White 2-layer Birthday Cake Recipe

Filed under: RECIPES - Treats

The Target bakery in the Super Target the next town over has the most delicious and moist white cake I have ever eaten. The bakery is our go to for special occasions when we are in need of cupcakes. I am always up for a good challenge and finding a recipe that is just as good was my next assignment. Sure I could have called the bakery hoping they would spill the beans but where is the fun in that?

I scoured the web looking for a few recipes to try. I knew the Target cake used almond extract for flavor. After several failed attempts I discovered the answer was right in my cabinet. I have enjoyed many successes from my Baker’s Illustrated but was not impressed with the vanilla cupcake recipe. Thinking their cake recipes would not be up to par I completely eliminated the book from my list without a second thought. It was desperation that lead me to open the book. One last attempt to complete my quest. And at last I had found my holy grail.

The must have ingredient when making cakes is cake flour. The low protein in cake flour produces a light cake with a tender crumb. All-purpose flour has a higher protein resulting in a tougher more dense cake. Cake flour can be made by taking two tablespoons of flour out of each cup of flour and replacing them with corn starch. Sift the mixture 5 times to aerate. Although you can substitute cake flour in this way the results are not as perfect as when using the real thing.

Source: Baker’s Illustrated
2 1/4 cups (9-ounces) cake flour
1 cup milk, at room temperature
6 large egg whites, at room temperature
2 teaspoons almond extract
1 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups (12 1/4 ounces) granulated sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoons salt
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened but still cool

Adjust the oven rack to the middle position and heat over to 350 degrees. Generously grease two 9-inch round cake pans and cover the pan bottoms with rounds of parchment paper. Grease the paper and dust with flour, tapping out the excess.

Pour the milk, egg whites, and extracts into a small bowl and mix with a fork until blended.

Mix the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in the bowl of a standing mixer set at low speed. Add the butter; continue beating at low speed until the mixture resembles moist crumbs, with no powdery streaks remaining.

Add all but 1/2 cup of the milk mixture to the crumbs and beat at medium speed for 1 1/2 minutes. Add the remaining 1/2 cup liquid and beat 30 seconds more. Stop the mixer and scrape the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Return the mixer to medium speed and beat 20 seconds longer.

Divide the batter evenly between the two prepared cake pans; using a rubber spatula, spread the batter to the pan walls and smooth the tops. Arrange the pans at least 3 inches from the oven wall and 3 inches apart. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cakes comes out clean, 23-25 minutes. (Do not over bake!)

Let the cake rest in the pans for 3 minutes. Loosen from the sides of the pans with a knife, if necessary, and invert onto wire racks. Reinvert cakes so tops are facing upwards. Let cool completely, about 1 1/2 hours.

Technorati Tags: birthday cakes, cake flour, desserts, family, kids, recipe, white cake

| 4 Comments »

4 Comments »

1. Does this cake taste as good as Target’s white cake? I have just discovered Target’s cakes and they taste soooo good. Chocolate is great too.

   Comment by Kris — May 16, 2010 @ 7:12 pm

2. We think it is pretty darn close to the real deal. Target uses added preservatives and a generous brushing of simple syrup to keep their cakes moist. If you decide to make it let us know your verdict.

   Comment by johanna — May 17, 2010 @ 2:37 pm

3. Will this recipe work for high altitudes or do I need to adjust it. I love Target cake so I’m going to try this!

   Comment by Valerie — June 27, 2011 @ 11:12 am

4. Valerie, I checked the cookbook for any leads. They recommend trying the recipe as is and then make any necessary adjustments. The chefs at Cooks Illustrated tested a few recipes at a higher altitude. They found the yellow layer cake, baked per the recipe, pale, wet, sunken, too sweet and dry. They increased the oven temperature by 25 degrees. Reduced the baking powder by 1/4 teaspoon and the sugar by 1 1/2 tablespoon. Added 1/4 cup more flour. Added one more egg. They also recommend under whipping the eggs until soft peaks form and decrease the baking time.

   I hope this helps.

   Comment by johanna — June 27, 2011 @ 4:33 pm

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