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    Home » SPONGE CAKE

    Modified: 09/21/2023 · Published: 09/01/2022 · by ayacaliva · This post may contain affiliate links

    Biscuit Joconde Sponge

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    Today, I'm sharing how to make an amazing biscuit Joconde sponge. It is lightly chewy, tender, and moist. The beautiful texture matches well with complex cakes such as mousse cakes, layered cakes, custom entremets, etc.

    JUMP TO RECIPE VIDEO
    cutting biscuit joconde in half

    🧡 I love the Joconde sponge because:

    • The soft and rich texture works perfectly as a thin layer.
    • It has nice flexibility - You can bend it easily to set it up on the sides of cake rings.
    • The amazing almond flavor adds another layer of depth to the cake.
    • It gets baked quickly - and it cools down in a short time!

    💬 It is most known as a sponge for an opera cake. The classic cake can't be completed without this unique sponge!

    soaking biscuit joconde sponge with coffee syrup
    slices of a classic opera cake on a wood board

    In this post, you'll learn essential baking tips such as:

    • What is Joconde sponge?
    • How to make it so tender and light
    • How stiff the meringue should be
    • Tips for folding the batter

    ... and so on.

    Let's get started!

    Jump to:
    • 📌 What is Joconde sponge?
    • 📌 What's In Joconde sponge?
    • 📌 How to make Joconde sponge
    • 📌 How to make Opera cake
    • 📌 Frequently Asked Questions
    • 📌 VIDEO: Learn how to make it visually!
    • 📌 Printable Recipe
    • Biscuit Joconde Sponge
    • 📌 Pin It!

    📌 What is Joconde sponge?

    It is an almond sponge made by mixing the almond & egg mixture and meringue.

    It is not as fluffy as regular sponge cakes, such as a genoise sponge cake, since it contains a lot of almond flour and less flour. It's moist, tender, rich, and slightly chewy.

    It's not too fluffy nor dense, and the neutral presence matches so well with complex desserts such as layered cakes, mousse entremets, etc.

    In French, it's called "La Joconde," derived from the famous painting "Mona Lisa." (It's the feminine form of her married name, Giocondo)

    cutting biscuit joconde in half

    📌 What's In Joconde sponge?

    The almond and whole egg mixture:

    • Powdered Sugar
      • It dissolves quickly in liquids.
    • Almond flour
      • It gives this sponge a rich and moist texture.
    • Whole eggs
      • It does the primary role of letting the cake rise in the oven.
    • All-purpose flour
      • It helps to sustain the body. A small amount is added to make a tender sponge.
    • Butter
      • It adds richness to the texture.

    Meringue:

    • Egg white
      • Ensure no oil and liquids are mixed in egg whites and tools so the meringue whips well.
    • Granulated sugar
      • It helps to stabilize the meringue. Sugar is essential to create a moist texture.

    📌 How to make Joconde sponge

    The 8 steps:

    1. Mix almond flour and powdered sugar.
    2. Add whole eggs and mix.
    3. Heat the mixture with a water bath.
    4. Whip it until it gets very pale.
    5. Whip the egg white to make meringue.
    6. Mix the meringue and the whole egg mixture.
    7. Add flour and fold until you don't see it.
    8. Add melted butter and fold until it's evenly incorporated.
    9. Spread it onto pans and bake at 410 F | 210 C for 6 - 7 minutes.

    📝 More Tips With Images

    Now, let me share detailed tips on each step, which are all crucial for making Joconde sponge successfully.

    Preparation

    • Preheat the oven to 410 F | 210 C
    • Set parchment papers on two half-size sheet pans. (You can also use one full-size sheet pan or four quarter sheet pans.)
    • Prepare all the ingredients ahead so that we can move smoothly after this. 

    Step 1: Mix almond flour and powdered sugar.

    Let's start making the almond & egg mixture!

    First, mix powdered sugar and almond flour in a bowl:

    sifting powdered sugar and almond flour

    It's not a crucial step, but I like to sift them to eliminate the lumps of flour beforehand.

    Step 2: Add whole eggs and mix.

    Add whole eggs to the flour:

    mixing almond flour, powdered sugar and egg together

    Mix it with a whisk until it looks even:

    blended almond flour, powdered sugar and egg

    Step 3: Heat the mixture with a water bath.

    Heat it with a water bath until it feels comfortably warm. (95 - 104 F | 35 - 40 C)

    💡 By doing this, the eggs get whipped a lot better.

    warming up the whole egg mixture with a water bath

    ⚠️ Ensure that the hot water is not touching the bowl directly to prevent eggs from getting cooked.

    Remove the bowl from the heat once it’s heated enough.

