Emily's White Cake

Emily’s white cake reads like a recipe pulled straight from a hand-written family card from the early twentieth century, when Crisco was the hot new shortening and white cake was the centerpiece of every birthday, christening, and Sunday dinner. It’s a true white cake, no butter and no whole eggs, just shortening, sugar, flour, water, baking powder, and folded-in beaten egg whites. The result is a snow-white crumb that takes color and flavoring beautifully under any frosting you choose.

The technique is old-school. Cream the shortening and sugar slowly until pale, then alternate dry ingredients with the water (this prevents lumps and overdevelops the gluten). Add a teaspoon of vanilla, almond, or lemon flavoring. The egg whites get beaten to stiff peaks and folded in last, which is what gives the cake its signature lift since there’s no whole-egg structure to lean on.

The baking instructions are vintage too: start in a moderate oven, bump the heat to set the rise, then drop the heat at the end to let the cake shrink cleanly from the pan.

Pro Tips

• Modern translation: bake at 350°F (175°C) for 25 to 30 minutes, testing with a toothpick that comes out clean.
• Fold the egg whites in three additions, gently. Deflate them and the cake bakes dense.
• Sift the flour with the baking powder and salt before measuring. Old recipes assumed sifted flour as the default.
• For the whitest possible cake, use clear vanilla or almond extract instead of brown vanilla.

Variations

• Frost with classic seven-minute frosting or boiled milk frosting for a period-correct finish.
• Add the zest of one lemon and use lemon flavoring for a bright lemon white cake.
• Bake as cupcakes for 18 to 20 minutes for individual servings.