Basic Eggless Vanilla Sponge

After having tried my hands at a host of recipes for an eggless sponge cake, this recipe by Nita Mehta is the one I loved the most. The cakes didn’t rise too much, but that is to be expected from an eggless version. In an egg-based cake, the egg and flour form a strong foundation which holds up the air bubbles strongly enough to raise the cake to a good height.

But overall the texture, grit, quality and most importantly taste of this cake is fantastic. Pair it with buttercream and you have a lovely birthday cake. Pair it with whipped cream and fresh fruit and you have a mouth watering gateaux. Eat it as it is, and you have a lovely tea cake.

This recipe makes for one six inches by two inches tall cake.

Ingredients

1 cup curd
1 cup sugar (reduce if you want a slightly less sweet cake)
1 and 1/4th tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp vanilla essence (so happy that I am going to give up using essence soon. Making my own extract from pure vanilla bean :-D)
1/4th cup vegetable oil
1 and 1/4th cup plain flour

Grease and line your baking tin with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 180 degrees.

In a bowl, mix the curd and granulated sugar till sugar dissolves completely. Add the baking powder and baking soda and leave the mixture for 3 to 4 minutes for the bubbles to form.

Once the mixture has frothed well, add the oil, vanilla, and the flour and mix well.

Pour into the tin and place into the oven.

Bake for 20 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the center emerges clean.

Remove from the oven and let cool in the pan for ten minutes. Now remove and cool it on a wire rack.

Serve it in any way you wish.