Soft and buttery with an extra moist crumb, this is the best yellow cake I’ve ever had. After several rounds of recipe testing, I found the secret to the most delicious yellow birthday cake is a combination of cake flour, extra egg yolks, whipped egg whites, and buttermilk. Cover this cake with my rich and creamy chocolate buttercream for the ultimate celebratory birthday cake!
If there was one supreme birthday cake to reign over all other birthday cakes, it would be… Piñata Cake. But this yellow cake comes in a close second!
This is the Best Yellow Cake I’ve Ever Had
After marble cake, zebra cake, yellow sheet cake, white cake, vanilla cake, yellow cupcakes, and all of the other recipes in between, I’ve been trying to perfect this quintessential layer cake for years on end. I’ve tasted cake mixes and restaurant-quality yellow cakes, bakery cakes and professional’s homemade variations, and I can honestly say that this is the best yellow cake I’ve ever had.
Using a careful mix of cake flour, fluffy egg whites, extra egg yolks, and buttermilk, as well as starting with an extra creamy base of butter and sugar, this yellow cake is soft and buttery with an extra moist crumb. If cakes could talk, this one would brag.
I spent the better part of this past winter testing this yellow cake recipe. We can’t achieve perfection for free, so there’s a few careful steps involved and power ingredients that you don’t want to substitute. If baking could withstand shortcuts, I’d take them, but we don’t want to mess around here. Remember, baking is a science.
Power Ingredients
- Cake Flour: Cake flour produces that bakery-style cakey structure. Since it’s so light, the attention remains on the butter. (A stand-out flavor in yellow cake.) All-purpose flour, even when combined with cornstarch to make a cake flour substitute, is simply too heavy for this recipe. Use pure, real cake flour.
- Baking Powder & Baking Soda: My biggest struggle was finding the perfect amount of baking powder and baking soda. This balanced combination provides plenty of lift. It even inspired me to change/improve the leaveners in yellow sheet cake, too.
- Butter: I tested this recipe with melted butter, just to see if I could enhance the buttery flavor while still maintaining a fluffy crumb, but my efforts were worthless. The cakes were heavy no matter how I played around with the other ingredients. For best results, stick with creamed room temperature butter and sugar.
- Eggs & Extra Egg Yolks: Eggs play a big role in this cake recipe. You need 4 eggs total—2 whole eggs plus an additional 2 egg yolks. This equals 4 egg yolks and 2 egg whites. (You will have 2 egg whites leftover. Here are some recipes using only egg whites.) Additional egg yolks add richness, tenderness, and flavor.
- Whipped Egg Whites: There are 2 egg whites in this recipe. Take them a step further to help fluff up the cake’s structure. Afterall, this is a butter and egg yolk heavy cake. Beat the egg whites separately, just as we do in red velvet cake, then fold them in. There’s no other way to land on a velvety rich cake texture.
- Cream of Tartar: Whip the egg whites with cream of tartar. Cream of tartar keeps the air in the egg whites suspended so they hold their shape when mixed into the heavy cake batter and again when baked in the oven. You can skip it if needed and whip the egg whites by themselves, but the cake layers will taste denser.
- Buttermilk: I tried a mix of sour cream and whole milk, but taste testers enjoyed the buttermilk version better. Adding flavor and moisture, buttermilk is used in many baking recipes including this confetti cake. See recipe note about a DIY buttermilk substitute.
Video Tutorial: How to Make Perfect Yellow Cake
Step-by-Step Yellow Cake Photos
Watch the video tutorial above and use these pictures to help guide you, too.
Make sure the butter and sugar are extra creamy. I recommend 3 full minutes of creaming:
Whip the egg whites and cream of tartar together, then fold them into the cake batter. The cake batter will be thick, but the fluffy egg whites lighten it up.
If your cakes are domed on top, level them after they cool. I use a serrated knife:
Other Size Cakes
This cake batter is best for a 2 layer 9-inch cake (I use and love these 9-inch round cake pans). This recipe yields about 5-6 cups of batter, which is helpful if you need it for different Cake Pan Sizes & Conversions. You can bake this yellow cake in a 9×13 inch baking pan, but I found it tasted on the heavier side. Instead, I recommend my Yellow Sheet Cake.
And for cupcakes? Here is my favorite yellow cupcakes recipe, which includes directions for mini cupcakes too. Same unbelievable texture as this cake!
