Best Homemade Yellow Cake Recipe Ever
A tried-and-true recipe for a classic yellow cake recipe that really is the best yellow cake! Made from scratch, it is tender and so fluffy and moist!
Well, the day is finally here. As many of you know, I’ve been on a quest to perfect the best yellow cake on the planet.
And this is it.
While this post is a bit involved (I couldn’t help but share the testing results with you!), the truth is, the actual best yellow cake recipe is super simple so don’t let the explanations scare you.
If you follow the recommendations thoroughly, you’ll end up with the fluffiest, most delicious yellow cake ever.
The Evolution of Testing the Perfect Yellow Cake
When I first set out to perfect the best yellow cake, I started with three recipes popular online (David’s Yellow Cake from allrecipes.com, Deb’s yellow birthday cake from smittenkitchen.com and Cook’s Illustrated Yellow Layer Cake).
I made each of them as is. While I am a fan of each of these sites and resources, respectively, the cakes were all lacking to me.
David’s Yellow Cake was a little dry with kind of a weird, spongy texture, the cake from Smitten Kitchen was reminiscent of cornbread and the Cook’s Illustrated yellow cake was by far the driest of them all.
I set about modifying ingredients and amounts and methods and while someone smarter than I probably could have pared the testing down to just a couple of cakes, what can I say, it took me a while.
Ok, let’s talk…
I’ve jotted down all the details of why the type of ingredients/method matters for this cake. Read on, read on!
The Butter
- I’ve mentioned it before, but I rarely use unsalted butter.
- I tested this cake with both unsalted and salted and adjusted the salt amount accordingly. In the end, there wasn’t a difference in outcome, so I stuck with my go-to: salted butter.
- I use the Land o’ Lakes brand mostly (sometimes the Sam’s Club brand). If you want to use unsalted butter, increase the salt to 1 teaspoon.
- Also, butter temperature really matters. It should be soft enough to gently slide a finger through with a bit of pressure but not sludgy, greasy or overly soft.
- The time I accidentally used overly soft butter (uh, it somehow stayed on the counter for, like, 12 hours because even though I love baking, my five kids still take precedence over making a yellow cake), it resulted in a greasy, weirdly spongy cake.
- I did not test this cake with margarine, coconut oil, shortening or the like so you’ll have to experiment with those if desired.
- Also, whipping that butter for a good 1-2 minutes is extra important. And beating the heck out of it and the sugar for another 4-5 is non-negotiable. Doing this creates air which helps create fluffiness in the baked cake.
- The cake(s) that I tested where the butter was minimally whipped were not nearly as fluffy. And fluffy = greatness.
The Eggs
I know, I know. Using room temperature eggs is a total pain in the behind.
I’m right there with you! I hate recipes that require it. And so when I first started testing cakes, I refused to do it.
And my cakes were looking like this:
- So I crumbled, no pun intended, and used room temperature eggs the next time I made a cake and the difference was remarkable.
- Light and fluffy…where before the cake was slightly dense and a bit crumbly.
- There may have been other factors at play, but as I messed around with the recipe, it was very, very clear that room temperature eggs are important.
- If you are like me and often forget to plan in advance, don’t fret – place those chilled eggs in a bowl or liquid measure filled with very slightly warm water for 15-ish minutes and you’ll be good to go.
- Speaking of the eggs, in my testing, I ended up scaling down the whole eggs from four to three and adding an egg yolk or two to replace the missing whole egg – two egg yolks managed to be the perfect answer.
- Egg whites add structure but can take away moisture from baked goods, hence the three whole eggs + two egg yolks in the recipe.
- Don’t be like me and get tempted to sub a whole egg for the two egg yolks. You’ll get a pretty decent cake but not a fantastic, best-ever cake.
- However, when I used all egg yolks and no whites, the cake was slightly gummy and not as fluffer-fluffy as I wanted.
The Milk + Sour Cream
- I was sure that plain old milk was the only liquid I needed in my cake.
- At about cake #10, I was fairly positive it needed to be one cup of whole milk, even though the thought made me cringe since I never have whole milk on hand.
- I was befuddled why I was getting a really, really good cake that was still just so, very slightly dry.
- In the end, it wasn’t necessarily dryness but a lack of tenderness I was noticing.
- And the adjustment of sour cream to compensate for the reduced milk did just the trick (plus adding baking soda in for the acidity in combination with the already present baking powder, which took a couple rounds because I misjudged the amount of baking soda at first and there was so much leavening power in the cake that it sank in the middle…badly…however, once the baking powder and soda were adjusted accordingly, the cake was magnificent).
