Butter cake
A cake made by creaming butter and sugar, then adding eggs, flour and liquid, giving a rich, tender, fine crumb.
- Doughs, batters and pastry foundations
Butter cakes rely on air beaten into the butter during creaming, helped by baking powder or soda. Classic examples are yellow layer cake, pound cake and many birthday cakes. A traditional pound cake used a pound each of butter, sugar, eggs and flour.
Room-temperature ingredients matter: butter at about 65°F (18°C) traps the most air, and cold eggs or milk can make the batter look curdled.
Bake it at VanillaGoods
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Tools for this
KitchenAid Artisan 5-Qt Stand MixerDoes the beating and kneading for you, hands-free.See it on Amazon
Fat Daddio's 9-Inch Round Cake PansStraight sides and even heat for flat, level layers.See it on Amazon
Rubbermaid Oven ThermometerMost ovens run off; this shows the real temperature.See it on Amazon
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Related entries
Sources
Written by VanillaGoods in our own words from these sources. Last reviewed October 15, 2026.
- 1.7: Cake and Buttercreams, Nicholls State University, Chef John Folse Culinary Institute (T. Rink and W. R. Thibodeaux), Introduction to Baking and Pastries, via LibreTexts
- American Cookery: The Art of Dressing Viands, Fish, Poultry, and Vegetables, Project Gutenberg (Amelia Simmons, American Cookery, Hartford, 1796)
- Major Fats and Oils Used in Bakeries, BCcampus (BC Cook Articulation Committee), Understanding Ingredients for the Canadian Baker
- Butter cake (Q1189138), Wikidata