A cake stand serving a sponge cake filled with lemon curd and whipped cream

Sponge cake

By Sophie Godwin
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(66 ratings)
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Prep: 15 mins Cook: 30 mins

Easy

Serves 8 - 10

Choose your favourite filling for this easy sponge cake – we've opted for lemon curd and whipped cream, but you could have jam. Perfect for afternoon tea

Nutrition and extra info

  • Freezable
  • Vegetarian

Nutrition: Per serving

  • kcal376
  • fat21g
  • saturates12g
  • carbs40g
  • sugars23g
  • fibre1g
  • protein6g
  • salt0.7g
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Ingredients

  • 225g softened butter
    Butter

    Butter

    butt-err

    Butter is a dairy product made from separating whole milk or cream into fat and…

  • 225g golden caster sugar
  • 4 large eggs
    Eggs

    Egg

    egg

    The ultimate convenience food, eggs are powerhouses of nutrition packed with protein and a…

  • ½ lemon, zested
    Lemon

    Lemon

    le-mon

    Oval in shape with a pronouced bulge on one end, lemons are one of the most versatile…

  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 225g self-raising flour
  • splash of milk

    Milk

    mill-k

    One of the most widely used ingredients, milk is often referred to as a 'complete' food…

  • Optional fillings of lemon curd, jam, lightly whipped cream
  • icing sugar for dusting

Method

  1. Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4, butter and line the base of two 20cm spring-form cake tins with baking parchment.

  2. Using an electric whisk beat the butter and sugar together until pale and fluffy. Crack the eggs in one at a time and whisk well, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. Add the lemon zest, vanilla, flour, milk and a pinch of salt. Whisk until just combined then divide the mixture between the two tins.

  3. Bake in the centre of the oven for 25-30 mins until a skewer inserted into the middle of each cake comes out clean. After 10 mins remove the cakes from their tins and leave to cool completely on a wire rack. Fill how you like. My personal favourite is a good dollop of lemon curd and some fresh cream, then dust the top with icing sugar. Will keep for 3 days.

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Comments, questions and tips

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muskratlove's picture
muskratlove
14th Jun, 2020
3.05
Oh dear! I thought it was just me! I wanted to make a nice light sponge cake sandwich, and fill with jam and cream. This turned out very heavy and was sizzling with butter during baking. Now I’ve read the other comments, I know why. Definitely not the sponge cake I was hoping to make.
Audrey Turnbull's picture
Audrey Turnbull
17th Jun, 2020
Try to mix it more
Chloe LK's picture
Chloe LK
23rd May, 2020
2.05
THIS IS NOT A SPONGE CAKE This is a pound cake recipe, not a sponge. I made it and realised part way along that it absolutely is not a sponge cake, which has a much, MUCH lighter texture. This cake turned out to be quite delicious but if you are looking to make a sponge, don't waste your time, effort, or money on this!
Janey uk's picture
Janey uk
22nd May, 2020
5.05
Absolutely amazing sponge cake and that is coming from someone who normally ends up with a disaster. Very light and tasty. I put the oven to 160 though as van assisted. Will be using this again to make a lemon drizzle.
Elena Poulos's picture
Elena Poulos
14th May, 2020
4.05
Great cake, would post a photo if I could! Takes longer in the oven and I would say needs a lower temperature to bake but came out great!
Katarina Guerrero's picture
Katarina Guerrero
19th Jan, 2020
5.05
It was amazing. The best cake I've ever made. My family all love it. Thanks for the recipe
Madethisaccount...
23rd Dec, 2019
1.05
This recipe was God awful and left me with two thin rubbery disks of buttery garbage. Upon doing further research I have concluded that a sponge recipe should contain little to no fat or butter. A cup of butter in this recipe completely destroyed it. Thanks
Jaivardhan
1st Nov, 2019
5.05
I tried it out it was really soft and tastes amazing with lemon curd.
Kittyyyyy
31st May, 2019
5.05
this recipe is amazing! the result is delicious and probably the best thing i’ve made by far. i added strawberries and whipped cream in the middle which made it fresh and fluffy. so simple but so good thank you
Amber.wright's picture
Amber.wright
11th Apr, 2019
So happy with this recipe, the result was amazing!

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Soukaina Lgamawi's picture
Soukaina Lgamawi
28th Oct, 2018
Can you use one cake tin instead of two?
goodfoodteam's picture
goodfoodteam
2nd Nov, 2018
We'd recommend using two tins for this recipe to ensure the cakes cook properly.
nbeddoe
31st Oct, 2018
I don't know if you could. When we made the layer cake one layer was much thicker than the others and it was beginning to brown on the outside when it was still wet in the middle.
jennysharpe
12th Sep, 2018
Can this cake be iced to make it a bit more special for a birthday?
Audrey Turnbull's picture
Audrey Turnbull
17th Jun, 2020
Yes
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