CookEat Recipe
Maddalena Sponge Diamonds
Thin golden sponge diamonds made with four yolks, three whipped whites and a little butter, with separate moulded and jam-sandwich options.
Method
Steps
Step 1
Gather the ingredients: 130 g caster sugar; 85 g fine plain flour: 80 g for the batter and 5 g for the tray; 35 g butter: 30 g for the batter and 5 g for the tray; 4 egg yolks; 3 egg whites; A small pinch baking soda; Finely grated zest of ½ lemon; 15 g icing sugar for finishing.
Step 2
Spread the 80 g batter flour on a clean tray and warm at 100–120°C for about 10 minutes to dry it without colouring. Cool completely and sift; this does not make it safe to eat raw. Grease a shallow baking tray about 20 × 25 cm with the 5 g tray butter and dust with the 5 g tray flour. Heat the oven to 170°C.
Step 3
Beat the four yolks with the caster sugar until very pale. Add the cooled batter flour and work for at least 15 minutes by hand until evenly mixed. Melt the 30 g batter butter gently, cool until just lukewarm and work it into the mixture with the lemon zest and small pinch of baking soda.
Step 4
Whisk the three whites to firm peaks and fold gently into the yolk mixture. Spread immediately in the prepared tray in a thin layer about 1–1½ cm deep. Use a second small prepared tray if necessary to avoid a thick cake.
Step 5
Bake for about 18–25 minutes until lightly golden and fully set, with no wet batter on a skewer. Cool briefly in the tray, then turn out carefully and cool completely. Cut parallel strips and then diagonal strips to make about 18 diamond-shaped pieces. Dust with the icing sugar.
Step 6
For small decorative moulds, divide the same batter among lightly buttered and floured shallow moulds, keeping the portions small and the batter about 1 cm deep. Bake at 170°C for roughly 12–18 minutes until set, cool briefly, unmould and dust lightly with the measured icing sugar.
Step 7
For jam-sandwiched diamonds, prepare the same batter but spread it about 7 mm thick in a larger tray, approximately 25 × 40 cm, lightly buttered and floured. Bake at 170°C for about 12–18 minutes until set, then cool completely. Cut about 36 small diamonds and pair them with a thin layer of prepared fruit preserve, about 100 g in total, to make about 18 sandwiches. Use the same icing sugar for a light final dust if desired. No fruit preserve is required for the plain main version.
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