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Pound, yellow, and butter cakes - what's the difference?

post #1 of 10
11/20/08 at 8:22pm
Thread Starter 
Can someone please tell me if a butter cake is the same as a yellow cake? What about a pound cake? I know a pound cake is generally denser than a yellow cake (I think), but I was wondering what the difference between the three of the them are. Thanks. icon_lol.gif
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post #2 of 10
11/22/08 at 2:35pm
Pound cake is very dense. The only liquid is the eqqs, and the flavor is mainly butter. You can flavor them if you like with citrus peel, chocolate, vanilla bean, etc.

Butter cake is cake made with butter. Some cakes are made with oil or (blech) shortening....

Yellow cake can be a butter cake or a shortening (blech) or an oil based cake, but it has egg yolks in it to give it the yellow color.
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post #3 of 10
11/23/08 at 4:28pm
Thread Starter 
So, when someone asks for a yellow cake, can you give them a butter cake or a pound cake as a yellow cake?
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post #4 of 10
11/24/08 at 1:23pm
sure- why not!? On my brochures I call my cake a "Butter Yellow Cake".
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post #5 of 10
11/24/08 at 1:31pm
A butter cake, yes, but not sure on the pound cake. Most people know what pound cake is and if they didn't ask for it, I'd let them know...
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post #6 of 10
11/25/08 at 7:42pm
Thread Starter 
Okay, so I have a good butter cake recipe. I can use that as a yellow cake and than my good pound cake recipe as a pound cake, which is seperate from yellow cake. Does that soudn right? What about white cake?
I am trying to settle on "my" cake. I want to have each cake so that i make the same recipe each time. I have found a couple of good ones and am just trying to narrow it down. Thanks! icon_biggrin.gif
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post #7 of 10
11/25/08 at 8:27pm
It may depend on if the customer grew up on (or is used to) scratch or mix. I'm a mix person (as a baker and a cake eater) and I really really don't like the boxed cake mix that is labeled "Yellow" cake. But I do like (ok, well, I can tolerate...) the boxed cake mix that is labeled "butter" cake. Not sure if I can tell you the difference .... but the Yellow cake seems to always look and taste like cornbread to me.

If your customer grew up on cake mix cakes, then there is a definite difference between a butter cake and a yellow cake.

I have no idea what the difference may be in a scratch cake.

But pound cake is a totally different product all together.

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Cake Cutting Guide: http://cateritsimple.blogspot.com/search/label/cake%20comb
http://www.flickr.com/photos/55969028@N00/
www.cateritsimple.blogspot.com
http://thimblefulsofhistory.blogspot.com/

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post #8 of 10
11/26/08 at 6:45am
trumpet.... yes- you could list your butter cake and a pound cake as 2 flavors, since the pound cake is definately different from a regular butter cake (mix or scratch). So you could have a "Butter Yellow Cake" or "Butter Cake", and a "Pound Cake" listed.

As for white-I call mine an "Almond White" since I put extra almond flavor in it...or it could be just 'White', or maybe 'Wedding White', or Traditional White....just some examples.
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With 30 years as a cake artist under my belt, I'm just here to share my knowledge and experience to anyone willing to listen!
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post #9 of 10
11/26/08 at 12:07pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks for all your help, everyone. I have another question...What is the difference between white and yellow? And, can you lead me in the direction of a good white cake recipe? That is one I don't have on my repetoir (sp?). Is white cake the same as angel food or sponge cake?
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post #10 of 10
11/26/08 at 1:18pm
There are basically two categories of cakes: shortening types and foam or sponge types.

Shortening-type cakes contain shortening, margarine, or butter along with flour, eggs, a liquid, and a leavening agent, such as baking powder or soda. Shortening cakes are the basic white (uses egg whites only), yellow (contains egg yolks), chocolate, and pound cakes.

Examples of foam cakes are angel food, sponge, and chiffon.

Angel food cakes depend entirely on beaten egg whites to rise; no leavening agents, such as baking powder or soda, are used. In addition, angel food cakes have no added shortening or egg yolks.

Sponge cakes use both egg whites and egg yolks. Additional leavening agents are sometimes used. There is no added fat in a sponge cake. A jelly roll is an example of a sponge cake.

Chiffon cakes are a combination of foam-type cakes and shortening-type cakes. They contain egg yolks, leavening agents, and vegetable oil.
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