The Best Savoy Cake Recipe

Enjoy this ultimately easy and quick Savoy cake recipe to make this delicious Easter sponge cake. A real delight, this orange-flavored sponge cake is made in 45 minutes!

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I fell in love with this Braided Baking Mold - the best Easter baking pan - once I saw it on Amazon. My first thought was that it would be the perfect pan to make the Easter sponge cake!

So, if you look for a sweet treat to please your family and celebrate spring, please, don't look further!

What is a Savoy cake?

Savoy Cake is a fatless sponge cake baked in a mold and sprinkled with icing sugar.

The Savoy cake (Gâteau de Savoie in French) was named for a region Savoy shared between France, Italy, and Switzerland.

It is tough to claim a country of the cake's origin; although, the Savoy is more considered a French dessert.

Savoy cake history

Savoy cake was invented in 1358 when Amadeus VI, Count of Savoy, asked a pastry chef to create "a cake as light as a feather."

The pastry chef Pierre de Yenne had the only idea of ​​beating egg yolks and sugar for a long time and adding flour and beaten egg whites.

He baked the cake in a wooden mold and served to the table of Amadeus VI. The Savoy cake (biscuit) was born.

The recipe was refined in the 17th and 18th centuries by changing flavors (lime zest, cinnamon, orange blossom, etc.).

Still, Savoy sponge cake is considered to be one of the oldest western pastries from the fourteenth century that we enjoy today.

Savoy cake mold

The first original Savoy cake mold was made of copper. When Madam Mercotte is asked for her secret to making the perfect Savoy cake, she replies:

My Savoy cookie mold… I can't stop making it right now in my beautiful copper mold.

Nowadays, non-stick pans and silicone molds are mostly used to make this type of cake - a molded cake.

And this Savoy cake recipe is one of the best-molded cake recipes. Use braided baking mold and serve this cake for Easter.

Enjoy this rose bundt pan to impress your mom on Mother's Day. Or surprise kids with a cake baked in this castle bundt pan.

Celebrate spring with Savoy sponge cake baked in these spring-inspired tins: blossom bundt pan or magnolia bundt pan.

Bake a cake in this charlotte cake pan and decorate with whipped cream and summer fruit.

A cake baked in this harvest leaves bundt pan is autumnal and matches the fall time baking.

Make the best Christmas Savoy cake using these adorable cake molds: pine forest bundt pan or gingerbread house bundt pan.

To boo someone on Halloween, bake a scary cake using this skull cake pan.

This original bundt pan perfectly works for baking Savoy cake, too.

Even a simple cake pan is suitable to bake this cake, as per French chef Alain Ducasse.

Main tips to make Savoy cake

There are a few main tips to succeed in making the perfect Savoy cake recipe.

Take your time and prepare a bundt cake: generously butter it and sprinkle with granulated or caster sugar in order to get the beautiful crust of the Savoy cake after baking.

According to John Simpson (London, 1806) in "Great British Bakes. Forgotten Treasures for Modern Bakers",

Be very particular with the molds, for there is as much art in preparing the mold, as in mixing the batter for the cake.

Make sure to beat egg yolks with granulated or caster sugar well to get whitish and doubled in volume mixture.

Whisk egg whites with a pinch of salt and sugar till they are well mounted before incorporating them into the main preparation.

Never open the oven door while baking this sponge cake; otherwise, it will collapse.

Why you should try this recipe

1. As a light, fat-free dessert, the cake is perfect for children.
2. It is the best Easter cake recipe: it takes about 25 minutes to make the batter and 20 minutes to bake the cake.
3. This Easter sponge cake does not require any fancy decorations: just sprinkle the cake with powdered (icing) sugar and serve.
4. Using different bundt cake pans allows you to customize and personalize the cake and make it for any holiday.

Ingredients

Here is a quick overview of what ingredients you will need. Follow the full recipe below for exact amounts and instructions. I recommend making the recipe as written for the best results.

