White velvet cake is a soft, delicate cake with a hint of buttermilk and vanilla
White velvet cake is red velvet cake's pretty little sister. Red velvet cake has been around for ages and probably one of the most popular cake flavors of all time. But not everyone want's to eat red food coloring or maybe they have special dietary requirements that don't allow them to eat red food dye. Whatever the reason, options are always good.
A lot of people wonder if you can just leave out the red food color and get white velvet and the answer is yes, kinda. You also need to leave out the cocoa powder. All the things that make red velvet cake delicious can be left in.
sidenote... the more I spell the word "velvet" the weirder it looks... velvet. velvet VELVET. Starts to look wrong.
But anyway...
What is white velvet cake?
White velvet cake is basically red velvet without the red. It's a buttermilk cake base that results in a VERY soft, fluffy and moist cake. If you leave out all the color and the cocoa powder you have yourself a nice white velvet cake. Neat huh. The buttermilk gives this southern inspired cake it's rich and velvety texture.
Traditional red velvet cake has a little bit of cocoa powder in it. Some will tell you that red velvet is actually chocolate cake (wrong) or that it's just white cake with red food color added (so wrong). The cocoa powder does add a little bit of flavor to the cake but not enough to call it chocolate so when you leave it out, it doesn't affect the flavor that much.
This same light, fluffy batter technique is what inspired my baked donut recipe - if you love this cake you will love those too.
What's so great about white velvet?
So one of the BEST things about this recipe, in my opinion, is the texture. The crumb is soooo soft and well... velvety! I love how it looks when you cut it. Soft and pillowy. It's like magic!
What Is Buttermilk?
Buttermilk is basically fermented milk that has gone sour. I know it sounds weird but it actually tastes amazing in baked goods. The tanginess in buttermilk adds a great flavor and the acidity in buttermilk actually breaks down gluten so baked goods are more tender than if you used regular milk.
I mean, there's a reason recipes like "buttermilk pancakes" and "buttermilk" biscuits always seem better than just... pancakes. Ya know?
Don't have any buttermilk? You can make it! Add 1 Tablespoon of white vinegar to 1 cup of regular milk, stir and let it sit for about 10 minutes. You'll see the milk begin to thicken and curdle. Voila. Homemade buttermilk.
How does white velvet cake taste like?
White velvet cake tastes so amazing BECAUSE of the buttermilk! It just adds a little tang and zip that for some reason your tastebuds just love.
The crumb is super fine like my white cake recipe or my vanilla cake recipe and is definitely a great cake for flavor to just bake up for a special occasion.
What frosting goes with white velvet cake?
The traditional frosting that goes with velvet cake is ermine frosting. Ermine frosting is made by cooking sugar with a bit of flour and then whipping it into softened butter.
Ermine frosting is super creamy, not too sweet and tastes amazing with white velvet cake. In my opinion it tastes very similar to a swiss-meringue buttercream but without the eggs so it's a nice alternative if you have an egg allergy.
How do you make blue velvet cake?
To make blue velvet cake, simply add in 1 oz of electric blue food color (for a light blue cake) or royal blue food color (for darker blue) to the base white velvet recipe.
For a more natural blue, add 1-2 teaspoon of natural cocoa powder ( not dutched. I like Hershey's special dark) The cocoa powder will tone down the bright blue just a little so it's not so VIVID and make a nice natural blue. Or if you want a really bright blue you can leave the cocoa powder out.
Blue velvet is a great cake for gender reveals, birthday cakes or just because blue velvet is awesome.
Can you can make velvet cake with different colors?
Yes! If you want a different color of velvet cake then simply replace the food color with any other color you like. You can do a white velvet rainbow, ombre or go with neon. The color possibilities are endless!
I made this lovely green velvet cake for st patricks day! I added in the cocoa powder for a more natural shade of green and used 1 oz of leaf green americolor food color gel.
What about black velvet cake?
Ok so TECHNICALLY I have another recipe called black velvet cake that does not use this velvet cake base. Why? Because it's really a chocolate cake. It doesn't have any buttermilk in it, vinegar or food coloring! So why even bother calling it black velvet?
Well it's got a nice velvet-y texture. In the future I may experiment further with a true black velvet recipe working from the base velvet recipe but upping the cocoa powder. Too many cake ideas, so little time.
Try my vanilla cupcakes that have the same velvet texture as this white velvet cake, thanks to the reverse creaming method.
