Foam cake

A cake raised mainly by air whipped into eggs rather than by baking powder or creamed butter, such as sponge, angel food and chiffon cake.

Foam cake: A tall light angel food cake on a cake stand with one slice cut showing the airy white crumb
  • Doughs, batters and pastry foundations

Foam cakes contain little or no fat and depend on whipped whole eggs, egg yolks or egg whites for their rise. Sponge cake and genoise use whole eggs, angel food cake uses only whites, and chiffon cake adds oil and baking powder to a meringue base.

Careful folding keeps the air in the batter. Angel food and chiffon cakes are baked in ungreased tube pans so the batter can cling to the sides as it rises, then cooled upside down so they do not collapse. The result is light and springy, ideal for soaking with syrup or layering with cream.

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Sources

Written by VanillaGoods in our own words from these sources. Last reviewed October 15, 2026.

  1. 1.7: Cake and Buttercreams, LibreTexts (Rink & Thibodeaux, Introduction to Baking and Pastries)