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
Cake Batter and Frosting Calculator
Select an option below to calculate how much batter or frosting you need. Adjust the servings slider on the recipe card to change the amounts the recipe makes.
Choose a pan type
Choose a cake pan size
(based on 2" tall cake pan)
Choose a cake pan size
(based on 2" tall cake pan)
Cupcake Tin Size
Choose number of pans
Cups of Batter Needed
8 cups
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.
Kazumi says
Can I use butter instead of oil?
The Sugar Geek Show says
I have only made this recipe using oil, it might not be as soft and moist if you omit the oil.
Jeanie Nickerson says
I had never used the reverse mix method, but use again. Weighing the ingredients and READING the instructions is definitely the key to the success of this truly amazing cake. Made it this weekend for March family birthday get together and had rave reviews. This will become a favorite in my recipes to make again and again. I am a retired home economics teacher and taught Food Science and wish I had known this technique to have taught my students, mainly for weighing ingredients for baking success. Thanks again for this beautiful recipe.
Elizabeth says
Sounds delicious! Will this be enough batter for a 9x13 Pan? Any suggestions on baking time?
The Sugar Geek Show says
Yes it is, I would start with 40 minutes and see where you are 🙂
SuzetteC says
Hello,
I’m wondering if this beautiful cake could be made with gluten free flour as in a 1:1 same as regular flour? Is there such a thing as gluten free cake flour? Also is there a good frosting recipe that’s not really sweet, but fluffy?
Thank You for such great cakes!!
The Sugar Geek Show says
Yes please check my gluten free cake recipe. I use bobs red mill 1:1 baking mix (NOT gluten free flour) because it tastes just like regular flour
gracel panka says
hi,
thank you for your recipe. i tried making this but i failed?. i followed the recipe but for some reason it came out very oily. not sure what i did wrong. the cake was too moist and oily. it tasted good but it didn't came out as in the picture.
The Sugar Geek Show says
Sounds like you didn't measure correctly somewhere along the way. The recipe has been made by myself and many others many many times and is not oily. Try going back over the recipe and comparing the weights to what you remember measuring to see where you might have gone wrong. Perhaps you put in too much butter.
Levbacon says
Best cake I have ever made! Followed directions to the letter. Tips were really helpful and informative. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
P.S. I also made your cream cheese frosting and that was unbelievable as well!
Ava says
Has anyone tried measuring the eggs by weight. I have been told the eggs I get in my country may not classify as large eggs :). Please let me know if anyone can get me a weight measurement of egg. One whole egg measures 46gm for me.
The Sugar Geek Show says
Yes I usually use boxed egg whites. One egg white weighs 1oz.
Mandi DeNoble says
You knocked it out of the park again!!!! Truly a delicious recipe!!! Thanks for your hard work and dedication for all of us bakers!
Josue Cedric Charles says
How to separate the batter if my pans are 8 x 1 1/2? Please I need this Saturday.
The Sugar Geek Show says
Just put less batter in the pan 🙂
betty bloom says
to make 9x13 or two 12 in pans.How would you double your rescpie
The Sugar Geek Show says
Double all the measurements
Anjali says
Is it okay if i use just one 8” cake pan for this recipe?
The Sugar Geek Show says
I think you'll have a hard time fitting all the batter into one 8" cake pan unless it's very tall 🙂
Dulce maria says
Hi, escuse me, who can i make the buttermilk?? In mexico we dont use baked whit it. So its hard to tey to understand the recipe.
The Sugar Geek Show says
You can make buttermilk by adding 1 Tbsp of white vinegar to 1 cup of whole milk, stir and let it sit for 5 minutes.
Devika says
Hi, will you be able to convert the ingredient measurements from OZ to grams and millilitres for the oil and buttermilk.
I want to try the recipe but I don't have an idea about measurement in oz.
Thank you
The Sugar Geek Show says
If you would like grams there are plenty of online converters for you to use. Thank you.
Eufemia Perez says
Hi Liz
Self raising flour is the same that cake flour. If so way more salt, baking soda, baking powder ? ?
The Sugar Geek Show says
Self rising flour is not the same as cake flour. It's just flour with baking soda and baking powder in it already and should not be used as a replacement for cake flour.
Rachael says
This cake is delicious! I recently made it for daughter’s first birthday. The only issue I had was after baking and cooling in the pans the cakes pulled away from the sides and angled in ??♀️ Did I do something wrong?
The Sugar Geek Show says
Could have been slightly over-mixed or maybe your ingredients where not all room temp (like eggs and milk)