This chiffon cake is a favorite for children's birthday parties. Serve with fruit or decorate with Williamsburg butter frosting.
I like to frost this cake with Williamsburg Butter Frosting.
I am a newbie when it comes to cooking, but that doesn't stop my enthusiasm! My first attempt at making this was FIRST CAKE FAIL. It was egg-y, dense, and rather lopsided. The second time I made this was a success! Light, fluffy, and delicious! Some tips for first-timers (of making any cake whatsoever): 1)When separating the eggs, be sure that there are no traces of yolk. Yolk may hinder the fluffiness of the whites. Also, when beating the whites, the highest speed to be used should be medium. 2) Mixing the yolk mixture first may be more beneficial if you tend to be a slow mixer. If the stiffened egg whites sit too long, they begin to "melt" or "re-liquify". 3)When folding the two mixtures together, be sure there are no lumps or streaks. This may sound obvious, but for newbies like me this is important to know. 4) Last but not least, if you're baking in two round pans rather than a big tube pan, watch the cakes carefully as they cook. They are guaranteed to burn or fail if they're in the oven for 55 minutes. I timed the cakes for 20 minutes and checked every ten minutes after that. I think it was a total of 40 minutes to create perfection. ^-^
Read MoreI am a newbie when it comes to cooking, but that doesn't stop my enthusiasm! My first attempt at making this was FIRST CAKE FAIL. It was egg-y, dense, and rather lopsided. The second time I made this was a success! Light, fluffy, and delicious! Some tips for first-timers (of making any cake whatsoever): 1)When separating the eggs, be sure that there are no traces of yolk. Yolk may hinder the fluffiness of the whites. Also, when beating the whites, the highest speed to be used should be medium. 2) Mixing the yolk mixture first may be more beneficial if you tend to be a slow mixer. If the stiffened egg whites sit too long, they begin to "melt" or "re-liquify". 3)When folding the two mixtures together, be sure there are no lumps or streaks. This may sound obvious, but for newbies like me this is important to know. 4) Last but not least, if you're baking in two round pans rather than a big tube pan, watch the cakes carefully as they cook. They are guaranteed to burn or fail if they're in the oven for 55 minutes. I timed the cakes for 20 minutes and checked every ten minutes after that. I think it was a total of 40 minutes to create perfection. ^-^
UNBELIEVABLY light & fluffy!!!...otherwise you did something wrong. The result of your egg whites determine how light & fluffy it is, so make sure you beat your egg whites until it's well risen before you add cream of tartar. AWESOME recipe, it didn't smell or taste eggy either. Thank you!!
My husband will not eat a bought Angel Food Cake so a few weeks ago I made one from scratch which he enjoyed..he said he would still like to have a Chiffon Cake..I have had this recipe on hand for quite some time and decided to try it..the only change I made was to spin the sugar in a processor for about 2 minutes until it was superfine..the cake came out super high, was light and moist..better than any you would buy in a store.. I did not use any frosting as my husband prefers this kind of cake plain..what it would be good for is to use as a basis for a strawberry shortcake..Thank you for an awesome recipe.
It sounds too good and tempting to try.. WHAT CN I USE IF I DONT HAVE CAKE FLOUR i just have all purpose flour PLEASE HELP
Great recipe! I used this to make Korean fresh cream cake, and it turned out delicious! The cake was fluffy, soft, moist, and NOT EGG-Y!!! I have a major sweet tooth, so I actually added 1/4 cup of confectioner's sugar and left out the lemon extract. I'm going to recommend this recipe to everyone. :)
I have never written a review before for anything but after making this cake I felt compelled to do so. This was absolutely the most delicious cake I have ever made! I bake quite a bit and have made many types of cakes before and this one is by far my favorite! It was so light and fluffy with the perfect amount of sweetness to it. I am not one for eating super sugary desserts often because it makes my stomach feel heavy and afterward I feel just sloth like. But this made my stomach feel full and light. Kind of like the way Japanese or Korean food makes me feel after I eat it. The consistancy is like a pancake and a super light cupcake mixed into one. I used espresso instead of water and I substituted the lemon for rum. I also used an espresso chocolate mousse instead of the frosting. It was to die for. The cake didn't last two days. I even put it in the freezer over night because the mousse started to melt and with the frozen mousse, that taseted like chocolate ice cream in the morning, and the cake, that was amazing cold, OMG! Crazy good! This recipe will be with me for a long time!