- The real plus was that after I added sour cream, I used 1% milk instead of whole without sacrificing any moisture or tenderness.
The Flour
- As much as my heart wanted a fabulous yellow cake without having to use cake flour, it didn’t happen.
- The cakes I made with all-purpose flour were dry and dense with a much coarser crumb, slightly reminiscent of dry cornbread.
- Cake flour is lower protein than all-purpose flour and also has a finer texture (thanks to the starch in it) which results in a much finer crumb in a baked cake. The good news is that even though the recipe requires cake flour, you can make your own (my kitchen tip from yesterday gives you two super easy methods).
- If you have a kitchen scale, use it. You’ll get very precise results.
- If you don’t have a kitchen scale, buy one. Ok, just joking. Kind of. I know not everyone can do that (but you should really put it on your wish list). If you are measuring using cups, measure with a light hand. Spoon the cake flour into the cup and gently level off with a flat edge.
- For this recipe, if you are making your own cake flour, don’t mess with making one cup at a time, instead, I’ve done the math for you: you’ll need 210 grams of all-purpose flour and 45 grams of cornstarch. Sift it twice. Then add the baking powder, baking soda, salt and sift once more. Make sense?
- Also, for high altitude, I’ve got your back. Ok, actually, my friend, Lisa, has your back. She tested this recipe for me – she lives at 5,400 feet elevation.
- She made the cake twice, the first time it fell significantly. She added an additional 2 1/2 tablespoons cake flour (if using a homemade cake flour substitute, that would be about 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour and 1/2 tablespoon cornstarch) and the cake baked up perfectly (along with a slight increase in baking time and buttering the heck out of the pans).
Sifting
- This sifting action, called for in the recipe, is in addition to any sifting you may have done if you are making your own cake flour.
- You don’t need to sift twice, just give the flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda a quick sift through a fine mesh strainer.
- This was one of the last variables to add to the best yellow cake recipe. The last few cakes I made were so good. But just not quite there.
- Once I sifted the dry ingredients prior to incorporating into the batter, the results were far superior – lighter and fluffier (let’s see how many times I can use those two descriptors in this post).
The Batter
- Ah, the gorgeous batter. It may look just slightly curdled and that’s ok.
- Spread it evenly in the pan, and give it a quick tap or light drop on the counter.
- When I didn’t do this, there were significant air bubbles in the baked cake. You don’t want to drop it from the rooftop like a crazy egg-drop challenge and you don’t need to tap more than once, just a quick light drop will suffice.
- I only ever baked the cake in two 9-inch pans to keep testing criteria similar, however, I think it could also be made in three 8-inch pans.
- Cupcakes and sheet cakes will have to be an experiment until someone reports back. I have them on my radar also, but it may be a little while before I actually try them.
- As for the cake pans, significant greasing (with butter and cooking spray and possibly flour, too) is needed for the cake not to stick. I also line the bottom of the greased pan with a parchment round that I’ve cut out and then grease the top of it.
- My magic number for baking was right at 27 minutes; however, keep in mind that all ovens vary slightly.
- Lisa, my awesome friend who tested high altitude baking for me, needed more like 30 minutes for her cakes (she made the recipe twice).
One Year Ago: Six Recipes the World Forgot {Part 3}
Two Years Ago: Paprika Chicken Stroganoff
Three Years Ago: Naan – Indian Flatbread
Perfected Yellow Cake
Ingredients
- 1 cup (227 g) butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 ¾ cups (371 g) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 large egg yolks, room temperature
- 2 ¼ cups (255 g) cake flour, lightly measured, see note for high altitude adjustments
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda, see note
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup milk, 1% or above, room temperature
- ½ cup sour cream, light or regular, room temperature
Instructions
- To prep, whisk together the milk and sour cream together in a liquid measure and let come to room temperature.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and make sure an oven rack is placed in the middle of the oven.
- In a large bowl of an electric stand mixer or with a handheld electric mixer, whip the butter on medium speed for 1-2 minutes. Add the granulated sugar and beat for 4-5 minutes on medium speed. Mix in the vanilla.
- One at a time, add the eggs and egg yolks, mixing just until combined in between additions. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Combine the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Sift them together through a fine mesh strainer.