Chocolate Frosting for Yellow Birthday Cake
Like my triple chocolate cake, I use my favorite chocolate buttercream. I slightly increase the amount of each ingredient to produce extra frosting. If you prefer a thinner layer of frosting, use the chocolate buttercream recipe. Because there is no leavening occurring, you can use either dutch-process or natural cocoa powder in the buttercream. Heavy cream provides an extra creamy frosting, but milk can be substituted if needed.
This frosting is a little fluffier than the chocolate fudge frosting on the yellow sheet cake. Feel free to swap frostings or use the the vanilla buttercream in my white cake recipe!
Additional Cake Success Tips
Use the following resources to help guarantee cake success:
- How to Freeze Cakes
- How to Prevent a Dry or Dense Cake
- 10 Cake Baking Tips for Perfect Cakes
- Homemade Cake Flour Substitute
- Soften Butter Quickly (helpful trick!)
Yellow Cake
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 28 minutes
- Total Time: 4 hours
- Yield: serves 12
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
For yellow cake success, follow this recipe closely and don’t make any ingredient substitutions.
Ingredients
- 2 and 1/2 cups (285g) cake flour (spooned & leveled)*
- 2 and 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (2 sticks; 230g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature*
- 1 and 3/4 cups (350g) granulated sugar
- 4 large egg yolks, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup (240ml) buttermilk, at room temperature*
- 2 large egg whites, room temperature
- 1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar*
Chocolate Buttercream
- 1.25 cups (2.5 sticks or 290g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3 and 1/2 cups (420g) confectioners’ sugar
- 3/4 cup (65g) unsweetened cocoa powder (natural or dutch process)
- 3–5 Tablespoons (45-75ml) heavy cream (or half-and-half or milk), at room temperature
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- optional for decoration: sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Grease two 9-inch round cake pans, line with parchment paper rounds, then grease the parchment paper. Parchment paper helps the cakes seamlessly release from the pans. (If it’s helpful, see this parchment paper rounds for cakes video & post.) I recommend using nonstick spray for greasing.
- Start the cake batter with the dry ingredients: Whisk the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl. Set aside.
- Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar together on high speed for 3 full minutes. The creamed butter and sugar will be extra creamy. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Turn the mixer down to medium-high speed and beat in the 4 egg yolks one at a time, letting each egg yolk fully mix into the batter before adding the next. Beat in the vanilla extract until combined.
- Add about 1/3 of the dry ingredients and 1/2 of the buttermilk and beat on low speed until combined. Add 1/3 more of the dry ingredients and the rest of the buttermilk and beat on low speed until combined. Add the rest of the dry ingredients and beat on low speed until combined. The batter is very thick. You may need to whisk it all by hand to make sure there are no lumps at the bottom of the bowl.
- Whip the egg whites: Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat the egg whites and cream of tartar together on high speed until fluffy peaks form, about 3 minutes. See photo and video above for a visual. Slowly and gently fold the egg whites into the thick cake batter. Avoid over-mixing as you don’t want to deflate the egg whites.
- Pour/spoon batter evenly into cake pans.
- Bake: Bake for around 27-31 minutes or until the cakes are baked through. After about 18 minutes, tent the cakes with aluminum foil to prevent the tops and sides from over-browning. To test the cakes for doneness, insert a toothpick into the center of the cake. If it comes out clean, it’s done. The cakes may look a little spongey on top as a result of the whipped egg whites. (That’s normal!)
- Allow cakes to cool completely in the pans set on a wire rack. The cakes must be completely cool before frosting and assembling.
- Make the buttercream: With a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add confectioners’ sugar, cocoa powder, 3 Tablespoons heavy cream, salt, and vanilla extract. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then increase to high speed and beat for 1 full minute. Do not over-whip. Add 1/4 cup more confectioners’ sugar or cocoa powder if frosting is too thin or 1-2 more Tablespoons of cream if frosting is too thick. (I usually add 1 more.) Taste. Add another pinch of salt if desired.
