Today I’m so excited to be sharing the very best white cake recipe! This recipe yields a fluffy, snow-white cake that’s light and soft but still sturdy enough to stack or cover with fondant. Read on for plenty of tips for making the perfect white cake, completely from scratch!
We’ve covered chocolate cake, vanilla cake (one of my most popular recipes, thanks to you guys!), and even pineapple upside-down cake, but up until today we’ve been missing a critical flavor: a classic, delicious, white cake!
This is a classic cake flavor and a personal favorite of mine, so when I say up in the intro that I’m excited to share this recipe with you, I really, really mean it. This cake is delicious, and honestly so easy to make… even if you’ve never beaten egg whites before I’m going to walk you through that below so you too can enjoy a perfect, from-scratch white cake.
In case this white cake recipe seems familiar to you, I should probably mention that it is essentially my Funfetti cake recipe, only scaled down to be just two layers (so if you want a 3 layer white cake recipe, just head over to my Funfetti recipe and leave out the sprinkles!).
Let’s dig in to what makes this cake so incredible.
As I mentioned, this cake is fairly simple, but there is an important technique that I want to discuss regarding the egg whites. To keep this cake pure white, we’re not using any egg yolks and instead we are going to beat our egg whites to stiff peaks (if you’ve made my meringue cookies, you’ve beaten egg whites to stiff peaks before). Let me explain how:
How to Beat Eggs Whites to Stiff Peaks for White Cake
- Place your egg whites in a completely clean and grease free bowl. It’s best to separate your whites and yolks in a separate bowl first, that way if a small bit of yolk escapes you don’t have to start over. Even the smallest bit of grease or yolk can ruin your egg whites and keep them from reaching stiff peaks.
- Reaching stiff peaks will take several minutes, just keep beating and you will see them start to take shape!
- Stiff peaks are formed when the whites have increased in volume (see visual below) and, if you pull a beater straight out of the mixture, a peak forms that does not recede back into itself — its holds its shape. Once you reach this point, stop beating, as it is totally possible to over-beat your egg whites.
Fold your egg whites gently into the rest of your white cake batter. I always recommend doing this part by hand. Make sure that you stir enough so that the egg whites are well-incorporated into the batter, but use a light hand so that you don’t deflate the egg whites, or you’ll end up with a dense cake.
While the cake is baking, don’t be alarmed if it seems that the surface is turning too dark. The outside of the cake will actually bake up to a golden brown in the oven, but don’t worry, the cake will be pure white inside once you go to actually slice into it.
What Kind of Extract Should I Use for My White Cake?
I use clear vanilla. Regular (caramel-colored) vanilla extract will work just fine and your cake will still come out mostly white (check out my above-mentioned Funfetti cake, that one was made with standard vanilla extract), but for this white cake recipe I opted for clear extract for a cake with a pure white interior.
Many white cake reicpes also call for almond extract. None of my family members are huge fans of almond extract, so I leave it out, but if you like the taste you can substitute some of the vanilla extract for almond… since almond extract is quite potent I wouldn’t personally recommend using more than 1 ½-2 teaspoons for this recipe, but feel free to experiment!
Can I use 9″ Cake Pans Instead of 8″
Yes! The baking time will be reduced, though. Start checking your cake at 30 minutes.
Can I Make This Recipe Into Cupcakes?
Yes! Fill each cupcake liner about ¾ full (don’t over-fill) and bake on 350F for about 18 minutes (for mini cupcakes, bake for 14-15 minutes). This recipe will yield approximately 30 standard sized cupcakes.
Enjoy!
How to Make White Cake
The Best White Cake Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 Tablespoons (85 g) unsalted butter softened to room temperature
- ⅔ cup (160 ml) avocado oil, canola oil or vegetable oil
- 2 cup (400 g) sugar
- 1 Tablespoon clear vanilla extract
- 2 ⅔ cup (345 g) + 2 Tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 1 Tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (235 ml) milk room temperature preferred
- 6 large egg whites room temperature
- Double batch Vanilla Buttercream Frosting (click link for recipe)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F and prepare two 8-inch round cake pans by lining the bottoms with a round of parchment paper and generously greasing and flouring the sides. Be sure to shake out excess flour.