Related Recipes
Rainbow Cake
Green Velvet Cake
Pink Velvet Cake
Black Velvet Cake
Red Velvet Cake
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Cups of Batter Needed
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Cups of Frosting Needed
5 cups
Note: measurements are estimated based off the vanilla cake recipe using standard US cake pans and sizes. Measurements used are for 2" tall cake pans only. Your results may vary. Do not overfill cake pans above manufacturer's recommended guidelines.
Recipe
Equipment
- Stand Mixer
- Whisk Attachment
- Paddle Attachment
Ingredients
White Velvet Cake Ingredients
- 14 oz cake flour
- 13 oz granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 5 oz egg whites room temperature
- 4 oz vegetable oil
- 10 oz buttermilk room temperature or slightly warm
- 6 oz butter unsalted and softened
- 2 teaspoon vanilla
Ermine Frosting Ingredients
- 14 oz granulated sugar
- 3 oz flour
- 16 oz whole milk
- 16 oz unsalted butter room temperature
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- NOTE: It is SUPER IMPORTANT that all the room temperature ingredients listed above are room temperature and measured by weight so that the ingredients mix and incorporate correctly. Heat oven to 335º F/168º C — 350º F/177º C. I tend to use lower setting to prevent my cakes from getting too dark on the outside before the inside is done baking.
- Prepare two 8"x2" (or three 6") cake pans (with a little leftover batter) with cake goop or preferred pan spray. Fill your pans about ¾ of the way full of batter.
- Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in the bowl of .a stand mixer with paddle attachment. Mix 10 seconds to combine.
- Combine ½ cup of the milk and the oil together and set aside.
- Combine the remaining milk, egg whites and vanilla together, whisk to break up the eggs and set aside.
- Add your softened butter to the dry ingredients and mix on low until mixture resembles a coarse sand (about 30 seconds). Add in your milk/oil mixture and let mix until dry ingredients are moistened and then bump up to med (setting 4 on my kitchenaid) and let mix for 2 minutes to develop the cakes structure. If you don't let your cake mix on this step your cake could collapse.
- Scrape your bowl and then reduce speed to low. Add in your egg white mixture in three batches, letting the batter mix for 15 seconds between additions.
- Scrape down the sides again to make sure everything has incorporated then pour into prepared pans. Bake 35-40 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out cleanly but the cake has not begun to shrink yet from the sides of the pan. IMMEDIATELY TAP PAN FIRMLY on countertop once to release the steam from the cake. This stops the cake from shrinking.
- Let cakes cool for 10 minutes inside the pan before flipping them out. The cake will shrink a bit and that is normal. Flip onto a cooling rack and let cool fully. I chill my cakes before handling or you can wrap them in plastic wrap and freeze them to trap moisture in the cake. Thaw on the countertop while still wrapped before frosting.
Ermine Frosting Instructions
- Whisk together your flour and sugar in a medium sauce pan over medium heat. Cook for about 2 minutes to toast the flour.
- Slowly add in your milk, whisk to combine and bring your heat to medium-high. Whisk continuously until mixture is thickened and pudding like. Cover with plastic wrap and let cool.
- Add your butter to the bowl of your stand mixer and whisk on high until light and fluffy. Slowly add in your cooled flour mixture one spoon at a time as you whip. Incorporating slowly insures a smooth buttercream.
- Add in your vanilla and salt until everything is creamy and then you can frost your cooled cake.
Aliyah says
Hello. If I double this recipe in a stand mixer would it be too much? Would it affect the whipping of the dry ingredients with the milk and oil, causing a change in texture? Thank you!
Sugar Geek Show says
You can definitely double the recipe as long as your mixer can fit it! Make sure to double the amounts of oil and buttermilk that you separate into 2 cups as well.
Gabby says
Hi there I love the texture of this cake so much that I always make it. However, every time I make it, it sinks in he center without fail and I am following the recipe to the tee. I use sandwich tins to make the cake..do you think that could be the problem as it is quite shallow??
Sugar Geek Show says
Hi! Thanks for your comment, I'm glad you like the cake. It's definitely best to use high quality cake pans for baking this cake so they bake evenly. Sometimes people struggle with bringing their butter, eggs and milk fully to room temperature with this recipe, not setting a 2 minute timer when mixing or trying to convert the recipe to cups. Hope this helps, let me know if you have any more questions 🙂
Misty says
I don't have stand mixer. Can I use normal beater or mixer?
