When I went to a bakery for the first time to get a bespoke cake, I remember that they asked me what sort of foundation I wanted for the cake. I had finally come to the conclusion that the only thing I understood about cakes was that they came in a variety of mouthwatering flavors. I made it my mission to figure out the distinctions between the various cake bases.
A butter cake and a sponge cake are the two primary categories of cake that are most often seen in bakeries. In comparison to sponge cakes, butter cakes are more substantial and include a greater number of individual components. Eggs that have been beaten to a foam give sponge cakes their light and airy texture; these cakes do not require any additional raising agents.
I made the decision to look into the topic a bit more to see if there are any other distinctions between a butter cake and a sponge cake outside the texture of the cakes and the number of ingredients in each. It seems that this is the case!
Contents
Butter Cake and Sponge Cake: Similarities and Differences
| Sponge Cake | Butter Cake |
| Light and airy | Moist and Dense |
| Contains no fats (butter, oil, etc.) | Contains butter |
| Contains no raising agents | Uses either baking powder or baking soda |
| Gains height from egg whipping | Technique requires creaming butter |
What makes a cake a sponge cake?
When I think of having a piece of sponge cake for dessert, I see myself chewing on a sweet cloud of joy. There’s a surprising explanation for why a sponge cake is so light and fluffy.
Sponge cakes, contrary to popular belief, do not use any leavening ingredients like baking powder or baking soda. The eggs are used in place of traditional leavening agents, which, I know, is going to blow your mind, but it’s true, and it’s also the reason why these baked goods are so fluffy and tall.
When eggs or egg whites are beaten using a stand mixer or hand mixer, a lot of air is injected, which causes the egg mixture to froth up and thicken into a soft meringue. This may be achieved by using a hand mixer or a stand mixer.
Therefore, since sponge cakes do not include any agents that cause the cakes to rise, what kinds of components do they have? The solution may be summarized as follows:
- Eggs/Egg Whites
- Sugar
- Flour
Sugar is added to the eggs as they are being beaten at a high speed by a mixer, and this helps to ensure that it is completely incorporated. Crunchy sugar is something that no one wants to find in their batter.
When the egg mixture has reached the stage when it seems to be foamy and stiff, the flour is very carefully incorporated into the mixture. Because of the collapsed egg mixture that would come from vigorously mixing in the flour, all of your hard work and patience will be for nothing if you choose to stir in the flour.
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Instead of fully mixing the flour into the egg mixture, one of the most important things you can do to get the ideal sponge cake is to fold the flour in with the eggs in a gentle manner.
The purpose of a sponge cake is to have the airiness of the whipped egg whites give your cake height and assist produce a light texture. This may be accomplished by adding more egg whites than the recipe calls for. When you vigorously stir in the flour, your egg mixture will get deflated, which will result in a cake that is not as fluffy as it might have been.
When making a sponge cake, it is customary to use a cake pan that is NOT non-stick. This ensures that the cake will release easily from the pan. Keeping this in mind, you need to make sure that your baking pan has been well greased with butter before adding your batter.
What makes a cake a butter cake?
We are all aware that butter is the key to a dish’s success in terms of flavor, right? Not only is it wonderful, but in order to make a butter cake, it is a fundamental must!
In comparison to sponge cakes, butter cakes are often more thick and include a greater quantity of vital components. Due to the fact that they are more dense than sponge cakes, which are often used as the foundation for frosted cakes, they make an excellent choice.
These are the primary components that are used in butter cakes, however the specific proportions vary depending on the recipe.
- Butter
- Baking Powder or Baking Soda
- Eggs
- Sugar
- Flour
Due to the impressive number of components that go into your masterpiece, we have no choice but to lend it a hand. In this scenario, the use of a raising agent is required; otherwise, the finished product will be a slab of cake. Since this cake is already on the dense side, it need additional aid from either baking powder or baking soda in order to get the desired texture.
