History Sponge Cake

Barrycdog

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Joined
Jan 6, 2013
Location
Buford, Georgia
Milledgeville News, Mar. 23, 1917 -- page 4

Sponge Cake

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
3 eggs
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup flower
1 teaspoon salt
1/8 cup cold water
1 teaspoon full flavoring

Directions boil sugar and water until it spins a thread and add stiffly beaten whites of eggs, beating until mixture is cold. Sift together three time the flour salt and baking powder, and add alternatively to the white mixture with the yolks of the eggs beaten stiff. Add 1/8 cup of cold water and flavoring, mix lightly and bake in moderate oven about 1 hour.
 
Sponge Cake has a long history.

From 1420-1520 Italian cooks made a soft biscuit that was the pre-requisite to sponge cake.

The first sponge cake recipe was in "The English Housewife" by Gervase Markham in 1615.

By the 19th century sponge cakes no longer had yeast as it was replaced by beaten eggs. There was recipe in the cookbook, "The American Frugal Housewife" by Maria Childs.

A variation of the sponge cake was called the Victorian sponge cake. It was Queen Victoria's favorite cake to have with afternoon tea. Unlike plain sponge cake, the cake was sandwiched using jam and whipped double cream. The use of jam also eraned the cake, the nickname jam sponge.
 
August 23 was National Sponge Cake Day. Thought bring this thread back up. I was out of town on 23rd but adding now.

Lemon Sponge Cake from "Old-Fashioned Celebrations, Recipes & Traditions from Conner Prairie Museum" Bear Wallow Books.

6 eggs
3 cups white sugar
2 teaspoons cream of tarter
2 cups sifted unbleached flour
1 teaspoon soda
grated rind of 1 lemon
juice of lemon
1 cup water
1/4 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, beat the egg yolks until light. Gradually add sugar, then water continue beating. Into a separate bowl, sift together the flour, cream of tarter, soda and salt, and add to the egg yolk mixture, beating thoroughly. Stir in the grated lemon rind and juice. Grease and flour 10 inch tube pan. Spoon batter into pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 50 to 55 minutes.
 
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