Sugar Geek Show says
A hand mixer will work, you might have to mix for longer to get the desired consistencies. Make sure to follow along my video to be sure you have the right amount of fluff after adding the oil and milk 🙂
Nathalie G says
Just wondering if it’s a big mistake to use a springform pan to make a cake? Love your blog by the way. Looking forward to signing up
Elizabeth Marek says
I think you could use a springform, although I've never tried
Alison says
Hi there! I am so excited to make your white velvet for my husband’s birthday this week. However, I only have 9” rounds or a 9x13 glass. What, if any, adjustments would to make to the oven temperature or otherwise? Thank you sooo much!!
P.S. my favorite cake growing up was my mom and grandma’s red velvet with ermine frosting. I can’t wait to have it on this witw velvet! Yay!
Elizabeth Marek says
You can use the cake batter calculator right above the recipe for making adjustments. A 9x13 cake is the same as 1/4 sheet cake pan
Nilu says
Hi Liz,
I tried this recipe out a few days ago and it turned out great. I made a few boo-boos along the way and it still turned out great!! Husband, parents, kids and myself all agree it's the best cake I've made from scratch ☺️.
My son wants rainbow cake for his birthday so this will be my cake base.
Thank you for the recipe and for the great explanations on your videos.
Magy says
Hi Liz, I noticed the recipe on the blog says 14oz cake flour and 13oz sugar while the recipe on YouTube says 13oz cake flour and 12oz flour. Please which one is more accurate. Thanks.
Elizabeth Marek says
Just follow the written recipe
Bubborina says
Hi,
If I double the recipe, do I double the mixing time asewell?
Elizabeth Marek says
No you do not increase the mixing time.
Doofan says
Thanks for this recipe. I live in Côte d'Ivoire.
Super easy recipe to follow, only i was a bit disappointed to not get the 'white' colour that attracted me to the recipe, what do you think would have gone wrong. Any specifications with the type of butter to use?
Elizabeth Marek says
I use darigold most of the time which is very light in color. You can also use clear vanilla.
Saba Sabir says
Hi, this looks so good! I can’t wait to make it. Thank you for the recipe.
Just one question: I live in Germany, and unfortunately we don’t get cake flour here 🙁
We get plain flour ( flour type 405) which, according to google, is equivalent to US pastry flour. We also get plain all purpose flour. Do you think these substitutions would work, or would you suggest that I don’t waste any ingredients?
Thank you so much 🙂
Elizabeth Marek says
Pastry flour would be best. The texture of the cake may be a little off but it should be ok
Bonnie Hanson says
I made this cake into 3x 6” layers filled with Swiss meringue buttercream and candied rose petals for my daughter’s bridal shower cake. I am a professional baker/cake decorator and very impressed with how it turned out. Perfect rise and dome, I am making this again for the top 6”tier of her wedding cake, this time filling with Strawberries and cream cheese buttercream 🙂 This cake would be perfect for rainbow coloured layers, as only egg whites are used in the batter 🙂
Nidhi says
I made the egg-free version of this cake for my hubby's birthday.
The measurements and the method were followed exactly as mentioned in the recipe. I paired it with mixed berry filling (also your recipe) and whipped cream cheese frosting.
I must say, this is probably the best white cake (texture as well as taste) I have ever baked. And it paired so well with the berry filling! This is my go-to recipe from now on.
Thank you so much for sharing.
Nidhi says
I made the eggfree version for my hubby's birthday. I paired it with a berry filling and a whipped cream cheese frosting. The berry filling recipe too was yours. It came out so awesome!
I followed every step along with exact measurements as mentioned in the recipe. The only substitution I made was for eggs because I don't eat eggs. But still it was perfect. I wish I could share a picture of the cake here.
Thank you so much for your lovely recipes.
Elizabeth Marek says
Im so glad you liked it! You can share photos in our fb group sugar geeks or you can post to your instagram stories and tag @sugargeekshow so we can share it!
Chindo Ugona says
This is by far the best vanilla cake I’ve ever baked/tasted. Thank you for sharing your recipes. I also tried your vanilla cupcake recipe and they were a hit! I read in a previous comment that the cake can be covered in sugar paste. My question is, if I bake early today and, refrigerate, trim,fill and crumb coat in the evening. Can I decorate with sugar paste and leave it standing till it’s delivery in the morning the next day?
Elizabeth Marek says
Yes you absolutely can do that.
Roisin says
Hi
I am making this cake on Thursday. I will be keeping it in the fridge until Friday evening. Would this cake be okay not in a fridge from Friday evening to Saturday evening?
Elizabeth Marek says
If it has frosting it is totally ok in the fridge for a few days