Lemon Chiffon Cake
This post may contain affiliate links, and I earn from qualifying purchases. Please read our privacy policy.
Lemon Chiffon Cake is a light and fluffy cake with incredible lemon citrus flavor. It’s the perfect spring or summertime dessert recipe.
March 29th is National Lemon Chiffon Cake Day! You must celebrate by baking a lemon chiffon cake! The cake itself has a light lemon flavor, and it’s topped with a sweet lemon glaze. It’s a big win for lemon lovers. And if you really love lemon cake, you should make our lemon pound cake too!
Share the lemon chiffon cake love on social media today using the hashtags #lemonchiffoncake, #nationallemonchiffoncakeday, #lemonchiffoncakeday and #recipesforholidays.
The History of Lemon Chiffon Cake:
Lemon chiffon cake dates back to the 1920’s. It was invented by Harry Baker, a Los Angeles insurance salesman turned caterer, who created the cake using a unique recipe that combined the richness of butter cake with the light, airy texture of angel food cake. The secret ingredient? Vegetable oil, which helped keep the cake moist and fluffy.
Baker kept the recipe a closely guarded secret for about 20 years, baking exclusively for Hollywood elites and famous hotels like the Brown Derby. In 1947, he sold the recipe to General Mills, which popularized it nationwide through their Betty Crocker brand. The company dubbed it “chiffon cake” for its delicate, airy texture, and published the recipe in magazines and cookbooks, including lemon-flavored variations that quickly became favorites. Lemon chiffon cake has remained popular ever since, known for its light, zesty flavor and soft, cloud-like crumb.
Ingredients Needed:
- The Basics: All purpose flour, sugar, baking powder and salt
- Cold Milk: It contributes to better texture, stability, and rise in a lemon chiffon cake.
- Vegetable or Canola Oil: This is key to achieving its signature moist, light, and tender texture. Unlike butter, which solidifies when cooled, oil remains liquid at room temperature. This helps the cake stay soft and moist for longer, even after refrigeration.
- Vanilla Extract: Use real vanilla extract, not imitation.
- Lemon: You’ll need a microplane to zest the lemons, and you’ll also be using the juice of the lemons.
- Egg Whites: Egg whites are the secret behind the feathery-light texture and perfect rise of a lemon chiffon cake. Use room temperature egg whites- it makes them easier to whip and hold more air, resulting in a better rise
- Egg Yolks: Egg yolks contain fat, which contributes to a smoother, richer taste and a velvety texture in the cake.
- Cream of Tartar: Cream of tartar is an acidic stabilizer that helps the egg whites whip up faster and hold their structure, preventing them from deflating too quickly.
- Butter: The butter is in the glaze, not the cake. Use salted butter to balance out the sweetness.
- Powdered Sugar: Since this is for the glaze, sift it to get rid of any potential lumps.
How to make a Lemon Chiffon Cake:
- Preheat the oven to a low 325 degrees F, and place the oven rack in the lowest position.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients, and then use an electric mixer to beat in the milk, oil, vanilla, lemon zest and egg yolks.
- The key to beating the egg whites successfully is that you need to start with everything dry: dry beaters and a large dry glass or metal bowl. Then use your electric mixer to beat the egg whites and the cream of tartar until the consistency reaches “stiff peaks.” Then pour the egg yolk mixture over the egg whites, and fold them together with a rubber spatula, just until blended. Pour the cake batter into an ungreased tube pan. Bake for an hour and 15 minutes. You’ll know if it’s done when you touch the top lightly and it springs back.
Here’s the fun part. Immediately place the cake pan with the cake inside of it upside down onto a bottle (a wine bottle works great). Let it cool upside down for 2 hours. Cooling the pan and the cake this way protects the cake from deflating or collapsing.
Once cooled, you can loosen the sides of the cake with a knife, and move the cake to a cake stand or platter. Make the lemon glaze, and drizzle it over the top and down the sides of the lemon chiffon cake.
