White Layer Cake

Ingredients

Ingredients To Be Creamed and Mixed:

Dry Ingredients:

Milk and Vanilla:

Egg White Mixture:

Sugar to Add to Egg Whites:

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 375°.
  2. Grease and flour three 8-inch round cake pans.
  3. Click here for instructions on how to prepare cake pans for baking.
  4. In a stand mixer using the paddle attachment, beat butter until creamy; about 1 minute. NOTE: If you do not have a stand mixer use a large mixing bowl and a hand mixer.
  5. Gradually add 1⅔ cups sugar and beat on high speed until lightened in color and texture; about 3 to 5 minutes.
  6. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
  7. Add the flour mixture in 3 parts, alternating with the milk in 2 parts to the butter mixture. Beat on low speed until smooth, scraping down sides of bowl as necessary.
  8. Separate eggs, saving the whites in a clean large mixing bowl and discarding the yolks.
  9. Add the cream of tartar to the egg whites.
  10. Beat egg whites and cream of tartar until soft peaks form.
  11. Beating on high speed, gradually add ⅓ cup sugar to the egg white mixture.
  12. Beat until the peaks are stiff but not dry.
  13. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold ¼ of the egg whites into the butter and flour mixture.
  14. Gently fold in the remaining egg whites.
  15. Divide the batter between the cake pans and gently spread evenly in the bottom of each pan.
  16. Bake 25 minutes.
  17. Cake is done when it springs back from a light touch and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
  18. Cool on a rack for exactly 10 minutes then remove from pans.
  19. Click here to see how to how to remove cakes from pans.
  20. Cool completely on a rack before frosting.

Comments

Frost with chocolate buttercream frosting, French silk frosting, chocolate ganache, or whipped chocolate ganache.

Click here for instructions on frosting a layer cake.

Categorized in

Recipe adapted from Joy of Cooking, by Irma S. Rombauer, Marion Rombauer Becker, and Ethan Becker. New York: Scribner (1997).