Eggs: the recipe calls for large eggs. Separate the egg whites from the yolks while the eggs are chilled. An egg separator is helpful here.

Sugar: use granulated or caster sugar. You can also use superfine baker's sugar.

Flour: the recipe calls for regular all-purpose flour.

Corn and potato starch: adding starches to the recipe facilitates gluten development and creates the most tender cake texture.

Baking powder: use fresh aluminum-free baking powder to make the cake.

Vanilla beans: use the top quality Madagascar vanilla beans that are the most flavorful.

Oranges: use organic, untreated oranges, and use a zester grater to make fresh zest. Replace orange zest with the zest of half of a lemon, a common flavoring for Savoy cake.

Salt: it enhances the flavors of the cake.

Cream of tartar: it helps stabilize egg whites. Omit this ingredient if you do not have it.

How to make Savoy cake

Preheat oven to 430 F/220 C. Generously butter a bundt cake (a fluted tube pan) and sprinkle it with granulated sugar (photo 1).

To make the batter, sift flour, corn starch, potato starch, and baking powder, and mix.

Using a stand mixer or an electric mixer, beat egg yolks and ½ cup + ½ tablespoon (120 g) of granulated sugar till the mixture whitens (photo 2).

Add the sifted dry ingredients and mix on low speed (photo 3). Add the scraped seeds of vanilla beans and orange zest made with a zester grater and mix again (photo 4).

In a separate clean bowl, whisk egg whites at room temperature with a pinch of salt and cream of tartar till they are firmly mounted.

Gradually add the remaining sugar, which is ¼ cup + ½ teaspoon (60 g), and whisk (photo 5). 

Gently fold the beaten egg whites into the main preparation with a rubber spatula (photo 6).

Pour the ready batter into a braided baking mold up to two-thirds (photo 7). 

Bring the pan into the oven and immediately lower the temperature to 320 F/160 C. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes.

Check the cake's readiness with the blade of a knife: if it comes out dry, the biscuit is ready. Let the cake rest in the pan for a few minutes (photo 8)...

and remove it from the mold (photo 9). Sprinkle the cooled Savoy cake with powdered (icing) sugar (photo 10). 

Expert tips

1. 100 g egg yolks are approximately equal to 6 raw fresh egg yolks from large size chicken eggs.
2. 210 g egg whites, approximately equal to 5 ½ raw fresh egg whites from extra large size chicken eggs.
3. Grease the cake mold with clarified butter, which does not contain milk solids. It will provide an even biscuit-like crust while baking the cake.
4. Replace orange zest with the zest of half of a lemon, a common flavoring for Savoy cake.
5. If the cake turns brown quickly, cover it with buttered parchment or foil during baking.
6. Serve the cake with the pastry cream, jam, or your favorite spread.
7. The cake is best eaten on the day of baking. To store the cake for up to one day, return the cooled cake to a baking pan and wrap it with plastic film.
8. Decorate the cake with chocolate or candy eggs, fixing them with melted chocolate. Use edible flowers on the cake.

Frequently asked questions

How to serve Savoy cake

Sprinkle Savoy cake with icing (powdered) sugar and serve it on its own. Or serve it with pastry cream, jam, Hazelnut Praline Paste, or your favorite spread.

You can also enjoy a slice of the cake surrounded by half-strawberries or other red fruits with fruit preserves on the side.

If you bake Savoy cake in a high-sided bundt cake mold, you can cut the cake in half and spread your favorite fruit jam and whipped cream.

Also, arrange the halved strawberries if you desire. Place the second half of the cake on top.

How to store Savoy sponge cake

It is best to serve and eat Savoy cake on the day of baking. To store the cake, bring the cooled cake into a baking mold, wrap it with plastic film, and store it for up to one day.

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Recipe card

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.

The recipe was adapted from https://www.femmeactuelle.fr/. It was originally published on April 15, 2019. The recipe has been revised to include improved content and photos. All posted pictures are mine.