Yellow Cake with Chocolate Frosting (From Scratch!)
This fluffy vanilla cake recipe is the absolute best yellow cake from scratch and paired with the silky smooth chocolate frosting, you can’t beat it for a classic birthday cake or any other celebration!
Are you a box mix yellow cake person? Or a from-scratch yellow cake person?
Truth be told, it’s REALLY hard to replicate that always-moist-and-fluffy texture that everyone loves about a box cake mix, but at the same time, we also love homemade, right?!
It took me a LONG time to find a homemade yellow cake that I really, really loved. Box cake mixes seem to always bake up perfectly fluffy and moist yellow cakes, and the ones I’ve had from bakeries have been great as well, but I just couldn’t seem to replicate it at home no matter how many recipes I tried. (Consequently, I haven’t had the same issue with chocolate cakes! See: Snickers Cake – the base recipe for all of my chocolate cakes!)
Many were too dense, too dry, too chiffon-like, too fussy in their preparation. I just wanted a fantastic yellow cake recipe I could use for birthday cakes that was easy to make and turned out delicious. I came across this recipe from Joy while I was on the hunt for yet another recipe to test out for Joseph’s birthday.
This was IT. The recipe that had eluded me for years!
I love that this can easily be mixed together in one bowl using my hand mixer; there’s nothing fussy about the ingredients or preparation, and it produces an absolutely perfect yellow cake. The layers are light but sturdy, buttery and moist, and the ideal base for your very favorite chocolate frosting.
I used the chocolate frosting recipe from my ultimate chocolate cupcakes, and it was a wonderful companion to this cake. The frosting is more buttery than sugary, satiny smooth and full of rich chocolate flavor. It glides on like a dream!
Yellow cake tends to be the elusive unicorn of homemade baking; so many cakes can turn out too dry, too crumbly, too dense, too cornbread-like, and I have one major piece of advice for ensuring yellow cake perfection:
Make sure all of the ingredients listed “at room temperature” ARE ACTUALLY AT ROOM TEMPERATURE.
I’ve totally been there and have used still-cool butter, eggs or dairy in a recipe when I’m in a hurry, but it’s actually vitally important here. Having all of those ingredients at room temperature ensures that they emulsify, which traps air in the batter and, once in the oven, that air expands and produces a fluffy cake.
Room temperature ingredients also ensure that the batter comes together well and is ultra-smooth, which keeps the resulting cake from being crumbly or cornbread-like.
Every recipe binder needs a fabulous recipe to make yellow cake from scratch; a recipe that can be transformed into the most special birthday cake, and this is definitely the recipe. It got rave reviews at Joseph’s party, and I’ve since made it again and again to countless rounds of huge applause.
This is the only yellow cake recipe you need!
Five years ago: Morning Buns
Six years ago: Greek Lamb Gyros with Tzatziki Sauce
Yellow Cake with Chocolate Frosting (From Scratch!)
Ingredients
For the Cake:
- 2¼ cups (281.25 g) all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ cup (113.5 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1½ cups (300 g) granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1¼ cups (300 ml) buttermilk, at room temperature
For the Frosting:
- 20 tablespoons unsalted butter, at cool room temperature
- 1 cup (120 g) powdered sugar
- ¾ cup (64.5 g) Dutch-processed cocoa
- Pinch of salt
- ¾ cup (255.75 ml) light corn syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 8 ounces (226.8 ml) milk or semisweet chocolate, melted and cooled slightly
Equipment Used:
Instructions
- Make the Cake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour two 8-inch round cake pans; set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside.
- Using an electric mixer, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 to 5 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat in the eggs, one at a time, beating for 1 minute between each addition. Beat in vanilla extract.
- Add the dry ingredients all at once and beat on low speed until just combined. Add the buttermilk and beat on low for 1 minute, then increase the speed to medium and beat for 3 additional minutes.
- Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans. Bake for 33 to 38 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out with just a few moist crumbs attached. Remove from the oven and cool for 10 minutes in the pans, then turn out onto wire racks and cool completely before frosting.
- Make the Frosting: In a food processor, process the butter, powdered sugar, cocoa powdered, and salt until smooth, about 30 seconds, stopping once to scrape the sides of the bowl. Add the corn syrup and vanilla and process until just combined, 5 to 10 seconds. Scrape the sides of bowl, then add the melted chocolate and pulse until smooth and creamy, 10 to 15 seconds.
- Assemble the Cake: Place one of the cake layers on a serving platter and spread 1 cup of the frosting evenly over the surface. Place the second cake layer on top. Use the remaining frosting to frost the top and sides of the cake. The cake can be kept at room temperature for up to 1 day before serving. Once cut, leftovers should be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days.
Notes
- You can make this cake in 9-inch pans, you will just need to reduce the baking time slightly. It can also be made in a 9x13-inch pan (again, reduce baking time).
- The only substitution I'm aware of for the corn syrup is Lyle's golden syrup, which has a more pronounced flavor. If you cannot find (or do not want to use) corn syrup, I would recommend using The Best Chocolate Frosting.
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @thebrowneyedbaker on Instagram so I can see it!
Update Notes: This recipe was originally published in February 2016; updated in September 2019 with new photos and extra recipe tips.
[photos by Ari of Well Seasoned]
My birthday cake this year :-) Loved the cake, but not the frosting so much. We have an old and not high-quality food processor and I think it killed the motor. I don’t mind getting a new one ;-) but the frosting is just too thick. As far as I know, my husband followed the directions exactly. We wished we went with the Hershey frosting, which is our favorite chocolate frosting.
This cake was delicious! Loved it
My favorite birthday cake is one I’ve had every year….for 62 years is my Sicilian Grandmom’s Italian Cream Cake. Unbelievably delicious. Grazie for all your hard work getting us all this fabulous recipes. Ciao, Robin from Houston.🎂🥳🙏❤️
I live overseas. Many times a recipe calls for a boxed mix. If I remember correctly, one needs to add the eggs and fat. Would the dry ingredients from this recipe work? I am thinking something like the topping on an apple crisp recipe or something like that.
Can powered buttermilk be used?
This cake is phenomenal! I adore making it. But, I was wondering, what’s the best way to do a chocolate version? Would simply adding cocoa powder suffice? Or would I need to alter additional ingredients? Thanks!
Hi!
My kids want to have a baking competition and would love to try this yellow cake. But, I’d rather they make one layer. Would you just half the ingredients? What about the eggs? How many would you use?
Thanks!
Hi Kristin, Yes you can halve the ingredients. I would use 1 whole egg + 1 egg white. Have fun!
Hello, would this cake recipe do well under fondant? Thank you!
Yes, I have done so multiple times!
What happened!!! Followed the frosting recipe exactly as stated but it turned out oily and goopy. Moved around as one oily mass. Put it over a double boiler and whisked so that it became creamier but still really runny. More of a batter consistency than a frosting. So frustrating. Any thoughts?