Recipe Tips:
- If you have access to them, use Meyer lemons (available November through May). They’re sweeter than traditional lemons, and they have great flavor.
- If you’d like the cake to be more lemony, add more lemon zest, and use 1 teaspoon of lemon extract and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.
- When separating the eggs, don’t get any yolk at all into the egg whites. They won’t whip properly if there is any fat at all in their vicinity (egg yolks have fat in them).
- If you don’t have cream of tartar, you can substitute it with lemon juice or white vinegar in equal amounts (usually ¼ teaspoon per egg white).
- There’s a reason for not greasing the pan. If greased, the cake batter will slip down the sides of the pan as it bakes. Instead, you want the batter to grip the sides of the pan and rise up high!
- Do you have to place the cake upside down on a bottle? You definitely need to cool it in an upside down fashion. Some tube pans have little feet on the top of the pan, so when you turn it over you can use the “feet” to hold the pan in the air. Or just grab a bottle of some sort and cool it on the bottle.
- Try making this cake with limes or oranges instead of lemon.
What’s the difference between a Chiffon Cake and an Angel Food Cake:
Chiffon cake is made with egg yolks, egg whites, vegetable oil, and baking powder, giving it a moist, tender, and airy texture. It’s richer in flavor and can hold frostings or glazes.
Angel food cake is made with only egg whites (no yolks or fat), resulting in an ultra-light, spongy, and slightly dry texture. It’s naturally fat-free and often served with fruit or whipped cream.
How to serve Lemon Chiffon Cake:
- Serve it as is, with a lemon glaze. Maybe add some fresh berries to individual servings.
- Leave off the glaze, dust with powdered sugar, and serve slices with a big dollop of freshly whipped cream and strawberries.
- Serve with lemon curd or blueberry sauce.
What You’ll Love About This Recipe:
- You’ll be proud that you made a “from scratch” cake that is so delicious and pretty!
- A lemon chiffon cake is perfect for any occasion- think wedding or baby showers, a summer barbecue, Easter or anytime!
- It’s such a moist and tender cake that is a good one to serve to guests (since most people like lemon!)
Fun Facts about Lemon Chiffon Cake:
- While lemon is a popular flavor, chiffon cakes can be made in many varieties, including chocolate, orange, and even coffee!
- Some variations swap water for sparkling wine or champagne for a fancy twist.
- The word “chiffon” comes from French and means a light, sheer fabric—just like the cake’s airy texture!
- Some food historians believe chiffon cake became so popular that it was served at high-profile events, including White House dinners!
- Because of its Hollywood origins, some say lemon chiffon cake was a favorite of classic crooners like Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra.
Lemon Chiffon Cake
Ingredients
CAKE:
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1½ cups granulated white sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup cold milk
- ½ cup vegetable or canola oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest
- 7 large egg yolks
- 8 large egg whites, at room temperature
- ½ teaspoon cream of tartar
GLAZE:
- ⅓ cup salted butter, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
- 2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
- 2 to 4 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
Instructions
- Move oven rack to lowest position. Preheat the oven to 325℉.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Use an electric mixer to beat in the milk, oil, vanilla, lemon zest and egg yolks on low speed until smooth.
- Wash and dry the mixer beaters. In a large bowl, use the electric mixer to beat the egg whites and cream of tartar on high speed until stiff peaks form. Gradually pour the egg yolk mixture over the beaten egg whites, folding them in with a rubber spatula just until blended. Pour into an ungreased 10-inch agel food (tube) cake pan.
- Bake about 1 hour and 15 minutes or until the top springs back when touched lightly. Immediately turn the pan upside down onto a wine bottle or another large bottle. Let it hang out upside down for about 2 hours or until the cake is completely cool.
- Loosen the sides of the cake with a knife or long metal spatula; remove the cake from the pan and onto a cake platter.
- In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over low heat; then remove it from heat. Whisk in the lemon zest and powdered sugar. Then whisk in the lemon juice, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the glaze is smooth and has the consistency of thick syrup. Spread the glaze over the top of the cake, allowing some glaze to drizzle down the sides.
