This is one of the first recipes that I learned at Le Cordon Bleu culinary school.  We made genoise on my second day of class.  During my independent study on gluten free french pastry development, my first "gluten free challenge" was to make a gluten free genoise.  I want to share the successful results of my recipe with you!

Genoise is a light sponge cake made with butter, which makes it softer and richer in flavor. You will need a baking scale for this one.  The measurements are very precise in order to achieve a fluffy and light genoise.   You can make a simple genoise with a thin layer of jam and cream in the center and topped with powdered sugar.  If berries are in season, add a layer of fresh strawberries to the center cream layer (who doesn't love strawberries and cream?!) and top your cake with a beautiful array of strawberries, blueberries and raspberries.  

Le Cordon Bleu Gluten Free Genoise (Sponge) Cake

Ingredients:

280 grams eggs
180 grams white sugar
2 tsp vanilla
180 grams Sydney Blend
60 grams unsalted butter, melted

Chantilly Cream:
150 ml cream
15 grams confectioners sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Strawberry or raspberry jam

Mix: Place a 1-quart saucepan half filled with water over high heat and bring it to a simmer. Make a double boiler by setting a large mixing bowl over the simmering water. Place the eggs, vanilla and sugar in the mixing bowl and make an egg foam by whisking the mixture to 113 degrees F (60 degrees C) on a candy thermometer, about 7 to 10 minutes. Whisk until the mixture has thickened, tripled in volume, light in color and the sugar has dissolved. If you dip the whisk into the mixture and pull it out, the batter should fall back into the bowl in a thick ribbon.

Remove the mixing bowl from the heat and whip the batter with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until it cools, increases in volume, stiffens slightly and becomes pale yellow, about 7 to 10 minutes. If the mixture is under whipped, the baked genoise will be dense. Very slowly and carefully, fold in the Sydney Blend with a rubber spatula until the flour is no longer visible, making sure to fold to the bottom of the bowl. Do not over fold or the batter will deflate. Finally, pour the melted butter into the batter and mix for just a few seconds, being careful not to deflate the batter.  The batter should look shiny and fluffy.

Bake: Fill buttered and parchment paper-lined 8-inch round cake pans 3/4 full with batter. Bake in a preheated 350 degree F (180 degree C) oven until well-risen and golden brown, about 35-40 minutes. Let the genoise cool slightly. Unmold, remove parchment paper and finish cooling on a wire rack.

Finish: Use a bread knife to cut the cake into 2 layers.  Rotate the cake while cutting only a few inches in and when you’ve cut the entire circumference of the cake, cut in the middle slightly so the cake becomes separated into two halves.  Use a spatula to spread raspberry jam and whipped cream on the entire surface of the middle layer.  You can decorate the top of the cake with more whipped cream or powdered sugar.