CHIFFON CAKE

I love the pillowy texture of this cake. This is my favorite cake. Several variations of this cake be made with this recipe. Most of the chiffon cake recipe requires 7 or more eggs. This one requires only three, and it's just the perfect round, small cake for a small family.

Adapted from chowhound

1 cup cake flour (combine 3/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour with 2 Tbsp. corn flour)

1 teaspoon baking powder

3/4 plus 1/8 tsp fine salt

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1/3 cup water

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 large eggs, whites, and yolks separated

3/4 cup granulated sugar (This is the right amount of sugar; no need to increase the sugar even if you are frosting the cake)

Method

•  Line an 8-inch pan with parchment paper at the bottom.

                           

• Mix flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl; set aside.                                                                           
  

• Pour vanilla essence into the separated yolks and keep aside. Don't forget this step.

• Take the separated egg whites into a bowl big enough because it is in that bowl that the rest of the ingredients will be combined. Also, the bowl should be clean and dry without any hint of liquid or fat.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F for 15 minutes.

• Beat the egg whites using a cake mixer on high speed until frothy and the volume has increased, about a minute. It won't be stiff at this moment.

• Now, at maximum speed, beat the egg whites, and while beating, gradually add the sugar, maybe 2 Tbsp at a time until all of the sugar is whipped up with egg whites. The egg whites should be whipped till stiff peaks are formed.

• Put in the egg yolks and essence all at once and beat on high speed for about 5  seconds.

• Add the oil and beat again for 5 seconds.

• Add the flour mixture all at once, gently into the batter.
• Then, without turning on the beater, using your beater, swirl the flour gently into the batter. This is to avoid any flyaways while beating. 
• Then, beat at the lowest speed for 5 seconds, gradually increasing the speed to maximum.
• Beat until the flour is just incorporated. Then pour in the 1/3 cup water and beat on high speed for about 2 seconds or until just combined. Don't over-mix.

• Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake at 325 degrees F, until the surface of the cake is golden brown and springs back when pressed and a toothpick or cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, about 35-40 minutes. I like the top, golden brown.
• Cover the cake pan with the cake with a thick towel. It will help to retain the cake's moisture while cooling down.
• The cake can be sliced into 16 small pieces.

CHOCOLATE CHIFFON CAKE

• Take 1 cup all-purpose flour, remove 5 tbsp. flour and add 2 tbsp. Dutch-processed cocoa powder and 2 tbsp. cornflour. That makes it the cake flour, along with cocoa powder. The rest of the ingredients are the same.
• Basically, swap 6 Tbsp. of flour for 4 Tbsp. of cocoa powder. The rest of the ingredients are the same.

  

CHIFFON CUPCAKES

• The batter can be baked into muffins/cupcakes.  Pour batter up to 2/3 rd level of the muffin cup. Bake at  325 degrees F for 18 minutes.
  
  
  
  


 
• I have a standard-size, 12-count muffin tray. So I baked 12 in one go, but there was remaining batter for 3 more cupcakes. As soon as the 12 muffins were baked, I transferred them to another pan and poured the remaining batter, and baked for 15 minutes.
  

NOTES
• For cake flour, I took 1 cup minus 2 Tbsp of all-purpose flour and add 2 Tbsp cornflour.
• Whipping the egg whites with sugar is key to this recipe. When the rest of the ingredients are added in steps, just be careful that you don't overbeat. Beat just enough to incorporate them into the batter. That's just about enough.
• I do not like using whole wheat flour for this chiffon cake, vanilla or chocolate cake. This chiffon cake requires extra fine cake flour or all-purpose flour that whole wheat flour cannot contribute.
• Add 2 Tbsp lemon juice minus 2 tbsp to make a lemon cake. of water and 2 Tbsp. lemon rind. Whisk the lemon rind in the flour mixture and make the cake as usual. Reduce the salt by 1/8 tsp. 
• The lemon juice can also be extracted 2 hours ahead and kept in the fridge or kept in the freezer a few days before. Do remember to thaw the lemon juice before preparing the cake.
  Unbleached all-purpose flour also works equally well.
• For making an orange chiffon cake, use 1/3 cup orange juice and 2 Tbsp orange rind.
• This cake will keep for three days at normal temperature. I bet it won't last that long. The container will be wiped clean before that.
• I usually bake cakes early in the morning. It is at that time when our senses are at our best. and also have the convenience to do our work without any disturbances. So, I plan and prepare ahead. I whisk the dry ingredients, keep it closed in a bowl and line the pan with parchment paper the night before.  It's overwhelming to do everything together. Planning and preparing everything ahead whenever we get time helps a lot.
• The vanilla chiffon cake tastes good with lemon buttercream icing.
• See this link on separating eggs.
• Salt: I tried 1 tsp, but that is too salty. 3/4 tsp plus 1/8 tsp feels right. 
• Separating the eggs is key. The yolk should seep into the whites. The pillowy structure and feel of the cake come from the whipping up of the egg whites with sugar. So, if you mess up and the yolks seep into the whites and the whites don't whip up, try beating the egg whites, yolks, and sugar for about 5 minutes. The batter should whip up. Don't add any liquids like essence or lemon juice while whipping this up. If that does not work, beat the egg whites and yolks in a bowl, keep the bowl in a hot water bath, and beat. This should do the trick.

TRIALS

• Tried boiling one lemon, pureeing it, and adding it to the batter along with 1/4 cup of water, but the cake was dense rather than lightweight, which is the quality that stands out in chiffon cakes. Don't do this again.
• GF cake: Substitute 1 cup (next time 1-1/4 cup) Sorghum flour.