My oldest son is a vanilla person, and typically the only one in the family who requests a vanilla on vanilla birthday cake. This is the recipe I use, and it’s a huge hit, even amongst the ‘chocolate or bust’ crowd.
Ezra's Vanilla Birthday Cake
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
If you don't have cake flour (I never do), you can make a simple substitution using all-purpose flour and cornstarch with the following ratio: ⅞ cup all-purpose flour + 2 tablespoons of cornstarch = cake flour, you're welcome
Author: Dara Boxer
Recipe type: Dessert
Serves: 12
Ingredients
- 2¾ cups cake flour (see note)
- 2½ teaspoons baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 16 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
- 1¾ cups sugar
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1½ cups whole milk, at room temperature
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly coat two 8- or 9-inch round cake pans with vegetable oil spray, then line bottoms with parchment paper. Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a large bowl and set aside.
- Beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until incorporated, scraping down the bowl as needed. Beat in the vanilla.
- Reduce speed to low and beat in one-third of flour mixture. Beat in half the milk. Repeat with half of the remaining flour mixture, then the remaining milk, and finally the remaining flour mixture.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pans and smooth top. Bake until a skewer interred into the center comes out with a few crumbs attached, 30-45 minutes.
- Let the cakes cool in the pans on wire racks for 10 minutes. Run a knife around the edge of the cake to loosen, then flip out onto the racks. Flip the cakes upright, and let cool completely before frosting.