- In a stand mixer (or using an electric mixer), beat butter on medium-low speed until creamy.6 Tablespoons (85 g) unsalted butter softened to room temperature
- Add sugar and oil and beat until all ingredients are well-combined and creamy.⅔ cup (160 ml) avocado oil, canola oil or vegetable oil, 2 cup (400 g) sugar
- Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl and then stir in your vanilla extract.1 Tablespoon clear vanilla extract
- In separate bowl, whisk together your flour, baking powder, and salt.2 ⅔ cup (345 g) + 2 Tablespoon all-purpose flour, 1 Tablespoon baking powder, 1 teaspoon salt
- Measure out your milk.1 cup (235 ml) milk
- With mixer on medium speed, gradually alternate between adding the flour mixture and the milk to the butter mixture, starting and ending with the flour mixture. Stir until each one is almost completely combined before adding the next.
- Pause occasionally to scrape down sides and bottom of bowl.
- In separate bowl combine your egg whites and using a hand-mixer on high-speed beat until stiff peaks form.6 large egg whites
- Using a spatula, gently fold your egg whites into your batter. Take care to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl so that ingredients are well-combined, and take care not to over-mix.
- Evenly divide cake batter into prepared pans.
- Bake on 350F for 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of each cake layer comes out clean or with few crumbs (should not be wet). For best results, rotate your cake pans halfway through baking to ensure even baking.
- Cakes will be a light golden brown when done baking.
- Remove cakes from oven and allow to cool for 15 minutes. Run a knife around the inside rim of each pan and invert each onto a cooling rack.
- Allow to cool completely before covering with buttercream frosting*. I used a double batch of my recipe (linked above) to thoroughly cover and decorate this cake.Double batch Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
MEGAN SCIANCALEPORE
so I used two 6×3 pans and cooked it for only 35min and the middle was still raw 😥 I poured about half on both pans. do you think I’ll need to do 2/3 of pouring and cook longer?
Sam
Hi Megan! Unfortunately I haven’t baked this in 6 inch pans myself, but if the center was still raw I would leave them in the oven a bit longer.
Jill Hrabosky
This is excellent. I like that it stays moist – so many recipies I’ve tried dry out after a day. I made one addition: Along with the vanilla, I added a tsp almond extract for both the cake, and the frosting. It was delicious. The cake didn’t last long, so I’m making another one today!
Dana
I LOVE white cake but do prefer a bit “denser” cake vs a “light and fluffy”. I did see you mentioned that if this batter is over mixed it could become dense. Do you think I would still need to go through the trouble of beating the egg whites to accomplish this? Or should I just over mix the beaten ahh whites into the batter a bit?
All personal preference. 😉
This does sound amazing!!
Sam
Hi Dana! Unfortunately this cake was designed to be light and fluffy so changing things like the texture of the egg whites could provide really undesirable results. I’m not sure how to turn this into a denser cake. 🙁
Carrie
I made this cake as part of a dessert component to our Easter family meal. I made it in a 9×13 pan, adjusted the time for tray placement in the oven and D*** it’s GOOD. My sister-in-law asked what the secret ingredient is, and was shocked that there isn’t one… good simple ingredients put together the right way. Great recipe, will definitely bake again.
Gigi Giusto
Love this delicious, sweet darling little cake. So perfect for weddings, parties and backyard guests. I’d say this is my favorite white cake.
John
I plan to make this cake for my grandaughter’s birthday. She wants the cake to be heart-shaped. I bought 2 10 inch heart pans how much batter do I need?
Sam
Hi John! Unfortunately I am not sure on the volume of those pans, but this recipe will make about 8 cups of batter. 🙂
Sarah Preble
This cake is easy! Not overly sweet and super fluffy! I’m for sure saving this recipe!!
Jenny
I like that the cake rose evenly, but it was too dense and a bit dry for my liking kind of like bread less like cake.
