200 leaven recipes

Pan di Spagna is the classic Italian sponge cake, made with just eggs, sugar, flour, and cornstarch. No butter, no leavening. The base for tiramisu, zuppa inglese, and Italian layer cakes.

Egg-free and dairy-free orange muffins made with tofu, fresh orange zest, and juice. Light, citrusy, and vegan-friendly with a tender crumb from the cream of tartar and baking soda leavening.

Alice's white cake is a tender vanilla and almond-scented layer cake leavened with whipped egg whites for an airy, snowy crumb. The kind of from-scratch white cake that makes box mixes look amateur.

A tall, airy Passover-friendly sponge cake studded with grated chocolate chips. Made with cake meal and potato starch instead of flour, this egg-leavened bundt cake rises on whipped whites alone.

Honey-sweetened fig bread with chopped raisins and nuts, leavened with both sweet and sour milk for a tender crumb. A vintage quick bread that bakes up dense, moist, and lightly sweet.

Miracle rise chocolate cake leavened with both yeast and baking powder for a uniquely tender crumb. Sugar-free chocolate Bundt cake sweetened with liquid stevia or glucose, ideal for diabetic-friendly baking.

Emily's white cake is a tender, snow-white shortening-based layer cake from the early 1900s, leavened with stiff egg whites for fluff. The dairy-free vintage classic for birthdays and baptisms.

Sourdough biscuits from starter: old-fashioned fermented biscuits with a tangy, tender crumb, naturally leavened from a flour-and-water sponge and lifted with a touch of baking soda. Pioneer-style comfort.

Sugar-free chocolate Bundt cake leavened with both yeast and baking powder, made with cocoa powder and liquid sweetener. A unique yeast-risen cake with a bread-like crumb and deep chocolate flavor.

Heritage recipe for homemade dried yeast patties made from sourdough starter, rye flour, cornmeal, and ginger. An old-world self-sufficiency skill for bakers who want to make their own leavening from scratch.

Painted sugar cookies decorated with vibrant egg-yolk paint before baking, set on a no-leavening rolled cookie that holds its shape and color. A craft-and-bake project for kids and holidays.

Auntie Justine's 7 Up cake is a buttery, dense pound cake leavened with lemon-lime soda instead of baking powder, scented with lemon, vanilla, and coconut extracts. A tender Southern bundt finished with confectioner's sugar.

Salmonettes are Southern-style fried salmon (or tuna) patties leavened with baking powder and the reserved canning liquid to puff up light and crisp in hot oil. Five-ingredient pantry dinner ready in 15 minutes.

Crisp, crumbly Swedish coconut cookies leavened with baker's ammonia for an ultra-light snap. Rolled into walnut-sized balls and baked until golden. Makes 4 dozen buttery, coconut-flecked treats in under an hour.

Classic Swedish butter cookies leavened with baker's ammonia for an impossibly light, crisp, melt-on-your-tongue texture. Just 5 ingredients, shaped into small balls, and baked low and slow. An old-world Scandinavian recipe.

Vegan whole wheat burger buns sweetened with molasses, leavened with active dry yeast, and made with soy milk and dairy-free margarine. A 50-50 whole wheat and all-purpose dough that makes 36 buns or 2 loaves.