It’s an age old problem. How to get a moist white cake. You try recipe after recipe and either they taste like cornbread, the texture isn’t good, or it just isn’t moist enough. So, you end up just going for a box when you really wanted to make something with that ‘scratch wedding cake taste’.
You may have seen my Favorite Vanilla Bean Cake recipe on the blog. If not, go and check it out…it’s so moist and really tasty. It’s my favorite, hence the name, but I wanted to see if I could get a truly ‘white’ cake and I wanted to get that wedding cake flavor.
Well I think I’ve done it. This cake is actually a white cake that is actually moist, AND it’s got that wedding cake taste.
So, when trying to get a cake as white as possible, I wanted to use only egg whites. Generally, using only egg whites can tend to dry out a cake a bit, so you have to add a bit more moisture.
Now, I like a buttery taste to my cake, but in the effort to try and get a ‘whiter’ cake, I lessened the amount of butter and substituted the rest with shortening. If you want an all butter cake recipe (using no shortening), you’ll want to check out my vanilla cake recipe.
Another thing to note is that you can use either all purpose flour or cake flour for this recipe. The amounts will differ and that’s noted on the printable recipe below.
Here’s the deal though: Using cake flour will give you a whiter cake. I’m not a scientist or anything, but I think it’s because the cake flour seems to be more bleached than the all purpose. I could be wrong, but regardless, you’ll get a whiter cake using cake flour.
Now let’s talk about the flavoring that’s added in. Of course it’s optional for you, but I think it really takes it to the next level.
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First it’s the vanilla. You can always use clear extract to make sure it’s not adding any additional color to the batter, but I tend to use regular vanilla because honestly, it’s just better. If you can get it, try to use vanilla paste/emulsion.
Second, I added in my favorite flavor booster…almond emulsion. You’re using just a touch of it, so you won’t really get an ‘almond taste’. It just adds to the flavor. Seriously most people won’t even know you’ve added it in there…they’ll just know it tastes amazing.
Ok, if you just can’t stand the thought of adding it, or you don’t have any handy, then don’t worry, it’ll still taste good. Oh and the emulsion is much better than the extract. The extract just does not taste good to me.
Lastly I added in a bit of butter flavoring. Since I’d replaced some of the butter with shortening, I wanted to add back in some flavor. Now, that part is optional, but it really seems to give it that wedding cake flavor.
The butter flavoring you can get at the grocery store is gross to me…now that’s just my opinion. I feel like Lorann’s Butter Emulsion tastes much better.
You’ll also want to check out my vanilla bean buttercream recipe…it goes perfectly with this cake, but if you’re looking for a bright white buttercream, you’ll want to check out that recipe here: Bright White Heat Stable Buttercream.
FAQs for baking the Moist White Cake:
Can I substitute the baking soda or baking powder? No, you don’t want to do that.
What is shortening? It’s basically just fat. I use vegetable shortening like Crisco, not lard which is animal fat. This helps get the cake moist and I use this in place of most of the butter to keep the color as white as possible.
Why are you still adding in butter if you’re using the shortening? Because I like the taste of butter. You just can’t beat butter in a cake.
Can I microwave my butter to get it to room temperature? I don’t recommend doing that. It could get too warm and will heat up unevenly. That could mess with the texture of your cake. Just set the butter out on your counter and let it warm up to almost room temp. It’s ok if it’s a little cooler than room temp…you just don’t want it warm.
Can I just use milk instead of sour cream? You can, but the cake won’t be as moist and the texture and taste may be a little different than the original recipe.
I don’t have clear vanilla extract. Is that necessary? No not really. Actually regular vanilla extract or vanilla bean emulsion (or paste) tastes better, but clear will help keep the cake white if that’s really an important factor for you.
Do I have to use the almond emulsion? No. Some people just don’t like almond taste, but I will tell you that if you haven’t tried it, you might actually like the small hint of it. A lot of people assume they won’t like it, but honestly I think it tastes different than what most people think it would taste like. And you’ll just be adding a touch of it, just enough to add a little flavor.
Do I have to add in the butter extract? No, but I think it adds a little more butter flavor and that in combination with the vanilla and almond emulsion are what gives it that classic wedding cake taste.
Where can I get butter extract, almond emulsion and vanilla emulsion? I’ve got links just below the recipe card for the ones that I like to use.