- Add 1/3 of the dry ingredients to the batter and mix just until combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add 1/2 of the milk/sour cream mixture and mix. Add another 1/3 of the dry ingredients, mixing just until combined. Add the last 1/2 of the milk/sour cream mixture and beat until just combined. Add the final 1/3 of the dry ingredients and mix just until combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl if necessary. Give the batter one good, final stir with the rubber spatula.
- Grease the cake pans and line the bottoms with a parchment round. Grease the parchment and sides of the pan again very well. I use regular cooking spray but you can also use butter or cooking spray with flour. If your cake pans tend to cause sticking, consider also flouring the pans.
- Divide the batter evenly between the two pans. Drop each pan from about 3-inches onto the counter to minimize air bubbles while baking.
- Bake for 25-28 minutes (high altitude: 28-30 minutes) until lightly golden around the edges and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with moist crumbs. Resist the urge to open and close the oven to check on the cake – this can cause the center of the cake to fall and never recover. And as with all cakes, don’t overbake or the cake will be dry.
- Let the cakes rest in the pans for 5-10 minutes before gently turning them onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
Notes
Recipe Source: Mel’s Kitchen Cafe
Special Thanks To…
A special, super, huge thank you to two very important people (I kind of feel like I’m giving an acceptance speech at The National Convention for Best Yellow Cakes here):
Nicole, a wonderful friend of mine, was the one who finally gave me the insight I needed for the last step in perfecting this cake (a huge blessing because I didn’t know if I honestly had another yellow cake in me and her advice resulted in the.perfect.cake) and Lisa, sweetest sweetie ever, who willingly tested this cake for me (multiple times) in order to provide all you high altitude dwellers with essential tips for success.
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
I was suspicious from the get go and I should have relied on my intuition. Basic facts you learn from experience apply universally and are much more valuable than the romantic ideas dreamt up by fancy headline bloggers. When you mix flour with wet ingredients, you need to mix it as little as possible to avoid a tough and dry end result. Cold eggs….I didn’t use cold eggs….I don’t know about the science behind cold eggs….but I’ll go out on a limb and say that sifting everything before you combine it makes all of the particles settle more closely together, kind of like sand as opposed to gravel. This made the cake dry, more akin to fluffy bread rather than a moist confection. As far as the butter being too “greasy”, room temperature is pretty standard. It wasn’t melted and it wasn’t cold. You may want to say that I did something wrong along the way but I followed the directions word for word and this isn’t my first cake. Sorry for being brash. My motivation isn’t to spread negativity but rather to offer balance to the strictly positive reviews I’ve seen and maybe to save one cake from the fate of mediocrity with a touch of desert wasteland. #MIX BY HAND!!
I just want to say, in response to the couple of negative reviews that I’ve seen on here, particularly the one above, that I completely disagree. I searched for an entire year for a moist and fluffy scratch yellow cake recipe. I tried over 30 DIFFERENT recipes without success. This is the ONLY one that turned out well. I have made this recipe dozens of times since, and it turns out perfect every time. It is SUPER moist but still fluffy and tastes great. It is not dry in any way. I do follow the instructions exactly, except that instead of sifting the dry ingredients, I whisk them together in a bowl with a wire whisk. I bake and sell cupcakes and I am very picky about the moisture level and texture of my cakes. This is the absolute only yellow cake recipe that is acceptable to me. I don’t mean to pile on, but I’m just telling you that if this is turning out dry for you you’re either over baking it, or your butter is too warm. Butter should be at a cool room temperature so that you can barely make an indentation with your finger. If you can easily slide your finger into it, it’s too warm. I know nothing about this blogger, I just happened to find her recipe in my massive and endless search for a good yellow cake recipe. I have no horse in this race, but it really is a good recipe.
Hi Sarah – I’m sorry this didn’t work out for you and the others who have commented on this thread. I don’t consider myself a “fancy headline blogger” and actually don’t know what you mean by that; my only motivation for blogging is to provide tried-and-true recipes, and for me, this yellow cake is just that. I think it’s helpful for people intent on trying this recipe to read all the reviews, including the ones that aren’t raving about the recipe and your review and others will add value. Although I do agree with Lisa that if the cake is turning out dry, it’s not recipe error but perhaps simple variations in how people are making it (baking it even slightly too long or overmixing the batter at the end or a variety of other factors outlined in the post). This cake will be moist and tender if made exactly like the recipe states as I and the other hundreds of positive reviews can attest. Good luck on your search for the perfect yellow cake! Sorry this didn’t happen to be the one.
