A delicious, light vanilla sponge birthday cake recipe. Quick and simple to make and perfect for decorating to make a birthday really special.
When I was a child I loved the birthday cakes my mum made and decorated for me. At my parties, I was always really proud to show off my birthday cake to my friends. In the weeks running up to my birthday, I used to look through my mum’s cake decorating book and choose the cake I wanted (actually I always chose the fairy castle, but never got it).
Now I have my own children, it’s important to me to do the same for them. Rather than choosing from a book, I let them describe what they want and then scour the internet for inspiration to achieve it (I don’t know what I’d do without Google Images and Pinterest). Today is my littlest’s second birthday so I thought it would be a good time to share with you the recipe I use for making the vanilla sponge which goes inside most of the cakes I make for my family. The recipe is adapted from a book called Cake Magic by Virginia Welsh and Alison French – the same book I chose my cakes from when I was little.
The theme I was given for today’s cake was Chuggington. I was told it must include an engine shed, three trains (Wilson, Koko and Brewster), and a turntable (they don’t ask for much!). I’m not a professional cake decorator, but what I lack in skill I hopefully make up for in enthusiasm and effort.
Equipment
To make my vanilla sponge I’d recommend the following equipment…
NOTE – These are affiliate links which means that if you purchase from Amazon after clicking on one the product links below I will earn a small commission.
Accurate scales are essential when baking and I love these Electronic Scales from Salter. You can reset the weight every time you add a new ingredient which is perfect for something like this all-in-one sponge. They’re also compact so take up hardly any space in your cupboards.
If I’m making a round cake I use these tins
from Delia Smith (well if it’s good enough for Delia then it’s good enough for me!).
Instead of using greaseproof paper to line your cake tins I recommend trying these Bake-o-Glide reusable liners
. There’s no need to grease the tin as they’re easily removed, and they’re pre-cut to size so there’s no fiddling around trying to get the greaseproof cut to the right shape.
You’ll also need a large mixing bowl and an electric mixer (you can mix by hand if you don’t have a mixer just be prepared for some arm ache!).
Fancy making a chocolate birthday cake instead?
Then try my new CHOCOLATE BIRTHDAY CAKE RECIPE, it’s really chocolatey, easy to make and perfect for decorating.
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Birthday Cake (All-In-One Vanilla Sponge)
INGREDIENTS
- 225 g self-raising flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 4 eggs - I usually use medium but large also work well
- 225 g soft margarine
- 225 g caster sugar
- 6 drops vanilla extract
- 2 tsp milk
RECIPE VIDEO
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat the oven to 160ºC/140ºC fan
- Line your baking tins(s) (I usually use 2 x 20cm round sandwich tins or a 20cm x 30cm rectangular tin, depending on the shape of cake I want to make).
- Sift the self-raising flour (225g) and baking powder (2 tsp) into a large bowl.
- Add the remaining ingredients (4 eggs, 225g soft margarine, 225g caster sugar, 6 drops of vanilla extract and 2 tsp milk) and beat until thoroughly mixed.
- Pour into the tin(s)
- Bake for 30-35 minutes. To check if the cake is cooked insert a skewer and if it comes out clean the cake is ready.
- Leave to cool in the tin(s) for about 10 minutes and then move to a wire rack to cool completely – Make sure the cake has cooled completely before decorating.
NOTES
NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION
Any nutritional information provided is the estimated nutritional information per serving. Please refer to my guide to Charlotte’s Lively Kitchen nutritional information if you would like to learn more about how this is calculated.
Free From/Suitable For
- Suitable for Vegetarians
- Nut-Free
- Soy-Free
The ingredients for this recipe are commonly available free from all these allergens. However, please ensure you double-check allergen information for all ingredients.
I’m sharing this with the following recipe challenges… #TastyTuesdays with Honest Mum.
Melanie says
Fantastic recipe. I have made this cake 5+ times now and am about to use it again to make a child friendly xmas cake. Foolproof. My husband and son also followed it and the method to make me a cake, with great results.
Sharie Kahanana says
i loved it i did the creaming method n it came out just perfect
Elaine says
Lots of compliments, very tasty cake
Very easy to make but my fan oven took much longer to bake this than advised.
Denise says
Hi there, a quick one; Is marg optional or can I substitute salt free butter?
Charlotte Oates says
You can substitute for unsalted butter. Just make sure it’s soft at room temperature before you bake the cake as otherwise it won’t mix in properly.
Jo says
Omg this recipe is fantastic as so easy to follow! Thank you so much for sharing your experience as it meant my first ever handmade celebration cake for my Mom’s 80th birthday was a total hit! The sponge is so light and fluffy I amazed myself. I also followed your vanilla buttercream recipe and then used ready made icing to finish. I shall be following your other blogs from now on as your advice is invaluable. Thank you so much x
Jo says
I forgot to say that I used your calculator as needed a bigger cake and the quantities were spot on!
