10 Inch Square Sponge Cake Food

MOM'S SPONGE CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9x13-inch baking pan.
• Beat eggs in a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment on high speed until thick and lemon-colored, about 3 minutes. Gradually add sugar, beating until mixture is thick, about 5 minutes. Fold flour, baking powder, and salt into the batter by hand.
• Microwave milk in a small microwave-safe bowl until it begins to bubble, about 1 minute. Stir in butter until melted. Add vanilla extract.
• Pour milk mixture into the batter; blend on low speed until well-combined and smooth. Pour into the prepared pan.
• Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes.

SPONGE CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a small saucepan, warm the milk and 2 teaspoons of the butter together over medium-low heat. With an electric mixer fitted with a wire whip, beat the eggs and 1 cup of the sugar on medium-high speed in a large mixing bowl until the mixture is pale yellow, thick, and tripled in volume, about 8 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, beat in the warm milk mixture. Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt into a small mixing bowl. Add half the flour mixture to the egg mixture and blend thoroughly until smooth. Repeat with the other half. Add the vanilla and mix gently. Grease a 17 by 12-inch baking pan or jelly-roll pan with the remaining 2 tablespoons butter. Sprinkle evenly with the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar. Pour the cake batter into the pan, spreading it evenly. Bake until the cake springs back when touched, about 15 minutes. Cool for about 2 minutes, then gently flip it out onto a large sheet of parchment paper. Let cool completely.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a small saucepan, warm the milk and 2 teaspoons of the butter together over medium-low heat. With an electric mixer fitted with a wire whip, beat the eggs and 1 cup of the sugar on medium-high speed in a large mixing bowl until the mixture is pale yellow, thick, and tripled in volume, about 8 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, beat in the warm milk mixture. Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt into a small mixing bowl. Add half the flour mixture to the egg mixture and blend thoroughly until smooth. Repeat with the other half. Add the vanilla and mix gently. Grease a 17 by 12-inch baking pan or jelly-roll pan with the remaining 2 tablespoons butter. Sprinkle evenly with the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar. Pour the cake batter into the pan, spreading it evenly. Bake until the cake springs back when touched, about 15 minutes. Cool for about 2 minutes, then gently flip it out onto a large sheet of parchment paper. Let cool completely.

10 INCH VANILLA CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C) and grease and line three 10 inch cake pans.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt until they're evenly distributed.
• Place the room temperature butter and the granulated sugar in a large bowl and use an electric mixer with the whisk attachment to beat them for 1-2 minute. Add the oil and beat at full speed for another minute.
• Then add the eggs, one at a time, beating on medium speed, for a minute, until each egg is fully incorporated. Add the sour cream and vanilla extract and beat just until combined.
• Add half of the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, turn the mixer on low speed and then pour in the milk, followed by the rest of the dry ingredients.
• Distribute the batter evenly among the three cake pans, about 28oz in each, and bake for 35 minutes. When the cake is fully baked it will release itself from the edge of the pan and it will spring back when you press on the center of it.
• Allow the cake to cool completely before frosting.
• In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter at full speed until it's pale and fluffy, 2-3 minutes.
• Add the powdered sugar and beat at low speed just until it's combined.
• Scrape the edge of the bowl and continue beating at medium-high speed until the sugar is fully dissolved and fluffy.
• Add the vanilla and turn the mixer to low-medium speed. Pour in the heavy whipping cream and mix until it's well combined.
• Use 1/2 of the buttercream to frost the first and second layers and then use 1/4 for a crumb coat.
• Refrigerate the cake for 15-30 minutes, then use the last 1/4 of the buttercream to frost the rest of the cake.

SPONGE CAKE

Steps:

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

SIMPLE ELEGANCE WEDDING CAKE

Steps:

