Chiffon Cake
intro
Tall, cloud-soft vanilla chiffon cake with a delicate, melt-in-your-mouth crumb, lightly sweet and perfect for pairing with fresh spring berries and cream.
Ingredients
Steps
Mix the yolk batter
Preheat your oven to 160°C (320°F) with convection (fan) turned off, and set out an ungreased 20cm (8-inch) metal tube pan. In a large mixing bowl, whisk 6 room-temperature egg yolks with 30g of the granulated sugar until pale lemon yellow, then stir in 60ml neutral vegetable oil, 80ml room-temperature whole milk, and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract until smooth. Sift in 120g cake flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, and 1/4 teaspoon fine salt, whisking only until no dry lumps remain—do not overmix, as this develops tough gluten.
Whip stable meringue
First, confirm your mixing bowl and whisk attachment are completely grease-free (wipe with a vinegar-dampened paper towel if needed to remove residue). Add the 6 room-temperature egg whites to the bowl, and beat on medium speed (stand mixer speed 4) until large, loose frothy bubbles form, about 1 minute. Gradually add the remaining 70g granulated sugar 1 tablespoon at a time, waiting 30 seconds between additions. Once all sugar is incorporated, increase speed to medium-high (speed 6) and beat for 3-4 minutes until stiff, glossy peaks stand straight up when the whisk is lifted; avoid overbeating to dry, crumbly meringue.
Fold batter gently
Scoop 1/3 of the finished meringue into the yolk batter bowl, using a silicone spatula to cut through the center of the batter and scrape up from the bottom of the bowl to combine, mixing until almost fully smooth to lighten the dense yolk base. Add the remaining meringue in two equal portions, folding gently with the same cut-and-scrape motion, turning the bowl a quarter turn after each fold. Stop folding as soon as no white streaks remain; this process should take no more than 45 seconds to prevent deflating the trapped air in the meringue.
Bake the chiffon cake
Pour the light, airy batter slowly into the ungreased tube pan, then tap the pan firmly on the counter 3 times from a 5cm (2-inch) height to pop any large trapped air bubbles. Place the pan on the middle oven rack, and bake for 50-55 minutes at 160°C (320°F); do not open the oven door for the first 40 minutes of baking, as sudden temperature drops will cause the cake to sink. Test doneness by inserting a wooden skewer into the thickest part of the cake: it is done if the skewer comes out clean with no wet batter attached.
Invert to cool fully
Immediately after removing the baked cake from the oven, flip the pan upside down to rest on its built-in cooling feet (or balance the center tube over the neck of a tall, stable glass bottle if your pan has no feet). Let the cake cool completely in this inverted position for 1 full hour at room temperature. Never cool the cake right-side up, as the weight of the warm, delicate crumb will cause it to collapse and lose its tall height.
Unmold and serve
Once the cake is fully cooled to room temperature, run a thin offset spatula around the outer pan edge and inner center tube to loosen the cake, then gently push the removable pan base up to release the cake. Run the spatula between the cake bottom and pan base to fully separate, then transfer the cake to a serving plate. Slice with a serrated knife using a gentle sawing motion, and serve with fresh sliced strawberries and lightly sweetened whipped cream if desired.
Tips
2.Use room-temperature eggs for the best meringue volume: cold egg whites whip more slowly and produce less stable, smaller air pockets that lead to a denser final cake.
3.Resist the urge to overfold the batter: overmixing will knock out the delicate air bubbles in the meringue, resulting in a flat, dense, chewy cake instead of a light, fluffy crumb.
OMG this chiffon cake was SO good! I brought it to my neighborhood potluck last weekend and every single person asked for the recipe. It was so light it practically melted in my mouth, not too sweet which is perfect for my husband who hates overly sugary desserts. 10/10 will make again for my kid’s birthday next month!
Taste was great but my cake totally deflated when I took it out of the oven :/ I followed the steps exactly as written, made sure my egg whites were stiff peaks, didn’t open the oven door early, but it still sank right in the middle. What did I do wrong?
Game changer! I’ve tried so many chiffon cake recipes over the years that came out dense or rubbery, but this one is perfectly light and fluffy every single time. I add a tiny splash of almond extract along with the vanilla for a little extra depth and it’s chef’s kiss. My morning coffee has never had a better sidekick.
Really solid recipe! Only note is that it took me about 10 minutes longer in the oven than the recipe said, probably because my oven runs a little cool. The flavor is amazing, super vanilla-y, not dense at all. I made it for my book club and everyone raved, even the lady who swears she doesn’t like cake.
Just pulled this out of the oven and it looks perfect!!! First time I’ve ever made a chiffon cake that didn’t collapse, I was so nervous after my last three fails. The instructions were so easy to follow even for a teen baker like me, can’t wait to frost it for my mom’s Mother’s Day brunch!
Love how light this is! I prepped slices for my weekday work snacks all week, they hold up really well in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. I only wish I’d made a double batch because my roommate ate half of it before I even got to pack it up lol.
Cut the sugar by 2 tablespoons like I do with most cake recipes and it was still perfectly sweet! The vanilla flavor really shines through when it’s not overloaded with sugar, and the texture is exactly as advertised – so light and fluffy I felt like I was eating a cloud. 10/10.
Made this for my first ever dinner party last night and I felt like a professional baker! All my friends were blown away that I made it from scratch, and no one believed me when I said it was only my second time baking a cake from a recipe online. Total confidence boost!
Taste was 10/10 but I struggled to get the cake out of the tube pan in one piece! I greased the pan like I do for regular cakes but half the cake stuck to the sides when I went to take it out. Ended up making a trifle with the pieces and it still tasted great, but I wanted that pretty whole cake for my daughter’s graduation.
I used vanilla bean paste instead of regular vanilla extract and you could see all the little vanilla specks throughout the cake, it was so pretty! It tasted like a fancy bakery cake for a fraction of the price, my whole family went back for seconds. Even my super picky 7 year old ate two slices!
I ran a small bakery for 30 years and I’m pretty picky about my chiffon cake recipes. This one is spot on – the ratio of egg whites to flour is perfect, the crumb is tender, no weird chemical aftertaste from too much leavening. Bookmarked this to make for my grandkids when they visit next weekend.
Made this for a Halloween party and added a little orange food coloring to the batter, topped it with cream cheese frosting and Halloween sprinkles. It was a huge hit! Only knocked off a star because I accidentally overbeat my egg whites a tiny bit so the top was a little crumbly, but that was 100% my mistake.
As someone who’s always looking for lighter dessert options that don’t taste like diet food, this is perfect! It’s so fluffy and flavorful without being heavy or loaded with tons of oil. I topped mine with fresh strawberries and a dollop of Greek yogurt whipped cream for a post-gym treat and it hit every single craving.
I’m practicing baking for my own wedding next year and I tested this as a possible tier option. It held up really well even when I stacked a small test tier, it’s moist, not too sweet, and the vanilla flavor is so classic everyone will love it. I’m definitely adding this to my wedding dessert menu!