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A slice of white velvet cake on a white plate, with a silver fork..

High Altitude White Velvet Cake

Heather Smoke
Velvety, soft and fluffy white cake, flavored with real vanilla bean, frosted with silky vanilla buttercream.

All recipes on Curly Girl Kitchen are developed for high altitude at 5,280 feet. See FAQs for adjusting to higher or lower elevations.

4.99 from 50 votes
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Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 55 minutes
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings15

Equipment

  • Stand Mixer

Ingredients
 

Cake

  • 1 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
  • 2 cups granulated sugar
  • 1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped (or 2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste)
  • 6 egg whites, room temperature
  • 3 ¼ cups cake flour, spooned and leveled, then sifted
  • 3 ½ tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
  • 2 ½ cups whole buttermilk, room temperature

Buttercream

  • 2 cups unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
  • 4 cups powdered sugar
  • 1 tbsp meringue powder (optional)
  • ⅛ tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
  • 2 tsp vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
  • 2-4 tbsp milk or cream, if needed

Instructions
 

Cake

  • Preheat the oven to 350 F, and spray the bottoms of three 8-inch cake pans with non-stick spray.
  • In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, sugar and vanilla bean on medium speed (#6 on a Kitchen Aid stand mixer) for 10 minutes, scraping the bowl occasionally.
  • Beat in the egg whites, one at a time, beating each for 10 seconds before adding the next. Scrape the bowl down and beat for 10 more seconds.
  • In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt.
  • With the mixer on low, add the flour mixture in three additions, alternating with the buttermilk, starting and ending with the flour. Use a spatula to scrape the bowl well and incorporate any stray bits of flour.
  • Divide the batter between the pans. Bake on the center oven rack for about 25-30 minutes, until a cake tester or toothpick comes out clean.
  • Set the pans on a wire rack, cover loosely with a clean kitchen towel, and cool completely before frosting.

Buttercream

  • In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the butter for 1 minute until smooth.
  • With the mixer on low, add the powdered sugar, meringue powder and salt and mix until combined.
  • Add the vanilla and milk, increase the speed to medium high and whip for 4-5 minutes, scraping the bowl occasionally, until very light and fluffy.
  • Remove the cooled cakes from the pans. Fill, stack and frost the cake with the buttercream.

Notes

Notes:
  • Leftover cake should be stored in an airtight container or cake carrier for up to 3 days.
  • If you don't have three 8-inch pans, you'll either need to bake part of the batter at a time, or use two 9-inch pans instead.  This is too much cake batter to only use two 8-inch pans.
Sea Level Ingredient Adjustments (tested by a baker in Ohio):
  • 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 2 1/4 cups granulated sugar
  • 6 egg whites, room temperature
  • 2 cups buttermilk, room temperature
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 3 1/4 cups cake flour (if using all-purpose, remove 6 T of flour; add 6 T of cornstarch)
  • 4 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
Cake Ingredients by Weight:
  • 1 cup unsalted butter = 8 oz / 227 g
  • 2 cups granulated sugar = 15 oz / 425 g
  • 6 large egg whites = 6.6 oz / 190 g
  • 3 1/4 cups cake flour = 13 oz / 368 g
  • 3 1/2 tsp baking powder = 13 g
  • 2 1/2 cups buttermilk = 20 oz / 567 g
Keyword Cake, High Altitude, White Velvet
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