Classic Vanilla Sponge Eggless Food

EGGLESS VANILLA CAKE SPONGE

Steps:

• Sieve the flour in a bowl and set aside
• In another bowl, beat the yogurt and sugar together. To this mixture add the baking soda and baking powder. Beat well making sure there are no lumps and let this mixture rest for 5-8 mins. This mixture will have bubbles all around and turn frothy
• Now add the vanilla essence and oil. Beat well
• Fold in the flour making sure there are no lumps
• Pour this batter in a 6-inch baking dish lined with parchment paper
• Bake in a preheated oven at 180 degrees C for 30 - 40 mins or until an inserted skewer comes out clean

CLASSIC VANILLA SPONGE (EGGLESS)

Steps:

• Start by sifting the dry ingredients in a bowl. Simply place on top, a sieve that fits the mixing bowl perfectly. Next add the dry ingredients one by one and then start sifting. To speed up the process tap the sieve continuously while slowly shaking it. Once done, discard any left over big particles (try pushing them down using a spoon first, as sometimes they form big lumps due to exposure of moisture. Thus pushing them down make help lower the waste). Mix all the sifted dry ingredients and move on to the next step.
• The second step is to add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Start by gradually pouring the room temperature milk in, add little by little and keep whisking it. Once smooth, add the rest of the ingredients and whisk again to get rid of lumps and to incorporate everything nicely.
• Next, start by preheating your oven to 180 deg. Celsius. Then remove your cake tin and grease it on all sides with melted butter to prevent it from sticking. Then dust some all-purpose flour on top and nicely coat it to ensure that the cake gets de-molded with ease. People usually mess up with coating the tin most of the times. You are supposed to add some all-purpose flour and slightly tilt the pan and keep rotating in order to coat the base and the edges. Then shake off the excess. Next, pour your prepared batter into the tin and tap 2-3 times against the kitchen platform to remove any air bubbles.
• Transfer to the preheated oven and bake for 15-20 minutes. Check the cake every 7-8 minutes. Once it is about 15 minutes, remove it and insert a toothpick. It should come out clean but not bone dry (which means your toothpick should still have a few crumbs on indicating that it is still moist inside). If there is a lot of crumbs on the toothpick, bake the cake for an additional 5-7 minutes. Then leave it to cool for up to 15-20 minutes. Once cooled, dust icing sugar on top and drizzle over some *chocolate ganache and serve.
• *To prepare the chocolate ganache, melt some chocolate (milk/dark/mix of both), cream and butter together in the microwave or using a double boiler. Once cooled down, transfer to a piping bag or simply use a spoon to drizzle it on top.

CLASSIC VANILLA CAKE

Steps:

• For the cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter the bottoms and sides of two 9-inch round cake pans; dust with flour, and tap out the excess.
• Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl; set aside.
• Beat the butter, sugar and oil in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until light in color and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, and then the vanilla until combined.
• Alternate folding the flour mixture and the milk into the batter with a spatula, adding the flour in three additions and the milk in two, starting and ending with the flour, until just smooth. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans.
• Bake the cakes on the same oven rack until golden on top and the centers spring back to the touch, 35 to 40 minutes. Rotate the pans about halfway through if they seem to be browning unevenly. Let cool in the pans about 10 minutes, then turn out onto cooling racks and let cool completely.
• For the frosting: While the cakes cool, beat the butter and salt in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Gradually beat in the confectioners' sugar. Once it's all been added, increase the speed to medium-high, and beat until white and fluffy. Add 2 tablespoons of the milk, and beat to incorporate. Beat in the remaining milk, one tablespoon at a time (the frosting will be spreadable but not runny).
• To assemble: Place 1 cake layer right-side up on a cake plate or stand, and spread with 1 cup of the frosting. Top with the second cake layer. Frost the top and sides of the cake with the remaining frosting.

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.