Easy European Sponge Cake (Genoise)

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 Lan

 A long time ago, I went to Goodwill and found an old cook book with the title "100 year old cook book".  I was curious back then when technology was not yet advanced like today. We did not have good ovens like Kitchen Aid to make a cake. However, our great grandmothers still found a way to bake a good cake or create good recipes to serve her family. Today, I came across this easy sponge cake or its other name Genoise, which is an Italian sponge cake named after the city of Genoa.  It surely is an easy cake, and also it can be the basic cake to create different cakes using this basic recipe. I share this recipe today without icing, but, you can use your creativity to wow your friends and family.

Ingredients:

6 to 7 eggs room temperature

1 cup sugar

1 cup self-rising flour* 

Pinch of salt

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350°.

Line the bottom of a 9 inch cake pan with parchment paper.

In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat eggs for 2 minutes. Then gradually add sugar and continue to beat the egg for another 10 minutes. Do not skip this process. At this time you can add lemon zest and lemon juice (1 tablespoon), if using or any flavor that suits your taste.

Sift the flour into the egg mixture one third at the time. Fold flour with a spatula with each addition, until just incorporated. Scrape the spatula down to the bottom to catch any pockets of flour. Do not overmix the batter.

Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes or until the top is golden brown. Remove from the pan and let cool. Enjoy!

*To make your own, simply take 1 cup of all-purpose flour and mix it with 2 tsp. of baking powder.