Oh no! I’ve never had that happen. Did you make any ingredient substitutions?
I have not made this cake yet. But I have several questions. I wished to use this for a white wine cake, the old recipe called for box cake, oil wine, pudding in the mix eggs, etc. So if I add 3/4 cup of oil (or butter equivalent) 3/4 rum/wine then what about the buttermilk or do I use powdered milk, or your instant pudding( for the mix )recipe along with this yelliw cake recipe? And can I use cake flour not AP.. Sorry its long but important in conversions of old recioes. Thanks
This is a tough one, as those are a lot of substitutions; I really wouldn’t be able to say without testing the recipe. If you give it a try, let me know how it turns out!
Hello there! I made this over the weekend (both cake + frosting) and it turned out DELICIOUS! I was testing recipe for my son’s birthday over the weekend.
I had 2 questions for you if you can answer them :
1. His cake is going to have colored frosting, so can I use white chocolate in this and then add color to the frosting?! there’s no piping on his cake, just light blue colored frosting
2. I was going to make layers : can i have jam frosting in one layer and this frosting on another one?! Do you think this yellow cake will complement well with a jam filling?
Thanks in advance!
This yellow cake is “the one.” Moist, flavorful, perfectly risen without needing to be trimmed. If you are like me and only have 9 inch pans, reduce the baking time a lot, mine were done in 23 minutes. I also did 1/2 butter, 1/2 vegetable oil because I like the lighter texture of oil based cakes, otherwise followed the recipe.
How long does it take generally for the cakes to cook on a wire rack? Does it make sense to stick them in the fridge at that point to speed it up? I’m worried about applying frosting while the cage is still warm.
Hi Josh, I do not recommend putting them into the refrigerator warm; it will negatively affect the texture of the cake. Cakes generally take 1 to 2 hours to cool completely, obviously dependent on how warm it is in your kitchen.
Made this last month as my own birthday cake and it was perfect! Followed the recipe exactly and it was exactly what I wanted: the best kind of yellow cake and the most luscious frosting. Can’t wait to do this one again — my son has already requested it for his birthday!
Delicious!
Do you know how ingredients would change if you wanted to make three 8” cakes? Thanks!
Hi Kristie, I would increase everything by 50%
Wonderful recipe! Cake turned out great, not overly sweet, just right topped with whipped cream and fresh berries. Thanks!
I made this cake for my mom’s birthday. It was so good I asked her if she would let me take half home. My wife doesn’t even like chocolate (YES, I still love her), and she willingly ate a whole slice chocolate icing and all. If it wasn’t COVID season and the entire family was over, that called would have been demolished. All I know is I’m never, and I mean never using another recipe for my yellow cake. The cake was AMAZING!! Period. Cheers to you B.E.B
Minor tweaks: I used cake flour instead of regular flour. I had to use honey instead of light corn syrup for the frosting.
Not a good recipe. I’m an experience cake maker and lost my usual yellow cake recipe, but I found this and thought it would be fine. I followed the instructions exactly and I’m very disappointed, the cake is light and airy but has a distinctly egg-y taste and is somehow not that sweet even though there is alot of sugar.
I always make buttermilk cakes and they usually turn out great, I really don’t understand how this recipe can be that bad! Stay away!
I didn’t bother to make the icing since the cake was so bad.
I’m really curious to find out why this happened to you. I have made this cake cake so many times, and it’s always perfect. Has that fantastic “cake flavor”. I’m by no means a professional, but I’ve had people buy this from me. I wonder why our results are so different?
I’ve spent many years trying to find a good solid yellow cake recipe. Look no further, this is it!
Why? Because the instructions are superb and gives you the tips that you need to make a good light (not dense) and flavorful yellow cake.
I’ve tried the recipes from big names (NYTimes, Food Network) and their recipes aren’t as good as this one. I have to say that I didn’t include the corn syrup in the frosting. I added a few tablespoons of heavy cream instead.
As an important note, watch out for the baking time. The instructions explicitly state that you want a few crumbs on the toothpick.
We have to avoid certain ingredients because of a health issue…no Betty Crocker/Duncin Hines cakes for us. I have tried many yellow cake recipes …and I have to say this is the best one I have ever tried. We LOVED this cake.
So fluffy & light ..thank you so much for posting.
Yellow cake + chocolate frosting is my hubby’s favorite. I used this recipe a couple years ago but couldn’t remember how it was. Turned out great, again. Yay! I baked on Wednesday, cooled and froze the layers, frosted it (still frozen) Friday, froze the whole thing, and let it thaw Saturday night for a lunchtime party Sunday. Was tender, buttery, and delicious. Not a hair tough at all. I used 9” pans and they took 29 minutes to bake. Thanks for sharing!!
Made this yellow cake. DID NOT HAVE BUTTERMILK, SO I USED GREEK PLAIN YOUGART. IT WAS DELICIOUS, FLUFFY, THE BEST I’VE EVER MADE. ADDED 2 %milk to the batter to make consistency for pouring into cake pans. Used my own chocolate frosting receipe. Amazing. Will definitely make again.
What a nice recipe, thank you so much! I can’t wait to try this recipe!!
Can’t wait to try this one!
Turned out tasting more like a sweet cornbread. The kitchen smelled great and the cakes looked beautiful but the taste wasn’t for me.
I made this cake for my son’s birthday and it was absolutely delicious! I did a different frosting, so I cannot comment on that, but the cake itself was awesome and perfectly moist. I will be using this recipe again for sure! Thank you!
Its was very easy to use the steps,i baked a fantastic cake, thank for a recipe.
Hi! I LOVE your blog. Have been following it for many years and have loved every recipe that I’ve tried. This one however, was not one of my favorites. Made it for my 13 year old daughters birthday and I must have done something wrong. I cooked it for less time than suggested and the cake was dry and the frosting was different. Not sure if I was just having an off day in baking, but if there is any insight as to what you think I could do differently next time, it would be appreciated. The frosting came out oily too. Not use to using corn syrup in frosting. Love your ultimate oreo cookie cake. Have made that one 3 times in the last month and that one is always a show stopper. I guess compared to that cake, this one had big shoes to fill. LOL
Thanks for all the wonderful recipes! Love your work!
Sincerely,
Alexandria
I followed this recipe to a T and it came out dense, heavy and kind of like a lighter, finer cornbread. No light and fluffy here at all! I can’t even imagine what I did wrong, as I don’t see where I would have done wrong? ! Unfortunately it was for a birthday and thankfully I had a back up. Exact measurements, exact ingredients, directions followed…maybe I’m used to cakes from a box.
Wow, this cake recipe is so good and delicious, thank you for sharing your blog
I usually have to resort to a box cake mix whenever I want to make a yellow cake, but no more! This turned out light and fluffy! Will use from now on! Thanks for the great recipe!
