All the tools you need to master our best ever sponge cake

Best for: Consistent and efficient baking.

Stand mixers provide consistent mixing and incorporate ingredients evenly throughout the batter, ensuring that the cake rises evenly and has a uniform texture. A stand mixer also comes with a myriad of attachments, meaning you can use the one machine every step of the way: from beating the butter and sugar to whipping the cream.

A five-star reviewer wrote, “This machine is a dream come true, I love baking and have started to make a lot from scratch this machine has been a god send with all the attachments you can get for it you will never need another machine, plus it doesn’t take up loads of counter space!”

However, if you don’t have the budget or bench space for a stand mixer, we recently made this sponge recipe with a $45 Sunbeam hand mixer and were really pleased with the results. Read our full review here.

Colours: Silver, blue velvet, apple red, almond cream, dried rose, white (pictured), blue salt, back onyx, majestic yellow

Key features:

• 10 speeds
• Five year warranty
• Includes both 2.8L and 4.8L bowl (4.8L pictured)
• Includes flex edge beater attachment, pastry beater attachment, dough hook attachment and wire whip attachment
• Convenient fitted pouring shield

Available at:

• $799 from Myer
• $769 from KitchenAid
• $764 from David Jones

Best for: Ensuring an even rise and bake

Choosing the right tin for your bake is an important (and underrated!) first step, and choosing the right tin for a temperamental sponge cake is even more important. We bake our best ever sponge using an aluminium tin because the lightweight metal conducts and distributes heat evenly, ensuring the cake rises and bakes perfectly every time. Heavier or alloy metals can cause “hot spots” that lead to uneven rising and falling, and a lumpy surface. Aluminium is also a non-reactive metal, meaning it doesn’t react with acidic flavourings such as citrus. This helps maintain the flavour and colour of the cake and prevents any unwanted metallic tastes.

Materials: Aluminium

Key features:

• Straight sides for even thickness
• Aluminium does not warp, rust, chip or blister
• Aluminium distributes heat evenly

Best for: Further aerating sponge cake batter during mixing

The balloon whisk has a bulbous shape which helps incorporate even more air into the batter as you fold the flour through the egg mixture, guaranteeing a fluffy texture for your sponge cake. The larger size and multiple layers of this trusty whisk allows for thorough and uniform mixing, helping to gently and evenly distribute your ingredients so that there are no dry pockets of flour, all the while ensuring that your sponge cake batter remains airy and light.

“Best whisk ever!” Wrote a five-star reviewer. “For someone that does a lot of baking and cooking, this is the most superior whisk. It’s strong enough to cope with thick batter. It’s worth every cent.”

Key features:

• Polished stainless steel to minimise rusting
• Innovative handle shape for comfortable grip
• Soft handle to prevent blisters

Available at:

• $16.17 from Myer
• $13.99 from Amazon
• $18.87 from David Jones

Best for: Perfect blending of layers and ensuring an even sponge cake surface

We use a bent icing knife across several steps when making our best ever sponge cake. The knife’s angled blade allows you to smoothly manipulate the uncooked batter to ensure a perfectly flat surface for an even rise while baking. Come decorating time, the bent design gives you better control and precision when icing the cake, and makes blending your layers of jam and cream a sweet, sweet dream.

One five-star reviewer wrote, “This is a great icing knife. It’s comfortable to hold – not too heavy, and a big enough handle so my hand didn’t cramp. Easy to clean – no weird creases or ridges where icing could get caught. It’s a nice size – the blade is small enough that I can use it for smaller items, and it’s manoeuvrable. It’s sturdy. Glad I bought it!”

Key features:

• Stainless steel to prevent rusting
• Sturdy but flexible blade to ensure control while icing
• Angled blade helps keep handle elevated
• Contoured, soft handle to prevent blisters