dry sponge cake?

suzy_g

I wonder if someone could help?
My sponge cakes always comee out dry and hard. How do I avoid this?
Thanks

twink

are you baking your sponges for too long or at too high a temperature? this is mary berrys fast victoria sandwich



4oz soft marg
4oz sugar
2 lrge eggs, beaten
4oz sr flour
1 level tsp baking powder

oven 180oc or gas4,

two 7 inch sandwich tins, grease and line

mix all, beat two mins till blended and smooth, divide between the two tins

bake 25-30 mins, when the cake is cooked it will be a pale golden colour and the centre of the sponges will spring back when lightly pressed with your finger
turn sponges onto a wire rack to cool then sandwich together

newleaf

I use the above recipe too, but I make a double mixture and use deep sandwich tins as I like a BIG cake, I bake at the same temp but about 10 mins longer.

belfastgirl23

It's probably the temp. Maybe your recipe is for regular oven and you're using fan assisted? I'd try turning it down a bit...

thriftlady_2

If you want to rescue a dry sponge try this. Stab the cake with a skewer in several places. Pour cold sweetened coffee over - not too much just enough to moisten. Then cover the cake with whipped cream spread over like icing.

some alcohol is a good addition too. You can experiment with other liquids too -lemon juice, orange juice.

Noctu

I have a fan assisted oven, but no instruction manual for it. It's a really quick, powerful oven - but as mentioned above, all my cakes end up dry!

What temperature would you bake a cake at in this oven, if the recipe calls for 180c in a regular oven?

sandieb

I bake my vicky sponges (3 egg version) in a fan assisted oven - I set the timer for 20 minutes at 160 degrees C. I check them with my kebab skewer which always comes out "clean" at this point. If necessary I can always leave for a few minutes more but normally they are fine. They are always moist.

My reasoning is to do them for less time and then add a few minutes more. If they overdo you can't reverse the procedure! (If you get what I mean)

sandieb

The following information which may help you was copied from
http://www.hotpointshop.co.uk/hotpoint_cookers.htm

How should temperatures be adjusted for a fan oven?
Fan ovens quickly reach temperature and transfer heat more efficiently so they can generally be set lower by 20C. Long cooking times can be shortened by up-to 10 minutes per hour but you must make sure that the food is cooked!

How do I find out which temperature to reduce to?
Follow the conversion chart below

Conventional Oven /Gas Oven (Mark)/ Fan Oven
250°F / 120°C 1/2 100°C
275°F / 140°C 1 120°C
300°F / 150°C 2 130°C
325°F / 160°C 3 140°C
350°F / 180°C 4 160°C
375°F / 190°C 5 170°C
400°F / 200°C 6 180°C
425°F / 220°C 7 200°C
450°F / 230°C 8 210°C
475°F / 240°C 9 220°C

thriftlady_2

Noctu wrote: »

I have a fan assisted oven, but no instruction manual for it. It's a really quick, powerful oven - but as mentioned above, all my cakes end up dry!

What temperature would you bake a cake at in this oven, if the recipe calls for 180c in a regular oven?

I have a fan oven (Neff circotherm to be exact) and I'd bake it at 160

Churchmouse

thriftlady wrote: »

If you want to rescue a dry sponge try this. Stab the cake with a skewer in several places. Pour cold sweetened coffee over - not too much just enough to moisten. Then cover the cake with whipped cream spread over like icing.

some alcohol is a good addition too. You can experiment with other liquids too -lemon juice, orange juice.

:rotfl: :rotfl: :T :T

Now why am I not surprised? A girl after my own heart, there's very little that can't be rescued by a slug of alcohol:D

Noctu

Thank you - now I just have to resist baking one... (see sig!)