Biscuit Joconde (Easy Joconde Sponge Cake Recipe)

Quick Summary: Biscuit Joconde is a thin, light French almond sponge cake made with ground almonds, eggs, sugar, and a little flour. Also called Joconde sponge cake or Joconde biscuit, this easy recipe bakes in 10 to 15 minutes and serves as the base for Opera cake, entremets, cake rolls, and Yule logs.

What is Biscuit Joconde?

Biscuit Joconde is a French light almond sponge cake made with eggs, ground almonds, and icing sugar (a tant pour tant). Tart pour tant is a French baking term, meaning a mixture of icing sugar and ground powder in equal proportions.

In French, La Joconde means Mona Lisa, a captivating masterpiece by Leonardo da Vinci.

Joconde sponge cake is similar to Genova bread (Pain de Gênes), made with almond paste, slivered almonds, and classic Genoise cake.

Why you'll love the Joconde recipe

• It is an easy recipe with a very quick bake (10-15 minutes).
• Joconde sponge cake is made with five basic ingredients.
• It is freezer-friendly.

Ingredients

For ingredients and detailed instructions, refer to the recipe card below.

• Almonds: The recipe calls for ground almonds or almond meal. If unavailable, use almond flour. Place the whole blanched almonds in a food processor and process until a fine powder forms.

• Sugar: Use icing sugar (confectioners' sugar) and superfine caster or baker's sugar. To make granulated sugar superfine, process it in a food processor a few times.

• Flour: Use all-purpose flour, not cake flour.

• Eggs: You will need room-temperature whole eggs and egg whites to make the recipe. Use chilled eggs and an egg separator to separate the egg whites from the yolks. Then, bring egg whites to room temperature.

Pro tip: Use leftover egg yolks to make creme Anglaise, Italian pastry cream, or Torta Mimosa.

• Butter: Use unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled.

How to make Biscuit Joconde

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 390°F (200°C) and prepare a non-spill baking sheet (no need to grease it).

Pro tip: Alternatively, use a silicone baking mat or a 12 x 16 inches (30 x 40 cm) baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Grease the baking tray, then add the parchment paper and lightly grease it.

Step 2: To make the cake batter, use a hand whisk to mix ground almonds, all-purpose flour, and icing sugar in a clean mixing bowl.

Step 3: Melt the butter in the microwave in 20-second increments, then set aside.

Step 4: Place whole eggs in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment and beat for a few seconds.

Step 5: Add dry ingredients and mix at medium speed for 2-3 minutes until homogeneous (photo 1). Pour the cooled melted butter, and gently mix with a spatula (photo 2).

Step 6: In a separate, clean bowl, whip the egg whites at high speed with an electric mixer. Once frothy, gradually add caster sugar and beat until stiff peaks (photo 3).

Step 7: Gently fold the beaten egg whites into the almond mixture in 2 or 3 additions, then carefully mix with a rubber spatula (photo 4).

Step 8: Pour the sponge batter onto the baking sheet and smooth the surface with a long offset spatula or a flat knife (photo 5).

Step 9: Bake the Joconde biscuit for 10 to 15 minutes (photo 6). If using a silicone mold, place it on the oven rack. The sponge should be slightly golden and not stick to your finger.

Step 10: Remove the cake from the oven. Flip it onto powdered sugared parchment paper or a kitchen towel sprinkled with icing sugar. Gently peel the baking mat or parchment paper.

For a cake roll, sprinkle it with icing sugar, then roll it in the towel for 10 minutes. Then, unroll it and let it cool to room temperature.

For an entremet dessert, let the Joconde sponge cool to room temperature, then cut it into the required sizes.

Expert Tips

1. Make sure to use room-temperature ingredients.
2. Do not overbake the biscuit; otherwise, it will be dry and brittle.
3. If using a jelly roll pan, recalculate the cake ingredients using this simple cake pan converter.