The family loved this recipe! On a warm summer evening after a heavy meal, this cake was perfect for my daughter's 36th birthday. Barbara
I have tried a couple of Chiffon cake recipes and found this one easiest and the cake is great. If you have a stand mixer, try to beat egg whites with it while you whisk your egg yolks and flour in another bowl. You do not need to beat the mixture (of yolks, oil, ...) as called for in the recipe.
easy to follow. But in response to another's review, the cream of tartar must be added to the egg whites BEFORE beating them. It stabilizes the egg whites and helps them stay fluffy. I used almond extract instead of lemon, yummy
I used 2x 9" round pans lined with round cut-out parchment papers and baked at 325 the whole way for 40 minutes. It came out quite done already, so i'd bake it for 35 minutes next time and test it earlier with a toothpick and add time if needed. I made a 4 tiered strawberry chiffon cake using instant lemon pudding, 1 LB pound strawberries (sliced and mixed with 2 tbsp sugar and 1 tbsp lemon juice-mix and let sit 1 hr for juicy strawberries) and fresh whipped cream. Lightly lemony and very juicy strawberries made this cake delicious!
Delicious! Served this with whipped cream and strawberries; the cake actually melts in your mouth faster than the cream.
This was O.K. but we thought it was just a little bland. It didn't seem to have much real flavor to it other than the frosting which was almost too rich.Maybe it's just our tastes. I guess we like things with more of a robust flavor.
My friends love this cake. It's easy for me to bake as well
This is a very light and tender cake--it tastes just like the cakes you get at Chinese bakeries. I think you could also use almond extract instead of the vanilla or lemon and it would turn out great. I frosted the cake with sweetened whipped cream (powdered sugar and vanilla added). Try decorating with drained, paper towel blotted mandarin oranges or other fruits. Very important to blot the fruits otherwise their juice will streak on the whipped cream!
WOW! This cake is amazing. I bake fairly often but cakes are not a strength of mine. This cake was so simple to prepare that i honestly thought that i forgot to do something. I used almond extract instead of lemon and i didn't have cream of tartar so i used vinegar instead. When it came out of the oven it looked perfect and it did not fall at all. The cake was so super light fluffy and the taste is great (not at all eggy). I used a cream cheese frosting, per family requests, and it was wonderful!
pretty good but the thick and overwhelmingly sweet buttercream icing will overwhelm the light, subtly sweet flavor of chiffon. Instead, try using stabilized whipped cream without an overwhelming amount of whipped cream
Usually, I have trouble making chiffon cakes, but this recipe was super easy. I made two 9" round cakes, and although they did end up falling, they turned out wonderfully moist and airy, not heavy at all. I followed previous reviews and left the oven at 325, and the cakes in for about 35 minutes. I did not have cake flour on hand, so I substituted 2 cups of AP flour, minus 4 tbsp, and added 4 tbsp of cornstarch. Will definitely be making this again!
This cake is a real winner! When I bake it for wedding cakes/birthdays there never seem to be enuf! This recipe is on the top of my list!
I made this cake for my grandmas 95th birthday party with fresh strawberries and fresh whipped cream, the cake was gone, it was so delicious. Reminded me of the Phoenix Chinese Bakerry in downtown LA...this will made many times for birthday cakes
Excellent and a very professional cake recipe, never failed, very versatile, because i`ve done many times and it`s great with chocolate, cream, english cream, , icing, heavy mousse, candy fruit like coconut with pineapple filled, anyway..thanks for share your recipe...
I love this recipe. It's soft, moist, light, and not to sweet. A superb cake that goes perfectly with a light whipped topping. Friends helped themselves to seconds. Also makes for good cupcakes!
I thought this was going to be really difficult but my KitchenAid made it a breeze. Super light, sweet and delicious. I made it in two 8-inch rounds for a layer cake and baked it 40 mins. Could've used another 5-10 I think, but it's hard to tell when it's "done" without being overdone. Next time I know - this will be my go-to birthday cake from now on!
Great recipe, nice touch to a meal, light and moist. Makes a good presentation.
I have been baking cakes for ten years now and I feel like this is my favorite cake recipe of all time. I have used it twice now for cupcakes and they are fabulous! My family lovevs the egg flavor and the lightness of the cake. It is light and spongecake-like. I made it with a peanut butter frosting and also with a caramel frosting.