I am a home baker and cookbook author. I made this cake today and it was awesome-moist, tender and so delicious. It will be my go to recipe for a yellow cake. Not sure why some have issues, but for me it is perfect. Essential Oil Talk and author of Ancient Grains
I am a home baker and cookbook author. I made this cake today and it was awesome-moist, tender and so delicious. It will be my go to recipe for a yellow cake. Not sure why some have issues, but for me it is perfect. Author of Ancient Grains
This was so good! You have definitely perfected the yellow cake. Thank!
I just made the cake, and love the texture. I am not advanced enough to scale this up to 3 layers, but that would make it even more perfect!
I made the cake today with your chocolate buttercream frosting and they were both absolutely amazing! The cake was a huge hit with my family- THANK YOU for another wonderful recipe, Mel!
I have been in search of a moist yellow cake recipe forever! Thank you for sharing. I tried your recipe today and it turned out great. Thank you for the tips that you gave. I have been so reluctant to used cake flour. i have ALWAYS been a White Lilly girl, to which I will continue to use. But I am sold on your basic yellow cake recipe. Thanks again for sharing.
Dear Mel,
I am so happy to come across your blog. The moment I read this, I know that I have found the perfect yellow cake recipe finally. I haven’t had much luck with yellow cakes; the ones I tried usually end up flat or too oily. In fact, my default cake for celebration cakes is enriched sponge. Isn’t yellow cake supposed to be basic? 🙂 To thank you for sharing your recipe, I would like to report back that I have successfully baked your recipe in a 9″x13″ pan. One recipe yields 1-1/4″ to 1-1/2″ in height, and it takes 35 minutes to bake. I made the recipe twice, since I needed two sheets, with repeatable results. I did make a few small adjustments to the recipe: I used 1/2 tsp baking soda, just because I worry about cake sinking in the middle, but that might not have been necessary; reduced sugar to 11oz because I like a less sweet cake; used buttermilk instead of a mixture of sour cream and milk, which should have the exact same effect. The cake baked very evenly. Thank you for perfecting the yellow cake!
This is indeed the best yellow cake recipe ever!! So good in fact that while I was focused so hard on perfecting all of the steps I forgot to add the vanilla extract, and it was still the best yellow cake ever! Thanks for all of the hard work and testing.
I will try your recipe. I compare every yellow cake to my grandmother’s recipe she use to call butter cake. I may try your technique of having everything room temperature though on her recipe. http://rosemaryandthegoat.com/2011/09/22/mamas-butter-cake/
I made this cake yesterday for my dad’s birthday and it was very delicious. The cake was moist, fluffy, and had just the right amount of sweetness. I followed the recipe exactly as it is written. However, I added 1/2 tsp of baking soda because I was afraid the cake would have a sunken centre. I also didn’t have cake flour but I made a substitute for it using a recipe online. Thank you very much for this recipe – I will definitely keep it in my books!
Yes, your right! I’ve been looking for a moist yellow cake recipe for a long time, found it, 🙂
I baked at 350 and I checked the cake in the center with a toothpick at 25 min and it still had batter then I checked at 27 min and it was good. The only thing I can think of is maybe I had to much flour since I didn’t weigh it. I just scooped it out of the box with a measuring cup. Is that a possibility?
Yes, measuring the flour differently can affect the results. I usually fluff up the flour really good, scoop it into the cup and level off the cup. Weighing will give the most precise results, though.
So I made this perfect yellow cake exactly by the recipie and it turned out a little dry. What could be wrong?
It’s really hard for me to know without being right there while making/baking and without details. Could it have been baked too long?
Me too. Very dry. Even worse than those store bought doughnuts covered in chocolate wax that I still eat because they look yummy. My honest opinion, we are going to have to keep looking for a great yellow cake recipe. This wasn’t what I had in my imagination beforehand. Not moist, not tender and not going into my first generation, family heirloom, only awesome recipe box. Good luck fellow bakers.
So I decided to try this cake recipe for several reasons. One being I have no cell cupcake recipe for vanilla and chocolate and white but every time I used it to make a cake it just didn’t come out the way I want it.I read all the reviews read the ingredient list and read all Mel’s great advice. I have tried all the tricks even separating the yolks from the whites and beating the whites last separately and folding them in at the end to try to create a fluffier Texture. However I find this is phenomenal for chocolate cakes but a little too much folding and mixing for the Vanilla and white cakes. The only saying that I felt I had to change to accommodate my preference is more the Vanilla extract because I use organic and I also feel that a lot of times homemade cakes don’t have enough vanilla flavor. In saying this I increased the vanilla 2 tablespoons.because of this I knew I had to add more cake flour for evening out the liquid ratio. I also did not use baking soda as I do not like to use this in white or vanilla cakes because of flattening affects. I ended up using 2 1/4 teaspoons of baking powder and no baking soda for cake flour I ended up using the 2 1/4 cups plus an additional 2 3/4 teaspoonsto make up for the difference of the extra vanilla extract (liquid vs. dry ratio).The batter came out just like in your picture and The cake tastes awesome. Perfect fluff no flattening affect.
