It was a lovely time for baking, really.
Except I was racing against time because it was getting dark too fast!
But I managed to let the cake finish cooling and rushed to take pictures!
#FoodBloggerProblems indeed!
I actually wanted to make cupcakes but my mother let it known that she wanted sponge cake. Not cupcakes.
So the cupcake plan was pushed aside and I went ahead and started looking up sponge cake recipes.
There were a lot. I picked this recipe because it's from Stephanie Jaworski of Joy of Baking. And I just know it's going to be great!
If this will be your very first attempt at baking sponge cake, I advise that you watch her YouTube video first and just watch the master do her thang. Truth be told, I was (still am, actually) terrified of any recipe that requires folding egg whites into the batter.
'What if I deflate the whites with my overly vigorous folding?!'
Do you also have those moments when a question pops into your mind? Then a second later, you think of the answer?
I know. You are absolutely not alone.
Anyhoo! About the fear of incorporating egg whites! Just do it gently. Be patient. You don't want to exert any unnecessary force into the glossy whites you've whipped. If you do, your sponge won't rise. That's what they all say and we should listen.
Once you get the hang of folding (gently), you'll be able to make this lemon sponge cake faster than you would have expected!
But I feel like I should tell you that the one bit I found tricky is separating the whites from the yolk.
If you aren't that confident in your whites-yolks-separating juggling skills just yet, remember: Do not rush it.
Also have 3 bowls ready: one for the whites, the other for the yolks, and the last one for catching the whites before you plop it in along with all the other whites. Why? Because it might be an unlucky egg and a smidgen of yolk might come with it! Read up on this very useful article for when yolks just won't stay away from the whites you need for whipping.
In case you're wondering, I used a 9-inch springform pan. I didn't grease nor spray it with non-stick spray. I set the timer to 50 minutes because I set the oven temperature a bit lower.
A horrible, horrible decision, if you must know.
If I had let the cake bake the full 50-minutes, it would be charred and dry as a desert. Who wants that?! No one. So even on a springform pan, bake for 30 or so minutes only!
But thankfully, it must be the baker's reflexes I'm gaining or it must be the 'Hey, take me out the oven asap, please!' smell, I took the sponge out the oven just in time!
The cake still tasted delicious but I could only imagine (for now) how smooth and moist it would have been had I not overbaked it.
Oh well. That's how we learn! Right!
Another thing! In place of one of the 2 tablespoons of water in the recipe, I decided to use lemon juice. If you would like just a hint of lemon, use water. If you like it lemony, use lemon juice.
Hope you'll have better luck than I did! Don't overbake this one!
Til the next post!
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