I made myself an Earl Grey Sponge Cake for my birthday this morning. This sponge cake recipe can be used for cakes and cupcakes! It has the perfect texture and crumb to soak up all the yummy fillings in cakes, or can be enjoyed with some freshly whipped cream and strawberries like me!
What you’ll need:
- eggs
- all purpose flour
- sugar
- salt
- vanilla extract
- ground earl grey tea
How to make Earl Grey Sponge Cake
- Preheat your oven to 350ºF. Grease your cake pan by coating with pan spray or butter.
- Beat the eggs, sugar, salt, vanilla extract in a stand mixer, on medium speed. Beat the egg mixture for about 20 minutes.
- The egg mixture should start to turn pale yellow and thick/fluffy in texture.
- Sift the flour to prevent any clumps of flour.
- Add the flour to the egg mixture in 3 parts. Use a whisk to carefully fold in the flour. Repeat for the remaining 2 parts of flour.
- I like to use a whisk for this step instead of a spatula. The idea here is that we do not want to lose all the air that was beaten into the egg mixture. Using a whisk will prevent the air from deflating in the batter.
- Add the ground earl grey tea and fold in with a whisk.
- Transfer the batter to the greased cake pan.
- Don’t tap the cake pan on the counter, remember that we do not want to lose any air bubbles from the batter. This is our leavening agent in this cake!
- Bake the sponge cake for 30 minutes. Do not open the oven during the bake time. The sponge cake is done when you insert a toothpick and it comes out clean.
- Turn off the oven and let the cake cool in the oven for another 10 minutes. Use a wooden spoon to keep the oven door slightly open.
- We are trying to gradually lower the temperature of the cake, any drastic temperature change can cause the cake to deflate.
- Transfer the cake onto a cooling rack. Let the cake cool to room temperature before slicing into it.
Storing methods
- On countertop: store the cake in an airtight container on the counter for up to 3 days.
- Refrigerator: tightly wrap the cake with plastic wrap to keep the cake in the fridge for up to 1 week.
- Freezer: this cake freezes really well when stored in an airtight container. Can keep in the freezer for up to 3 months!
Earl Grey Sponge Cake
This sponge cake is for the tea lovers out there! This cake is tender and infused with earl grey tea for the slightest tea flavor. It's perfect for any cake recipe or yummy with a dollop freshly whipped cream!
Servings: 4 servings
Ingredients
- 5 eggs at room temperature
- 1⅓ cups all purpose flour 150 grams
- ¾ cup sugar 150 grams
- pinch salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract 4 grams
- ½ tsp earl grey tea, finely ground 2 grams
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Prepare your 9-inch cake pan by greasing it with pan spray or butter.
- Using a stand mixer, beat the eggs, sugar, salt, and vanilla extract on medium speed. Beat for 20 minutes or until the egg mixture is pale yellow in color and thick/flluffy in texture.
- Sift the flour. Add the flour to the egg mixture in 3 parts. Using a whisk, gently fold in the flour. Repeat this step 2 more times for the remainder of the flour.
- Add the finely ground earl grey tea and fold it into the batter.
- Transfer the cake batter to the greased cake pan. Do not tap the cake pan on the counter, to prevent any loss of the air bubbles.
- Bake for 30 minutes. Do not open the oven door during the entire bake time (opening the oven door while it is baking, may cause the cake to deflate). The cake is done when a toothpick comes out clean when inserted.
- Turn off the oven and allow the cake to cool in the oven for 10 minutes. Use a wooden spoon to keep the oven door slightly open.
- Transfer the cake onto to a cooling rack and allow it to cool to room temperature before slicing into the cake.