Just baked this (aka my first real, legit, not-in-a-box cake) today for my moms birthday and topped it off with you chocolate buttercream and I could cry it’s so good. THANK YOU SO MUCH for working so hard and for creating a recipe for literally, the worlds best yellowcake. SO happy right now!
Wow. Definitely the best yellow cake from scratch. I used all purpose flour and cornstarch instead of cake flour which I do not like. I used 11/2 the recipe of the chocolate frosting in the back of ghiradelli Cocoa powder and it was perfect (9 tbsp butter + 4 cups confec sugar + 3/4 cup cocoa + 1/2 cup milk). Thanks for sharing.
Okay, I commented earlier, was concerned about trying this for a customer order. Well I had to come back and let you know, I baked it in a 12×16 sheet, made two separate batches and combined in the sheet pan. It came out great! or at least from what I can see after I cut the small dome off the top. I tasted the scraps of course and it seems perfect! Thank so much for sharing this recipe! I used both batches and filled the pan. It was just the right amount to make the cake full to the top with a small dome that I leveled off. Perfection! I now have a much better “go to” recipe for yellow cakes.
I am not using fondant other than for small decorations on this cake so I can’t tell if it would be sturdy enough to use fondant on, but since that wasn’t part of the order, that’s okay by me! Thanks so much for your hard work!
I am so glad it worked out for you! I have never used that size pan for this cake, so I am glad you experimented and reported back.
Mel, I can’t wait to try your cake. Since I too like to experiment with cakes, I would like to share with you something that always works with me. I particulary dislike the metallic taste I seem to find in cake flour, so I always replace it, and always successfully, using this formula. 1 cup cake flour = 3/4 cup all purpose flour + 2 tbsp cornstarch. I know you have a similar substitution but in grams (210 grams of all-purpose flour and 45 grams of cornstarch). I would love it, if you have the time, if you could try my formula and compare it to the original recipe which asks for cake flour. Who knows. You may, like me, prefer the taste with the all purpose flour and cornstarch. I see you recipe asks for 2 1/4 cup cake flour, so based on my formula, I would replace it with 1 3/4 cup minus 1 tbsp all purpose flour PLUS 4 1/2 tbsp cornstarch (equivalent to 4 tbsp + 1 1/2 tsp).
So…. if you are a dumb bunny and forget to buy the sour cream on your grocery list, I would recommend trying a full cup of milk, soured with the juice of a lemon. I did this for my daughter’s birthday cake and it was a hit! That said, I can’t wait to try this with sour cream, per the recipe.
Hi Mel, I baked your yellow cake two weeks ago, it was a big hit. Thanks so much for the recipe. I do a lot of baking and like some of the other reviewers I had been searching a while for a yellow light fluffy cake–almost like a box cake but I don’t like box cakes. I am making two this weekend for a cookout. I made two layers, but I will try the three layer cake in 9″ round pans, thanks again.
Hi Mel! I figured it out on my third try. I was following the recipe incorrectly. I had doubled the milk and sour cream. I Just pulled the cakes out of the oven and they are beautiful! Thank you for such a great recipe! My hunt for the perfect yellow cake is over 😉
Hi Mel,
This cake was wonderful! It is the third yellow cake recipe that I made this weekend :). However, after I took the cakes out of the oven and they cooled, there was a thin gummy layer at the bottom of both of my cakes. The top half of the cakes were beautiful and had a fantastic crumb. Do you have any guidance regarding the bottom gummy layer and what I could be doing wrong? I appreciate all of the leg work you put into making this cake. It really is great. Thanks!
Hi LG – I think I may have included a picture in the post about this but I think I experienced something similar when I used cold eggs from the fridge (instead of room temperature). Were your eggs cold?
Hi Mel,
I am still at it. Baking this cake and I just love the flavor. However, I have noticed that after I frost it and leave it out at room temperature to serve the next day, it is dry. How can I get it to stay moist. It is perfect out of the oven but dry when we finally get ready to eat it.
