Pâtisserie / Recipe

Tårtbotten

[All-around sponge cake]

all around sponge cake

Ann, one of my Instagram followers, asked on a video of the sponge pictured above if it was “the same recipe as the sponge for the Fraisier in your cookbook?”, to which I replied that this one is slightly different – it has a touch of milk and some baking powder as well. And that really, it would be fun and interesting to bake both and compare. She even mentioned a hot-milk sponge, which made me extremely curious.

I really think I might have to do a recipe study on classical sponge cakes: génoise, tårtbotten, hot-milk and more. TBC.

All-around sponge cake

This tårtbotten really is an all-around sponge cake. I make for everything, from the classic Swedish prinsesstårta [princess cake] to roll cakes.
For a layer cake, I like to bake mine in a 20cm cake tin, and then slice it into 3 or 4 layers after it's cooled down.
For a roll cake, I usually bake it into a 30x40cm baking tray. Make sure to adjust the baking temperature to 225°C/fan 200°C, and bake the sponge for 5-8 minutes.

Notes

It is very traditional in Sweden to replace half the flour with potato starch for a lighter sponge - this is not something I usually do, but I will try it next time I bake one.
Author: Fanny Zanotti
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
Total Time45 minutes
Makes 1 20cm cake

Ingredients

  • 3 eggs
  • 125 g caster sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla sugar
  • a pinch of salt
  • 2 tbsp whole milk
  • 120 g plain flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 175°C/fan 160°C.
  • Butter a 20cm-cake tin and line the bottom with baking paper.
  • In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs and caster sugar with a pinch of salt until pale and fluffy. Stir in the whole milk.
  • Sift in the wheat flour and baking powder. And gently fold into the egg mixture until fully combined.
  • Pour the cake batter into the prepared tin, and bake in the preheated oven for approximately 25-30 minutes, or until the cake is lightly golden and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
  • Leave the cake to cool in the tin for 5-10 minutes, then unmould and allow to cool completely on a wire rack.
  • Once cooled, gently peel away the baking paper from the base of the cake, and use as you wish.

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