- Assemble and frost: If cooled cakes are domed on top, use a large serrated knife to slice a thin layer off the tops to create a flat surface. This is called “leveling” the cakes. Discard or crumble over finished cake (or on ice cream!). Place 1 cake layer on your cake turntable, cake stand, or serving plate. Evenly cover the top with frosting. Top with 2nd layer. (If desired, if the edges seem extra crumbly, apply a crumb coat which is a thin layer of frosting all over the cake. You can see I did this in the video tutorial above. Refrigerate the crumb coated cake for 15 minutes before adding the rest of the frosting.) Spread remaining frosting all over the top and sides. I always use an icing spatula and/or a bench scraper for the frosting. Garnish with sprinkles, if desired.
- For extra neat slices, refrigerate cake for 30-60 minutes before slicing. This helps the cake hold its shape when cutting.
- Cover leftover cake tightly and store at room temperature for up to 1 day or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: Prepare cake through step 8. Wrap the individual baked and cooled cake layers tightly and keep at room temperature for 1 day or freeze up to 3 months. Bring to room temperature (if frozen) then continue with step 9. Frosting can also be made 1 day ahead of time. Cover tightly and refrigerate overnight. Bring frosting to room temperature, then beat the frosting on medium speed for a few seconds so it’s creamy again. Adding a splash of cream/milk will help thin the frosting out, if needed. Frosted cake freezes well, up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then bring to room temperature or serve cold. See How to Freeze Cakes.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 9-inch Round Cake Pans | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Rubber Spatula | Cooling Rack | Cake Turntable | Icing Spatula | Bench Scraper | Cake Carrier (for storage)
- Update in 2022: After further testing, this recipe now includes a little extra cake flour and baking soda to help prevent the cakes from sinking and tasting gummy.
- Cake Flour: Cake flour is key in this recipe. Do not use any cake flour substitutes.
- Butter: If you only have salted butter, you can use that instead. Reduce the added salt in the cake to 1/4 teaspoon. You can use salted butter in the frosting, too. Taste the frosting before adding the 1/8 teaspoon of salt, then add a pinch if desired. It’s imperative to use room temperature butter in order to properly cream with the sugar and be the proper base for the buttercream.
- Eggs: You need 4 egg yolks and 2 egg whites in this cake batter. It’s easiest to separate eggs when they’re cold. The eggs must be at room temperature to whip properly, so after you separate the eggs, cover the 4 yolks and 2 whites and set aside for at least 20 minutes before starting.
- Buttermilk: Buttermilk is required for this recipe. You can make your own DIY version of buttermilk by measuring 1 Tablespoon of lemon juice or white vinegar in a measuring glass. Add enough milk (whole milk is best—lower fat or nondairy milks work in a pinch, but the cake won’t taste as moist or rich) in the same measuring glass to reach 1 cup. Stir it around and let sit for 5 minutes. The soured milk will be somewhat curdled and ready to use in your recipe.
- Cream of Tartar: This is an imperative ingredient that promises the egg whites will whip into lofty, fluffy peaks and hold their shape when mixed into the heavy cake batter and baked in the oven. You can skip it if needed and whip the egg whites by themselves, but the cakes will taste denser.
- Amount of Cake Batter: This recipe yields about 5-6 cups of batter, which is helpful if you need it for different Cake Pan Sizes & Conversions. This recipe is too large for 2 8-inch cake pans.
- 9×13 Inch Pan: You can bake this cake in a 9×13 inch baking pan, but I found it tasted on the heavier side. Instead, I recommend my Yellow Sheet Cake which uses mostly the same ingredients.
- 3 Layer Cake: You can also prepare this cake as a 3 layer cake. Divide batter between three 8-inch or 9-inch cake pans in step 1 and bake for 22-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The frosting recipe written will be enough for thin layers of frosting, but you can double my chocolate buttercream recipe (simply double each ingredient) if you want a lot of frosting.
- Yellow Cupcakes: Here is my favorite yellow cupcakes recipe, which includes directions for mini cupcakes too. Same unbelievable texture as this cake! If you need more than 1 dozen yellow cupcakes, use this yellow cake recipe for between 2-3 dozen and follow the same baking instructions as my yellow cupcakes.
For the sheet cake version, here is my yellow sheet cake recipe.
Help! Somehow i missed the instruction to cover the cake halfway through! Will the frosted cake be too crispy? Wondering if i need to start over, the cake was for tomorrow requested by my mom but it was my first attempt at a yellow cake. Smells good but def darker than in Sally’s video & pics.
Lots of work for a cake that came out really gummy tasting, and not much flavor. Followed instructions to a tee.