Thank you!
Can you try underbaking by just a minute or so? Also when you frost it, are you talking about two layers frosted completely or are you frosting the top of a 9X13-inch cake?
Hello! I’ve made several yellow cake recipes and have not found THE one yet, my birthday is coming up and I’m thinking of giving this one a try!
Just a couple of questions, how tall are your layers once baked? 1″? I usually like to torte my layers so I like to have 2″ layers, would it be good to double the recipe to achieve two 2″ layers on 9″ pans?
And another question, have you tried using buttermilk instead of sour cream and milk?
Thanks!
Can’t wait to try it out
Hi Paulina – I’ve never measured the cake layers exactly but I think they could be split in half easily. I haven’t used buttermilk instead of sour cream but I believe others in the comment thread above have so you might scroll through and see how it worked out for them. Good luck and happy birthday!
I just made the cake and it turned out amazing, I love how moist the cake is and the tenderness of the crumb. I followed the recipe and used unsalted butter and adjusted the salt as per your instructions and had no issues at all. I also tried your frosting recipe with Lindt 70% cocoa and it is to die for. I am loving your site and plan to test a few more recipes over the next few weeks. Lots of love from sunny South Africa
Hi Mel, I am using whole milk and was wondering if I should still use the Sour Cream. I was a little confused because it seemed as though you only used the Sour Cream because you are using reduced fat milk. So, since Im using what’s on hand (Whole Milk), should I leave the sour cream out?
No, go ahead and still use the sour cream. The cake needs both the milk and the acidity from the sour cream.
Hi mel..i just wondering for how many grams should i put for 1/2 of milk and 1/2 of sour cream. Im a bit afraid if not the exact same amount will cause a trouble in the baking later..im really looking forward to make this super awesome recipe that everyone keep talking about it.
Thanks.
This is the perfect yellow cake! Finally !
How do you keep the cake from having a dome? All my cakes are so high in the middle. Also, I use Wilton 8 inch round pans and don’t grease the sides at all. I do put parchment on the bottom. For this recipe do I still need to grease with vigor? ~ I have no inventory of hand made cakes, and I’m so tired of store mixes. It’s just my success with home baked cakes is ludicrous. I do have one ‘cake’, but I have to use a Bundt pan and so am not sure that counts. It’s called ‘Huggin’ Cake’. It works every time. It uses every flavor and extract available and is so moist, soft and tender. But it isn’t a ‘cake’ cake. I can make awesome brownies, however. Still, no cake. I’m ready and eager to try your recipe, but at writing time it’s nearly 5 pm. So, due to all the prep, which I actually enjoy, this cake will have to be scheduled into my day. No matter what happens with me and my cake attempt, thanks for all the experimentation. I’m guessing I’ll have to experiment in following directions exactly! Looking forward to success!
I made this cake in 9 inch pans, and I used cake strips to keep the tops flat. They were more or less perfectly flat on top once fully baked. Cake strips insulate the outside of the cake, so the edges bake at the same rate as the middle. You don’t have to buy them – there’s a video on youtube from America’s Test Kitchen on how to make homemade ones with newspaper and aluminum foil. (I won’t link it so the comment doesn’t get marked as spam.)
Mel – nice to see someone has really been putting an effort in getting a good fluffy yellow cake recipe to perfection. I always went back to out of the box, because I simply never had a success story like you to tell. I am always a batter taster. Its seems very sweet, but I will try the end result of course. Do you think if you use less sugar it would still turn out the same, but simply not as sweet?
Keep up the fab work!
Could definitely experiment…I haven’t reduced the sugar myself because I like it as is. Good luck if you try it!
The taste of this cake is just absolutely fabulous! Thank you so much. The only thing that didn’t work is the raise. It didn’t raise much at all, but super soft and moist and fluffy. So where do I need to adjust?
I’m not sure what to suggest, Katie since the recipe usually rises nice and fluffy when I make it. Any chance your baking powder is old/expired?
When I taught 9th grade foods class, for several years I assigned 1 group in a 6-group kitchen to make a light lemon bread. That bread (except for ONE success) would rIse beautifully then fall right before end of bake time. I found that if AFTER spooning the flour into the cup, the girls would cut through the flour with a knife and then level it off the bread would not fall. I think sometimes there are air spaces in the cup when spooning flour and cutting through with a knife collapses the air pockets. It worked for us.
Thanks Mary. Nice baking tip.