I absolutely love this recipe. I tried it for the first time yesterday and it came out perfect. It's light and fluffy and tastes delicious, not too sweet. I've been searching for a really good vanilla chiffon cake and this is it.
After making this cake, I split it into 3 layers, filling it with an almond custard filling made with almond paste and white chocolate. I also left out the lemon flavoring and used almond extract. I frosted it with buttercream frosting with a dollop of cream cheese and left over filling mixed in. It was fabulous and looked gorgeous. Everyone loved it and there were no leftovers. The cake itself was delicious with a perfect crumb texture. It had no eggy taste. I sifted the cake flour first and then sifted it again with the other dry ingredients. I will definitely make this cake again. The flavor possibilities are endless.
the cake turn out sweet n tasty... it was spongy n nice to frost with... I tried with fruit puree as a flavoring though and skipped d lemon extract and butter frosting. I tried with whipped cream icing and added strawberries and almond slivers it was a hit and sis n law loved it... a keeper... thanks for d recipe!
It was soooo light and fluffy! It also tasted great without lemon extract and I used all purpose flour. I halved the batter into an 8-inch baking pan in two rounds for about 40 minutes as skang said.
I have been making a different chiffon cake for years with less than desirable results; on my first attempt this cake turned out gorgeous! My new, favourite cake recipe!!!
I didn't have lemon extract, so I sub'd w/almond. Based on one reader's review that it was quite bland, I added 2 tsps of almond extract and reduced the vanilla to 1. The cake was just okay, and the icing required far more liquid than what is called for to make it spreadable. Don't think I'd make again.
Used this recipie to make cupcakes, they were like cloud fluff, sooo light and fluffy. Put temp at 160 and took 18mins to cook. Will definitely be using it again and again.
I finally, I found the perfect chiffon cake recipe. However I did not put any lemon extract and dos not use the Williamsburg butter frosting because I made a purple yam chiffon cake. My friends and family love the cake. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
Made this in two 9 inch cake pans for about 35 minutes. I recommend cooling the cakes in the pans upside down to prevent them from sinking and using an inverted spatula to release the cake from the ungreased pans. I also made a lemon curd filling with fresh strawberries and frosted it with whipped cream.
wasn't as fluffy as i thought.. Really dense cake. But it was ok. People liked it..
Simply great. Not too sweet and not heavy at all. I will try substituting other flavors for the lemon flavoring next time to try other effects. Also good with a touch of Captain Morgan Private Stock sprinkled over each piece and allowed to sit.
Baked it in two 9 inch round cake pans lined with circles of parchment paper at the bottom. Did not grease the pans, as instructed in recipe. However, without the parchment, the cakes would've stuck hard, as they did stick to the sides quite a bit. I had to loosen up with a knife before flipping cakes out. I followed the rest as written and as sensitive as I usually am to eggy taste, this had no egginess whatsoever. Make sure you sift the cake flour before measuring, or you'll have way too much flour and the cake will be heavy. Same with beating whites to glossy stiff peaks, or the cake will be thin. If you follow exactly, it will come out very risen, light and fluffy. I loved the texture, and so did most of the family. The reason I only gave it 4 stars is that some noticed a strong baking powder taste to it, and others thought it wasn't the perfect texture. Due to the mixed reviews, I gave it 4 stars. I only give 5 stars to unanimous hits with the whole family! I topped it with wedding butter cream icing from this site, which complemented it nicely. Thanks for sharing!
This chiffon cake is, in my opinion, is perfect. I wouldn't change a thing. It is not dry, but it is important not to over bake. It is incredibly important to sift your flour before you measure it as it says 2 cups of sifted cake flour. I didn't' have cake flour, and had to use AP flour, but if you take out 2 tablespoons of flour per 1 cup you'll have a substitute for cake flour. I served this with buttercream and fresh strawberries. A HUGE hit. This recipe is a keeper.
I heard what everyone was saying about the recipe being dry (as nut cakes tend to be), I substituted non sweetened applesauce for the oil and it’s perfectly moist end delicious!! I halved the recipe because I was unsure how it would keep after the dinner tonight, next time I’ll make the whole recipe. For the frosting I used coffee bakery emulsion, it was perfect!!
Seriously such a good cake! I went out on a limb and made it in round pans (it filled three!), sliced them after cooling to make a six layer cake. Filled the layers with alternating lemon and raspberry curd and whipped cream frosting. it was one of the best cakes I have ever had. Making again this weekend with strawvberry rhubarb curd for my daughter's first birthday.
