MMMmmmm….vanilla cake
Vanilla cake is the foundation to every other cake flavor I make, with the exception of chocolate. It is the most common request I get and I make it almost every week. Believe it or not, your basic white cake is one of THE hardest cakes to make from scratch. They tend to be dry, too dense, or not flavorful enough. I went through quite a few recipes and variations before finally landing on one that I loved. I have now adapted that one recipe to make lemon cake, coconut cake, spice cake, white almond vanilla cake, orange creamsicle cake, and apple pie cake. I’m sure there will be more variations to come in the future, but for now, let’s start with the quintessential vanilla bean flavor.
The most important ingredient for this cake will be the vanilla you use. I highly recommend using vanilla bean paste or a combination of high quality real vanilla bean extract and vanilla bean paste. I started making my own vanilla extract and the flavor is incomparable to most store-bought extracts. This is a great recipe to get you started: https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/homemade-vanilla-extract/
I buy my vanilla beans on Ebay and since they are going in liquid, I buy the Grade B vanilla beans. Grade B means they are a bit dryer and cheaper, but they are perfect for making extract! I love to break open the pods the put the whole thing in vodka. This will leave behind the flavorful and coveted speckles of the vanilla bean. I love seeing those hints of flavor when I cut into this vanilla bean cake!
Another ingredient that sets this recipe apart from others is that it uses both butter and oil. Butter contributes flavor and oil contributes moisture. Using both will give you the best of both ingredients!
Finally, this recipe uses both all-purpose flour and cake flour. All-purpose flour provides strength so the cake gets a nice rise. Cake flour has less protein, which results in a more tender-crumbed cake. Again, using both will give you the best of both ingredients.
A couple of things to note:
This recipe uses the creaming method, which means the butter, oil, and sugar and beat or creamed together in the first step. This is the MOST important step when making most cakes and cookies. I like to beat it for a good 7 minutes until the butter has visibly changed color. It should be a very pale yellow, almost white. When it is nice and light and fluffy, add the egg whites. I use Bob Evans All Whites brand of carton egg whites, so I don’t have tons of yolks left over and it saves me time from having to separate eggs.
When I make my cakes, I bake one cake layer per pan. You can do two per pan and then torte them, but I choose not to because I can get my layers perfectly the same size by baking them individually.
I also do everything by weights, including weighing the batter that goes into each pan. This ensures that my cake layers are all the same size and allows me to calculate how much batter I need to make for the cakes I am making that week. Here is a breakdown of weights I use to get 1-inch thick cake layers (these are weights for each individual pan):
4-inch pans___________________5 oz batter
5-inch pans___________________7 oz batter
6-inch pans___________________10 oz batter
7-inch pans___________________16 oz batter
8-inch pans___________________18 oz batter
9-inch pans___________________24 oz batter
10-inch pans__________________28 oz batter
12-inch pans__________________40 oz batter
This batter can also be refrigerated for 5 days or frozen for up to 3 months. When ready to bake, remove from the freezer and allow to defrost for about 30 minutes. Bake as usual. Not all batters can be frozen, but I’ve never had a problem storing this one!
I have adjusted the recipe for high altitude (over 5000 ft elevation) to suit my needs, but I will share the regular (below 5000 ft) version with you as well. Following the Vanilla Bean Cake recipe, I will share my alterations for other flavor profiles in future posts, so stay tuned!
- 6 ounces unsalted butter, softened- (¾ cup)
- 2 ounces vegetable oil- (4 TB or 60 mL)
- 12 ¼ ounces granulated sugar- (1 ¾ cups)
- 6 ounces egg whites- (6 egg whites, large)
- 2 tablespoons vanilla extract, or 1 tablespoon vanilla extract and 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste
- 6 ounces all-purpose (plain) flour-(about 1 ¼ cups)
- 5 ounces cake flour-(1 ¼ cups)
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 8 ounces whole milk (other milks work, but whole is the best)- (¾ cup or 178 mL)
- 2 ounces sour cream- (¼ Cup)
- Preheat oven to 350 F (177 C). Grease two 8-inch round cake pans (or 4 6-inch round cake pans) and place a circle of parchment in the bottom of each pan.
- Combine butter, oil and sugar in a mixer bowl. Using the paddle attachment, beat on medium speed for about 5-7 minutes until fluffy or light.
- Meanwhile, combine all the dry ingredients in a separate bowl with a whisk. Set aside.
- To the sugar mixture, add egg whites and vanilla and mix on medium-low until just absorbed by the butter-sugar mixture.
- Combine the milk and sour cream in a liquid measuring cup. Set aside.
- While the mixer is on low speed, sprinkle in half of the dry ingredients and then half the milk/sour cream mixture. With mixer on low, add the rest of the dry ingredients, followed by the rest of the milk/sour cream mixture. Turn speed up to medium and then beat for 1 minute until well blended. Scrape down the sides of the bowl half way through.
- Divide batter between the cake pans and bake for 20-25 minutes or until the center springs back when lightly touched.
- Cool in the pan for 5 minutes and then turn out to a cooling rack. Cover with a large plastic bag or bread bag to keep the moisture in. Cool completely if using immediately or wrap in two layers of plastic wrap to store.
- 6 ounces unsalted butter, softened- (¾ cup)
- 2 ounces vegetable oil- (4 TB or 60 mL)
- 12 ¼ ounces granulated sugar- (1 ¾ cups)
- 6 ounces egg whites- (6 egg whites, large)
- 2 tablespoons vanilla extract, or 1 tablespoon vanilla extract and 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste
- 6½ ounces all-purpose (plain) flour
- 5⅜ ounces cake flour
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1½ teaspoons baking powder
- 8 ounces whole milk (other milks work, but whole is best)- (¾ cup or 178 mL)
- 2 ounces sour cream- (¼ Cup)
- Preheat oven to 350 F (177 C). Grease two 8-inch round cake pans (or 4 6-inch round cake pans) and place a circle of parchment in the bottom of each pan.
- Combine butter, oil and sugar in a mixer bowl. Using the paddle attachment, beat on medium speed for about 5-7 minutes until fluffy or light.
- Meanwhile, combine all the dry ingredients in a separate bowl with a whisk. Set aside.
- To the sugar mixture, add egg whites and vanilla and mix on medium-low until just absorbed by the butter-sugar mixture.
- Combine the milk and sour cream in a liquid measuring cup. Set aside.
- While the mixer is on low speed, sprinkle in half of the dry ingredients and then half the milk/sour cream mixture. With mixer on low, add the rest of the dry ingredients, followed by the rest of the milk/sour cream mixture. Turn speed up to medium and then beat for 1 minute until well blended. Scrape down the sides of the bowl half way through.
- Divide batter between the cake pans and bake for 20-25 minutes or until the center springs back when lightly touched.
- Cool in the pan for 5 minutes and then turn out to a cooling rack. Cover with a large plastic bag or bread bag to keep the moisture in. Cool completely if using immediately or wrap in two layers of plastic wrap to store.