Undeniably the best yellow cake I’ve ever made! Moist and buttery. Just perfect!! Thanks for the very well-detailed directions!
OMG SALLY! This recipe is fabulous. When I bake, I always do research on a bit of my trusted cooking blogs. I saw a yellow cake recipe with 7 eggs and thought it was weird, so I came here to compare. Anyway, I decided to make this one and I followed but had to make a few tweaks -> I ordered powdered butter milk and they sent powdered sour cream + cup of whole milk, so I had to use that unfortunately. Also, I didn’t have any fresh cream of tartar. But otherwise I followed it, used a scale and a kitchen-aid stand mixer. The texture is soft and airy. The taste is impeccable! Mine only made enough for one 9” cake pan but that could’ve been due to the powdered cream situation.
I made this today! It looked great coming out of the oven. I put raspberry jam between the layers with chocolate buttercream on the outside. There was a bit of icing left over, but not enough to worry about! Can’t wait till supper to try it!
I use your recipes every day and love them!
Hi Sally, what do you think is the best cake combination with strawberry ice cream? I’m trying to make a cake for my brother’s birthday and he loves strawberry ice cream.
Thanks!
Hi Sal, this yellow cake would be great with strawberry ice cream! He might also love our strawberry cake!
We made this cake for my son’s bday and were a little disappointed. It was tasty but quite dense. Perhaps we goofed with over beating? That’s what he thinks and he did all the mixing. Thanks for sharing the recipe. Is tgere a trick to lightening it?
Hi Dawn, A tough or dense cake can be caused by many things. Be sure you are using cake flour and make sure your baking powder and soda are fresh. We find they lose strength after just 3-4 months. Use proper room temperature butter and other room temperature ingredients and be careful not to over-mix your cake batter (a common source of dense cakes). Here’s more tips for baking perfect cakes that may help as well. Thank you for giving this recipe a try!
Hi Sally,
Thanks for all your wonderful recipes. I need to make cupcakes as well as a 9-inch 2 layer cake. Is there one recipe I can use that could me mixed all at once and then portioned into both muffin tins and cake pans? I have perused your yellow layer cake, yellow sheet cake, and yellow birthday cupcake recipes but am not sure which one would be best. Also, if I use this yellow cake recipe can I use whole eggs instead of whipping the whites separately (as you did for your modified yellow birthday cupcake recipe)? Simpler would be better as I don’t have much time to bake that day!
Hi Kirby, Depending on how many cupcakes you need you have a different options. You can make this 3 layer vanilla cake and bake two layers as cakes and a few cupcakes. Or you can make this Piñata Cake which makes 4 layers of cake and bake 2 layers of cake and have slightly more cupcakes.
I made this cake tonight for my sons birthday tomorrow. Directions were followed exactly, but the cake layers didn’t rise much. Not sure why, but I’m hoping it will still be yummy.
Hi Sally,
This is more of a question regarding buttermilk. Normally I use light whenever a recipe call for buttermilk. However, this time in the market I saw full fat and bought it. Will this make a difference in the cake. The cake is always delicious as is. What does full fat do to a cake?
Thank you, Diane
Hi Diane, either will work beautifully!
I cannot say enough great things about this recipe. The cake was beautifully moist and the Chocolate Buttercream to die for.
Yummy recipe. The cake is overly sweet and the amount of frosting is just right. Thanks Sally for another great recipe.
Hi,
I made this recipe for my son’s birthday. I read the make-ahead instructions. I was wondering if it would be fine to frost the cake and keep it overnight. It would be about 24 hours before I have a cake carrier with a lid.
Hi Alyssa! After decorating anything with buttercream or cream cheese frosting, it’s fine for 1 day at room temperature (covered). After that, we would refrigerate it. But, use your best judgment and whatever you are comfortable with- we’ve never had any problems leaving frosted desserts at room temperature for a day
This is my go to recipe for birthday or any other special occasion that I need a yellow cake for. I have made it more than once and it always turn out great for me. I follow the instructions exactly including ALL ingredients at ROOM TEMP.!!! THANK to the creator of this recipe-THANKS so much!!
My grandmother used to make cookies with yellow cake mix and they were so good. I don’t want to use a cake mix and wondering if this could be turned into a cookie recipe? Thanks!
