Sponge cake is a cake based on flour (usually wheat flour), sugar, and eggs, and is sometimes leavened with baking powder.[1] It has a firm, yet well aerated structure, similar to a sea sponge. A sponge cake may be produced by the batter method or the foam method.
Cake made using the batter method is known as a butter or pound cake in the U.S., while in the U.K. it is known as Madeira cake or Victoria sponge cake. A cake made using the foam method is known as a sponge cake or, in the U.K., also as whisked sponge. These forms of cake are common in Europe, especially in French patisserie.
(or foam cakes) are made from whipped eggs, sugar, and flour. They rely primarily on trapped air in a protein matrix (generally of beaten eggs) to provide leavening, sometimes with a bit of baking powder or other chemical leaven added as insurance. Sponge cakes are thought to be the oldest cakes made without yeast. An angel food cake is a white sponge cake that uses only the whites of the eggs and is traditionally baked in a tube pan. The French Génoise is a sponge cake that includes clarified butter. Highly decorated sponge cakes with lavish toppings are sometimes called gateau; the French word for cake.