Chiffon Cake
This airy sponge cake was invented in 1927 by Harry Baker, a California insurance salesman-turned-baker. He kept the recipe secret for 20 years until he sold it to the Washburn-Crosby Company, today General Mills, who introduced it in 1948 with a major Betty Crocker marketing blitz, publishing a set of 14 different recipe variations.
Chiffon was advertised as "the first really new cake in a hundred years," thanks to its "secret ingredient"—the recipe used vegetable oil instead of conventional shortening which made chiffon cake light and fluffy like angel food cake, yet rich and moist like classic butter cakes.
By the end of the 1950s, chiffon became a nationwide sensation. Apart from the basic recipe, variations included fruits like lemon, oranges, and pineapple, but also chocolate, walnut, maple nut, pumpkin, and allspice. Chiffon cake remains equally popular even today, and in the United States, March 29 is celebrated as the National Lemon Chiffon Cake Day.
Recipe variations
Basic Chiffon Cake
READY IN 1h 20minThis recipe was published in the 1949 Brown Derby Cookbook. It offers a simple, no-nonsense procedure which was used for preparing one of the most popular desserts served at the Brown Derby restaurant chain. Henry Baker, the inventor of chiffon cake, baked it for almost two decades for the Derby before he decided to sell his recipe to General Mills food company, which brought him a fortune.
Lemon-glaze Chiffon Cake
READY IN 1h 35minAdapted from the website of Betty Crocker, a General Mills brand responsible for popularizing this cake across the United States, this recipe enriches the classic chiffon cake with a zesty lemon glaze, a refreshing addition to this dessert classic.
Chiffon Cake Authentic recipe
This recipe was published in the 1949 Brown Derby Cookbook. It offers a simple, no-nonsense procedure which was used for preparing one of the most popular desserts served at the Brown Derby restaurant chain. Henry Baker, the inventor of chiffon cake, baked it for almost two decades for the Derby before he decided to sell his recipe to General Mills food company, which brought him a fortune.
WHERE TO EAT The best Chiffon Cake in the world (according to food experts)