Can I use this recipe to make cupcakes? using paper liners? Also for the frosting… i’ve made simple syrup (2 cups sugar, 1 cup water, boiled for 5 mins, add 1 tablespoon lemon juice) for many desserts, can that be used in place of the corn syrup?
This is actually my favorite recipe for yellow cupcakes: https://www.browneyedbaker.com/classic-yellow-cupcakes-with-chocolate-frosting/. I haven’t tried a simple syrup in place of corn syrup, but if you’ve done so successfully, then go for it!
I love your yellow cake recipe, and would like to make a 2-layer, 6-inch version for my daughter’s 16th birthday. Can you advise on adjusting the ingredients’ measures? Many thanks.
Hi Glynis, You would want to use 2/3 of the ingredient amounts. I hope that helps!!
This yellow cake is amazing! Soft and fluffy while melting in your mouth. I actually halved the recipe and used 3 separate 6inch round pans (I like smaller cakes). It took a little longer than a half hour to bake, but turned out great! I used my own chocolate frosting and it was truly delicious. This was also pretty simple to make. Look no further for a yellow cake recipe—this is it!
I was really craving something simple and basic today, and this hit the spot. I really love the frosting recipe! It’s not as intense as the one I use, more to my liking. Thank you for sharing!!!
You’re welcome, I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
I did something worng with the frosting. I ended up throwing it away and used the one you recommended for cupcakes but still had to add milk to get it creamy. It’s good but I did something wrong. Maybe I used have used 4 oz bar of chocolate
I am out of buttermilk is there something else that can be used in recipe
Hi Diana, You can use a simple substitute for buttermilk, found here: https://www.browneyedbaker.com/substitutions/
This recipe looks great. Can I make the cake two weeks ahead of time and freeze it? Of course I wouldn’t make the frosting ahead of time.
Thank you!
Yes, you can definitely do that!
This is the best moist cake I have found
The recipe says 2 and 1/4 cups of AP flour is 319 grams – however on the bags of both White Lily and King Arthur flour 30 grams is equivalent to 1/4 cup thus 2 and 1/4 cups would be 270 grams so why the discrepancy? I measure in grams when baking so I am confused. Thank You
Hi Pam, I use Cook’s Illustrated’s standard measure of 5 ounces = 1 cup of AP flour; many different sources use different measurements ranging from 4.25 to 5 ounces.
What brand of cocoa powder do you use?
Hi Lauryn, I like using either Valrhona or Bensdorp from King Arthur Flour.
Made this for my daughter’s birthday, very moist and yummy thanks.
Hi, I made this recipe for my husbands birthday. The cake seems to be good but the icing has a very flubber-like consistency. It stuck to the cake okay but I was only able to get a thin layer on, and now I have a ton left over. Do you have any idea what might have caused this so I can avoid it next time?
Hi Rachel, I’m not sure what you mean by flubber-like? Could you explain a little better and I can try to help troubleshoot?
I made this for my son’s birthday/Mother’s Day brunch. Great texture and perfect crumb. I made a different chocolate buttercream (I was out of dutch precess cocoa) and the not very sweet cake was the perfect vehicle for the frosting. I gave the last two pieces of the cake to my son to take home and was a bit sorry about that later when I wanted a second piece. This wonderful recipe is now a goto for me. Thanks!!
I made this for my husband’s birthday. I’ve made many yellow cakes over the years, but I’ve never been able to replicate the soft texture you get from a box mix, which is what he actually would prefer I make. :) This one comes pretty close! I subbed out the buttermilk (which I never have in the fridge) for an equal amount of plain (non-greek) whole milk yogurt, and because I used 9-inch pans, they were done at 25 minutes. Thanks!
Loved the texture – it was light and fluffy; however, there was not a lot of taste. Could the vanilla be increased? Or other ideas?
Hi Ann, Absolutely you could add more vanilla!
I don’t have a food processor. (This is a problem for me with many Cook’s recipes; they assume everyone has one.) How can I make the frosting without it, please? I do have a hand mixer. Thank you –
Hi Lee, I think a hand mixer would be okay. It might not be as silky smooth, but will still work!
Thank you! And congratulations on your beautiful new child and healthy other two!
I don’t have a food processor either and have made the icing (and cake) a number of times. The icing always comes out perfectly (I cannot compare to using a food processor, but it seems quite silky smooth to me).
I would give zero stars if I could! Please no one EVER EVER try this recipe! You’ll be WASTING time, effort and ingredients! The cake was very squishy and gritty…. the sides were burnt to a crisp and the middle was practically still batter. Also, they never even rose…. I didn’t even try the icing because if you can’t even make a good cake recipe you sure in the heck can’t make a good icing recipe! Worst cake recipe I’ve ever tried! 😡
Just made this cake. It is moist, delicate, buttery. It’s simple to make and delicious. Will definitely make this again.
This cake was so good! I don’t really like yellow cake (or any cake that is not chocolate) but this was so delicious! It is very moist and fluffy and it was just great! I will always make this recipe! Thank you so much!
I made this cake for my daughter’s birthday and it was delicious! The cake was not dry at all and the frosting was perfect. Thanks for sharing this recipe, a keeper for sure!
I’ve baked this yellow cake and chocolate frosting recipe mulitiple times. I’m about to bake it again in the next couple of minutes and thought I should let everyone know how great this cake is. One of my favorite yellow cake recipes out there. Perfectly moist and buttery sponge, rich and creamy chocolate frosting.
If you’re looking for a yellow cake/chocolate frosting recipe, look no further. This is it. I highly recommend browneyedbaker’s cake recipes. Very talented baker. I also made her Boston Cream Pie cake. Just started following on Pinterest. Really looking forward to trying out most of her recipes.
Thanks again for sharing.
My Mom wants me to bake her a yellow cake with Dulce De leche center and chocolate frosting.
I want to try your recipe for the cake and frosting; however I’m using 9 inch pans, and I’m not sure of the cook time or what temperature to use for the oven. Can you help me please?
Hi Yolanda, Keep the oven temperature the same, but decrease the baking time by 5-7 minutes (start checking early to be sure they don’t overcook).
This cake is perfect!! Okay, technically I made cupcakes, but they are perfect –light, soft, delicious. I took a risk and doubled the recipe and it fit perfectly in my 5 qt stand mixer bowl. I’ll never need to use store-bought yellow cake mix again.
After a disaster with a yellow cake recipe from another website (cake fell like there was no tomorrow), I came across this recipe and started again. My cake turned out perfectly! And the frosting, using semi-sweet chips, was absolutely delicious. Everyone who had a slice loved it. Next time, I’m going to slice the layers in half for a 4-layer cake and double the frosting recipe. I’m wondering if those who have ended up with a more cornbread-like cake are creaming the butter and sugar correctly (?) … King Arthur has a video about the correct way to do this. Thanks for a keeper recipe!
You’re welcome, Shannon! So glad you enjoyed the cake!
I want to make three 8 in cakes. Should I double the recipe or just add half to it?
