← All Recipes
Chiffon cake gets its height from a well-whisked meringue and its tenderness from oil rather than butter. A little sourdough discard adds flavour without weighing it down. Two rules matter more than anything: never grease the tin, and cool the cake upside down so it cannot sink.
Ingredients
- 5 large eggs, separated, at room temperature
- 90 g caster sugar, divided 20 g and 70 g
- 60 g sourdough discard (100% hydration)
- 60 g whole milk
- 50 g sunflower oil
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 90 g plain flour
- 1/4 tsp cream of tartar or a few drops of lemon juice
- Pinch of fine salt
Contains: eggs, milk, wheat (gluten).
Method
- Prepare. Heat the oven to 160°C (140°C fan). Use a 20 cm chiffon (tube) tin and do not grease it — the batter needs to cling to the sides to rise.
- Yolk batter. Whisk the yolks with 20 g of the sugar until pale, then whisk in the discard, milk, oil and vanilla. Sift in the flour and salt and whisk until smooth.
- Meringue. Whisk the whites with the cream of tartar to soft peaks, then add the remaining 70 g sugar gradually and whisk to firm, glossy peaks that stand upright.
- Fold. Stir a third of the meringue into the yolk batter, then gently fold in the rest in two additions until even.
- Fill the tin. Pour into the tin, run a skewer through the batter to burst any large bubbles, and tap the tin once on the worktop.
- Bake. Bake for 45–50 minutes until risen, golden and a skewer comes out clean.
- Cool upside down. Immediately turn the tin upside down onto its feet or over a bottle neck and leave until completely cold, at least 1.5 hours.
- Release. Run a thin knife around the sides and the central tube, push out the base, then release the bottom. Slice with a serrated knife.
Bake this with a live starter
Our San Francisco sourdough starter is a live culture held dormant rather than dehydrated — ready to bake with in about two hours.
Shop the Starter →