I needed a chiffon recipe to make petit fors, and this cake was PERFECT! it was light, elegant and tasty! thank you for sharing!!
excellent cake!! I made a lamington inspired cake by cutting it in half and spreading jam and whipped cream inside, and then I made a chocolate icing and topped with toasted coconut. Yum!!! So light and fluffy and yummy
Light & fluffy & easy to make. Chiffon cake can be tricky, this technique is awesome!
I followed the direction as written. Not what i was expecting. I am looking for cake similar to the Japanese cake they sell at Christmas in Japan. Not a bad recipe and thank you for sharing.
I'd give this 100 stars if I could. This is hands down the best recipe. I use this to make chiffon cupcakes and I top it with different flavors of chantilly whipped cream. I have made thousands of cupcakes using this recipe (and sold hundreds of cupcakes). I usually leave out the tartar. I've made a variety of cupcake flavors with this base including: lemon curd, mocha, matcha green tea, German chocolate, taro, coconut and burnt almond.
Made it tonight and it was well received! My cake got stuck in pan bc I didn’t have the right pan (more like the jello mold version) but other than that it was soft, moist, and fluffy! Light. Not too sweet. I used both vanilla, almond extract and lemon oil bc I didn’t have lemon extract.
followed the recipe for the most part. except I didn't hv lemon essence so I used lemon juice. forgot to reduce the water a teeny bit since there's more liquid from the melon juice. I don't know if that's the reason the cake was too soft it tore away from the sides and dropped out from the mould after I turned it around. fortunately it didn't sink. it's still chiffony though I wish it turned out lighter.
For first time makers u should beat the flour and the one with the egg yolk first cause the egg whites melt really fast so be sure to beat the egg yolks first and rmbr to preheat the oven I made tht mistake the first time I made it
tried so many chiffon cake recipes before and failed. This recipe takes the cake. ha. pun intended. love it coz it's so light and tasted good too. my picky kids won't stop eating it. thanks so much!
These don't make good cupcakes. They shriveled and shrank when I took them out of the oven. That being said, the taste of them is delicious! They *were* a tad eggy, but you know, I like that flavor so it wasn't a turn-off for me. They were light and fluffy, not the least bit dense despite the fact that they shriveled up. I'm sure one day I will use this recipe again and use the proper pan for baking, but until then, I will keep searching for a moist, tender cupcake recipe.
A good dairy free cake recipe.
Very light and fluffy cake. I'd reduce the number of egg yolks used, I like having 5, as the cake has a very egg taste to it if you go by the original recipe. Also salt should be a bit less than 1 tsp. With these two changes, the cake tastes perfect.
Holy cow! Awesome Gluten Free Cake. We made this using King Arthur GF baking flour. It was absolutely a beautiful cake, well risen, evenly baked, with uniform size air bubbles, nice density, and color. We frosted it with the Williamsburg icing. It is delicious. The only change to the icing was it needed a bit more liquid so after 12 tsp. of Cointreau I added a little water until the consistency worked.
my first time to bake a chiffon cake - quite ambitious as this was for my daughter's birthday in school and I couldn't find any cream of tartar where I currently am :-) I should have lined my baking pan (I didn't use the recommended pan but used a round one) with some baking paper as it was painstaking to remove the cake. It was super duper delicious though, quite a hit with my daughter and her classmates!
This recipe is great! First time I made it I failed. I tried to bake it into cupcakes, but it didn’t seem to work. The second time I baked it into 9 inch cake pans. It tasted just like the Asian sponge cakes you get at a Chinese bakery. Really light and fluffy and not too heavy. Goes great with a whipped cream frosting.
I made the recipe as is, except for I baked them in two 9 inch round pans with parchment paper. This was the best cake that I have ever made, and will definitely be making it again. Some people I served it too even said it was the bast cake they had ever had. I served the cake with a strawberry buttercream that I made. This cake tastes and has the same texture as a store-bought vanilla cake, but better! You can taste a little lemon flavor, so if you don't want that taste add a little more vanilla, and less lemon extract. I promise if you make this cake you won't be disappointed as long as you follow it as is.
Delicious!! So soft and fluffy, not overly sweet. I served it with ice cream and fresh fruit-amazing!! One thing I recommend is substituting one TSP of lemon extract with 1/2 TSP butter extract, and 1/2 TSP almond extract. Everything else is great as is!! Highly, highly recommend!