Everything is true, down to the frosting gliding on so easily. Not one crumb came up, not one drop dripped down.
Hi there, would the frosting hold up covered at room temp if I baked the cake and frosted it a day in advance? Also, I’m wondering why some vanilla cakes have you incorporate the wet and dry by alternating vs. This recipe where you add all the dry and then the wet ingredients? Just curious. Thanks!
Hi Erin, Yes you could definitely make and frost this a day in advance without any issues. As for adding the wet ingredients into the dry, it helps minimize gluten development in cake batter, and it also helps to prevent flour clumps from forming. Hope that helps!
For the frosting, what if I don’t have Dutch processed cocoa and instead use regular cocoa?
Hi Amy, Regular cocoa will okay in the frosting; the flavor will just be a bit less rich.
I think I put the chocolate in the frosting while it was to hot and the butter melted what can I do to fix it? It became really greasy and I hope it will taste good. Thanks
I love this yellow cake.it’s easy even better it’s delicious. I made the chocolate buttercream instead perfecto
Hi
Can we turn this into a chocolate cake? If so, how many grams of cocoa powder would I put in? And it there anything else that would need changing?
Thank you
Hi Tania, This would not easily convert to a chocolate cake. If you’d like to make a chocolate cake, I suggest this recipe (I use that base chocolate cake recipe for everything!): https://www.browneyedbaker.com/peanut-butter-cup-overload-cake/
Can I use real milk instead of buttermilk
You’ll need to use buttermilk because of the reaction it has with the baking soda, which helps to create rise in the cake.
you left eggs out of recipe?
Hi Ann, No, they’re in there… 3 eggs.
I just used this recipe for a 9×13 cake and mmmmm!!!! Soooo tasty! I didn’t have any buttermilk, and like someone below said, I put 2 tbsp vinegar into a 2 cup measuring cup and poured milk until it reached 1 and 1/4 cup, and followed the rest of the recipe. We all loved it! We’re almost half way done. I have a favorite chocolate frosting recipe that I used that went perfectly with the cake! Thank you so much!!! This will be my go-to yellow cake recipe!
cake batter is made going to try it as a bunt cake, I’ll keep you posted.
I feel like my sister., she complains that there are only 2% women in her field. Well I just baked this cake and wanted to leave a comment and I feel like I am only one of two men here. Anyhow, this was my first cake, turned out great. Not too sweet, though I do hope to find a sweeter variation. I went with semisweet chocolate, may try dark later, but I doubt I will want to try milk chocolate as that is too sweet.
My only complaint is that my mixer kept kicking out cocoa and flour during mixing, much worse than when making cookies.
Also, I’d like a more fudge like icing to try as well.
Hi Chris, So happy to have you here! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed the cake. I’m also working on a great fudge icing, so stay tuned!
Hello! Could you please tell me why yellow cakes get over brown from the bottom?
Hi Marium, They get a little brown just from the baking process, but shouldn’t be too dark. If you use non-stick pans, then reduce your oven temperature by 25 degrees.
Hi! I’m wondering about adding sprinkles to the batter to make this a yellow funfetti cake? My twins will turn 2 next week and I want to make them something fun & delicious!
Hi Joey, You could definitely do that! Happy birthday to your twins!! :)
Hi. First, I made this cake and it was delicious!
Most of the yellow cake recipes I’ve looked at use 1 cup of butter for this amount of flour. Can you tell me how using less butter (1/2 cup) affects the texture and flavor of this cake? Thank you!
Hi Peter, I’m glad you enjoyed the cake!
As to your question, a higher fat ratio in the cake can oftentimes cause a cake to be too doughy or crumbly once baked and cooled.
Hi! I made this as a lemon cake by adding 2 Tbs lemon juice and the zest of two lemons to the batter. I then frosted it with lemon cream cheese frosting. Truly delicious cake recipe; thank you for posting.
I must say, Michelle, I really enjoyed this cake recipe.
Instead of doing a two layer 8-inch cake, I made a 6 layer cake, I decided to make it really tall as a 6 inch cake. Reduced the baking time to 17 minutes. Perfect. The flavor and texture were both excellent and it held up exceptionally well to both funfetti buttercream and fondant in the rainbow unicorn cake that I practiced a few weeks ago for my friend’s birthday. It was nice and sturdy, but not super dense, which was lovely. Plus, the batter didn’t freak out when I added food coloring to it.
I can’t speak as to the chocolate frosting because I used the Wilton American Buttercream recipe, instead (the birthday girl doesn’t like chocolate). The real cake gets made this weekend, so I’ll be sure to tag you when I post pictures on my blog and social media pages!
Thanks for sharing!
Your cake sounds amazing! Thanks so much for taking the time to stop back and leave a review!
Hi! I have made this recipe twice. It’s great! But every time I make the frosting it’s pretty dark. Could it be because of the type of cocoa powder I used? I used Hershey’s dark chocolate, and semi sweet chips. Still delicious but very dark.
Hi Chynna, The type of cocoa powder and chocolate could definitely play a role in how dark a chocolate frosting turns out.
Hello! Do you know if you could substitute cake flour for all-purpose flour? I love the texture of cake flour.
Hi Meagan, You could try it! I haven’t done it, so let me know how it turns out!
I’ve been reading the comments hoping to find the answer to my question….. I wanted to know how this cake tastes using Cake Flour…I see the question and was wondering how her’s turned out…. I always use all organic ingredients and every recipe I have ever tried and they always turn out dry and crumbly….. more like a cornbread…. every single time. : (
Do you think its because of the organic ingredients?
Hi Nora, I don’t think organic ingredients have anything to do with it; that’s actually the most common complaint about butter-based vanilla cakes and cupcakes. If you overmix the batter or don’t have the ingredients at room temperature, it can cause that issue.
This cake works perfectly using cake flour. You just need to add 2 Tbsp extra cake flour for every cup of all purpose flour in the recipe. So, an extra 4 1/2 Tbsps.
I have been looking for a stellar yellow cake recipe and was so glad to find this one! It worked perfectly for 24 cupcakes for my son’s school birthday treat and they were a hit. Moist, great texture and a perfect balance with the chocolate almond frosting I made for them. Delicious and something I can easily add to and use again and again.
This cake is the best cake, like…ever. It’s dense, yet moist and bouncy, chewey but soft. I love the cake as is, no frosting. But the frosting is amazing too! This frosting also makes excellent fudge.
Also want to point out to people complaining it tastes like cornbread, you really need to go the full amount of time with the mixer and at the correct speed. The air is what makes the cake as well as the brand and quality of flour.
Can i use salted butter for the frosting? I have one stick unsalted and then the rest woupd ve salted, could this work?
Hi Julianna, Yes, that would be okay.
Great recipe and flexible! Used only 2 eggs and was out of buttermilk, so mixed some plain yogurt and almond milk together. Turned out great! I am at 6100′ so I decreased the baking powder by a smidgen and same with the sugar. Moist yet light and airy. Thank you BEB!
