Daffodil Cake is a vintage cake recipe that ingeniously uses eggs to create two distinct batters - one pure white and one brilliant yellow - replicating the hues of Spring daffodils. The white batter is an airy vanilla angel food cake, and the yellow batter in this old-fashioned daffodil cake recipe employs egg yolks for color and richness and is perfumed with orange extract. The result is a gorgeously marbled confection ideal for Spring occasions like Easter and Mother's Day.

Daffodils are one of the first plants to develop in the spring, their brilliant green tendrils and foliage emerging out of the soil followed by cheerful yellow blossoms. To me, they are the first sign of hope that the end of Winter is in site and mild weather is not too far away. This daffodil cake provides the same sunny sensation when you cut into it, with the variegated white and yellow cake gleaming through.

Why You'll Love This Recipe

Two in one - this straightforward daffodil cake consists of two distinct batters (prepared in the same basin!), creating two different colors, aromas, and textures in one cake! The combination of airy vanilla angel food cake and egg yolk rich, orange-flavored cake is a match made in paradise.

Simple - you'll only need 8 ingredients for this recipe even though you will make two distinct batters. By separating the eggs into the yolks and the whites, they do double duty without requiring a long list of ingredients.

Orange and vanilla - this flavor combination would be wonderful any time of year, but to me it is inherently jubilant and sunny, just like springtime. Try a bite of each cake flavor on it's own, then together, and you'll realize they all taste delectable! And if these flavors aren't your preference, it's simple to customize by using various extracts.

Ingredients

• Eggs. Eight large eggs are used, though the yolks and whites will be separated to produce two distinct batters that will all go into the same pan. The eggs should be at room temperature for optimal results.

• Cake flour. This flour has a reduced protein content, which contributes to a light, powdery texture.

• Sugar. Granulated sugar sweetens both batters of this cake.

• Baking powder. While the eggs do most of the work in getting the cake to rise, the baking powder aids it along.

• Cream of tartar. This ingredient serves to stabilize the egg whites during the churning process to prevent them from collapsing during the folding and baking.

• Extracts. The recipe calls for vanilla and citrus extracts. See the next section if you're not a devotee of orange!

• See recipe card for complete ingredients list and quantities.

Substitutions And Variations

• Substitute any extract you like such as almond, coconut, orange, or lemon.

• Add a hint of yellow food coloring if you'd like the yellow batter to be livelier.

• Layer the ingredients for a patterned variation if you don't want to swirl them.

• Try different extracts for each batter for a different blend of flavors.

• If you don't have cake flour, all-purpose flour can also be used with excellent results. Be sure to sift the flour after measuring.

How To Make Daffodil Cake

• Get a tube pan or an angel food cake pan, as well as a funnel

• In a medium basin, combine together the flour and ¾ cup and 2 teaspoons of the sugar and set aside

• In a small mixing basin, beat the egg yolks on high until it turns very viscous and light yellow color

• In a large mixing basin, whisk the egg whites on medium-high speed, adding the cream of tartar and salt until it is just about frothy

• Turn the mixer to high speed, beat the ¾ cup of sugar, adding it 2 tablespoons at a time until the meringue effectively holds still peaks

• Gently incorporate the vanilla and almond extract into the beaten egg whites

• Sprinkle the flour/sugar mixture, ¼ cup at a time, over the whisked egg whites folding in gently until the mixture dissolves and is combined

• Pour half of the egg white mixture into a medium basin

• Take your whisked egg yolks and add them to one of the containers with the egg whites

• Spoon the yellow and white mixtures into the ungreased Teflon tube pan alternately so as to produce a marbled effect

• Gently cut through the batter if you want to swirl the hues

• Bake on the bottom shelf of the oven for 40 minutes at 375 Fahrenheit, or until the top of the cake rebounds back when touched

• Make sure not to open the oven, or the cake will disintegrate!

• When you remove the cake from the oven, invert the cake in the pan onto the funnel, and let it dangle until the cake is entirely cold

• Once the cake is cold, run a pointed knife around the outside of the cake and extract it from the pan

• Glaze the cake with the lemon glaze and serve

How To Ensure You Get A Really Yellow Color In Your Cake

The daffodil cake is not only designed to be redolent of springtime with its delicate, sweet flavors but it is also intended to be brilliant yellow and appear like a daffodil as well.

The yellow coloring in the original recipe comes from using a large number of egg yolks, combined separately from the egg whites, to allow for its golden yellow color to permeate the batter.

One thing you can do to really reinforce that yellow pigmentation is to try and get farm-fresh, high-quality eggs rather than ordinary supermarket eggs.

How To Flavor Different Parts Of Your Cake

The distinct quality of the daffodil cake is that it is essentially a combination of a sponge cake and an angel cake melded together. This allows you to do some fascinating things with the texture and flavor of the cake, as it is effectively a layer cake with various types of cake in each tier.

For example, instead of doing the advised almond extract, you could flavor one or both of the cakes with all manner of various flavorings!

An orange extract, or even a few teaspoons of orange bitters from your bar, could transform this cake into more of a midsummer, citrus-forward cake. You could also try using some coffee extract or even put in a whole double dose of espresso!

Feel free to experiment around with the actual flavorings of this recipe and see what works well for you! So long as you maintain the layers distinct, then you could have all sorts of diverse flavor combinations!