Classic White Cake
This tall, cloud-white layer cake features a tight, velvety crumb that melts on your tongue. Made with only egg whites for a pure white color and signature light texture, it's the perfect centerpiece for birthdays, bridal showers, and holiday tables.
Equipment
- 9-inch round cake pans - 2 pans with straight sides
- Stand mixer or hand mixer
- Large mixing bowl
- Medium mixing bowl
- Kitchen scale - highly recommended for accuracy
- Fine mesh sieve or sifter
- Rubber Spatulas
- Parchment paper - for lining pan bottoms
- Wire cooling rack
- Offset spatula - for frosting
- cake turntable - optional, but very helpful for smooth frosting
Ingredients
- 3 cups cake flour - 360g, sifted
- 1 tablespoon baking powder - 12g
- 0.5 teaspoon salt - 3g
- 1 cup unsalted butter - 225g / 2 sticks, room temperature
- 2 cups granulated sugar - 400g
- 6 large egg whites - room temperature
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract - 15ml
- 1 teaspoon almond extract - 5ml, optional but highly recommended
- 1 cup whole buttermilk - 240ml, room temperature
For the Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
- 1.5 cups unsalted butter - 340g / 3 sticks, room temperature
- 5 cups powdered sugar - 600g, sifted
- 3 tablespoons heavy cream - 45-60ml, or whole milk
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract - 10ml
- salt - pinch
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease two 9-inch round cake pans, line bottoms with parchment paper, and dust with flour.
- Sift cake flour, baking powder, and salt into a medium bowl. Whisk until combined.
- Beat room-temperature butter on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Gradually add sugar and beat on medium-high for 4-5 minutes until pale and fluffy.
- Add vanilla and almond extracts, beating until fully incorporated, about 30 seconds.
- Add egg whites two at a time on medium-low speed, beating 20-30 seconds after each addition. Mix until smooth.
- Alternate adding flour mixture and buttermilk in thirds, mixing on low just until combined after each addition. Do not overmix.
- Divide batter evenly between prepared pans. Bake for 30-35 minutes until a toothpick inserted in center comes out with moist crumbs.
- Cool in pans for 10 minutes, then invert onto wire racks to cool completely before frosting.
- Beat butter for frosting on medium-high for 3-4 minutes until pale and fluffy. Gradually add powdered sugar, then vanilla, salt, and cream. Beat until light and spreadable.
- Spread a generous layer of frosting on the first cake layer. Top with the second layer. Apply a thin crumb coat, refrigerate for 20-30 minutes, then apply final coat of frosting.
Notes
- Use only egg whites, never yolks, to keep the crumb white and light.
- Beat the butter and sugar for the full 4 to 5 minutes — this is where your texture is built.
- Don't skip the sifting. Cake flour can clump, and sifting prevents lumps while also aerating the flour for a lighter crumb.
- Don't overmix once the flour goes in. Overmixing builds gluten and results in a tougher cake.
- Weigh your ingredients for the most accurate results, especially the flour.
- Let the layers cool completely before frosting. A warm cake will melt your buttercream.
- For the whitest possible cake, use clear vanilla extract instead of pure vanilla.
- Unfrosted cake layers can be baked up to 2 days in advance and stored tightly wrapped at room temperature. Freeze for up to 3 months for longer storage.
- For a funfetti version, fold in rainbow sprinkles before baking.
- For a lemon twist, add 2 tablespoons of fresh lemon zest to the batter and fill with lemon curd.