I find a cake has a better turnout when the ratio of flour and sugar is 1:1. And you separate the eggs, adding the yolks to the creamed flour and sugar mixture and folding the soft whipped egg whites in as last step.
This recipe is horrible! My cake came out tasting like cornbread! Ugh. Birthday cake ruined.
Made this cake using 2 8 inch pans as stated in recipe. Batter overflowed all over oven making a huge mess.
Hi Jane, Were they standard 2-inch high pans? There’s no way they should overflow standard cake pans.
How could I adapt this yellow cake recipe for a Pig Pickin cake with mandarin oranges and the juice from the can of oranges so the cake batter won’t be too wet?
Hi Lisa, I’ve never heard of that kind of cake, so I’m really not sure, but you would need to reduce the buttermilk to account for the extra liquid, but I’m not sure how much?
This cake is phenomenal! It is truly the best yellow cake out there. I made the batter as directed, then halved it to make a 3rd layer. Came out perfectly. I made a coconut frosting and put shredded coconut on the top, and it was amazing (and this is from a family of chocolate lovers). I highly recommend this cake!
My dad wanted a yellow box mix cake for his birthday– but I love baking and stumbled on this site/recipe. I had made many cakes but never a yellow one. I followed the recipe exactly and had no issues. I used 9 in pans and it was plenty sturdy. I always double the icing recipe for layer cakes but it wasn’t needed. Cake was WONDERFUL and the icing was so creamy. Loved it!!!
Made this cake for my niece’s birthday! It was a hit! Cake is moist and not so dense. It’s perfect!
I just made these into cupcakes for a family function. Though I added one ingredient to make them extra moist (small can of crushed pineapple). Though the frosting I did buttercream frosting with sprinkled coconut flakes ( unsweetened of course ). Then I added a thin slice of a fresh strawberry on top. Amazingly Good! Dispute the fact I didn’t know a lot of people in the family don’t like coconut. OH well!
Hi Michelle,
I have made this cake, it’s so yummy and fluffy, so thank you.
I was wanting to make it on a larger scale and I noticed you mentioned it can be made in a 9×13 inch pan….
1.. Would that be just a single recipe? and
2.. How tall will the cake end up being if just a single recipe?
Thanks again,
Maroula
Hi Maroula, Yes, a 9×13 pan would just be made with a single recipe. It would be able 1.5-2 inches high. So glad you enjoy it!
Thank you so much
Just made these as cupcakes and oh my goodness they were amazing. I love to bake, but don’t love to eat what I bake (but my family does!)…and I loved these. I’ve been looking for a yellow cake recipe for so long, thank you! And the frosting? Divine!
Oh! And I did the frosting in my stand mixer and had no issues!
I’m so glad I found your recipe for yellow cake! I made the cake portion (had a different topping in mind besides chocolate frosting) and all of my colleagues kept telling me how much they liked the cake, how soft it was, etc. This will definitely be my go-to recipe :)
I used this recipe to make bird nest cupcakes using the multiple opening pastry tip. The icing kept getting gummed up and making the bag explode. I finally gave up. Is this not a pipe able icing?
Hi Brianne, I have not attempted to pipe this particular icing, but it’s pretty soft, so it’s weird that it clogged up your piping tip! So sorry it didn’t work out!
The cake was truly fabulous… ! Being skeptical, I halved the recipe then later regretted my decision.. It was sooo moist and lovely!!
I was searching for a perfect scratch yellow cake recipe, and I knew I could count on you Michelle! This recipe is excellent, and that frosting is out of this world! Sadly I only had a dark chocolate bar to hand, so I’m going to have to make this again ASAP to get the full milk chocolate experience (bummer). Also I made this as a 9×13, so I probably could have gotten away with halving the frosting — but honestly there’s no such thing as too much frosting. Thanks for your help, as usual!
So it drives me nuts when people leave comments about how they did not follow directions, changed measurements, etc. Then the cake was bad. I, like so many others, have been looking for a moist and tasty scratch yellow cake mix. This is it! Look no further! I followed exact instructions. My cake was personally done in 30 mins. Might just be my oven. Love love love! Thank you!
Hi Michelle, you probably won’t see this in time, however, I want to make this tomorrow for my husbands birthday. I do not own a food processor. Any suggestions for making it with a mixer? THANK YOU
Hi Joy, Happy early birthday to your husband! I have not tried using a mixer, but others have without an issue.
I just made this because a guest requested it for his birthday. I thought it would news boring dessert. It wouldn’t be my pick. Oh my goodness! It was so good!! And he loved it having had this type of cake many times for his birthday. It was delicious and so easy to make. Good job Brown Eyed Baker. This is why I go straight to website when faced with a new request!
wow amazing ! very tasty and I like cooking i will try this cake to my friend birthday.Thanks for sharing your post.
Cooks service in Chennai
I “really” want to make this, however, I’m a bit stumped by one of the Frosting ingredients…”8 ounces (227 grams) milk or semisweet chocolate, melted and cooled slightly”? How does melted, cooled, chocolate substitute for milk? In my mind it makes no sense, please help. Thank you!
Hi Terri, It’s milk chocolate or semisweet chocolate, not actual milk.
I recently bought Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free 1 to 1 Flour based upon excellent reviews. Haven’t tried it yet, but do you think it would work in this recipe? Thanks!
Hi Linda, I don’t do any gluten-free baking, so I couldn’t say for sure how that particular product would work in this recipe. But if you try it, I’d love for you to share your results so others might benefit!
Have you used this recipe for white cake as well? Just wondering how it would turn it with some adaptations; egg whites (maybe 5 whites instead of 3 whole eggs) and the addition of almond extract. What do you think?
Hi Jaime, I have not tried to adapt this to a white cake (I actually loathe white cake, haha!).
I made this cake in hopes for the best yellow cake recipe. My cake came out too spongy and eggy. The icing was amazing! But I wonder if I over beat the cake batter.
Do you have the inhredients ortions and baking times for a 12 inch round cake?
Hi Cecilia, I don’t, you will want to increase all of the ingredients by 1.5 for a 12-inch layer cake.
This cake is awesome, and the icing is the best I’ve ever tasted. I made the cake with French flour (as I have reactions to American wheat), and substituted non-dairy margarine in the icing and palm shortening in the cake. Also substituted almond milk/goat yogurt/vinegar combo for the buttermilk. It came out excellent. Thanks so much for posting this.
Do you prefer this frosting over the ‘best chocolate buttercream frosting’? I’ve made that one before and I love it, but was going to try this one for a cake I’m baking tomorrow. Does it taste a whole lot different or better?
Hi Sara, I love them both, but they are different. The best chocolate buttercream is much sweeter, as it contains significantly more powdered sugar. I think it’s better for piping on cupcakes because it holds shape better.
Would dark corn syrup be okay in the frosting recipe?
