Strawberry and Cream Sponge Cake

Sponge cake with or without butter?! I’ve tried both. And honestly I couldn’t tell the difference at all. Sometimes I just feel like to have a little fat in my slice of cake because cake and butter are best friends. But I will have to say that the tempering process of adding the melted butter into a small portion of cake batter before mixing it to the rest can really be a pain in the ass. It could be the separated cake batter, deflated cake layers, or gummy tasted cake.

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That’s why I understand why people never go back to using butter in their sponge cake. Only three basic ingredients (eggs, sugar and flour) and you are ready to easily whip up a classic sponge cake with no fuss at all. The cake is delicious, light and airy. It’s so versatile that it can go with anything. Whipped cream, jam, buttercream, chocolate ganache, vanilla glaze…

One of my favourite cakes in spring/summer is the one with tons of whipped cream and berries. It looks beautiful, summery and cheerful. And it tastes delicious, light and fluffy! And when I said berries, I meant it could be any berries. And you know you should try mixed berries because it will look stunningly beautiful!

One more thing – you could go ahead to halve the recipe portion and make a 6-inch mini cake. Look at this one. So adorable!

Ingredients (one 8-inch layered cake):
6 large eggs, room temperature, separated
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon lemon zest
1 cup cake flour, sifted
2 cups heavy cream
2 tablespoons powdered sugar
1/2 cup good quality strawberry jam
3 cups fresh strawberries

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350F. Grease and line the bottom of three 8-inch cake pans with parchment paper. Set aside.
In a bowl of a standing mixer with a whisk attachment, beat egg whites on medium speed until foamy. Add 1/4 cup sugar and continue beating until stiff peaks form. Scrape the meringue in another bowl. Set aside.
In the same mixing bowl, beat egg yolks and 1/2 cup sugar on high speed until thick and light in color, about 5 minutes. Add vanilla, lemon juice and zest. Mix for another minute.
Sift flour and the remaining 1/4 cup sugar over top of egg yolk mixture. Fold the flour mixture in the egg mixture, followed by half of the meringue.
Fold the rest of the meringue into the batter until just incorporated. Pour the batter into the prepared pans evenly and smooth the top.
Bake for 15 to 18 minutes or until the cakes are golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Remove the cakes from the oven and let cool in pan for 5 minutes. Run a thin knife around the cake edge and place the cake on a wire rack to cool completely.
Whip the heavy cream and powdered sugar until it holds stiff peak.
To assemble the cake, place one cake layer on your serving plate and spread 1/3 of the jam. Spread 1/3 of the whipped cream on top. Place slice strawberries along the edge of the cake, and scatter some in the centre. Top with another cake layer, followed with jam, cream and strawberries.
Chill the cake until ready to serve. Sprinkle powdered sugar on top before serving.

68 comments

  1. It didn’t really work out as intended it wasn’t really a sponge cake more like a meringue cookie like cake

  2. Thanks for sharing this receipt. I tried this cake last year in my daughter’s birthday and she asked me to repeat today and it’s wonderful! The way you top the strawberries is so charming.

  3. I just baked this cake today. It looks good but it smells very strongly of eggs. I’ve never made a sponge cake before so I’m not sure if this is common? I’ve never had this happen with any other cake. I halved the recipe and made two 6 inch cakes but I followed the recipe exactly. Do you know if I did something wrong? I’m thinking of tossing it but wasn’t sure if maybe it was normal? Thanks

    1. I just realized I did omit the lemon juice and zest but was maybe heavy handed on the vanilla extract. I do know vanilla extract can offset the egg smell. Could the lemon be the reason? Would it taste like eggs if it smells like it?

  4. Thanks so much for sharing the recipe for this elegant cake! I’m definitely going to be making this as soon as strawberries come in season here, which thankfully won’t be long! It’s such a lovely, elegant looking dessert and looks so fluffy, light and delicious!