    And use the hot water to melt butter beforehand:

    melting butter in water bath

    Step 4: Whip the mixture.

    Start whipping it while it’s warm:

    whipping almond flour, powdered sugar and egg mixture

    Continue whipping until it looks very pale:

    whipping the whole egg mixture to make biscuit joconde

    💬 That means it contains lots of air, creating a lighter texture for the sponge. 

    Touch the bowl and check: Stop whipping it when it feels nothing (room temperature).

    Set it aside.

    When should we start whipping egg white?

    Whip the whole egg mixture and egg white at the same time when you can or whip from the whole egg mixture. But do not start by whipping egg white.

    That is because meringue is more unstable and starts separating quickly if you leave it for some time. Even if you re-whip it, it's not quite the same when it's already separated too much.

    Step 5: Make meringue.

    Now, we are making meringue.

    egg white in a mixing bowl

    ⚠️ Ensure that all the tools and ingredients are dried without oil, liquids, or chemicals such as soaps. - They prevent the egg white from getting whipped well to make stiff meringue. Egg yolks contain oil, so separate them carefully!

    (If you use the whisk you used for the whole egg mixture, wash them off and wipe them well.)

    Once the meringue looks bubbly like hand soap, add half of the sugar and continue whipping:

    adding sugar in meringue

    Add the rest of the sugar when it looks fluffy:

    adding sugar in fluffy meringue

    ⚠️ I recommend not adding all the sugar at once because it prevents the egg white from whipping well when it's added in the beginning.

    Continue whipping until it looks fluffy. The tip should curl like this:

    finished meringue in a bowl

    💡 Meringue starts separating in a short time. Use it right away as soon as it's made!

    Step 6: Mix the meringue & whole egg mixture.

    Pour all the whole egg mixture into the meringue:

    pouring the whole egg mixture into the meringue to make biscuit sponge

    And continue folding until about 75% is blended:

    folding the batter of biscuit jocondes

    Step 7: Add flour and fold.

    Next, add sifted all-purpose flour:

    adding flour to the biscuit joconde batter
    folding flour in the biscuit joconde batter

    And continue folding until you don’t see any flour.

    Step 8: Add melted butter and mix.

    Use warm melted butter.

    ⚠️ The butter gets hard as you mix if it's not warm enough.

    Add one big scoop of the batter to it and mix. And pour it back into a bowl:

    adding one scoop of biscuit joconde batter to melted butter

    Continue folding until it's evenly incorporated.

    👩🏻‍🍳 Stop right after it's evenly blended. The batter gets runnier when over-mixed, leading to a heavier cake.

    mixing the batter of biscuit joconde

    Step 9: Spread onto pans and bake!

    Pour it into trays immediately and spread it evenly:

    pouring the batter of biscuit joconde into a sheet pan
    spreading the batter of biscuit joconde in a sheet pan

    I used two half-size sheet trays for an opera cake this time. You can also use a different size or shape for your specific desserts.

    💃🏻 Move as quickly as possible to put them in an oven before the meringue inside start collapsing and losing its volume.

    Bake at 410 F | 210 C for 6 - 7 minutes until the surface looks golden brown.

    The sponge bounces back gently when you touch it.

    baking biscuit joconde in an oven

    When you use two racks in an oven, switch the positions toward the end to bake them evenly. (At least with my oven, they don't get baked evenly when I don't rotate!)

    Let them cool on a rack:

    biscuit joconde just came out from an oven

    📌 How to make Opera cake

    Check out this post to learn how to make the classic opera cake with this biscuit Joconde sponge. I'm sharing how to make it step by step.

    soaking biscuit joconde sponge with coffee syrup
    piping mocha buttercream on top of biscuit sponge to assemble a opera cake

    📌 Frequently Asked Questions

    How should I store Joconde sponge, and what's the shelf-life?

    Wrap it tightly to prevent it from getting dry, and store it in the fridge for up to 4 days. You can also freeze it for up to about 2 months.

    What does "biscuit" mean?

    In sponge-making, the word "Biscuit" describes how to make a sponge: Whipping egg yolk and egg white separately. We often call it "the biscuit method." (Sometimes, you don't whip the yolks, or we use whole eggs instead of the yolks, etc. There can be slight differences like that on each recipe.)
    With the "Genoise method," on the contrary, whole eggs are whipped together to make a sponge.

    What dessert can I use biscuit Joconde for?

    Biscuit Joconde is not too fluffy or dense; The neutral presence matches so well with complex desserts such as layered cakes like Opera cake and classic entremets such as a mousse cake. The almond flavor matches so well with chocolate desserts as well.

    What is biscuit Joconde?

