The fluffy orange chiffon cake is a delicious American cake, tall, very soft, and fragrant. Its silky batter is baked in its special pan with three legs and cooled upside down!

This tall bundt cake, which I decorated and flavored with orange, is excellent for breakfast and snack with a cup of tea or juice or as a birthday cake for other occasions.
An easy water-based recipe, lactose-free, also ideal for those with intolerances.

It is very easy to make, becomes tall and soft by following the recipe well, and has an extremely soft batter like a cloud, which you can feel by just touching it with a finger.

The maximum softness is due to the addition of cream of tartar to the whipped egg whites, its capability acts as a leavening and stabilizing agent.

The chiffon cake can be served simply with powdered sugar or decorated or filled depending on the occasion.

Today this base is used and replaces the classic sponge cake to fill and decorate special cakes.
So you can use the batter also using different molds and maybe slightly reducing the ingredients depending on the dimensions.

TRY THESE RECIPES TOO

Difficulty: Easy
Cost: Medium
Rest time: 2 Hours
Preparation time: 20 Minutes
Portions: 10
Cooking methods: Oven
Cuisine: Italian
Seasonality: All seasons

Ingredients for the chiffon cake

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/3 cups sugar
6 eggs (large)
12 oz egg whites
7 tbsps water
7 tbsps orange juice
1/2 cup sunflower oil (or corn oil)
1 orange zest (grated)
1 orange aroma vial
1 pinch salt
1 packet baking powder
1 packet cream of tartar
to taste powdered sugar (for decoration)
1 orange (slices for decoration)

Tools

2 Bowls
1 Electric whisk
1 Mold chiffon cake
1 Oven

Steps for the fluffy orange chiffon cake

The quantities of this batter are good for a 25-26 cm diameter mold

In a large bowl, pour the egg yolks, (set the egg whites aside) half the sugar, the grated orange zest, the oil, the salt, the water, and the orange juice, mix and then add the sifted flour along with the baking powder.
It is important to sift it to revive and aerate the flour itself and to allow the baking powder to be well distributed over all the flour and avoid uneven rising of the cake during baking.
Blend the ingredients well, no need to whip.
Weigh the six egg whites you have set aside and add others
(use the leftover yolks for something else)
until you reach about 12-13 oz whip them with the whisk along with the other half of the sugar, when they are almost whipped add the cream of tartar, which acts as a stabilizer, and continue whipping until very stiff.
Fold the egg whites into the previous batter a little at a time with slow movements, from bottom to top, so it does not deflate, it should be a fluffy and airy mixture!
Pour into the original mold (DO NOT BUTTER OR FLOUR IT) or into a pan or other cake mold.
Position the mold on a baking tray, better place parchment paper underneath for any overflow of the batter.
Bake on the bottom shelf at 320°F (fan) for about 90 minutes or 203°F static for 95 minutes, in a preheated oven, without increasing the temperature in the last minutes.
Baking time depends on your oven’s power.
Before removing from the oven, do the ‘sizzle test’ which involves gently placing your hand on the surface of the chiffon, if it sizzles, if you hear that noise as if it’s frying, it means it needs to bake a little longer.
After this time, let the chiffon cool in the inverted pan with the feet to prevent detachment since it is removable, I placed a cup before flipping it, so it stays at the height of the feet.
Let it cool like this for a minimum of 2 hours, it can stay much longer.
After cooling, remove the chiffon with the help of a steel spatula that we pass along all the edges and a knife for the base.
Place the bundt cake on a serving plate either in the base’s direction or upside down. If you need to decorate it, it’s better to use the perfectly smooth side of the base.
If we are not decorating with glaze or others, we can simply dust the chiffon cake with some powdered sugar and add some beautiful orange slices, add a few leaves for an extra touch. (washed and dried)