This moist, richly flavorful, classic yellow cake is smothered in a thick layer of Chocolate Italian Meringue Buttercream and decorated with Chocolate Ganache and loads of sprinkles.
This yellow cake recipe is pretty simple.
It has that buttery moist texture that every classic yellow cake should have. But, it utilizes a technique I've been relying on more and more in my cake recipes, which is not so common in traditional yellow cake recipes: Separate the egg yolks from the egg whites. Beat the yolks into the batter and whip the egg whites in a separate bowl until stiff peaks form. Then gently fold the beaten egg whites into the batter right before baking.
As with my favorite vanilla cake, red velvet cake, champagne cake, and caramel cake recipes, this technique produces reliably risen cake layers that don't sink in the middle in a wide range of climates. I've had people from all over the world write in with their success, so I feel justified in saying so.
Yellow Cake was made for chocolate buttercream.
I mean, can you even frost a yellow cake with anything other than chocolate buttercream? Is it even allowed?
Those of you who've been here before know that my feelings for Italian Meringue Buttercream run deep. Because, until I tasted the stuff, I thought I hated frosting. I was a scrape-off-the-frosting-just-eat-the-cake kind of girl.
But, Italian Meringue Buttercream will make a frosting lover out of even the most determined non-frosting eater. It is just so, SO good. Silky smooth, not too sweet, rich, melt-in-your-mouth, and so easy to work with.
If you've never made Italian Meringue Buttercream before, please don't run away screaming when you see how long the instructions are. It is - cross my heart and hope to die - easy. The length of the instructions are because I so badly want you to succeed and experience the amazingness that is Italian Meringue Buttercream that I've tried to account for everything that might go wrong.
Two other super quick and delicious options are Classic Chocolate Buttercream and Milk Chocolate Buttercream.
Classic Yellow Cake is a Building Block Recipe
Building block recipes are tried-and-true recipes that I consider foundational to great home baking. They are the kind of recipes I come back to over and over again, sometimes baking them as is, but often using them as a jumping off point to create something new. > Scroll through all Building Block recipes.
If you make this recipe, be sure to snap a photo and hashtag it #ofbatteranddough. I love to see what you bake!
📖 Recipe
Moist Yellow Cake with Chocolate Buttercream
This moist, richly flavorful classic yellow cake is smothered in a thick layer of Chocolate Italian Meringue Buttercream and decorated with Chocolate Ganache and loads of sprinkles.
Ingredients
- 4 large whole eggs, at room temperature
- 3 large egg yolks, at room temperature
- 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, at room temperature
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- ½ cup packed dark or light brown sugar
- 3 ¼ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- 2 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
TO FROST AND DECORATE THE CAKE:
- Chocolate Buttercream (See notes)
- Chocolate Ganache for piping borders (optional)
- Sprinkles
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350. Grease and flour three 8 or 9-inch round cake pans and line the bottoms with a round of parchment paper that is also slathered with a bit of butter or shortening.
- Separate the whole eggs, placing the yolks in a small bowl and the whites in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form when you lift the whisk from the beaten egg whites. Scrape the egg whites into another bowl. Rinse and dry the standing mixer bowl.
- Fit the standing mixer with the paddle attachment and cream the butter and both sugars until light and fluffy, about 6 minutes. Stop the mixer to scrape down the sides of the bowl a time or two.
- Add 3 egg yolks to the butter/ sugar mixture and beat on medium speed until incorporated, about 20 seconds. Add 2 more egg yolks, beating again until incorporated, about 20 seconds. Repeat with remaining 2 egg yolks.
- Add the flour, corn starch, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon to a large bowl and mix with a wire whisk to combine.
- In a large measuring cup, stir together the buttermilk and vanilla.
- Beating on low speed, add the dry ingredients, alternating with the liquid, in 4 additions, beginning and ending with the flour. Beat on low to medium speed, just long enough to incorporate each new addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as necessary.
- With a rubber spatula, gently fold about ⅓ of the beaten egg whites into the batter just until incorporated, to lighten the batter. Fold in the remaining egg whites very gently, just until incorporated.
- Pour the batter into your prepared pans. Bake for 30-40 min. The cake will be golden brown, be pulling away from the sides of the pan, and will not jiggle in the center when you shake the pan slightly. To check for doneness, stick a toothpick into the center of one of the layers. Remove the toothpick and look for signs of raw batter. If only cake crumbs stick to the toothpick, the cake is done.
- Let the cakes cool on wire racks for 5 minutes in the pan, then gently turn them out of the pans onto the wire racks to cool completely. If you don't plan on frosting the layers immediately, wrap each tightly with plastic wrap. The layers can be stored at room temperature for 1 day, or frozen for up to 2 months.
Notes
Frost this cake with Chocolate Italian Meringue Buttercream, or Classic Chocolate Buttercream., or Milk Chocolate Buttercream.
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Bhagya says
Hi ... Ur one cup buttermilk is how much in millilitres (ml) ??thanks
Rebecca Blackwell says
Hi there! I cup of buttermilk is 236.5 ml. Please let me know if you have any other questions!
Brandy says
Do you mix 7 egg whites into the batter?
Rebecca Blackwell says
Hi Brandy! Thanks for the question! You want to use 4 whole eggs plus an additional 3 egg yolks. Separate the 4 whole eggs, placing the egg whites in one bowl and the yolks in another. Then beat the 4 egg whites until stiff peaks form. Fold the whites into the batter right before baking. So, you'll be using a total of 4 egg whites and 7 egg yolks. Does that answer your question? xo
SuzyMcQ says
Wow, Rebecca! You put countless other bloggers to shame! 😉 Talk about responding to a follower....wow! This cake looks incredible and delicious. Thank you for all the baking you do to make your confections sheer perfection!
Rebecca Blackwell says
Awwwwww... shucks. You're making me blush, Suzy. 🙂 Thank you so very much for the kind words. I appreciate them more than you know. xoxo