Coffee Sponge Cake (tang mian method)

This is a beautifully moist coffee sponge cake that is a perfect base for any occasion. My favourite way of making sponge cakes uses the tang mian/cooked dough method, which coats the flour with fat before adding anything else. This inhibits the formation of gluten and creates a lovely moist cake. (Read more about the science behind it here).

Using a hot waterbath with the tang mian method gives it extra moisture and prevents the top from cracking. I’ve tested this recipe many times, leading to a pretty foolproof way of making sponges successfully!

For the coffee pastry cream, biscoff buttercream and stresel crumble, check out this Biscoff Streusel Coffee recipe post.

If you don’t like coffee, try this tang mian sponge cake recipe instead. Let me know how your baking goes by tagging @ultimateomnoms on Instagram – I’d love to see your creations!

Coffee Sponge Cake

Soft coffee sponge cake that pairs beautifully with chocolate ganache or biscoff spread.

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Ingredients

  

Egg yolk mixture

• 65 g oil
• 200 g milk
• 60 g sugar
• 2 tsp instant coffee powder
• 6 egg yolks
• 180 g cake flour
• 1 pinch salt

Egg white mixture

• 6 egg whites
• 1/2 tsp cream of tartar
• 135 g sugar

Instructions

 

• Heat the oil in a small saucepan using low-med heat. Sift in the cake flour and mix
• Add the milk, coffee powder and sugar and mix. Take the saucepan off the heat
• Add the egg yolks in one at a time, whisking between each one
• Add a pinch of salt
• In another bowl, whisk the egg whites until foamy and add the cream of tartar. Add the sugar in batches and whisk until the egg whites reach stiff peaks
• Preheat the oven to 150ºC and prepare your hot water bath
• Add one third of the egg white to the yolk batter and mix well. Using a spatula, fold the remaining egg white in two batches. Do so gently and thoroughly so no streaks of egg white remain
• Pour the batter into the lined 8” cake pan and smooth the top with a spatula. Tap the pan against the tabletop to get rid of any large air bubbles
• Put the cake pan into the hot water bath, ensuring that the water height reaches at least a third of the cake pan
• Bake in the preheated oven for 1 hour 20min or until a skewer inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean
• Remove from the oven and tap the pan against the tabletop a few times to prevent shrinkage. Transfer to cool on a wire rack pan for 10min before unmoulding