Quite a few recipes call for sponge cake so I’m going to make one to have on hand for other recipes in The New Galt Cook Book (1898). I selected a recipe contributed by Mrs. Strong for Sponge Cake.
I separated 4 eggs and whisked the whites until they were stiff. I added the 1 cup of white sugar and whisked it again. Then I added the 4 egg yolks. More beating and finally I could add the 1 cup of flour and 1 teaspoon baking powder mixed already. The final ingredient was the lemon flavouring. I poured the batter into a greased cake pan and baked in a preheated 350 F. oven for 35 minutes. It appeared perfectly cooked and I was eager to eat a slice even before it was entirely cooled.
Mrs. Richard Strong contributed recipes to the cook book but this recipe is attributed to Mrs. Strong so I think it must be a different woman. I think it could be Amelia Loretta Bailey. She was born in 1868 in Ingersoll Ontario to George and Sabina. Amelia married Arthur D. H. Strong in 1889 and they had two daughters just a year apart. In 1912, the younger one Dorothy died when she was 19 of rheumatism and endocarditis. Four years later Arthur died too of a kidney disorder called Bright’s disease. He was an insurance agent in Galt Ontario. Two years later in 1916 the older daughter Mary got married. I lose track of Amelia for a while but in 1933 she goes to visit her sister Rose in the United States. I don’t know when she dies.
This is a good basic sponge cake. It is easy to prepare even by hand, requires just a few ingredients, and doesn’t contain any dairy. It is a bit on the sweet side although I think the amount of sugar helps create a stable texture to the cake. This recipe is a keeper for me.
SPONGE CAKE
Mrs. StrongFour eggs, one cupful sugar, one cupful flour, one teaspoonful baking powder, essence of lemon to taste. Beat the whites of the eggs, add the sugar, and beat again, add the yelks, beat once more, stir in the other ingredients lightly.
Cooking with the Galt Cook Book 