Anymore questions? Just let me know. I’m happy to help.
Ok, I won’t talk your head off anymore…let’s get straight to the recipe!
Moist White Cake
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (or 2 3/4 cups cake flour – for an even whiter cake)
- 2 cups sugar
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 2/3 cup shortening
- 1/4 cup butter (unsalted, room temp.)
- 1 cup sour cream (full fat)
- 1/2 cup milk (whole milk if you can get it)
- 2 tsp vanilla extract (can use clear extract)
- 1/2 tsp almond emulsion (optional)
- 1 tsp butter extract (or emulsion) (optional)
- 6 egg whites (large eggs)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
- Grease and flour two 8 inch round (2 inch deep) cake pans. You could also use three 6 inch round pans.
- In a bowl, mix together the sour cream, milk, vanilla extract, almond emulsion, butter extract and egg whites.Whisk until smooth and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt.Whisk together.
- Add the shortening and butter in chunks to the flour mixture.
- Mix until the flour is coated with the shortening and butter. The mixture will be crumbly.
- Add in half the liquid mixture and mix just until combined.
- Add in the last half of the liquid mixture and mix just until combined.
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl and then mix again, only for 10-15 seconds.You want to be careful not to over-beat the batter.
- Pour into the greased and floured cake pans and bake at 325 degrees for 45-50 minutes.
- Cool on a wire rack then cover with buttercream.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Items & Tools Used for the Moist White Cake:
OMG!!! Thank you so much for sharing!! I made this cake 2 days ago and hands down the most moist cake I’ve ever tasted, I really do appreciate you sharing all your incredible recipes… From now on this is the cake I’m baking to all my BBQ’s and kids birthdays…
thank you, thank you, thank you!!!!
Hi Marina that’s awesome and you’re so welcome! I’m really glad you loved it…that just makes my heart happy! ❤️😊
I can’t seem to find any last minute purely Butter Emulsions, would a Butter Vanilla Emulsion work? And how much should I decrease the vanilla extract if I use a Butter Vanilla Emulsion?
Nicole, Amazon should have the butter emulsion. I have a link to it in the blog post, but if you can’t get it from there, the butter vanilla would probably work just fine. I’d probably go for about 2 teaspoons of the vanilla butter (maybe even 2 1/2 tsps), then I would cut the regular vanilla extract completely out, or just use 1/2 tsp or so if you want. Let me know how it goes!
Thank so much…. The person i made this for loved it…. I made one for the house and everyone loved it…. I made a Publix Buttercream because my friend is from Florida and he told me about that buttercream that they have at a certain grocery store where he’s from and it went together wonderfully. and just recently I looked up your red velvet cake recipe and cream cheese buttercream recipe and made that cake for my son’s birthday and everyone loves that so thank you very much I really appreciate your recipes LOL
Hi Stephanie…that’s wonderful and I’m so glad you liked the cakes! Thanks for letting me know they all worked out…that just makes my heart happy! 😊
The link to the Metric version of the recipe isn’t working. Just wanted to let you know.
Thanks for letting me know! I just tried it and it seemed to work for me, but maybe it was down for a bit earlier. It should be working fine now. If not, be sure and let me know!
Kara, I have tried several, probably 4 or 5, white cake recipes and this one is THE BEST! I baked it in 3 6 inch round cake pans. I followed the instructions very closely and made sure not to over mix. I also used cake flour. It’s fabulous! However, I may have over baked it because it doesn’t seem quite as crumbly and moist as yours is in the photo. What would you recommend for baking time on the 6 inch layers? When I took mine out they were golden brown on top. Thank you so much for this awesome recipe!
Hi Robin, I’m so glad you liked the cake! And I think you’re right…It sounds like maybe it was overbaked a bit, but that’s an easy fix. When you use 3, 6″ pans instead of 2, 8″ pans, you’ll need to shorten the baking time, since the layers will smaller and a little thinner. I don’t have an exact time because I normally bake this with the 8″ pans, but I would start checking for doneness at about 25-30 minutes. You’ll probably need to go a bit longer, but start checking it then. It should be a light golden brown color on top and the sides will pull away from the pan just a bit. If you use the toothpick method to test it, there should be some crumbs on the toothpick still. You don’t have to keep baking until no crumbs appear, because that’s overbaking it. You just don’t want raw batter on the toothpick. I hope all that made sense. Let me know if you try it again and how it turns out!