Hi KD! We’ve never tried to make cake mix cookies with homemade ingredients – sounds like an interesting challenge, let us know if you try anything!
Can I 1.5x this recipe for a three-layer cake? I want the layers to be just as thick as if I were to make a two-layer cake of the original recipe
Yes you can, Sean. Enjoy!
I am testing my cake for doneness now. It looks gorgeous, has left the side of the pan, but there is a 1/4 inch (app) dent in the center two inches rather than being domed. Toothpick is clean. What’s happening (31 minutes) using an oven thermometer and it is at 350.
Hi Gray! Over-mixing the batter, at any point, can deflate it which means your cake won’t rise as tall OR will rise and then collapse in the oven or while it cools. Make sure to be very careful to *just* mix the batter until combined.
Wondering if this can be cut in half if I am using 1 cake pan?
Hi Kelly, that shouldn’t be a problem!
I made this cake for my daughter’s birthday, but it needs adjustment for high altitude. As is, it fell. I adjusted a little, and it still fell, though not as much. Any tips for those of us above 5,000 ft?
Hi Jennifer, I wish we could help, but have no experience baking at high altitude. Some readers have found this chart helpful: https://www.kingarthurflour.com/learn/high-altitude-baking.html
Five stars…if you get it right, which I only did on the third try haha. You must pay attention with this cake and get each step right. She is not kidding. I thought I knew what I was doing. But the most recent try was a win and man, it is so good! I pair it with the chocolate cream cheese frosting, half batch roughly. This is all thanks to my daughter who made the first one I tasted and that kept me trying for perfection. Even the slight fails were wildly popular but it’s worth it to get it right.
This recipe is the bomb!!!! It is so moist and light. I will be saving this recipe!!!
I baked this cake as a 3 layer – it was excellent. So very moist. It is now my go-to yellow cake recipe
I made cupcakes from your recipe and they turned out amazing!
I would now like to try a crushed pineapple upside down cake in a tube pan
One question- can I prepare the batter the night before and refrigerate. I would like to serve the cake warm
Hi Wendy, We are so happy you enjoyed this recipe! Unfortunately we don’t recommend preparing the batter in advance. Once batter is mixed, the leaveners are activated and the layers will not bake properly if not baked right away.
I am getting ready to bake this for the 1st time this weekend. My question is can it be easily made into 3 layers opposed to 2? If so, is it best to use 3, 9″ pans, or bake in 1 pan and slice 2x? Thank you
Hi Dene, yes, you can certainly make this into a three layer cake. See recipe notes for details!
Giving this four stars for the buttercream alone- it is spectacular! As for the cake we shall see. Baked for the minimum time and it was completely liquid still. Baked for the maximum time and it was completely liquid still. Baked five additional minutes still liquid in the center. Baked another five minutes and it was finally done but as I was icing it it seemed to be a little dry. Baking for a friend’s birthday this weekend so we’ll update as to how it tasted. Before anyone asks, nothing wrong with my oven. All ingredients at room temp.
Well this was a total fail for me. I followed the instructions to a T…had even read a lot of the comments before hand. It all came together well. Then I put it in the oven to bake and next thing I know, I look through the oven glass and the cake had totally collapsed in the middle. I’ve never had that happen to me before, so I’m not sure what caused it, but it was a waste of good ingredients, so I’ll move on to another recipe next time.
Mine has collapsed in the middle also. (and I do not have the time to move on to another recipe. Now I have got to find a birthday cake in a one horse town in the middle of the pandemic. What a mess)
Could I add in some sprinkles to the batter to make this funfetti?
Hi Bryn, sure can! Add 1/2 – 2/3 cup rainbow sprinkles.
Is a cake strip around the outside of the cake pans a good idea with this cake?
Hi Gail, Many bakers love using cake strips to bake more level layers.
The cake was delicious! I skipped the step of putting the parchment in the pan and just used Pam only. It stuck really bad so I will definitely use the parchment next time. The cooking time was a bit off for me. It was still liquid in the center at 31 minutes so I cooked it about 40 minutes total. Thanks for the great recipe.
Hello. Am I able to make this as a Bundt cake?
Hi Kay, We haven’t tested this recipe in a Bundt pan. It yields about 5 cups of batter as written, so you can adjust it to fit your specific pan if you wish to try it. I’m unsure of the exact bake time you would need. Let us know if you give it a try!