PÃO-DE-LÓ (portuguese sponge cake - 7 eggs)

April 02, 2021

Traditional fluffy cake made with just 3 ingredients - eggs, sugar and flour.

fluffy and easy portuguese sponge cake

Pão-de-Ló is one of those recipes that can be made at any time of the year and has almost as many versions as codfish (in Portugal we have an old saying that there are 1001 codfish recipes...). However, it is mandatory to bake it for Easter and Christmas.

And this one is just another version of this simple cake that everyone likes.

The Ingredients

 
  • Eggs - they are the main ingredient of this cake, in which the whipped egg whites allow air to be incorporated into the cake and give it volume and the soft texture that is expected from this type of sponge cake.
  • Flour - some use self-raising flour in sponge cake recipes, but this one is of traditional origin and uses only fine wheat flour without baking powder.  
  • Sugar - in addition to sweetening, the presence of sugar combined with egg whites also creates the slightly moist texture that this type of cake should have.
one slice on top of the portuguese sponge cake

How to make


  • You should start by covering the form to be used (in this case I used a 22cm tube cake pan). So that the sponge cake doesn't flatten when cooling, we are not going to grease the sides of the pan but only the bottom by covering it with parchment paper (cut the paper with the diameter of the bottom of the pan and then cut it in the middle another circle with the diameter of the tube). Reserve.
  • 2 large bowls are needed, one to beat the egg whites and the other to beat the remaining ingredients of the cake.
  • Break the eggs, separating the whites from the yolks.
  • Sugar is added to the yolks and beat well until it doubles in volume and presents a pale yellow colour.
  • With the help of a spoon or spatula, the flour is gradually added by mixing without beating.
  • In the bowl where the egg whites are, add a pinch of salt and whip well until stiff.
  • Again with the help of a spoon or spatula, whites are blended in the mixture of egg yolks, sugar, and flour, but carefully and without beating so that they don't lose the air bubbles created when whipping the whites.
  • Pour into the pan and place it in the oven at 180ºC for 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pan.
  • To unmold, a knife is passed through the sides of the pan and tube to loosen and then placed on a serving plate.
portuguese sponge cake seen up close

Pão-de-ló recipe


Ingredients 
 
7 eggs 
250 gr of sugar 
125 gr of flour 
Pinch of salt 


  1. Line the bottom of a tube cake pan about 22cm in diameter with butter and then with parchment paper. 
  2. Separate the yolks from the whites, placing each in large bowls. 
  3. In the bowl of the egg yolks add the sugar. 
  4. Beat the egg yolks very well with the sugar until you get a fluffy whitish cream. 
  5. Gradually wrap the flour, but without beating too much. 
  6. Beat the egg whites firmly with a pinch of salt. 
  7. Wrap the egg whites carefully in the previous preparation. 
  8. Pour into the pan and place in the oven at 180ºC for 25 to 30 minutes.
  9. Remove from the oven and let it cool in the pan. Unmold, passing a knife around the pan and tube and then inverting it onto a plate.



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