Recipe excerpted with permission from The Cake Bible by Rose Levy Beranbaum and Woody Wolston published by William Morrow, October 2024.
“This recipe was sent to me by Chef Anthony Stella, with a request to improve its texture. Although there is no butter, the amount of butterfat contained in the cream is considerably higher than the amount of butter in my basic butter cake. Reformulating the recipe to work in a Bundt pan did wonders for improving the texture. It is now one of my top favorite cakes.” —Rose Levy Beranbaum
Whipped Cream Cake
Makes 1 Bundt cake / Serves 8 to 10
Equipment Needed
1 10-cup fluted tube pan, coated with baking spray with flour
Ingredients
- 2¼ cups (225 grams) bleached cake flour, sifted into the cup and leveled off
- 2 teaspoons (9 grams) baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon (4.5 grams) fine sea salt
- ¼ cup (60 grams/59 ml) egg yolks, from 3 (to 4) large eggs, room temperature
- ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons (90 grams/89 ml) egg whites, from 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon (5 grams/5 ml) pure vanilla extract
- 1½ cups (348 grams/355 ml) heavy cream, cold
- 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (225 grams) sugar, preferably superfine
Instructions
- Twenty minutes or longer before baking, set an oven rack in the lower third of the oven. Set the oven at 375°F/190°C.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt, then sift the mixture onto a piece of parchment to make it easier to incorporate.
- In a 1-cup (237 ml) glass measure with a spout, lightly whisk the measured egg yolks and egg whites. Add the vanilla and whisk until lightly combined.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk beater, whip the cream on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form when the beater is raised.
- Starting on medium-low speed, gradually beat in the egg mixture and continue beating for 2 minutes. The mixture will thicken into mayonnaise consistency (if high-butterfat cream is used, it will be less thick.) Gradually beat in the sugar; it should take about 30 seconds to incorporate it.
- Remove the bowl from the stand. Add half the flour mixture to the cream mixture and with a flat wire whisk, or the whisk from the stand mixer, stir and fold it in until most of the flour disappears. Add the rest of the flour mixture and continue folding and mixing until all traces of flour have disappeared. Finish with a silicone spatula, reaching to the bottom of the bowl.
- Scrape the batter into the prepared pan. Run a metal spatula or dull knife blade through the batter to prevent large air bubbles, avoiding the bottom of the pan, and smooth the surface with a small spatula. The pan will be half full.
- Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, or until a wooden toothpick inserted between the center tube and sides of the pan comes out completely clean and the cake springs back when pressed lightly in the center. The cake should start to shrink from the sides of the pan only after removal from the oven.
- Let the cake cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Invert the cake onto a wire rack that has been lightly coated with nonstick cooking spray. Cool completely. Store airtight: room temperature, 3 days; refrigerated, 1 week; frozen, 3 months.
Notes
* pointers for success: The bowl and beaters for the whipping cream should not be chilled because the eggs will not emulsify as readily if the whipped cream is too cold.
High (40 percent) butterfat heavy cream produces a finer, more tender crumb.
For the smoothest top crust, to eliminate bubbles from the airy batter, start filling the pan by spreading a little of the batter into the grooves of the pan and pressing it in with a silicone spatula. Then add the remaining batter.
* understanding: Compared to a basic layer cake, this cake has about 18 to 25 percent more butterfat, depending on the fat content of the cream, and almost the same amount of water content. It also has one extra egg, balanced by less baking powder. A lower amount of vanilla is needed because of the floral quality of the cream.
* complementary adornments: A light dusting of powdered sugar or whipped cream and berries.
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