  5. Made this last weekend and it was DIVINE! I only have two 8″ pans and didn’t want to wait to fill/bake the third, so I made with just two layers and it was wonderful, just slightly thicker layers than the photo depicts. I used Bonne Maman Intense Red Fruit Jam, which is slightly more tart/complex in comparison to a typical strawberry jam (and has less sugar/more fruit) and it was PERFECT! I held up (covered) in the fridge for 2 days and I can’t wait to make it again.

  6. Could I maybe add some strawberry to the cake batter to make it taste even more of strawberry? Or would it harm the consistency?

  7. Hi, I would like to attempt this cake, but I only have room in my oven for 2 cake tins (7′) on one shelf, the third would have to go on a different level… would this effect the cooking?

  8. I am not sure if my pregnancy brain is messing me or what!? But the ingredients says 1- 8 inch layered cake pan.
    Does this mean I have to triple the Ingredients to get 3 layers? Or is this one cakes sliced into 3 layers.
    Thank you! I cannot wait to try it.

  9. So, I hate baking. It makes me anxious and irritable and aggressive (unlike cooking in which I usually zen out). There’s so much chemistry in baking and so much at stake. But my daughter loves it so we decided to bond over a “Summer! Cake!” series and make one cake a week through the summer. This was the PERFECT recipe for our first cake. I kept the snapping and micromanaging to a minimum. We had fun. And the cake itself was delicious and gorgeous! We topped it with strawberries, blackberries and wild daisy heads from our garden. Thank you! I’ll make this again and again

  10. Do you know about how many cups of batter this makes up? I’m baking a large cake and just wondering if I can get away with a double batch or need to make even more. Thanks!

    1. Hi Kaitlyn, this recipe is good for making an 8-inch cake. You can easily halve the recipe to make a smaller cake, like a 5 or 6-inch cake. If you would like to make a cake bigger than 8-inch, I would suggest you to make two batches separately instead of just doubling the portion of the ingredients.

  11. Hello Fanny,

    Looks so fantastic!! I’d like to try your recipe on my daughter’s 1st birthday. However, I have 6″ round shape cake pan, how can I adjust the ingredients?

    Thanks in advance.

    1. Hi Ashley, I make 6″ mini cake all the time. I simply halve the recipe portion:
      3 eggs
      1/2 cup sugar
      1/2 teaspoon vanilla
      1 teaspoon lemon juice
      1/2 tablespoon lemon zest
      1/2 cup cake flour, sifted

      Remember to release cake layers from the pans after they are not too hot to handle. Leaving the cakes in pans to cool completely will result in deflated cakes. :)

  12. Hi do you think I could make this gluten free by replacing flour with half fine almond and gluten free flour?

    Warm regards

    Sand

  13. So… I have never made this type of cake before. I narrowed down my recipes to 3. I made 2 out of the 3 because I couldn’t rely solely ON one outcome, since this is being delivered to someone. I use regular all purpose flour. Not cake flour. I am curious if that would change the density of the cakes. These cakes seem slightly flat. They smell delicious, but they just don’t look as FLUFFY as your photos. Ian sure with a ton of strawberries and whipped topping concoction it will be delicious regardless, but I don’t usually like to settle for less. Any thoughts?

    1. Hi Kristin, my guess would be the egg yolks/whites were not whipped long enough to create the “air” that makes cake light and fluffy. Also, the lower protein in cake flour keeps cakes light and and airy.

  14. Just wondering, if i was to make the cake the day before, would it be better to add the cream and strawberries the day i need it or would it be fine to do it the day before?

  15. What do you use to grease the cake pans? Do they need to be greased since this is a sponge cake?

    1. Yes, I do grease the cake pans with a light layer of vegetable oil. Just make sure you release the cake from the pan after it’s cool enough to handle right after it comes out from the oven. It prevents the cake from shrinking.

  16. I just made this for my husband’s birthday. It was sublime! Not overly sweet, very light & bright. I did add a touch of vanilla extract to the whipped cream for a bit more dimension, and substituted raw sugar for the granulated, which worked great. Wanted to extend my gratitude for the recipe! It was my first time making a sponge and it was shockingly quick, easy – and most importantly – delicious!

