A genoise (/ʒeɪˈnwɑːz/, /ʒəˈnwɑːz/, /dʒeɪˈnwɑːz/, or /dʒɛˈnwɑːz/; French pronunciation: ​[ʒenwaz]; Genoese cake or Genovese cake; rarely spelled "génoise" in English) is an Italian sponge cake named after the city of Genoa and closely associated with Italian and French cuisine. Instead of using chemical leavening, air is suspended in the batter through mixing to give volume to the cake. A genoise is not the same thing as a pain de Gênes, which is an almond cake.