There’s no cake that says happy birthday more than a sponge, at least in my family.It is the
quintessential celebration cake, particularly for those with roots firmly planted in the country.The good thing about the sponge is that as well as being a crowd pleaser – what’s not to like about cream and jam sandwiched between two cakes - it’s also surprisingly easy to make, once you do the ground work.
Sponge cakes are a fundamental block in your cake-building repertoire. Unlike butter cakes, a true sponge cake includes little or no fat, other than what's in the egg yolks. Traditional recipes produce cakes leavened only by the air beaten into the eggs, not by baking powder or bicarbonate of soda.
Sponge cakes are used in sandwich cakes, layer cakes, charlottes, swiss rolls and tiramisu (either sheet or piped into fingers)
Madeleines are also a version of sponge cake