Sam
I’m so sorry to hear this, Jenny! Is it possible the cake was over-mixed or even slightly over-baked. 🙁 It shouldn’t be dry or dense. 🙁
Hope
The lady I usually get my cakes from couldn’t do my husband’s birthday cake due to time constraints, so I figured I’d give it a go. This recipe got RAVE reviews and I was asked to bake my Nana’s cake too. We love this recipe. I do bake it 3 minutes less than the recipe calls for.
Joy Simpson
I’m not sure what the OP’s idea of a mini cupcake is – but the time measurements for this were WAY off. My mini cupcake trays hold 18 mini’s, and I baked for the appropriate time, and they were hard, flat and dry. I tried pulling the next batch out two minutes early with minimal improvement.
I’m going to try one more time, at 10 minutes, and pray these work, considering I have to have them ready for a school birthday party in the morning.
Sam
How frustrating, Joy, I haven’t had this happen before when making them mini. However I also haven’t seen an 18 count tin before and have only baked mine in 24 count and that is what I accounted for in the time. How did they work out on the lower time limit?
Erica
I love this cake recipe but I am needing cupcakes for a party this weekend. At what temp and how long would I bake these if I was making standard size cupcakes? Do you happen to know how many it makes?
Sam
Hi Erica! I’m so sorry I missed this! I actually cover all of this in the post right above the recipe. 🙂
Elizabeth C.
Literally the BEST white cake!! I use A LOT of your recipes but this one might be my favorite!! I did add some almond extract, but I can’t wait to try this with just vanilla! I used your Raspberry Cake Filling in between the layers and then frosted it with your White Chocolate Buttercream. It is amazing – White Almond Cake with Raspberry Filling and White Chocolate Buttercream. Highly recommend!!!
Kelly
Hi! I had a question, would I be able to add blueberries in the batter & it be okay? Thank you!
Sam
Hi Kelly! You can stir in some blueberries, just know that they will likely sink to the bottom of the pan. 🙂
Nancy Gold
Hi Sam,
I haven’t baked this yet and I need to sub for the milk. What do you recommend for the best plant milk to use? Soy? Hemp? Cashew? Thank you!! Looks like exactly what I am searching for and I spotted it on Daddie and Me Foodie blog, lol!
Sam
Hi Nancy! Unfortunately I have not tried it with a plant milk so I can’t say for sure which one would work. If you do try it, I would love to know how it goes. 🙂
Carissa
Hi Nancy, I used oatmilk and it comes out fantastic. No particular reason for oatmilk specifically, just what we have on hand as it’s what use in our home. Although I do like it better than any of the other milk alternatives I’ve tried with baking
Lisset Stanfield
I need to make a 1/2 sheet white cake. What will be the adjustments for that one?
Sam
Hi Lisset! If you are making a 13 x 18 cake you will want to double the recipe as this makes enough for a 9 x 13. 🙂
erika
Hi, would this be for a 9×13 where you would make 2 of those for layering or make one 9×13 and slice it in half, fill and frost?
Sam
Hi Erika! This recipe as is will make enough to fill one 13 x 9 pan. 🙂
Carrie
Do you know what the bake time would be for a 9×13?
Sam
I have not personally done it, but others have reported 30-35 minute bake time, but since I haven’t tried it myself I can’t say for sure. I’d make sure to keep an eye on it as it bakes. 🙂
Patricia Evans
tasty cake, however mine was a bit tough and a little dryer than I anticipated. next time I’ll watch my mixing time and possibly increase the oil by two tablespoons.
Tater the Baking Tot
Easy to follow recipe, sadly I didn’t start checking the cake until after 35 mins. I only had 2 9” pans. By then they were browning on the sides. And also, I would grease the bottom too for mine got too dark 😩 But for my first experience making a layered cake, this was pretty simple. I see some things I’d alter for next time.
Aubrey
Hello! I am hoping to use this recipe with leftover egg whites… how many grams worth is 6 egg whites? thanks!
Sam
Hi Aubrey! 6 egg whites is 210g. 🙂
Connie
Just wondering if your cakes came out thin? This recipe is for 8in pans and I only have 9in….