Butter Cakes

Butter cakes are made by whipping air into room-temperature butter and sugar and then adding eggs and flour, or by adding melted butter to beaten eggs and sugar. So-called high-ratio cakes are made by combining butter with the dry ingredients and then adding the liquid ingredients.

Most butter cakes are made in much the same way as pound cake, by creaming room-temperature butter with granulated or superfine sugar to work air into the butter. Next, eggs are added, one by one, until they form a creamy emulsion with the butter and sugar. Last, flour is added and worked into the butter mixture as quickly as possible so the butter isn’t overworked. Many butter cakes are made in the same way, with variations at different stages. Among the most common of these variations are cakes in which baking powder is mixed with the flour before the flour is folded into the butter mixture. If an acidic ingredient is being included in the cake, say sour cream or brown sugar, some baking soda may be needed for balance since baking powder is a mixture of baking soda and an acid. The acid in these ingredients causes the baking soda to release carbon dioxide, which leavens the cake.