Throughout my life, I have baked dozens upon dozens of cakes, the vast majority of them have been butter cakes. When it comes to baking a butter cake, I believe that the creaming of the butter is the single most critical step.
What exactly is making your butter cream? When you add butter and sugar to the mixing bowl, the mixture will cream the butter and sugar together as you continue to combine the ingredients. After being fully mixed together, you will end up with a texture that is luxurious and velvety.
Simply greasing a cake pan won’t be enough to ensure that your butter cake will come out of the pan in one piece due to the significant amount of fat that is often found in these types of cakes. Using parchment paper is the most effective method for achieving an uniform baking result.
Sponge Cake Vs Pound Cake
Pound cakes, on the general, are made with butter and have a consistency that is denser than that of sponge cakes. The light texture of a sponge cake is accomplished by vigorously whisking the eggs, while the dense texture of a pound cake is accomplished by creaming the butter in the usual manner.
Pound cakes are among the most prevalent varieties of butter cakes. Pound cakes get their name from the fact that one pound of each of the following ingredients—butter, flour, eggs, and sugar—is often used in their preparation. This harmony of ingredients produces a cake that is moist but thick, and it is often consumed either as is or with a sugar glaze that is light in consistency.
Because of their different textures, sponge cakes and pound cakes are quite different from one another. As was discussed in the section under “What makes a cake a sponge cake?” above, the objective of a sponge cake is to be light and airy, and this is accomplished by vigorously whisking the eggs and keeping the ingredient list to a minimum.
Sponge Cake Vs Chiffon Cake
A chiffon cake, taken as a whole, is a hybrid that occupies the middle ground between butter cakes and sponge cakes. Although it has the lightness and airiness of a sponge cake, it also has the fatty component that is characteristic of butter cakes.
You may have noticed that I did not really use the word butter when I referred to it as a butter cake. Because of this, chiffon cakes really call for the usage of vegetable oil. Because it is considerably simpler to mix air into liquid oil, chiffon cakes are made using vegetable oil rather than butter. This is because it is easier to incorporate air into liquid oil.
To generate the additional lift that comes from the beaten eggs and egg whites, chiffon cakes, much like butter cakes, will employ a raising agent such as baking powder or baking soda in the same way. Butter cakes do not need raising agents. This is essential since the additional vegetable oil makes the dish quite heavy.
FAQs
Are butter cakes a type of sponge?
An wonderful and straightforward Vanilla Butter Cake. This silky and soft crumb sponge cake, which has been adapted from a classic recipe published in Cook’s Illustrated, can be stored safely for up to three days and is created from pantry basics.
What is difference between cake and sponge?
According to Mrs. Beeton, a well-known Victorian cookbook author, “true sponges contain no fat.” Instead, they are made with eggs (which do, in fact, have some fat in them), sugar, and flour, which are whipped into an emulsion before having some flour folded in carefully so as not to disrupt the bubble structure of the mixture. The other varieties of cake all have additional fats in them.
Which is better for sponge cake oil or butter?
Because it is a liquid at room temperature and does not solidify, vegetable oil is a far more reliable source of moisture than butter is. Butter, on the other hand, is solid at room temperature. Because liquid is a factor in determining the perception of moistness, cakes that are produced with oil often give the impression of being more moist than cakes that are made with butter.
Why is it called butter cake?
A cake known as a butter cake is one in which butter is used as one of the primary components. The components necessary to make butter cake include butter, sugar, eggs, flour, and leavening agents such baking powder or baking soda. The cake is then cooked. It is widely acknowledged to be one of the most iconic cakes in the history of American baking.
Why do bakers call cake sponge?
The cake is leavened by air solely. There is no use of chemical agents such as baking powder or baking soda. It does not have a very strong taste, but the foam-like consistency allows it to absorb a significant amount of sugar syrup, which may then be flavored in any manner you wish. This is where we get the word “sponge.”