Spongecake with Lemon Raisin Sauce

My family has started the wonderful tradition of going to Arizona in December, instead of, say, back to Minnesota! And what a perfect time to celebrate everyone’s birthdays (whether or not they fall anytime soon)!

This year my Aunt Ruthe found a spongecake recipe on the back of a potato starch tin – which is perfect because it is gluten free, and because it gives me a chance to redeem myself for all the times I botched the folding-in part when baking with my grandmother.

Also on the back of the potato starch tin was a recipe for raisin sauce that was actually to go on meat, but we decided it sounded good so we found a recipe for a cake sauce version from Just a Pinch.

All right, here’s what we did:
For the Spongecake:

– Whip 6 egg yolks and 1 whole egg until frothy
– Beat in slowly until smooth:
— 1 1/2c sugar
— 1 1/2tsp lemon rind
— 2 1/2tbsp lemon juice
— 3/4c potato starch

– Whip the remaining 6 egg whites until stiff peaks with a little bit of salt

– Fold the egg whites into the egg yolk-mixture

– Pour the mixture into an ungreased spongecake pan (which I guess is very specific: removable bottom with a tube in the center, and high sides)

– Bake at 350*f for ~55 minutes until it looks a little cracked on top but not too brown and springs back to the touch

Note: Apparently this next part is very important!
– Turn the cake pan upside down on a cooling rack and allow to cool completely. This helps the cake stretch out and be super fluffy!
– Once it has COMPLETELY cooled, cut around the edges, lift the cake out with the removable bottom, and then turn it out onto a pretty plate!

– Serve drizzled with
Raisin Lemon Sauce (please note: this recipe makes a ridiculous amount. It’s delicious, and apparently will keep in the fridge for ~2 weeks, but you might want to half this):

– Soak 1/2c raisins in water until plump (the water that results is delicious. Use this later in the recipe, or reserve it for later use – yum!)

– Simmer on the stove until it coats the back of a spoon:
— 1c boiling water
— 2tbsp lemon juice
— 2c powdered sugar

– Whisk in:
— 1c butter (we use 1/2 salted by mistake and it wasn’t a big deal in the end) (they say to melt the butter first, but I just let it melt in the pot)
— 2tbsp potato starch mixed first in 1/2c water until it’s smooth (I actually never got it smooth, but that was ok too) (original recipe says corn starch, but whatever)
— Drained raisins
— Rum – Not in the original recipe but highly recommended! I just poured in a little and it didn’t end up being enough so don’t skimp.

Done! Delicious!! So delicious, in fact, that we pretty much demolished it in one night, I had extra spongecake for breakfast this morning – topped with Greek yogurt, fresh blueberries, and more of the lemon-raisin sauce, and we’re planning on making another spongecake tonight!!