[Sca-cooks] origins of genoise/sponge cake

[Sandra J. Kisner]

Joe Pastry is writing about genoise these days (an offshoot of a Black Forest Cake post), and was asked where it came from.  He speculates, but does anybody here have more (or better) information?  He says it may have begun mid-16th century:  http://www.joepastry.com/2014/where-does-genoise-come-from/  (I like how the first reference in English seems to have come from Jane Austen.)

Sandra