HYC Yellow Cake

I can retire now. I've cracked the code on the perfect GF yellow cake. Tender, buttery, and fluffy—it's the best GF yellow cake I have ever made.

Clockwise from top left: Bundt cake with dogwood blossoms and candied rhubarb ribbons; candied and sugared rhubarb ribbons; rhubarb poaching in simple syrup; plated cake with poached rhubarb; plated cake with macerated strawberries, candied rhubarb ribbons, vanilla whipped mascarpone cream, and strawberry juice

A yellow cake is a cornerstone and building block of bakeries and home bakers alike—it’s the Superman of cakes and they can do anything. They’re easy with wheat flour, decidedly not with gluten-free flours.

When I’m developing recipes or translating one from wheat to GF, I’m always looking for the key that makes it translatable: crackers work because they are crunchy to begin with, financiers use nut flours, and pate a choux is rich in egg which gives it structure. In the case of this yellow cake, the key is that it’s based on an old recipe/method called “hot milk cake.” Heating the liquid before mixing it into the batter allows it to absorb more quickly into the GF flour, yielding a cake that has a beautiful, even crumb, like my childhood favorite Sara Lee poundcake.