sift the flour and baking powder together, twice preferably
- Beat in the soft butter, eggs and sugar
- Mix for a couple of minutes until smooth and slightly paler
- Spoon in to a greased cake tin (approx. 7 - 8 inch)
- Bake in a preheated oven gas 3 / 160*c for 20 - 30 minutes the cake should feel firm
- Cool slightly, then turn out on to a wire rack to cool completely
Tip - to check if a cake is cooked, insert a skewer or thin knife into the center and if it comes out clean - the cake is cooked, if it comes out with cake mix on it put the cake back until cooked.