Yellow Layer Cake 12 Inch Recipes

MOIST YELLOW CAKE RECIPE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°.
• Butter and flour three 9-inch cake pans, then line each pan with parchment paper. Spray and flour the parchment paper, shaking out the excess flour.
• In a large measuring cup or pourable bowl, add the buttermilk, eggs, egg yolks, and vanilla and beat with a fork until blended. Set aside.
• Place the sifted cake flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer and blend on low for about 30 seconds.
• With the mixer running on low, add the butter, one piece at a time. Pour in the vegetable oil. Mix until the flour and butter clump together and appear pebbly, about 30 seconds after the vegetable oil has been added.
• Pour in a little more than half of the buttermilk-egg mixture and mix on the lowest speed until blended, about 10 seconds. Increase the speed to medium-high and mix until starting to appear light and fluffy, about 1 minute. Without turning off the mixer, add the remaining buttermilk mixture in a slow stream.
• Stop the mixer and scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl, then beat at medium-high speed for about 15 seconds until well-mixed.
• Pour batter evenly into the prepared cake pans and bake until golden brown, 20-25 minutes.
• Cool pans on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then run a knife around the edges to loosen. Invert each layer onto a plate, peel off the parchment, then invert back onto the wire rack. Allow to cool completely before frosting.

YELLOW LAYER CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Grease and flour (or use homemade cake release) two 8-inch round cake pans. Set aside.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
• In a large bowl with a handheld mixer or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until fully incorporated. Beat in vanilla extract.
• Reduce the mixer speed to low and slowly add the dry ingredients. Beat until just combined. Add the buttermilk and continue to beat on low until fully incorporated. Stop the mixer, scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl, then increase the speed to medium and beat for an additional 2-3 minutes.
• Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans. Bake for 23-27 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out mostly clean. Remove from oven and allow cakes to cool in the pans completely on a wire rack before removing and assembling.
• In a medium size bowl with a handheld mixer or in the bowl of stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter on medium speed until smooth (about 3 minutes).
• Decrease mixer speed to low. Add powdered sugar, cocoa, vanilla extract, and milk/cream. Increase mixer speed to to high and beat until completely combined (approximately 2-3 minutes).
• For more buttercream troubleshooting tips, see my book, The Home Baker's Guide to Basic Buttercream.
• Trim cooled cake layers to create a flat surface. You can do this with a large serrated knife or a cake leveler. Place one layer on a plate or cake stand and cover the top with chocolate buttercream frosting. Spread evenly with an offset spatula.
• Place second layer on top, cut surface down. For a sturdier cake, refrigerate at this point for about 10 minutes. When cake is slightly chilled, remove from refrigerator and spread more frosting on the top and around the sides. Serve. Leftovers stay fresh, covered tightly, at room temperature up to 5 days and in the refrigerator up to 1 week.
• Make ahead: prepare cakes and frosting up to 1 day in advance. Cover cakes tightly and keep at room temperature or in the refrigerator until ready to assemble. Refrigerate prepared frosting in an airtight container until ready to use. Unfrosted cake layers may be frozen, wrapped tightly, up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before assembling. Frosted cake can be frozen, wrapped tightly, up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before serving.

YELLOW LAYER CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Combine flour, baking powder and salt; add to creamed mixture alternately with milk, beating well after each addition., Pour into two greased and floured 9-in. round baking pans. Bake 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely. , Spread frosting between layers and over the top and sides of cake.

YELLOW CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Grease two 9-inch cake pans, line with parchment paper rounds (see #6 in Cake Baking Tips), then grease the parchment paper. Parchment paper helps the cakes seamlessly release from the pans. I recommend using nonstick spray for greasing.
• 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.
• 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 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.
• 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.
• 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 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.