Thanks for sharing this. I tried it for the first time tonight and it’s turned out great!
Ok. I am probably super special, but when you divide the cake into 2 cake pans, are you using 9 inch pans? I read every post trying to figure it out, but after not figuring it out on my own I thought I’d ask. I am hoping to use this recipe to make the bat cake for my son’s birthday, and have a 10 inch round pan. Do you suggest filling the pan half full? And then for the bat head, again was thinking of filling the pyrex bowl about half way?
And, while I’m in question-asking mode, was thinking of baking the cake on Wednesday, making the icing (your “best icing ever” recipe) and icing the cake on Thursday and then serving on Friday. Good? No good?
Thanks for your help and advice! 🙂
Hi Adrienne – yes, I use 9-inch pans for this cake. Filling the 10-inch cake pan halfway sounds fine. I’d probably fill the pyrex bowl a bit higher than halfway. If it were me, I’d try to bake the cake and ice it the same day especially if making it in advance. Frosting the cake the same day (unless the cake is frozen) helps make sure it doesn’t dry out which can happen if left unfrosted for an entire day. Good luck!
I made this cake for my husbands birthday and everyone is very pleased and asking for the recipe. Thank You so much.
A friend requested a yellow cake for her birthday so I used this recipe. I used buttermilk instead of milk+sour cream and it turned out beautifully, with good crumb and buttery flavor. I baked mine for 26 minutes in an Aga 6-4 convection oven, switching racks halfway through.
I just made this cake and it was delicious! I followed your recipe for the cake flour, will be making that more often.
As for the cake I took it out at 25 minutes, and it wasn’t done, so I put it in and left it in maybe a minute or two too long, I spooned over some simple syrup and it made it super moist. I love this recipe, has good flavour and texture, will be adding it to my favourites! Thank you Mel!
~Donika
Delicious!!! My husband and I tried the corner of the cake for just a taste as we were curious, needless to say we cut two pieces and ate them without frosting! Ours came out what we consider perfect and so yummy it didn’t even need frosting! We even forgot to add salt but our butter was salted. Thank you because my husband loves yellow cake and we will never go back to a box. 🙂
Thank you so much for this recipe! I’ve made this cake twice now exactly as you instructed also using your cake flour and chocolate butter cream recipes. It’s come out perfect. No domes and no over flow. This is my go to yellow cake now.
I read this post with a smile because, I, too have tried many yellow cake recipes in search of that soft, fluffy, moist yellow cake but many recipes just fell short. Obviously, the cake mix always made those soft, fluffy moist cakes but these days I’m not all that interested in eating chemical cake. This recipe looks like a winner, hope to try it soon!
This looks amazing, can’t wait to try it! How do you think this cake would go with a strawberry cream cheese frosting? My daughters birthday is coming up and her cakes *have* to be pink.
I think it would be FABULOUS, Amanda!
To the person who wanted to reduce the amount of sugar….I have baked this cake and it is not overly sweet made as is. I don’t think your family would find it too sweet. it is perfect. I wouldn’t mess with decreasing the sugar because it will change the texture and everything else. Good luck!
Hi!
The rigor you’ve applied to perfecting this recipe is astounding–Thank you so much! However, I was wondering if there’s any way for me to cut the sugar without ruining the beautiful texture you’ve worked so hard to create. My family doesn’t love sweet desserts so do you think it would be safe to only add 3/4 or 1 cup of sugar instead?
Adela – I can’t really say for sure as I haven’t tried it – I stick with the recipe that’s posted since it’s the version I tested the guts out of, but you could certainly experiment. Good luck!
Sugar effects caramelization, browning, tenderness and moisture, just to name a few, so when you reduce the sugar by half you’re going to end up with something totally different than this recipe produces. Mel has done such an awesome job of explaining each ingredient and the science of why she ended up with the measurements and ingredients in the recipe. I’ve tried way too many yellow cake recipes in the past and I can tell you this is as close as I’ve seen to Yellow Cake Perfection.
Thanks, Ron. Amen to everything you said about the sugar affecting the cake. 🙂
Hi Mel,
I made this cake as cupcakes the first time and it came out great. I made it as a cake this week and it came out a little more dense than I expected. I did use 1/2 tsp of baking soda, but everything else was the same. Any suggestions?
