Classic White Cake

Recipe courtesy of Gourmet Magazine

Rated: 4 stars out of 5Rate itRead users' reviews (77)

RECIPE
COMMENTS & REVIEWS(77)

Cook Time:
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Level:
Easy
Yield:
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Ingredients

12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 large egg whites (3/4 cup)
3/4 cup milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions

Set rack at the middle level in the oven and preheat to 350 degrees.

Butter the bottom of two 9-inch round or one 13 by 9 by 2-inch pan. Line bottom with parchment or waxed paper.

In a large bowl, beat butter and sugar for about 5 minutes, until light and fluffy. Stir together flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside. Combine egg whites, milk and vanilla extract. Add 1/3 of the flour mixture to the butter mixture then add half the milk mixture. Continue to alternate beginning and ending with flour mixture. Scape the bowl and beater often.

Pour the batter into prepared pan(s) and smooth top with metal spatula. Bake cake(s) about 25 to 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center emerges clean.

Cool in pan on rack for 5 minutes, then turn out onto a rack, remove paper and let cool completely.

Note: For a classic yellow cake- Substitute 3 large eggs and 1 yolk for the egg whites.

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Comments & Reviews

recipe Classic White Cake
Ryan Hempstead, TX 10-23-2009
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Land Mines Ahead!
Rated: 4 stars out of 5

For those of you who are having a difficult time making this cake recipe, please pay attention to several details of... technique which are not covered in the recipe. If this is among your first cakes, please pay attention! First, when you combine the butter and the sugar together, it is called "creaming" the butter. Make sure you do this at a decent speed and whip the butter and sugar together until the mixture is light and fluffy. If you overdo this step or if you do this at too high a speed, you can cause the butter to melt, and that gives a coarse, heavy texture to the cake. If this happens, just put the bowl in the fridge for a little bit until the butter solidifies. It also helps if all your ingredients are at room temperature for this recipe. (You should nearly always bake with the ingredients at room temperature, with few exceptions, by the way.) Also, add all your ingredients gradually with the mixer already moving to help blend things more smoothly. When the recipe says to "stir together" the dry ingredients, that means with a whisk. Do NOT use a regular spoon to do this! Even better, use a sifter and sift the ingredients together. Failure to do this may result in a heavy cake! And make sure that when you add the egg mixture and the dry mixture that you are stirring the butter mixture at a low speed. Work only until what you have added has fairly well disappeared into the batter. If you overbeat this kind of cake batter (or anything else with a higher-protein flour than cake flour), you can create a very dense, possibly coarse and flavorless hockey puck. This is because the protein in the flour will start to know up into rubbery gluten structures that keep your cake from rising and make it tougher to eat.Read more
recipe Classic White Cake
Lansing Austin, TX 10-14-2009
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Yellow Cake Version is Awesome....
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

I followed Shannon's advice (2 posts below mine) and used 6 whole eggs as the only ingredient change. I mixed the butter and... sugar first- then added the eggs- one at time- but right after each other- then the vanilla. I scraped the bowl edges and bottom- then mixed at ultra high speed one last time before the next step. I added the other sifted dry ingredients and milk alternatively in 2-3 quick pours and only mixed in my kitchenade mixer for about 30-45 seconds at just under half high speed- - ie- until mixed together. I stopped and added to the pans- in the oven and they were done in about 25 minutes. The cakes is amazingly moist- and delicious. They became the center piece of raspberry filling in between layers and covered in a raspberry lemon cream cheese frosting. This recipe is my new standard for cake.Read more
recipe Classic White Cake
Laura Beth Athens, IL 10-14-2009
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Great Cake
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

I'm not sure if this was the intended purpose, but this made an AWESOME jello cake!!! The dense texture was wonderful as it... did not become mush like a boxed cake does. Thanks Food Network for a great recipe! :)Read more
recipe Classic White Cake
Shannan Oneonta, AL 10-08-2009
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One of the best I've made.
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

I have been baking & decorating cakes for others for six years. I regularly try new recipes to experiment and improve. This... recipe is excellent. I made the yellow cake and followed the recipe. As far as times...I never pay attention to those...I use my judgment for mixing and baking. So these may be inaccurate. The only thing I did differently was that I made the yellow cake and I used 6 whole eggs....this will give it more moisture. Mix until it looks blended....there is no need to mix more than that. Cake was dense, moist, rose well and sturdy enough to work with for decorating.Read more
recipe Classic White Cake
Lisa San Ramon, CA 07-09-2009
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Two little changes make a BIG difference
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

Definitely beat the egg whites first (I almost think it was a typo to leave this step out). Add some nutmeg....secret to... making it have that "something special" taste. :)Read more
recipe Classic White Cake
Marian Lincoln, MA 06-29-2009
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Not what I expected
Rated: 2 stars out of 5

This cake is not like a traditional light, fluffy cake like you would get from a boxed mix. Even when prepared correctly it... is very dense and dry, and not what I was looking for as a birthday cake. Read more