Iheart this recipe so much! Why? Because you can enjoy this sponge cake as is or add whatever fresh, canned or stewed fruits you’d like and it’ll impress the crowd every time, even if the crowd is just you, you’ll still be impressed with yourself, every time (haha). I’ve used many different fruits and it is always a winner. Top with some fresh or sweetened cream and enjoy!
I’ve used different fruits, besides using various fresh berries, I’ve used canned litchi, mandarin, pineapple, peaches and stewed plums, apples, nectarines, etc.
You can feel free to use any standard cake tin for this recipe (20cm or 23 cm) – round or square but I wouldn’t recommend using a small loaf tin as the batter might be a bit too heavy and the cake loaf might be too dense (I haven’t tried it but that would be my suspicion).
Check out the quick video below the recipes to see what you’ll be making!
Ingredients
- 140 g butter softened
- 150 g light brown sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla essence
- 4 large eggs separated and at room temperature
- 1 tbsp orange zest *optional if using Mandarin Oranges
- ¼ cup milk
- 200 g flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- Dash of salt
- Mandarin oranges/Other fruit to top *optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 175 degrees celsius. Prepare your baking tin (20/23cm) with baking paper and cooking spray. Place the prepared dish aside until you're ready to add the batter.
- You can mix the ingredients using a stand mixer or using a spatula - mix the softened butter, light brown sugar, and vanilla essence together until well incorporated and creamed.
- Separated the yolk of the eggs from the whites. Keep the whites aside (don't place the egg whites in the fridge, keep them at room temperature). Add the yolks and orange zest (if using) to the creamed butter mixture. Add the milk and mix well (the milk will not fully incorporate but don't worry). Set aside.
- Add a dash of salt to the egg whites and whisk until a soft peak form. Set aside but do not place the egg whites in the fridge.
- Add the flour and baking powder to the batter and mix until well combined. Add the beaten egg whites to the wet batter and fold in gently. At first, it will feel like to mixture takes a while to combine but be gentle and patient.
- Add the batter to your prepared dish, spread evenly, and top with whichever fruit you'd like (fresh or canned). If it's stewed fruit and there is some additional liquid then you could also add that on top. Lightly press the fruit into the batter. Bake for 30-40 mins at 175C / 345F or until light brown in color and a wooden toothpick runs clean when inserted into the cake.
- Top with fresh pouring or whipped or sweetened cream and enjoy! Yes, Ice cream will work just as well *hint hint*.