Tasha – I’m not entirely sure if the extra baking soda could be the problem but that may be the case. I tweaked the leavening (baking soda and powder) so many times when I was perfecting this recipe because even the slightest variance affected the texture of the cake (sometimes too much leavening can make the cake rise and then fall a bit creating density instead of the light and fluffy texture). Also, overmixing toward the end of making the cake (when adding the dry ingredients) can make the cake a bit dense, too.
Mel,
What do you think about substituting buttermilk for the milk/sour cream mixture?
Tasha – I think someone else tried this in the comment thread – but I’m not sure. I haven’t tried it so I don’t know how it would work out. Good luck if you try it!
Mel,
I can’t remember if someone asked this (and it is hard to check from my phone) but I want to cut the recipe in half because I want to make a few cupcakes. What would I do with the eggs? 1 whole and 2 yolks?
Finally, a scratch-made cake that beats a cake mix! Thank you so much for all your hard work and expense you’ve put into perfecting this yellow cake recipe. Every one who has tried it loves it. I know the chocolate frosting is extremely popular with yellow cake but my favorite is to frost it with my homemade caramel frosting. Thanks again!
Mel, this cake is awesome. I new from the look and taste (I couldn’t help myself) of the batter that it would be grand and it did not disappoint. Like many others have commented, I too have tried a multitude of yellow cake recipes but none, until now, have ever held their own. I followed all your tips for the flour, eggs, and butter to a tee. Thank God I read the mixing instructions more then once, I almost used the egg whites instead of the egg yokes (close one). But for my next try I will be reducing the sugar by 1/4 a cup. It’s a little on the sweet side but over all the cake is amazing, taste and texture. Thank You! Thank You! Thank You!
AMAZING!!! Best homemade yellow cake ever! I made a three layer cake with this recipe for my sons birthday party, OMG our guest raved about this cake! Super moist and oh so delicious! I followed the directions as stated, the only change I made was adding one extra teaspoon of vanilla extract
I have made this cake 3 times now. It is delicious. I even made cupcakes using the same batter (17 min cook time). Thanks for your hard work to find the perfect recipe.
Hi Mel! I was looking at making this cake for my husbands birthday, and I wanted to know if you think this would completely ruin it, by making it like this: http://www.cakecentral.com/b/tutorial/make-polka-dot-surprise-inside-cake
I would use your recipe for both the actual cake and the cake balls, my only problem is having to bake the balls and then inserting them into the cake pan to bake again…
Let me know what you think!
Caroline – Definitely worth a try! It’s really hard to know how the twice baked colored balls will turn out – they might be a little dry but I don’t know for sure since I haven’t tried it. Good luck!
I am attempting this in the morning!! SO nervous! It will be used for a birthday party tomorrow night, which frosting did you use? Do you have a FAVORITE chocolate frosting you like??
Caroline – I am sorry it’s taken me a while to answer your question. My favorite chocolate frosting is THIS one. I hope the caked worked out for you and that you found a frosting you liked.
OMG!! This cake is to die for!!!! What a delicious cake!!! I love to bake but I am in no shape or form a professional at it. My husband was craving yellow cake and of course I had to please him. I did an internet search and came across this recipe. Glad I did!! Well, not really because I am on a diet now. Yeah right!!! Wow!! I did everything step by step and came out perfect! And no icing! My husband doesnt really like icing just a freshly baked warm cake. Delicious! Thanks!
I have to tell you…after 17years (and MANY birthdays with 6 children) I’ve found the homemade cake recipe that trumps the box mix – your Best Yellow Cake Recipe!!! Seriously, I made it 3 times last week – I’ve NEVER made 3 cakes in a week EVER. I’ve only not made it this week because I’m out of Cake Flour – but you even provided a solution for THAT! The best part for me is the “short cuts” to having to think ahead with room temp eggs and the milk/sr cream mixture. Awesome!!! BTY I actually did it with Buttermilk instead of sr. cream (I had it on hand because there was another cake recipe I was trying as well and what else do you do with buttermilk?) it was perfect. And I made it in a 9×13 pan all 3 times (reduce heat to 325 and bake 40-45 minutes – perfect!! Thank you so VERY much from the 8 of us! 🙂
Curious if you or anyone has tried this as a marble cake or used it under fondant?
I came across your recipe yesterday and your extensive research convinced me to give it a try. My husband requested a yellow cake for his birthday party. I hoped to find a recipe similar to the one my Mom used to make many years ago but of course her recipe is long gone. Well, the cake just came out of the oven and it looks beautiful!! Tomorrow I’ll make the chocolate frosting and no doubt it will be delicious as well as beautiful. Many, many thanks!