If you were like me when I started out baking, you probably thought that eggs were super important for making cakes. You would be right except that there are substitutes for the dairy product and thus the eggless cake was invented. There is a wide variety of eggless cakes especially those that heavily rely on the egg foam for lift of course, the sponge cake.
Not to be confused with a vegan sponge cake Iike the one shared in this recipe, this variant still contains some dairy in the form of milk to make it moist and rich. The milk is especially important since it's a chocolate sponge cake.
This cake will also be layered with whipped cream but other glazes will do. In fact, this cake is quite versatile and to get you started, this recipe will include some variations to try out.
The recipe
Cake Ingredients:
- 2 cups self-raising flour
- 1/2 cup good quality cocoa powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 cup caster sugar
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup cold water or milk (preferably the latter for a richer taste)
- 1 tbsp vinegar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Cream Ingredients:
- 2 cups heavy cream, cold
- 2 tbsp powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
The directions
Cake Directions:
- Preheat the oven to 180°C. Line the insides of a couple of 20cm sandwich tins with parchment paper or grease with butter and dust with flour.
- Sift the flour, cocoa powder, and baking soda together in a mixing bowl. Make sure to sift them twice. Add the sugar and whisk everything until well combined.
- Whisk the vegetable oil, milk, vinegar, and vanilla extract together in another bowl until well combined. Add the dry mixture and combine to complete the batter.
- Evenly, divide the batter among the tins and smooth down the surfaces using a spatula. Bake in the oven for 25 to 30 minutes or until the surfaces of the cakes springs when touched. Remove and place on a rack to cool for 10 minutes.
- Invert the tins on the cake rack gently and lift them straight up to remove the cakes.
- Reinvert the cakes. Use a sharp knife to slice the small domes on the tops, leaving flat surfaces.
Cream Directions:
- Pour the heavy cream into a bowl and beat until it forms soft peaks Add the powdered sugar and vanilla extract and continue to beat until it forms stiff peaks.
- Evenly spread half of the whipped cream across the surface of one cake to layer it. Place the second cake on top of the first and spread the remaining cream on top.
- Serve or seal for later use. The cake can last for up to three days.
Serves: 8 to 10
Variations
- Buttercream - Substitute buttercream frosting for the whipped cream.
- Red Velvet - Add a few drops of red food coloring. Also, substitute buttercream frosting for the whipped cream.
- Coconut - Substitute coconut extract for the vanilla extract for both the cake and cream ingredients. Add shredded coconut as a garnish for the cake.