Thanks in advance,
Doreen
Hi Doreen, I think that would be okay, just know that you might get a slight molasses flavor come through with the dark syrup.
Thank you, very much, for the delicious sounding yellow cake recipe and just as delicious sounding choc icing!! Am planning to make it on Jan 9th, for my Daughter’s Birthday!!!!
I’m planning to make this for an upcoming birthday but was going to do a layer of your peanut butter frosting in the middle (from your chocolate cupcakes with peanut butter frosting). I’ve done it before but used store bought frosting for the chocolate outer layer. Do you think I should reduce the frosting recipe or just end up with extra? I have no issue with the outer layer of frosting being thicker (I’m not a huge cake/cupcake fan – I’m mostly in it for the frosting).
Hi Jaime, I would probably just make the same amount knowing you may have some leftovers. I always think better to have too much frosting than not enough! ;-)
Five star worthy
See review above
Best. Yellow. Cake. Ever. Oh my. We followed the directions exactly and it was absolutely the best yellow cake we have ever had.
Thank you so much. This is such a keeper.
The search is truly over. The cake: moist, flavorful. The icing the best most fluffiest icing I have ever made on my good Delish and I typically do not like yellow cake but this is great. Will make again and again and again and…. well you get the picture
Would it be alright to make this in a 8” springform pan?
Hi Joyce, This is too much batter for an 8″ springform pan; if you wanted to do that, you would need to cut the recipe in half.
I tried this recipe last weekend. the cake came out absolutely beautiful!
baked for 30min thought.
my family loved it, and i’m gonna to make it again!
Definitely it now on the list of favorits!
thanx for the perfect recipe!
I’ve never made a yellow cake from scratch before, so I was a bit nervous it might be dry. I made it yesterday for a family bday gathering. It was DELICIOUS. The texture was amazing…a little more dense than a box cake but so moist. The flavor was wonderful. (I did use organic, grass-fed, unsalted butter…which I’ve never baked with before so I don’t know how much that would impact the flavor.) I used two 8″ round (light metal) Wilton cake pans. Mine were done at the min time of 33 minutes…baked up very nicely and didn’t sink. This wasn’t that much more time-consuming than a box cake and the taste was 100 times better. I’ll never go back to the box!! :) Thank you for this recipe!
I too have been searching for a great yellow cake recipe. Why is it so difficult to find a good recipe for such a food staple. I just made my second batch of cupcakes using this recipe and they are fantastic! Thank you so much!!!
I made this cake yesterday and it is moist and delicious! I quit using box cake mixes years ago and I have been looking for a good yellow cake recipe. Now I’ve found it! It is moist and tender. I baked it in a 13 x 9 pan at 350 F and it took approx. 35-38 minutes. I also had to “make” my own buttermilk because I didn’t want to go the store. I put 1 T. of white vinegar in my 2-cup liquid measure and then added milk to equal 1 and 1/4 cups. I let the “buttermilk” sit out out with the eggs and butter to come to room temp. I did not make the frosting recipe included here as I did not have bittersweet chocolate on hand, only squares of Baker’s unsweetened chocolate. Instead I used the old Betty Crocker French Silk Frosting recipe. I am very particular when it comes to cake texture and flavor. This one is a keeper! Thanks for sharing this recipe.
I needed a birthday cake for a co-worker and didn’t know her favourite flavour (I’m new), so went with this (I trusted you that it is an American classic – I’m new to the US). I made it in a Bundt pan (I recently moved and, apparently, didn’t bring my normal round cake pans) and it would out amazingly (I did have too much icing, but solved that by eating it on bananas, banana bread, from a spoon, etc.).
I do have two questions:
1) My cocoa powder is clearly much denser than yours (3/4 cup would be way more than 63g). Should I go with volume or weight? I kind of went in between.
2) Do you think (if baked in a Bundt pan), the batter would support a tunnel of dulce de leche? I have another co-worker’s birthday coming up (and quickly became the unofficial birthday cake maker) and I know she loves dulce de leche (on a work trip to South America, she had a dulce de leche pastry daily). Rather than making a caramel cake or somesuch, I was thinking of making this cake but adding some homemade dulce de leche (i.e. putting in some of the cake batter, layering in the dulce de leche, covering with the remaining batter). I’m worried though that the dulce de leche sinking to the bottom.
Hi Julie, I always go by weight when available, but if the amount you used worked, then that’s okay! I’m not sure about the tunnel of dulce de leche. It’s a much softer cake than, say, a pound cake so I don’t know how it would hold up. If you do try it, please let me know how it goes!
I’ll give it a try – worst is I end up with a caramel cake! Thank you so much for taking the time to reply even with all that is going on.
Can you help me make into 3 layers? Do you just 1.5 times everything?
Hi Dee, Yes, that’s what I would do, or you could straight double it (might be easier) and bake up cupcakes with the leftover batter.
I made this last night and while I like the cake fine the icing is not my favorite. I believe the corn syrup gave this a strange texture and maybe didn’t need the semisweet chocolate.
I made this the other day, made them into cupcakes. It was so good, so much better than box cake. I didn’t have buttermilk so I used milk with some vinegar. Thank you so much!
Looks so great!!! Curious, can I make this two days in advance? What are your suggestions? Thank you!
Hi Tamara, Yes, you could! I would store it in a cake saver (airtight) at room temperature.
Could this be made for a 1/2 sheet cake
Hi Michelle, This amount of batter could be used for a 9×13-inch pan. If you want to use a different size, you can see how they would compare and if you need to scale the batter up or down using this chart:
http://www.joyofbaking.com/PanSizes.html
This cake is amazing!! My husband is a fan of boxed yellow cake but I think I’ve officially converted him to scratch cakes now! I can’t comment on the frosting as I didn’t have all the ingredients so I used a different recipe, but this cake will absolutely be my go-to recipe for all future cake-worthy events. The only substitutions I made were using Butter-Vanilla Arome (I’m in Germany and couldn’t find plain old vanilla extract), and mixing everything by hand instead of using a mixer. The cake did fall a bit in the middle but I’m sure that was due to taking it out of the oven a few minutes too early…I was excited, ok?? Thanks for the wonderful recipe! :)
Is there a significance to using the food processor for the frosting? Mine seems to destroy and liquefy everything I put in it but my kitchen aide always turns out beautiful frosting with the whip. I am super excited to try this, I have also been on the on going search for the perfect vanilla cake!
Hi Sara, It really makes it silky smooth! I love it, but I know others have used a mixer to make with decent results if you’d rather go that route.
OMG! This cake is the bomb! Found my new go-to yellow cake. Made it for a birthday here at work – gone in about 3 seconds. Thank you. Great recipe. Love the frosting. I have never made frosting in a food processor before, but this turn out great – nice and smooth, easy to spread. All around great recipe.
