Silver Cake
Restored from "The Vest Pocket Pastry Book," 1901, this is a moist, rich cake that is now my "go-to" recipe for a white cake. Experiment with using different extracts, such as orange or vanilla.The original recipe called for 9 3/4 cups of flour, 3 1/3 sticks of butter and 10 egg whites!
Ingredients
- 2 cups Cake flour sifted
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 stick unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup milk
- 8 egg whites beaten separately
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 2 tsp Almond Extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Prepare 2 x 8 or 9 inch cake pans by lining the bottom with parchment paper and greasing the sides with butter or vegetable shortening.
- Sift together flour and baking powder, set aside.
- With a stand or electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, at least 3 minutes.
- Alternate adding in the flour/baking powder mixture, beat until ingredients are just combined. Stop mixer, scrap down the sides of the bowl with a spatula, and finish mixing batter by hand so as not to overmix.
- In a separate bowl, beat egg whites until stiff peaks form, 4-10 minutes.
- Fold egg whites into batter by hand, taking care not to knock out the air.
- Bake at 350 degrees F for 25-30 minutes.
- Allow cake to cool completely, then top with your favorite frosting.
- I used American buttercream for this cake.