    1. If I do not have 3 8-inch cake molds can I use a single 9-inch cake and slice the cake so I have all 3 levels?

      1. Yes, you can do that, Mariale. It might be a little too thin to go with 3 layers. I would try cut the cake in half to make two layers.

  17. Hi, so do the ingredients need to be tripled in order to make the THREE- 8-inch layers that this recipe calls for ??

    1. I made two 9-inch rounds and followed the recipe exactly (just used half jam, half whipped cream & half the strawberries during assembly vs. thirds). Seemed like there was enough to have filled three 8-inchers :)

      1. The recipe is good a three-layer 8-inch cake. Only if you want a small one, like a 5-inch cake, you could halve the recipe. :)

    2. Hi, do the ingredients need to be tripled in order to make the THREE 8-inch layers that the recipe calls for?

  18. Hi, can the cake be made ahead of time, frozen and assembled later (like 2 days later?)

    1. Hi Michie, yes, you can totally do that! Make sure you wrap it tight with plastic wrap! :)

  19. An alternative to berries is to layer lemon butter then cream. Adds a tangy sweetness.

  20. Lovely cake! My daughter would like this for her bridal shower this June. Problem is…I don’t have a standing mixer :(. Any alternative? ~hopeful

    1. Hi Cindy, any hand-held mixer can easily do the job! Even a whisk is good too if you have enough arm power! :) Hope you daughter enjoy the cake!

  21. What a beautiful cake! My daughter wants this for her bridal shower. My problem… I don’t have a standing mixer. Is it possible to make with a hand mixer? ~Hopeful

  22. I made this cake for my husband’s birthday. It has become somewhat of a tradition to make a strawberry and cream cake. This one is one of the best I’ve made. I followed the recipe with the exception of adding stabilizer to the whipped cream. It came out perfect! I wouldn’t suggest making it ahead of time though. While the cake stayed moist and the whipped cream was stabilized it was okay but I found that the strawberries became a little bit acidic. Also, I suggest storing in a box when refrigerating it as the cake absorbed that “fridge smell” . I will definitely make this again! Thanks for a great recipe!

    1. Awww! I’m so happy to hear that, Jessica! My family loves this cake too, and I make it all the time! Try adding or switching other berries as the berry season has started! :)

      1. Jessica – what did you do to stabilize the whipped cream? I plan to make this the morning of a birthday and want to make sure it holds in the fridge for about 6 hours.

        1. King Arthur flour . Com has shipped cream stabilizer and it works great. In a pinch, add a big spoon full of marshmallow cream to your whipped cream and that works too.

  23. Beautiful cake! Do you think this cake would stay fresh or get soggy if done the day before it was needed?

    1. Thanks, Melanie! I’ve made this cake and serve it two days later. Surprisingly, it still tasted fresh and was not soggy at all! :)

  24. Wow, what a gorgeous spring cake! It’s simple, but sometimes we just have to go back to basics and re-discover their beauty. Well done!

    1. Thank you! Yes! All simple, basic yet delicious and beautiful is definitely what we need in a cake sometimes!

  25. Hi Fanny, what a beautiful cake! I would love to try it. I do have one question, how can I replace cake flour with all purpose? so many explanations on the web, I’m not sure which one would work.

    1. Hi Jazz, for one cup of cake flour, what you need to do is to have one cup of all purpose flour, scoop out a tablespoon of all purpose flour and replace it with one tablespoon of cornstarch. Hope it helps. :)

  26. Thank you all, guys! This is a lovely and very delicious cake. So simple to make too. Hope you will enjoy the recipe! :)

  27. I saw this cake on Instagram yesterday and was wondering if it will be on your blog. Here you go! Thanks for sharing. Gonna make this for the weekend!

  28. Simple and delicious! What a lovely way of showcasing the strawberries which are in full-season right now. Thank you for sharing, my family will enjoy this.

  29. I am the victim here. I’ve never been able to sucessfully make a sponge cake because of the step that I have to add the butter in the cake batter. And it’s alwasy the part I failed! I will definitely try your recipe. It looks really simple and pretty failure-proof. :P Fingers crossed!

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