My cake turned out heavy and dense. Tasted great but was more like a pound cake with lots of holes. I’m thinking maybe the butter and sugar were not whipped long enough but I’m not sure. I love recipes with buttermilk in them so if you have any suggestions I would be most grateful. I use mostly all your recipes with great results. Thanks for the inspirations
Hi Janet, Oh no! Yes, be sure that the butter and sugar have been whipped until they are truly light and fluffy – don’t skimp this step! Also be sure to give the eggs a full 1 minute beating in between each addition – this also helps to give rise to the cake.
Could I use the same measurements for a 12X16 sheet cake?
Hi Jocelin, Yes, a 12×16 pan has almost the same exact amount volume as two 8-inch rounds.
I only have salted butter on hand. Think it will still turn out?
Hi Debra, Yes, you could just cut the amount of salt called for in the recipe in half.
Hello, this cake and frositing looks delicious. Tomorrow is my birthday and I plan on making cupcakes for work so I was wondering, can this recipe be made into cupcakes?
Best,
-Blanca
Just made this, it looks wonderful, the frosting was easy and really nice to work with. I scaled down the whole recipe for the frosting a little because I only had 200g of chocolate and I still had quite a bit left over.
I’m planning on using this cake and icing recipe to make a birds nest cake for Easter. Will this icing be stii enough to hold the shape of the grass pastry tip or should I use regular chocolate buttercream instead?
Birds nest cake
http://cdn.diycozyhome.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/easter-bird-nest-cake.jpg
Hi Brianne, Yes, I think it would be just fine!
My daughter requested a Barbie cake for her birthday today (you know, the kind that look like Barbie’s skirt… :-)) and I made this yellow cake recipe. I made 1 1/2 times the recipe to fit in a couple of Pyrex bowls. I had a bit of extra batter after filling the bowls where I wanted them, so I made a few cupcakes too. I tried one of the cupcakes already, and I gotta say that this is one of the very best homemade cake recipes I’ve ever made. I make more homemade cakes than I do with mixes, and I have always had my yellow cakes (no matter which recipe I use) turn out with a really big crumb, almost like a cornbread texture. This one was SO light and fluffy and delicious! It will be my new go-to cake recipe, no more searching required! Thank you!
I had to make the same kind of cake for my daughter with an Elsa doll, and the cake as a skirt, and I used this yellow cake recipe…it was by far the best yellow cake I have ever had. My husband and I prefer chocolate, but we both raved about this cake for days…moist, delicious flavor, easy to mix up…it is a keeper for sure!
Hi, I am wondering if I can create this cake into a fire truck cake (Betty Crocker idea) using 3 8.5 bread pans?
Hi Dylan, I don’t see why not!
Hi Michelle, one question please.Can I doubt this recipe ? Thanks,
Hi Carol, I think you mean double? I haven’t tried scaling it so I can’t give a definitive answer, but if you try it let me know how it turns out!
I doubled the cake and frosting and they both turned out beautifully! I got 2 10″ and 1 6″ rounds from the doubled batter. I frosted both of those and had some leftover, but I’d always rather have too much frosting than not enough and you can just put the extra in the freezer! My mixer (5 quart) and food processor (4 qt, I think?) were both full but could handle the task. I have a go-to yellow cake recipe that’s more dense and crumb-y, but I really like how fluffy this one is. I might like my regular chocolate frosting better but I love how silky and easy to spread this one is! I used semi-sweet chocolate but I think I’ll try it with milk next time and see if I like that better.
I made this cake over the weekend for our anniversary. It turned out great. I shared it with several people and got wonderful comments. Thanks for the great recipe. I will definitely make it again!
This classic yellow cake is the ultimate comfort food. It’s delicious and moist, and the chocolate frosting is the perfect thing to complement it. It can be fun to garnish the top of the cake with chocolate chips or coconut shavings to give it a little something extra.
Looks Great!!! Could this make cupcakes as well?
Hi Amber, I haven’t tried to make cupcakes with this particular recipe, but if you give it a try, let me know how they turn out!
I have tried making cupcakes with this recipe. It makes wonderful cupcakes. Be sure not to over full the liners.
I use this for cupcakes too. Be real serious about the 2/3 full cake liner. These suckers grow! I bake for 16 minutes and switch racks halfway through.
I’ve now made this cake twice. The first time I did no high altitude adjustments and cooked for 30 minutes. It was dry and I believe over cooked. The second time I added an egg and reduced the sugar by a 1/4 cup and I cooked it for 25 minutes. Although it was better, it still was dry. If I were to make it again, I would likely reduce the cooking time to 20 minutes, which seems crazy since the recipe says 33-38. I would also like to adjust the frosting so that it is more of a milk chocate frosting perhaps by switching out the Dutch cocoa for milk? I’d love to hear other high altitude experiences with this recipe.
I did make this cake and it came out dry. I am at 6800 feet though, so I will try again with the high altitude adjustment listed. The frosting was amazing, but mine was quite a bit darker. It was smooth like the inside of a chocolate truffle!
This recipe looks amazing! I can’t wait to try it, I haven’t really made a lot of yellow cakes but this one sounds perfect.
I love your recipes, but have recently move from SE PA to Utah and I am now at over 5,000 feet in elevation. Can you make any recommendations for high altitude modifications? I am really having a difficult time learning to adjust my baking here!
Hi Alicia, I have a page with tips for high altitude baking that might help:
https://www.browneyedbaker.com/high-altitude-baking/
Michelle, can this recipe be adapted for cupcakes? And if so, would anything but cooking time be reduced do you think??
Hi Amy, I haven’t tried this particular recipe for cupcakes, but I think it should work well. I would start with just adjusting the baking time.
One question please Michelle..Can too much liquid cause a cake to collapse after it is removed from the oven? Thanks.
That is one of the reasons why a cake can collapse after coming out of the oven, but it’s not one of the most common. If the recipe is tested and you’ve had success with it before, the most common reason is underbaking.
Is it possible to make the frosting without a food processor? Blender? Stand mixer with whisk?
Hi Kimberly, I’ve never tried to, but I would think of the two, the blender would be your better bet.
Hi Kimberly. I made this cake over the weekend. I don’t have a food processor so made the icing in my stand mixer and it turned out great. I beat the butter first for a few minutes then added the corn syrup, cocoa, salt and powdered sugar. I beat that for a bit then added the melted chocolate and vanilla. I got so many compliment on the cake and especially the icing. It was great! Hope this helps.
I can also say that using a handheld mixer (with the normal beaters) works well. I initially tried a blender, but that didn’t work (might be my blender). I scraped it out of the blender and into a bowl and basically followed the same process at Genola (I had added everything but the melted chocolate and vanilla to the blender before abandoning it).
Hi Genoa,
In using your stand mixer, which blade did you use for the frosting? Regular beater as used for cakes or the whisk? Thanks for your help.
I just made the frosting with a stand mixer and the paddle on it, seems to have worked well! Did what was suggested above (mix the butter alone first). Tasted good at least ;)
Hi, I am a huge fan of your cakes especially the cup cakes and they always turn out so well. Thanks a lot.