Yes, that makes sense! I’m sure it will be perfect next time. I plan on using it to make a tiered cake for a family member’s birthday party. Thanks again!
You’re welcome! Let me know how it turns out and I hope everyone loves it. 😊
This is a very good recipe. I have been trying to find a good white cake recipe and this is it. The cake was truly moist with a very good flavor. It tasted better than a wedding cake. It lived up to it’s claim. Every one who tasted it said how moist and flavorful it was. This will definitely be my go to recipe for a delicious white cake. Thank you so much for posting!!! I will try the yellow cake recipe next.
Hi Shelley, what a wonderful comment! Thanks so much! I’m so glad everyone liked it. I work really hard to write moist cake recipes, because who wants dry cake, right? Anyway, I’m thrilled you liked it so much and I hope you love the yellow cake too! 🙂
Would I have to make any changes to the recipe if I wanted to make it into Whoopi pies?
Hi Virginia, yes…to make this into a whoopie pie recipe, it would probably take quite a bit of testing and changing. Essentially it would be a totally different recipe. It would need less liquid, less fat, less eggs and probably less sugar. The mixing method and baking time would be different as well. Honestly the best thing to do is to use a recipe made specifically for whoopie pies as I’m sure this one wouldn’t work well for that as it’s written and would take quite a bit of testing to get it to turn out with that whoopie pie texture.
So I want to make this cake for my great grandmothers funeral. I do not have baking soda. Is that okay? I’m making a two layer cake. So the top will be vanilla cake and the bottom apple fritter cake. And since apple fritter is a little sweet instead of frosting I’m using whipped cream.
Sofia, you don’t want to leave out the baking soda. It’s generally added when there is an acid in the batter (which in this case is the sour cream). Now, if you’re not able to get it at all, instead of using the 1/2 tsp baking soda plus the 1 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder called for in the recipe, try using 2 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder instead. I haven’t tested that, but essentially if you leave out the baking soda, you’ll have to add in more baking powder. So instead of the baking soda and baking powder called for in the recipe, you may be able to use 2 1/2 teaspoons of the baking powder instead. Like I said, I haven’t tested this out, so I can’t promise it’ll be perfect…it’s my best guess for a substitution. Hope this helps!
Hi Kara Jane,
I will be baking the Moist White Cake for a birthday. I’ve never used the emulsion form of a flavoring. Is it equal to the extract amount? That is, 1 tsp of emulsion is the same as 1 tsp of extract? Can I use the butter emulsion in the cake batter instead of butter extract?
Hi Gail, you might want to check the label of whichever brand of emulsion you’re using, but as far as LorAnn’s emulsions go, I’ve found it’s generally the same amount. So I generally use a teaspoon for a teaspoon. I’m not sure how other brands are though. Oh and a quick note, LorAnn has ‘flavored oils’ which actually ARE concentrated and not teaspoon for teaspoon, but I’ve found most of their emulsions are. And yes you can use the butter emulsion instead. Actually I find it tastes better than the extract and I need to go and put that option in the recipe.
Can you use pasteurized egg whites from a carton?
Hi Laurie, I haven’t tried it personally, but I think it would be just fine.
Hi Kara. My friend has asked me to make this recipe for her wedding cake. The cake will be a 12, 9, 6. Do you think this recipe will have enough structure to support that size. She loves this recipe so hopefully it will work. Thank you!
Hi Celeste, it’s so good to know she likes this recipe! And yes, this recipe should work just fine for those size cakes. Just make sure to dowel and give it enough support structure and you should be just fine. 🙂
Thank you so much for your quick reply! I’ve been browsing your website and enjoying all of your well explained information. Thank you for sharing!
Thanks so much for that. I often wonder if I’m explaining things well enough and that helps. I’d love to know how everything goes for the wedding!
Hi Kara,
I made this using three six inch pans and baked 36 minutes, it tested done. I cooled completely and filled with my raspberry filling and frosted with your buttercream recipe. My crumb was much denser , more like pound cake. I was careful not to over mix. I only used extracts not emulsions. What could cause this?