• MAKING THE CAKES: Make the basic Easy vanilla cake recipe (see 'Goes well with'), following the instructions below for each tier, then cool and drench with the syrup. The cakes can be frozen ahead, without icing. However, if you bake them three days before the wedding, the cake will be fine until the big day.
• For the bottom tier, triple the quantities for the basic cake mix, then spoon into a ready-lined deep round 30cm cake tin. Bake for 2 hrs 15 mins on the middle shelf until risen and cooked through as before. While this cooks, make up a quadruple batch of the syrup - this will be enough for all three cakes. Cool and drench the cake with syrup as before.
• For the middle and top tiers, double the quantities for the basic cake mix, then spoon it into ready-lined 15cm and 23cm cake tins, filling each to about two-thirds full. Bake them together on the middle shelf, taking the small cake out after 1 hr 15 mins, and leaving the larger cake to cook for 1 hr 30 mins in total. If you know that your oven has hot spots, quickly move the cakes around after 50 mins. Cool and drench with syrup as before.
• LAYER AND COVER THE CAKES: Make the buttercream as in the basic recipe. You will need 5 x basic quantity - this is a lot, so split your weighed-out quantities in two before you start mixing. You may have some left over, but better too much than too little. Weigh out the buttercream - you will need approximately 400g for the 15cm cake, 600g for the 23cm cake and 1.3kg for the 30cm cake. Spread a little buttercream over the 15cm cake board. Level the top of the cake if you need to, then upturn the 15cm cake onto it. Split into three using a bread knife. I like to mark the front of the cake on each layer before lifting it off, using toothpicks, so I can reassemble it in exactly the right way. Take the top third off first (what was the bottom of the cake) and set aside. Carefully cut the middle layer and set that aside, too. A flat baking sheet or cake lifter can be very helpful here to slide the cake layers off and then back onto each other.
• Spread a layer of buttercream over the cake on the board. Return the middle layer, lining up the toothpick markings, then spread another layer of buttercream on top. Add a little jam if you like, dotting it over, then spreading evenly. Top with the final piece of cake, then dust off any crumbs on or around the cake. Now brush the whole cake with a thin layer of apricot jam. This should stop you getting too many crumbs in the buttercream. Sit the whole cake on a large sheet of baking parchment.
• Spread the rest of the buttercream over, starting with the top, then smooth and paddle it around the sides and down to the board. Repeat the whole process with the remaining cakes, using the corresponding boards and the different quantities of buttercream. The cakes are now ready to be iced. You can leave them overnight if needed, loosely covered with cling film.
• COVERING THE CAKE WITH ICING: You will need about 500g icing for the 15cm cake, 1kg for the 23cm cake and 1.7kg for the 30cm cake. Dust the work surface with icing sugar, knead the icing until pliable, then use your rolling pin to roll it into a circle large enough to cover the sides and top of the cake, with a little left over. Use string to check the size. Use your rolling pin to help you lift the icing over the cake.
• Smooth the icing around the cake with your hands, easing it over the edges and down to the board. Then trim off the excess with a sharp knife, flush with the bottom of the cake board. Smooth any marks with the flats of your hands, buffing the icing to a slight shine.
• Once you've iced all the cakes, cover the thick base board. Lightly brush with cooled boiled water, then lay the icing over. Trim to the edge of the board with a knife (I tend to do this like I would a pie crust, holding the board in my left hand, and knife in my right), then leave the board and the cakes to dry overnight.
• STACKING THE CAKES: Dowels, which are basically plastic sticks, provide stability and strength to tiered cakes, and polystyrene blocks allow you to add a 'floating' layer of flowers. By measuring and cutting the dowels to the same length as the polystyrene, you'll provide an even platform for the next cake to sit on, even if the cake below is a bit wonky.
• Sit the 15cm dummy centrally on top of the biggest cake. Insert four of the dowels into the cake, around the outside of the dummy, in a square shape. Push them right down until they meet the cake board. Mark with a pen where the top of the dummy comes to.
• Carefully pull out the dowels; then, using scissors, score around each dowel where you marked it. Snap the plastic cleanly. Re-insert the dowels in their original holes, rounded end down. Repeat the process with the 23cm cake and the 12cm dummy.
• Position the biggest cake in the middle of the covered board. Run a thin line of glue around the base board and fix the ribbon around it. Fix the ribbon around each cake, using a spot of the glue on the ribbon to secure it to itself. If you're moving the cake to a venue, put the cakes into their boxes now. Make a little kit to take with you - glue, scissors, etc - just in case you have to re-do anything.
• ON THE DAY - STACKING AND DECORATING THE CAKE WITH FLOWERS: I used hydrangeas - they're beautiful, in season and you can achieve a dramatic effect with relatively few blooms. On the day, save putting the flowers on the cake until as late as you reasonably can. Cut the stems of the hydrangeas to about 2-3cm. Split your least-favourite bloom into smaller pieces - this will help you fill any awkward gaps later. Make sure you save one beautiful bloom for the top.
• Insert a length of floristry wire into each stem (or wind it around the stem), leaving a spike of wire about 3cm long. Push this into the polystyrene dummy. Repeat until the two dummies are surrounded with a halo of flowers. The bottom cake should be in its permanent position now - out of direct light and away from any radiators. Lift the 23cm cake onto the bottom polystrene dummy, taking care not to squash any petals, then repeat with the top cake. Fill any gaps with the broken-up flower head you reserved earlier. Sit the final bloom on top of the cake, and you're done!
• CUTTING THE CAKE: Cut the cake across, in a grid, rather than into wedges. You should be able to get 50 servings from the large cake, 30 from the middle and 12 from the top, when cut into 2.5 x 5cm pieces.

EASY VANILLA CAKE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3. Grease a round, deep 20cm tin, then line the base and sides with non-stick baking paper.
• Using electric beaters or a tabletop mixer, beat the butter, sugar, vanilla and ¼ tsp salt together until pale and fluffy, then pour in the eggs, one at a time, giving the mix a really good beating before adding the next.
• Add 1 tbsp of the plain flour if the mix starts to look slimy rather than fluffy. Beat in the yogurt. Mix the flours; then, using a large metal spoon, fold them into the batter, followed by the milk.
• Spoon the mix into the tin and bake for 1 hr 20 mins or until well risen and golden - a skewer inserted into the middle should come out clean.
• Meanwhile, make the syrup by gently heating 50ml water with the sugar and vanilla in a pan until the sugar dissolves. Set aside. Once the cake is out of the oven, leave to cool for 30 mins in the tin, then use a skewer to poke holes all over the cake, going right to the bottom. Pour the syrup over, letting it completely soak in after each addition.
• Leave to cool completely, then either wrap the cake well or fill and ice it. If you wrap it with baking parchment and cling film, the unfilled cake will keep well for up to 3 days, or in the freezer for up to a month.
• For ideas on how to decorate the cake and to try out some variations on this basic cake mixture, have a look at the 'Goes well with' recipes for Simple elegance wedding cake, Birthday bug cake and Summer celebration cake.