I tried this cake and it looks and tastes really good. But I am not sure what I did wrong with the frosting. It came out very oily and looked darker than the one in the pictures above. And I think it was the corn syrup -it kept oozing out of the mixture. Help!!!
But I kept it in the fridge so it was ok. Everyone said it tasted great.
Hi Karen, So weird about the frosting – I’ve made it multiple times and I’ve never had it come out oily. The color may just be from different brands of cocoa powder/chocolate. I would make sure you are not overprocessing the frosting; other than that I can’t think of why it would be oily!
Karen – I had the EXACT same thing happen! I did not over process. As soon as the melted chocolate went in it turned into a weird oily mess.
I made this for my bros bday it was a hit! My cousin actually sent a recipe she adapted from natashaskithen.com that was originally a marble cake recipe that she only did the yellow part. It uses vanilla pudding mix and literally tastes like box cake. It’s worth trying out!?
You know, sometimes the simplest things in life are the best. Sure, we can all spend our time making cakes such as an “Brown Butter Hazelnut Shortbread Cake with Chocolate Mocha Caramel Fleur De Sel Frosting” or some such thing. You get the idea. I doubt in my entire life I have ever come across any human being (allergies aside) that didn’t like a nice yellow cake with a good lickable chocolate frosting. I’m actually very anxious to try the entire cake but especially the frosting. As crazy as it sounds considering how many cakes I’ve baked in my 50+ years I don’t ever remember making a frosting that takes light corn syrup. I’m ALWAYS on the lookout for a good yellow cake to use when I do a cake order for other people. For a tier cake quite often a pound cake works the best as you need a fairly solid and firm cake for structure. However, for some of the shaped Wilton cake pans such as the flat cupcake pan, the flat teddy bear and many others that don’t have to “stand up” a nice cake like this if the customer wants a yellow cake is great. I look forward to giving this combination a try soon.
I love your blog and have been following it for years. I was curious if you have a Snapchat for BEB to follow?
Hi Autumn, I don’t have Snapchat. I guess I might need to check it out!
I’ve used the Betty Crocker standard yellow cake recipe for years and years, but I’ll definitely try out this version. I’ll call it a scientific excuse to bake another cake. ;)
My problem lately is in finding 8″ round cake pans. It seems like every bakeware company has decided to forego 8″ in favor of 9″, and it just does NOT turn out right. The cake ends up entirely too thin and over-baked. Does anybody have a favorite 8″ round pan brand that they’d like to recommend?
Hi Julia, I do! I actually included a link to my favorite pans above under “equipment used” – they are Nordic Ware 8″ pans: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00ESYMUMK/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00ESYMUMK&linkCode=as2&tag=broeyebak-20&linkId=AUU2UEFGW4QKKAAG
Oh that is fabulous! I’ve used Nordic Ware baking sheets for years, and I never thought to look and see if they had 8″ cake pans. Thanks a bunch!
I tried this cake last night and it is exactly what Michelle described.Thank you very much for this recipe and the many others including your red velvet cupcake recipe.God bless you. Continue this good job. I am a better baker.
Oh I’m so glad you loved it as much as I did! Thanks so much for sharing your feedback!
One question. Everything always says not to hardly beat at all once you add the flour or the gluten will develop and the cake may end up tough. I notice your recipe is different. Your thoughts on this?? Thank you!
Hi Robin, I know, it sounds totally counterintuitive, but it just works perfectly with this particular recipe! When you think about it, box cake mixes have you mix everything on medium speed for a few minutes and those usually turn out good, as well.
Thanks for the recipe but more importantly thankyou sooooo much for including metric measurements. I’m a fan from Sydney Australia and can never get the conversions exactly right which is so important in baking. Hope this continues in future recipes.
For the frosting, what kind of chocolate did you use for this yellow cake.
Thanks.
Hi Kake, I actually had one 4 ounce bar of milk chocolate, so I did half milk chocolate, half semisweet chocolate.
Great recipe. These weights in grams makes me so so happy. Thanks
Hey Michelle… Your cake is so gorgeous. And you’re right a good yellow cake is Not easy to find. I’ll definitely give it a try. Do you think it’s sturdy enough to hold the fondant?
Hi Mareeha, Yes, I think this would be sturdy enough for fondant. Enjoy!
i was looking for a yellow cake recipe for years that has these qualities. I hope this is the end of my search. I will try it later.
Oops…never mind. I just found the button; recipe pinned to try later!
This cake looks absolutely delicious…and it’s beautiful, too! I want to pin it, but can’t figure out how…help?!
What IS it about the combination of yellow cake and chocolate frosting? It’s just the best.
This reminds me of my grandpa. It was his favorite cake! I love it, too. I’ll have to give it a try.
That cake is beautiful! Personally, I don’t like actually eating cake that much (too sweet for my liking), but I love baking cakes for my family and friends. I think cakes are so pretty to look at and many times, the simpler they are, the prettier! This classic yellow cake is just that, sort of has a simple elegance to it – not extravagant, but beautiful nonetheless. My mom and my husband both love yellow cake with chocolate frosting so I can’t wait to make this for them! :)
That chocolate buttercream recipe has become my go-to chocolate frosting. I was very loyal to the Swiss meringue method, but this is so quick and easy it can’t be beat….and tastes just as wonderful.
It looks delicious! My favorite cake:-)))
This is such a gorgeous cake, Michelle! Such a classic.
Does this work in a 9×13 sheet pan?
Note 1 says it does.
Hi Joe, Yes, see note #1 below the recipe!
This is THE birthday cake in my family. I’m not sure what it is about this classic combo, but it makes me want to put on my party hat!
Thank you for this! I made a yellow cake recently that was too dry and almost tasted like cornbread even though I did not mix it too much at all! I am searching for a moist cake and this appears to be it!
While mine didn’t come out dry, everyone that tasted it agreed that it tasted like very cakey cornbread.
I followed the directions and it’s crunchy! I truly hate to waste ingredients and time to end up with a yucky cake! Mine is gross! Idk what went wrong!
Classic yellow cake is the best!! Yours really looks perfect.
Thank you! Can’t wait to try this. I too have had a problem with homemade yellow cake – they just don’t turn out well. Your cake looks great and I’m hoping its the answer to the homemade yellow cake mystery.
Love that you added the measurements in weight (grams, etc.) to this recipe, since I’ve been trying to bake using my scale more whenever possible…thanks!
I too have the same problem with trying to find a perfect yellow cake recipe,defiantly going to try this! Also thank you so much for giving the gram equlivilents, living in the UK and growing up using that saves me a job of converting it myself : )
I echo Faye’s comments – thank you so much for adding the weight in grams for us Brits in the UK. I tried this cake and it worked out brilliantly!
This is such a beautiful cake
It looks like an amazing yellow cake! Something that’s not fussy but that bakes up perfectly! And the chocolate frosting is a must-have!