Ingredients
- 225g (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
- 225g (1 cup) granulated sugar
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature
- 225g (1¾ cups) self-raising flour, or 225g plain flour plus 2 tsp baking powder
- 2-3 tbsp milk, at room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- A pinch of salt
Step-by-step instructions
- Preheat the oven to 170-180C (340-350F). Grease a 20cm (8-inch) round cake pan and line the base with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, beat the softened butter and sugar together with an electric or hand mixer for 3-5 minutes, until the mixture is visibly pale and fluffy. This is the creaming step, and it is what gives the cake its rise.
- Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition until fully incorporated before adding the next. Adding eggs too quickly can make the mixture curdle.
- Sift the flour, baking powder (if using), and salt together in a separate bowl.
- Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture in three additions, alternating with the milk, starting and ending with the flour. Fold gently by hand, or mix on the lowest speed, just until no dry streaks remain - do not overmix.
- Stir in the vanilla extract.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top with a spatula.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes on the middle rack, without opening the oven door for at least the first 20 minutes.
- Test for doneness by inserting a toothpick into the centre of the cake. If it comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs, the cake is done; if it has wet batter on it, bake for another 5 minutes and test again.
- Leave the cake to cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn it out onto a wire rack to cool completely before slicing or icing.
What does each ingredient actually do?
Knowing why an ingredient is there makes it much easier to fix a cake that goes wrong. Butter supplies fat and flavour, and when it is creamed with sugar, the friction traps thousands of tiny air bubbles that expand in the oven's heat to give the cake its rise and tender crumb. Sugar does more than sweeten - it also tenderises the gluten in the flour, holds onto moisture so the cake stays soft, and helps the creaming step trap air in the first place.
Eggs provide structure: their protein sets as the cake bakes, which is what allows the crumb to hold its risen shape instead of collapsing, and they also add moisture and bind the other ingredients together. Flour forms the structural network - its gluten, once mixed with liquid, gives the batter enough backbone to hold air and rise without falling apart. Baking powder is a chemical leavener that releases carbon dioxide bubbles once it meets liquid and heat, lifting the batter further than creaming alone can manage. Milk thins the batter to the right pouring consistency and adds extra moisture so the finished cake is not dry.
What oven temperature should I bake a cake at?
Most basic butter cakes bake well at 170-180C (340-350F). A slightly lower temperature in that range lets the cake rise slowly and evenly, which helps it come out with a flatter top instead of doming or cracking in the middle. If your oven has a fan setting, drop the temperature by about 20C (roughly 20F), since fan ovens circulate heat more aggressively and tend to run hotter than the number on the dial suggests. Bake on the middle rack so heat reaches the pan evenly from all sides, and avoid opening the oven door in the first 20 minutes - a sudden drop in temperature before the cake's structure has set can cause the centre to sink.
What are common beginner cake mistakes?
- Overmixing after the flour goes in. Beating the batter too much once flour is added develops the gluten too far, which makes the cake tough and dense instead of light. Mix only until the streaks of flour disappear.
- Undercreaming the butter and sugar. Rushing the creaming step means less air gets trapped at the start, so the cake has less to rise on and can turn out heavy.
- Using the wrong oven temperature. Too hot, and the outside sets and browns before the inside has finished rising, often causing cracking or doming. Too cool, and the cake can turn out dense or take far longer to bake than the recipe says.
- Opening the oven door too early. The rush of cooler air can drop the oven temperature enough to make a half-set cake collapse in the middle.
- Using cold eggs or butter straight from the fridge. Cold ingredients don't cream or emulsify as well, which traps less air and can even make the batter curdle.
People also ask
Why did my cake sink in the middle?
Most often because the oven door was opened too early, or the cake was underbaked and taken out before the centre had set. A sudden drop in oven temperature before the structure has firmed up can cause the middle to collapse as it cools.
Why is my cake dense and heavy instead of light?
This usually comes from undercreaming the butter and sugar so not enough air was trapped at the start, overmixing once the flour goes in, which develops too much gluten, or using cold butter and eggs that trap less air during creaming.
Can I use margarine instead of butter for a cake?
Yes, margarine can replace butter in most basic cake recipes, though butter generally gives a richer flavour. Whichever fat you use, it should be softened to room temperature before creaming.
Do I need a stand mixer to bake a cake?
No. A hand mixer, or even a wooden spoon and some effort, will cream butter and sugar. It simply takes longer by hand to reach the same pale, fluffy texture that signals enough air has been trapped.