Recipe variations

1. Chocolate Joconde biscuit (biscuit Joconde au chocolat): Replace 50% of the flour with unsweetened cocoa powder.
2. Hazelnut Joconde biscuit (biscuit Joconde noisette): Swap ground almonds for ground hazelnuts (hazelnut meal).
3. Pistachio Joconde biscuit (biscuit Joconde pistache): Replace ground almonds with pistachio. 
4. Biscuit Joconde imprime (Joconde sponge with a decorative design used for making entremets): Use food coloring to tint batter (aka Joconde-décor paste). With a piping bag, create a decorative design: pipe letters, draw vertical lines, zig zags, or polka dots on parchment paper. Freeze the design before pouring the Joconde batter over it, then bake.

How to use biscuit Joconde

Biscuit Joconde is a base sponge, so it is almost always used as a component in a larger dessert rather than served on its own. Its most famous use is Opera cake, where thin layers of Joconde are soaked in coffee syrup and stacked with coffee buttercream and chocolate ganache.

It also works beautifully as a flexible layer for cake rolls and Yule logs, as the sides and base of entremets and mousse cakes, mini cakes, alphabet and number cakes, and Bavarois, and, when piped with a tinted decor paste before baking, as a patterned Joconde imprimé to line molds.

Common mistakes to avoid with biscuit Joconde

The most common mistake is overbaking. Biscuit Joconde is thin and bakes in only 10 to 15 minutes, so a few extra minutes will dry it out, making it brittle rather than soft and pliable.

Deflating the batter is the next pitfall: fold the whipped egg whites in gently, in two or three additions, so the sponge keeps its air and stays light.

Finally, use room-temperature eggs and do not skip whipping the whites to stiff peaks, since both steps are what give the Joconde its signature soft, moist crumb.

Storing & freezing

Store the Joconde biscuit, well wrapped in a large piece of cling wrap or an airtight container, at room temperature for 2-3 days.

Can you freeze a Joconde biscuit? You can freeze layers of almond sponge cake (biscuit Joconde, cut into cake layers) covered with cling film for 3 months.

Recipe FAQ

Why is Joconde sponge called Joconde?
Joconde sponge cake takes its name from the French La Joconde, the French name for the Mona Lisa. The cake is sometimes misspelled as Jaconde, but Joconde is the correct French spelling.

What is the difference between a Joconde and a sponge cake?
Like a Genoise, a Joconde is a whisked sponge, but it adds ground almonds to the batter. The almonds give biscuit Joconde a richer, moister, more tender crumb than a plain sponge cake.

What is the difference between a Joconde and a dacquoise?
A Joconde is a full sponge batter made with whole eggs, ground almonds, sugar, and a little flour. A dacquoise is a nut meringue, made from whipped egg whites and ground nuts with little or no flour, so it bakes up crisp rather than soft and spongy.

What is almond Joconde or almond Jaconde?
Almond Joconde, sometimes written almond Jaconde, is simply the classic version of the cake made with ground almonds, biscuit Joconde aux amandes in French. Ground almonds are the traditional nut, though hazelnuts or pistachios can be used instead.

Can you make a biscuit Joconde ahead of time?
Yes. Wrap the baked Joconde well in cling film or store it in an airtight container at room temperature for two to three days, or freeze the layers for up to three months. Making it ahead is convenient when you are building an Opera cake or entremets.

Why did my Joconde turn out dry or tough?
A dry or tough Joconde is almost always overbaked or overmixed. Bake it just until the top is lightly golden, and it springs back to the touch, and fold the egg whites in gently so the batter keeps the air that makes the sponge soft.

Love sponge cakes? Try these next!

• Italian sponge cake
• Chocolate sponge cake
• Japanese sponge cake
• Korean sponge cake
• Or browse all the cake recipes

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The nutritional information has been calculated using an online recipe nutrition calculator such as Verywellfit.com and is intended for informational purposes only. These figures should be used as a general guideline and not be construed as a guarantee.