Milk brings moisture and fluff to cakes, but what kind of milk should you use? Duff Goldman, celebrity chef and founder of Charm City Cakes (which also makes custom cakes available on Goldbelly), is known for over-the-top cakes as creative as they are delicious. He gave us his expert opinion on the merits of whole milk versus buttermilk for the best cake bake.
“I generally find that I’m more successful when I’m baking with buttermilk just because it’s a lot more acidic,” Goldman explained. “It does a couple of things. One, it conditions your flour, and I find you get just a more tender cake because the acidity inhibits the protein development.” Overmixing dough and batter often results in a tough, dense cake. Buttermilk also improves the texture of the cake because, according to Goldman, “That acidity is going to help keep you from over mixing your batter. So your crumb is going to stay a lot more tender.”
Lastly, acidity facilitates the leavening agents in cakes. “You’re going to get a much better lift out of your baking soda or your baking powder, because obviously that stuff reacts with heat, but it also reacts with acid,” he told us. “If you’re chemically leavening that cake, it’s just going to rise more.” So not only will your cake be tender, but it’ll also be light and fluffy. Food science jargon aside, the bottom line, says Goldman, “It’s delicious. Buttermilk cake is like, when you’re baking with buttermilk, you know the difference.”
Buttermilk recipes to explore and swaps
You can swap buttermilk for whole milk in any recipe without changing the ratio, and you’ll marvel at the difference in texture. Since buttermilk is more acidic, you might notice a mild tart flavor, which pairs well with the sweetness of a cake. Our recipe for buttermilk cornbread and roasted berry buttermilk pancakes will give you a good idea of the depth of flavor and textural upgrade that buttermilk brings to a cake. For a swap, you can try using buttermilk in this recipe for chocolate layer cake.
If you don’t have buttermilk on hand but still want to make the swap, you can transform whole milk into buttermilk with the help of vinegar. Simply add a tablespoon of this Bragg’s apple cider vinegar to a cup of milk, stir to combine, and let sit for a couple of minutes. The milk should curdle or clump to indicate that it has been adequately infused. If you don’t have apple cider vinegar, lemon juice or cream of tartar will work too. You can also mix milk with plain Greek yogurt like this option from Fage; ½ cup of yogurt and ½ cup of whole milk will make for a protein packed buttermilk.
