Aviva Trivia

Sponge cake is similar to angel cake-but different.  The recipe for sponge cake calls for whole eggs and angel cake calls for only the egg whites.

During the Renaissance, English and French chefs introduced into their nations’ cuisine something called a “biscuit.” These “biscuits” were the forerunners of today’s sponge cake.

The earliest sponge cake recipe recorded in English dates back to 1615.  They were reportedly thin and crisp, more like a modern cookie than a cake.

The 18th century is when sponge cakes really began looking like they do today.  Eggs, whipped to full fluffiness, were used to make pastries rise . . . and thus the modern sponge cake was born.

The name “ladyfingers” was originally applied to okra, not the little sponge cakes with which we associate the name today.