Eunice says
Hello Charlotte,this is a 2 layer cake can I bake all in one tin since I don’t have 2 tins? Please I need it for a cake am baking tomorrow.Thank you
Charlotte Oates says
You can, although I find I get better results from baking it in sprat tins (a slightly better rise). If you want to bake it in one tin then you’ll need to increase to cooking time to about 50 minutes.
Susan Watson says
I gave this a trial run on Sunday as I’ve been asked to make birthday cake for my 3 yr old grandaughter. I used strawberry jam and whipped cream and it was the best sponge cake I have ever made! Thank you so much for sharing your conversion expertise – it will really help me to make the much larger birthday cake. Hope I don’t mess up the decoration. Thanks again.
Charlotte Oates says
I’m sure you won’t! Good luck with it. I hope you granddaughter has a lovely birthday x
Dineo says
Can I please have the fondant recipe
Charlotte Oates says
I use ready-made fondant from the supermarket.
Kim says
Can I ask how far in advance you can make this cake please and best way to store?
Charlotte Oates says
I usually make the cake a couple of days before it’s needed (to give me time to decorate it) and it’s then good to eat for around 5 days afterwards. I usually store mine in an airtight container (unless it’s covered in fondant and then it’s loosely covered as the fondant keeps out the air from the sponge). It can be stored in the fridge or at room temperature. If you’re storing it at room temperature make sure you keep it away from the radiator/other heat sources.
Kim says
Thank you so much! I love your page! I’m using your lemon and vanilla cake recipes to make my sisters wedding cake! Wish me luck
Charlotte Oates says
Good luck! I’d love to see a picture when it’s done.
Jayne says
I fill this with raspberry jam & fresh cream & I could eat it every day, absolutely scrumptious!
terri says
I’m a baker for fun and a bit of a novice too and I have found this page so helpful – Thank you!
Maureen says
Just discovered your site, so made the all in one vanilla birthday cake to try out my new mixer. The cake turned out beautifully even though I had substituted bicarbonate of soda instead of baking powder. Thanks I’m now going to try your cupcakes.
Jamie says
Cake tasted ok but very greasy and really too sweet for my taste. on the other hand looked great.
Chantelle says
Hi Charlotte just wanted to say this recipe is absolutely faultless great tasting cakes all the time. However if I wanted to make a 10 inch and 12 inch what would the ingredients be? Sorry if you have answered this before.
Charlotte Oates says
If you have a look below the recipe there’s a link to a calculator which will give you the ingredients you need for the larger cake sizes.
Sel says
Hi, can i half the recipe if i just wanna a single layer. I tried the full recipe btw and its so great tk u
Charlotte Oates says
Yes, and if you want a different size of cake there a link to my calculator which will give you the ingredients you need.
Emma Penter says
I’m utterly useless at baking and tried your recipe and have created 3 amazing cakes in the last two months! Thank you!
Donna says
Hi Charlotte,
I love this recipe but no matter what I do my cake won’t rise in the middle. I never open the oven door, I don’t over whisk, my baking powder is new, cake is cooked in the middle and not burnt on the edges. It doesn’t sink when I get out but refuses to rise in the middle whilst in the oven. Any ideas?
Thanks
Charlotte Oates says
How strange. Are you cooking in one deep tin or two sandwich tins?
Jayne says
Hi, should the margarine be straight from the fridge? My sponges seem to turn out quite heavy & greasy.
Charlotte Oates says
I always use mine straight from the fridge with no problems. However, if you’re using a slightly firmer brand then it may need a little time out of the fridge to soften. Greasy/heavy sponge is a sign that the butter/marg hasn’t been mixed in fully (so small lumps of butter/marg in the cake batter melt in the oven, seep out of the cake leaving it greasy), given you’re having this problem it would probably be a good idea to allow your to soften a little before adding it to the mix. Also, mix for a little longer to ensure it’s fully combined.
Lisa says
Hi
My mixture curdled, not sure what I did wrong.
So did another batch. And it looked better, but quite runny, I’s the mixture Meant to be a bit thinner then others .
It’s in the oven now, fingers crossed
Charlotte Oates says
Have you watched the video? If you take a look at that you’ll be able to see the consistency the cake mixture should be.
Gareth says
Brilliant simple cake that stays moist. Used the calculator for my tin and it came out perfect. One note is that it took 10 minutes longer than specified but i imagine mileage will vary depending on oven. Great recipe to have on hand for a quick, easy birthday cake.