    It is an almond sponge cake made from almond & egg batter and meringue. It's tender, slightly chewy, and moist - It's often baked thin to enjoy the texture. The most well-known cake using this sponge is Opera cake.

    What does "Joconde" means for Joconde sponge?

    The sponge is called "La Joconde" in French, derived from the famous painting "Mona Lisa." It's the feminine form of her married name, Giocondo

    📌 VIDEO: Learn how to make it visually!

    Watch this video to learn how to make the biscuit Joconde sponge visually!

    Don't forget to subscribe if you liked it😉

    📌 Printable Recipe

    💬 If you loved this recipe, please share your feedback on this post! I always love hearing how you enjoyed it with your friends and family.

    Biscuit Joconde Sponge

    A tender and soft biscuit Joconde sponge. Use it for any kinds of cakes and desserts, such as opera cake and mousse cake.
    Author ayacaliva
    Total Time 30 minutes mins
    Course Sponge
    Servings 10
    5 from 1 vote
    Print Pin Email

    Equipment

    • Bowl
    • Hand mixer or Stand mixer with a whisk
    • Pod (for water bath)
    • Spatula
    • 2 half-size sheet pans or 1 full-size sheet pan
    • Parchment paper
    • Cake palette

    Ingredients

    • 3.5 oz Powdered Sugar ⅔ + ⅙ US cups
    • 3.5 oz Almond flour 1 US cup
    • 5.3 oz Whole eggs about 3 eggs
    • 4.9 oz Egg white about 4 large eggs
    • 2.47 oz Granulated sugar ⅓ US cup
    • 1.2 oz All-purpose flour 4.5 tablespoon *Level the surface.
    • 0.5 oz Butter (melted) 1 Tbsp
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Instructions
     

    Preparation

    • * Preheat the oven to 410 F | 210 C
      * Set up parchment paper on sheet pans.
      * Prepare hot water in a pod.
      * Melt butter (You can use the water bath.)
      * Sift all-purpose flour.
      melting butter in water bath

    The whole egg mixture

    • Mix almond flour and powdered sugar.
      3.5 oz Almond flour, 3.5 oz Powdered Sugar
      sifting powdered sugar and almond flour
    • Add whole eggs and mix.
      5.3 oz Whole eggs
      blended almond flour, powdered sugar and egg
    • Heat the mixture with a water bath until it feels comfortably warm: 35 - 40 C | 95 - 104 F
      warming up the whole egg mixture with a water bath
    • Whip it until it looks very pale.
      whipping the whole egg mixture to make biscuit joconde

    Meringue

    • Whip egg white to make meringue. (Fluffy but not too stiff. Check the image.)
      Add the sugar dividing into 2 times. (Do not add all at once at the beginning.)
      4.9 oz Egg white, 2.47 oz Granulated sugar
      finished meringue in a bowl

    Combine them

    • Fold the meringue and the whole egg mixture until about 75% is blended.
      folding the batter of biscuit jocondes
    • Add sifted all-purpose flour and fold until you don't see any flour.
      1.2 oz All-purpose flour
      adding flour to the biscuit joconde batter
    • Add melted butter and fold until it's evenly incorporated.
      0.5 oz Butter (melted)
      adding one scoop of biscuit joconde batter to melted butter

    Bake!

    • Spread onto 2 sheet pans. (Or bake with any pans you like)
      Bake at 410 F | 210 C for 6 - 7 minutes until the surface gets nice golden brown.
      * Adjust the time and temperature depending on the oven, the size of a pan, the thickness of the sponge, etc.
      *  Switch the positions toward the end when using 2 racks in the oven.
      pouring the batter of biscuit joconde into a sheet pan

    Video

    Notes

    One batch is enough for 2 half-sheet pans.

    How to store it:

    Wrap it tightly to prevent it from getting dry, and store it in the fridge for up to 4 days. You can also freeze it for up to about 2 months.
     
    ** For best results, measure ingredients with a scale. All recipes are designed with weighed ingredients using grams/ounces. Cup measurements are provided for your convenience. **

    Nutrition

    Calories: 136kcal | Carbohydrates: 22g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 59mg | Sodium: 45mg | Potassium: 48mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 118IU | Calcium: 31mg | Iron: 1mg
    Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

    📌 Pin It!

    Pin it if you love this recipe, and find so many other recipes on my Pinterest page!

    cutting biscuit joconde and soaking it with coffee syrup

    Go back to the top of this post.

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Dee Moore says

      May 10, 2023 at 11:40 pm

      5 stars
      Thank you so much for the video. I’m have wanted to make this beautiful dessert for a long time and the video was very helpful.

      Reply
      • ayacaliva says

        May 11, 2023 at 9:37 am

        My pleasure! I'm glad to hear that!!

        Reply

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