When making a sponge cake, should you use margarine or butter?

[piggynose]

I ´ve always used margarine, because butter is usually too hard to use. I´m just wondering if the sponge will taste a lot better with butter, or is there no difference.

[woofgang]

Some people can't taste the difference, some say butter tastes better

[Hopkirk]

A little tip.

Take the butter out of the fridge. It goes soft.

(Or today, it runs away)

[nannybooby]

Ialways use soft style unsalted butter - havent had any complaints !

[DTCwordfan]

you just let the butter go really soft - and add the eggs very, very slowly, to get that lovely moisture in the sponge. No that's very, very, very slowly - and if you can source ducks eggs, they are wonderful in a sponge.

[rowanwitch]

I switched to vegetable oil a few years back and my sponges have been much nicer

[piggynose]

i´ll give it a go this week, its for a 50th b´day party.

thanx folks

[Laelia]

Hi piggy,
I always use butter, it has a richer taste I think. I usually cube the butter up and leave it to sit in the flour for a bit till it gets to room temperature.

[NoMercy]

I use Bertolli and the results are far better than when I've used other spreads.

[pastafreak]

Since most of my recipes are American,I've always used vegetable oil...and I've always had compliments on how moist my cakes are.

[rowanwitch]

I had my recipe from a South African friend it uses golden syrup instead of sugar in one of the variations

[vodkancoke]

I use good quality unsalted butter blocks rather than spreadable butter and let them come to room temp. Like Pasta, a lot of my cake recipes are American too and veg oil works a treat. If I am following an Italian recipe I use yoghurt.

[knowabit]

I keep Lurpack spreadable butter in the fridge for baking, its much softer and easier to use straight from the fridge.