How to Make a Tall, Fluffy Sponge Cake

When we set out to prepare a cake we think there is above all one thing we want to achieve, and that is for it to rise and turn into a super fluffy cake. For that, there are some tricks and tips that are very useful, and you don't have to be a superchef to follow them.

Below I leave you the most popular tips to get perfect, fluffy, tall cakes that don't crack during baking.

Tips to get a fluffy cake

To get a cake that rises and is really fluffy there are several aspects to consider, related to:

• preparing the pan,
• preparing the batter,
• the quality of the ingredients,
• and the baking.

Let's go for them! At the end of the post I leave you with a few super fluffy cake recipes to put everything into practice.

1. Choosing and preparing the pan so the cake rises:

• Remember as much as you can to always use ceramic pans to make cakes. Unlike others, it is a moist material that will help retain moisture in the cake (steel dries them out).
• Choose the right pan: if you want the cake to rise it is ideal to choose a tall pan, to help it rise.
• If you want to make tall cakes from recipes you follow, use a pan with a smaller diameter than recommended in the recipe (but with higher sides), so with the same batter you'll get a taller cake.
• Grease the pan well with butter or spray: we don't want the batter to stick or it will prevent the batter from rising. That's why it's important to brush the entire surface of the pan very well with butter, so the cake can really climb up it. You can also line it with flour, or replace the butter with non-stick spray.
• Never fill the pan to the top, or it will overflow. Always fill the pan up to 3/4 full to leave room for it to rise.

2. How to make the cake batter so it turns out fluffy:

Although it's not essential, there is a trick that is very helpful, and it is separating the egg whites from the yolks:

• Preparation of the egg whites: start beating the egg whites until they whiten, then add half of the sugar. Keep beating and whip them to stiff peaks.

This step is very important, and it's vital that you always help yourself with hand whisks or an electric balloon whisk: with whisks you will help incorporate air into the mixture (unlike using a flat whisk or a fork), air that will then give the cake its fluffiness.

• Preparation of the yolks: on the other hand, mix the yolks with the rest of the ingredients in your recipe (oil, citrus zest, vanilla extract, flour, baking powder, the remaining sugar... everything the recipe includes). It's interesting to do this in a large bowl, where you can work comfortably, because once it's well mixed you will add the egg whites you whipped separately to this batter.

• Mixing the two parts: To mix the batter you prepared and the whipped egg whites it is very important to use folding movements. That is, with the help of a large spatula, mix from the bottom up, along the side of the bowl and toward the center, folding the mixture. You can rotate the bowl to help this folding movement wrap the whole batter. It's important to do it gently, taking care of the batter. It's important to respect it and mix only enough to achieve good incorporation, because with each movement the egg whites will lose air (they'll lose more the more abrupt you are), which is not desirable: remember that the air you incorporated while beating is what will give it fluffiness, and you don't want to lose it.

To get a fluffy cake choose the right pan (make it tall, like the Push Pan), separate the egg whites from the yolks (an egg separator is very helpful) and beat the whites to stiff peaks with hand whisks or an electric mixer to incorporate air before folding them into the rest of the batter.

3. About the ingredients:

• All ingredients, especially the eggs, but also milk, juice and butter, should be at room temperature.
• Eggs should be fresh (¡fresh by date, not temperature!) and of good quality.
• It's recommended to use cake flour, because a flour with an unsuitable gluten content can prevent it from rising properly.
• Use the amount of flour indicated in the recipe (if you add too much, it may not rise well).
• Also make sure the flour is in good condition: flour that's been open for a long time, damp, or expired... will again prevent the cake from rising.
• Sift the flour before incorporating it: by sifting the flour you'll make it loose, aerated and without lumps. All this will help the cake rise more easily and turn out fluffier.

Use a large bowl and a large spatula to work comfortably and effectively. Before adding the flour, sift it with a sieve.

4. How to bake a cake correctly

• Always preheat the oven a bit higher than the baking temperature, since when you open it to put the pan in the oven will lose a bit of temperature (preheat to 185-190 ºC and change to 170-175 ºC when you put the pan in).
• Don't put the pan in the oven until the oven is hot.
• The cake needs its time to develop, it has to rise slowly. If it rises too quickly or browns from the start it will mean the temperature is too high, and you should lower it. But every oven is different, so it's interesting to adjust to the temperature each one requires after experience (maybe 170º in one oven is 180º in another...).
• Use an oven thermometer to know the oven's real temperature - most ovens don't work correctly or indicate the wrong temperature. With a thermometer you'll know what temperature you actually have at any moment (and it will be very useful for everything, not only cakes but also for roasting meats and fish).
• Remember that the oven should not be opened during baking when making cakes, or they won't rise properly (the oven temperature changes drastically and the cake can collapse immediately or stop rising).
• You can bake the first 15 minutes with the oven only on the bottom heat, to help the cake rise from the base, and then switch to top and bottom heat.
• If you're unsure about your oven, cover the cake with parchment paper or aluminum foil, loosely and without touching the batter (remember it's going to rise!). That way the surface won't set immediately and the batter will be able to rise more easily, to achieve a tall, fluffy cake.
• Never bake cakes with the fan function, if you can avoid it. The air dries cakes out a lot, besides heating the batter very quickly, so it doesn't give them enough time to rise at their pace.
• Place a ramekin filled with water in the oven. It will generate steam and moisten the batter, making it more tender, the crust won't harden so easily and it will be able to rise more.

Additional note on baking:

• We often think the cake is done and poke it with a skewer, only to find it still needs time because the interior is very raw. Before poking it, you can move the pan (the cake) with oven mitts to see if the center of the cake moves: if it's raw you'll notice the center jiggles like jelly. If that's the case, leave it a while longer; if it doesn't move, you can check it's done by poking it and seeing if any wet crumbs remain on the skewer.
• After baking, let the cake rest a few minutes to settle, lose heat and release the steam retained in the batter. You'll see the flavors shine more when it's not hot and it will also be easier on the stomach if the cake has rested.

Super fluffy cake recipes

If you want to start making the fluffiest cakes you'll be interested in these recipes:

• Japanese Cheesecake or 3-ingredient Cake
• Traditional fluffy yogurt cake
• Fluffy cake or "pa de pessic" with 3 ingredients
• Lemon cake
• Angel food cake or egg white cake
• Orange chiffon cake with chocolate glaze and candied oranges

Post updated in October 2.021