This is the first time my family actually ate the whole cake right away. Delicious!!!!!
This is a delicious, soft chiffon, DEFINITELY spongy cake. Make sure not to overbake. I make these as cupcakes and take them out a couple minutes early, store them in a sealed container and their moisture is perfect.
My go to recipe for chiffon cake! I’ve made strawberries and cream cakes using this recipe. I used 2x9” cake tins and baked at 160c for 45mins.
Baked for 1 hr only at 165 C, and it's done. It was soft and fluffy and yummy,
I made this exactly as written except I substituted almond extract for lemon as I was out of lemon and I did not use frosting (sliced fresh strawberries were the topping). This cake was light, fluffy, moist, and delicious.
THE BAKING TIME IS COMPLETELY WRONG!!! This should be baked for at least 45 minutes. I followed the baking time of 20 minutes and when I inverted it too cool, the inside was still LIQUID.
I made this cake because it’s the last week of school. Hang in there kids! Everybody loved it, light and fluffy. I beat the egg whites until super stiff & folded it in the rest of the batter at the very end. I had a jar of amarena cherries in my pantry and added them as a finishing touch. I’ll definitely will make this again
my cake came out really dense but other than that, good cake would not make again for that reason
This was an amazing recipe. The first time I made this, I did not know how to beat my egg whites properly so the batter came out very thin, yet the cake still turned out okay. When I learned the right way to beat my egg whites, I came back to this recipe and there was a dramatic change in how the cake turned out to be. It was way much softer and fluffier. I baked it in a 9 x 13 pan and I baked it for about 40 minutes.
I am thrilled to find this recipe. I have the page from my Nonnie's cookbook and it has a heading, "First new cake in a hundred years. CAKES Chiffon." My Grandma made this recipe for every birthday. It is the best cake ever. She had a special pan that she made this recipe in. It is oblong and deep. Nonny would cut this into about 6 layers,putting butter cream frosting between layers and around the entire cake. She also added grated chocolate to the cake batter and the frosting. Her recipe for the cake, suggests adding an extra 1/4 C sugar with 3oz. of sweet chocolate or 8 sq. of unsweetened chocolate, while omitting the lemon flavor. It is the most moist cake and deliciously light at the same time. She used a butter cream frosting for this cake for the outside also. I hope you will try this for your family's birthdays too!
Made it just as recipe called for except I used vanilla extract instead of Lemon. I used two, 8 inch cake pans instead of angel food cake pan. The cake was fabulous and I served one of the 8 inch pan cakes (cut in middle) as a 2 layer cake with whipped cream and berries. BEST shortcake recipe ever. I saved the other 8 inch cake and put it in fridge for 2 weeks and pulled it out and used it for another cake with pineapple /cherry compote filling and cream cheese frosting. Will make this again :) The cake is fluffy and light and had a wonderful light spongy texture.
Wonderful recipe! I baked it in 10" silicone for about 40 minutes, let it cool, froze it and defrosted it a week later. It maintained its moisture and spring. I'd totally recommend this recipe. Great for bday cakes!
We made this cake for my daughter's birthday today. It did come out light and fluffy. She wanted strawberry and chocolate flavored cupcakes, so we omitted the lemon extract. Once the batter was done, we divided the portion into 2 bowls, and to one bowl we added 2 tablespoons of Hershey's unsweetened cocoa powder. Mixed well and added about 1/4 c of water because it was drying out a bit. To the other, we added about 2 tablespoons of fresh strawberry puree that I made a few months ago and pulled out of the freezer. Did not need to add any water to this batch, since the stawberry puree was plenty wet. Once each portion was mixed with the new flavoring, we folded in the egg whites last. Poured the batters into cupcake pans, and baked at 325 deg for 20 min. They were done perfectly at that amount of time. Pulled them out and they were slightly firm to the touch in the centers. My snafoo was not taking them out of the pans right away to cool on a wire rack. I left them to cool in the pans and they shrank 50% from when they came out of the oven. =( Next time will pull them out of pans after they have cooled a couple minutes so they won't shrink. We made our own fresh strawberry buttercream frosting and it was perfect on top of each cupcake. The strawberry tasted especially good on top of the chocolate cake!! My daughter promptly ate 5 cupcakes and we had a fantastic birthday cake!
