Vintage Santa Cake

This is by far my most FAVORITE Designed Sponge Cake I’ve made. This light and fluffy sponge cake, adorned with a nostalgic Santa design, is not only a show stopper but also incredibly delicious and the most rewarding dessert you’ll ever make. Let’s dive into how to make this beautiful cake, along with some helpful tips and tricks to ensure your success.

Tools I Use

• Piping Bags
• Food Dye
• White Food Dye
• Parchment Paper
• Edible Markers
• 8″ Round Pans
• 1/4 cookie sheet
• 1/2 cookie sheet
• Offset spatula
• Electric Handheld Mixer

How To Make A Vintage Santa Cake

Prepare the Design:
Cut parchment paper to fit your pan and use an edible marker to trace your desired Santa design onto the parchment.
Preheat the oven to 375°F and grease your pan with cooking spray. Line it with the designed parchment paper.
Make the Sponge Cake Batter:
Separate the egg whites and yolks. Place the yolks in a large bowl and the whites in a stand mixer bowl.
Whisk together the egg yolks, sugar, vegetable oil, milk, and vanilla until smooth.
Sift the flour and cornstarch into the egg yolk mixture and whisk until smooth. Set aside.
Whisk the egg whites until frothy, then slowly add the sugar and vinegar. Whisk until stiff peaks form.
Gently fold the egg whites into the yolk mixture until just combined.
Color and Pipe the Design:
Divide the batter into small bowls and color with gel food dye.
Use piping bags to trace and fill the design on the parchment paper. Freeze the design for 5-8 minutes.
Pipe the remaining batter on top of the frozen design.
Bake and Assemble:
Bake for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown. Flip the cake onto parchment paper and peel off the design parchment.
Repeat with the remaining batter to make additional layers.
Make the whipped cream by whisking all ingredients until stiff peaks form.
Layer the cakes with whipped cream, using the designed layer on top. Trim the sides if needed.

Tips for Making Sponge Cake

Use Room Temperature Ingredients: This ensures a smoother batter and better incorporation of air.
Be Gentle: When folding in the egg whites, be gentle to avoid deflating them, which can result in a denser cake.
Preheat the Oven: Ensure your oven is fully preheated to achieve an even bake.

How to Whip Egg Whites to Stiff Peaks

Whipping egg whites to stiff peaks is crucial for a light and airy sponge cake. Here’s how to do it:
Clean Bowl: Make sure your mixing bowl is clean and free of any grease.
Room Temperature Whites: Egg whites whip better at room temperature.
Slow and Steady: Start whipping on low speed until frothy, then increase to medium-high.
Add Sugar Gradually: Slowly add sugar to stabilize the egg whites.
Check for Stiff Peaks: When the whisk is lifted, the peaks should stand straight and not collapse.

Gel Food Coloring vs. Liquid

For this recipe, it’s essential to use gel food coloring. Here’s why:
Consistency: Gel food coloring is thicker and won’t thin out the batter, preserving the texture needed for piping.
Vibrant Colors: Gel colors are more concentrated, providing brighter hues without altering the batter’s consistency.

How to Store a Vintage Santa Cake

Refrigerate: Store the cake in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It can last up to 3 days.
Avoid Freezing: Due to the whipped cream filling, freezing is not recommended as it can alter the texture upon thawing.

Designed Sponge Cake Complete Guide

Learn even more about how to make these Designed Sponge Cakes with my Complete Guide!

Complete Guide – Designed Sponge Cakes

Posted on June 13, 2024

Welcome to my complete guide to creating these beautiful and delicious designed sponge cakes! In this guide, I am going to cover everything from the basics of making sponge cake…

Vintage Santa Cake

Recipe by Maddison Koutrouba – thesqueakymixer.com

5.0 from 1 vote

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Servings

10-12

servings

Prep time

30

minutes

Cooking time

10

minutes

Cook Mode

Keep the screen of your device on.

Ingredients

• 12 egg yolks

• 1/2 cup sugar (for yolk batter)

• 1/2 cup vegetable oil

• 1/2 cup whole milk

• 4 tsp. vanilla extract

• 2 cups all-purpose flour

• 1/4 cup cornstarch

• 1 tsp. white vinegar

• 12 egg whites

• 1/2 cup sugar (for egg whites)

• gel food dye (not liquid)

• Chocolate Whipped Cream Filling

• 2 cups heavy whipping cream

• 1/2 cup . confectioners sugar

• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

• dash salt

• 2 tsp. vanilla

• sprinkles (optional)

Directions

• Cut your parchment paper to fit your pan perfectly then use an edible marker to trace your desired design onto parchment paper. I am using an 8″ circle pan.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and grease your pan with cooking spray and line it with the designed parchment paper. This makes three layers of sponge cake. You can also just use a standard-size cookie sheet, note that using a standard-size cookie sheet will only make two layers instead of three.
• Separate the egg whites from the egg yolks. We are using every part of the egg in this recipe so hang onto both. Place the egg whites in a large bowl and the egg yolks into an even larger bowl. Set the egg whites aside, we will need them later.
• Whisk together the egg yolks, sugar, vegetable oil, milk, and vanilla until smooth.
• Sift the flour and cornstarch into the egg yolk mixture. Whisk until the batter is nice and smooth. The batter will be thick. Set aside.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fit with a whisk attachment, whisk the egg whites from earlier until frothy. Slowly add the sugar and vinegar to the egg whites.
• Whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks form. This is very important. Stiff peaks should be able to stand up straight when the whisk is lifted.
• Add the egg whites to the egg yolk mixture. Gently fold in the egg whites. Be careful not to over-mix the batter. Over mixing will deflate the egg whites and make the batter, thin and runny. Mix until the egg whites are just evenly distributed and the batter has few streaks.
• Use small bowls to dye each color that you will need to make your design. Scoop a bit of the batter at a time into these small bowls to make every color you need. Place each color into a piping bag.
• Pipe the design with your desired colors. Do your best to trace the design that you created earlier, with your piping bag.
• Once you have the design finished, freeze it for 5-8 minutes so it sets and is nice and firm.
• Pipe the original, uncolored batter on top of the frozen design.
• Bake for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown on the edges.
• As soon as the cake comes out of the oven, flip the pan onto parchment paper. The design will be facing up. While the cake is still hot, peel off the parchment paper to reveal the beautiful design. Bake the remaining batter on the same-size pan fit with un-designed parchment paper. The other layers do not need designs since they will be hidden in the layers. They will bake the same way. Let the cakes cool before assembling.
• To make the Whipped Cream, in the bowl of a stand mixer fit with the whisk attachment, whisk the cream, sugar, cocoa powder, salt and vanilla until stiff peaks have formed and you have reached a whipped cream consistency.
• Once the cakes have cooled, layer the cakes with evenly spread whipped cream between each layer, adding fresh fruit is optional. Use the designed sheet cake as the top layer.
• Feel free to trim the sides to clean it up a bit if you wish to give the cake a more complete look.
• Enjoy!

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