Hmmm, the first thing I thought of was the mixing time, but if you didn’t over mix, then it might be because the layers are a bit thinner than they would be in two 8 inch pans. I’m not sure if that was the case, but it might have something to do with it. When you tested it, was it with a toothpick? Did the toothpick come out clean? If so, you might bake it for a little less time next time. I like to take them out of the oven when there are still a few crumbs on the toothpick. That seems to be about right. I can’t think of any other reason though…that’s really a mystery.
Hi, thought you cake looked great so I followed it and it’s now in the oven baking. Then it came to me, I’m Amin Colorado/high altitude!😱 should I have done anything different because of the altitude?
Oh no! Yes there are some things you’ll have to change for high altitude baking. I think you’ll have to up the temp a bit, but bake it for less time and there are some other things you might have to adjust as well. I’m not an expert at baking at high altitude. I’m way down here in Texas and have never really baked anywhere else. King Arthur Flour’s website has a really good explanation and chart on what to do though and I’ll link it here for you: https://www.kingarthurflour.com/learn/resources/high-altitude-baking
Hi Kara,
I would like to try this recipe with cupcakes. What changes would you suggest for baking?
Yes it should work just fine as cupcakes. I haven’t had the chance to try it out, but you should be able to fill the cupcake liners a little over halfway full. Bake them at 350 degrees instead of 325 and start checking them at about 20-25 minutes. Since this cake uses the reverse creaming method, the tops on the cupcakes will not have a huge dome on them, so just be aware of that. They won’t be completely flat, but they just don’t get a super high dome. Just know you didn’t do anything wrong…that’s just the nature of the reverse creaming method.
Can I add fresh chopped strawberries to the batter?
You could probably add some, but be careful not to add to much or it may produce too much liquid and the cake’s texture could be off. You might cut them into smaller pieces as well.
Sorry I just saw the comment above. Would substituting one of the liquids like the milk or sour cream for the strawberry pulp make much of a difference to the texture?
I can’t be sure without trying it out. The sour cream is pretty vital for moisture. It’s got a good fat content, so it really helps. You could try substituting it out, but I just couldn’t say what it might do to the texture without testing it out. I do have a strawberry cake recipe on the blog if you’d like to take a look at that and maybe compare to this one. Here’s the link for that: https://iscreamforbuttercream.com/strawberry-bundt-cake-with-cream-cheese-glaze/
Could I substitute the shortening for more butter or would that change how moist the cake is?
It may change the texture of this cake. I use the shortening in this one to help with the texture (makes it a little softer), to help with moisture and to keep it white. If you’re looking for a butter cake, you might check out my vanilla bean cake. It uses all butter. Here’s the link for that: https://iscreamforbuttercream.com/favorite-vanilla-bean-cake/
Will this batter fit in a 9×13” pan? Will the cooking temp and time change?
Yes this should be just fine baked in a 9×13 inch pan. Leave the temp the same and start checking for doneness around 40 minutes or so. I haven’t tested it out in a 9×13 inch pan, but I can’t think of any reason why it wouldn’t work. Just keep an eye on it while baking, but you don’t want to be opening and closing the oven door a lot either. Hope this helps.
Is it possible to use a sugar subsititute ? As I am diabetic I’m always looking for ways to reduce “sugar” in recipies. Lots of us out here that have to address this condition.
Hi Mike, that’s a good question, but I have to say I’m really not an expert on sugar free baking. I did find what looks like to be a very informative article about using sugar substitutes and everything that goes along with that. I haven’t tested this recipe out using a sugar substitute, so I’m not sure how it would turn out. I do know that it changes the texture of the cake, but I don’t know if it’s a huge change. I just haven’t baked a lot with sugar substitutes. I’m going to link to that article here and hopefully it will have a suggestion in it that would work for you. Here’s the article: https://www.diabetesselfmanagement.com/nutrition-exercise/meal-planning/baking-and-cooking-with-sugar-substitutes/
I do plan to work on a sugar free cake recipe at some point as I get asked this question occasionally and I’d like to be able to provide a good tasting alternative. I’m just not sure when I’ll be able to get to it, but it’s definitely on my list of recipes to write.
Can I sub pure vanilla for the vanilla extract? And I found imitation butter flavor at the grocery store will that work?
Thanks!
Hi Candi, do you mean pure vanilla extract? Yes you can use pure vanilla extract. You can also use the butter flavoring in place of the butter emulsion. It’s not as tasty, but it will work in a pinch.