Everyone Needs A Tender Low FODMAP Yellow Cake!
This tender low FODMAP yellow cake is a standby Basic recipe. Use it for birthdays or anytime you need a good basic low FODMAP yellow cake – just like Nana used to make (only gluten-free and lactose-free!).
I give you ways to create this cake in several sizes and shapes, to be the most versatile for you.
Make The Shape You Need
You will find information for making this cake in both either two 8-inch or 9-inch (20 or 23 cm) round pans as well as one 13 by 9-inch (33 by 23 cm) rectangular pan or even cupcakes.
Check it out in this version with vanilla frosting and rainbow sprinkles:
This batter makes 24 cupcakes, by the way.
Layer It Up
This low FODMAP yellow cake makes the perfect layer cake for celebration simple or fancy.
The Chocolate Frosting in the images is easy to make, too, by the way!
To Freeze or Not to Freeze
I used to make wedding cakes for a living so you can imagine that I have a lot to say about cakes! I am not partial to freezing cake layers as I feel they dry out.
That said, these layers CAN be frozen and most folks think they are just fine once defrosted. So this is one case of maybe not doing what I do! You can choose to freeze, if you like.
Low FODMAP Yellow Cake
This is the basic low FODMAP Yellow Cake recipe you have been looking for! Perfect for birthday cakes or anytime you need a basic recipe - to make into rounds, a rectangular snack cake or even cupcakes!
Low FODMAP Serving Size Info: either two 8-inch or 9-inch (20 cm or 23 cm) cake layers; a 13 by 9-inch (33 cm by 23 cm) pan; or 24 cupcakes. Serving size depends on which frosting or buttercream you use. As a starting point we recommend cutting round cakes into 14 servings, the rectangular cake into 24 servings and eating only 1 cupcake at a time.
Ingredients:
- 2 1/2 cups (363 g) low FODMAP gluten-free flour, such as Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 Gluten Free Baking Flour
- 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder; use gluten-free if following a gluten-free diet
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (226 g/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature, cut into small pieces
- 1 2/3 cups (527 g) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 cup (240 ml) lactose-free whole milk, at room temperature
Preparation:
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Position a rack in the center of your oven. Preheat the oven to 350˚F/180°C. Coat two 8- or 9-inch (20 or 23 cm) round cake pans with nonstick spray, line the bottoms with parchment rounds, then spray the parchment. (see Tips below if using the suggested alternative pans).
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Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium-size bowl, to aerate and combine; set aside.
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Beat the butter in a large bowl, with an electric mixer on medium-high speed, until creamy, for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the granulated sugar gradually and beat until very light and fluffy, for about 3 minutes, scraping down the bowl once or twice. Beat in the vanilla. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, scraping down after each addition, and allowing each egg to be absorbed before continuing. Add the flour mixture in four additions, alternating with the milk.
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Begin and end with the flour mixture and beat briefly until smooth. Divide the batter equally among the prepared round pans. (see Tips below if using the suggested alternative pans).
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Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake shows a few moist crumbs. The two different sized round pans will bake in a very similar time frame. The main difference will be that the larger round pans will form a thinner cake layer.
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The cake will have begun to come away from the sides of the pan. Allow the pans to cool on wire racks for 10 minutes. Unmold directly onto the wire racks, peel off the parchment, and allow to cool completely. The cake is now ready to fill and frost. Alternatively, place the layers on clean cardboard and double wrap in plastic wrap; store at room temperature if assembling within 24 hours.
Notes:
Tips
- If using a 13 by 9-inch (33 cm by 23 cm) pan, coat with nonstick spray and line the bottom with parchment (if unmolding after); bake for 30 to 35 minutes and allow to cool in the pan on a wire rack, then unmold if desired. If making cupcakes, line 24 cupcake wells with fluted paper liners and fill each two-thirds full with the batter, then bake for about 20 minutes. Allow the pan to cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes, then unmold the cupcakes directly onto the rack to cool.
If You Can Tolerate
- Lactose: If you passed the lactose challenge, you can use regular dairy milk in lieu of the lactose-free milk.
- Fructans: If you passed the fructan wheat challenge, you could use unbleached all-purpose flour instead of the low FODMAP gluten-free flour (in which case the cake will no longer be gluten-free). Use weight equivalents for the most accurate results with this substitution and not volume measures.
Nutrition
All nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary with brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes and more. For a more detailed explanation, please read our article Understanding The Nutrition Panel Within Our Recipes.
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Will almond milk and earth-balance (or other vegan based “butter”) be okay substitutes to make this dairy-free?
Hi Ellen, you might get a cake out of those substitutions, but it won’t be this cake. This recipe very much relies on the butter for flavor and texture and the fat in the milk works its magic as well. You could try and let us know! But I cannot guarantee a great result.
I made this cake over the weekend and it was “ delicious”. It was such a treat !!
Rhonda, Thank you so much for letting us know! That was a hard recipe to fine-tune as we all have memories of what a “yellow cake” from our pre-FODMAP days tastes like. Hearing this makes my day! It is for folks like you that we work hard on our recipes. Use it the next time you need a “birthday” cake and you won’t be disappointed.
Hello, I made this cake with rice milk (instead of the lactose-free whole milk) and earth balance (instead of butter). I am low FODMAP, but my family has food sensitivities, so I was baking a cake to accommodate all. We served it as a strawberry shortcake with coconut cool whip and sliced strawberries. The came itself came out delicious and I would go as far as saying it was light and fluffy (even with the modifications)! It tasted a bit denser the next day (after it was in the fridge). My brother-in-law is not a big dessert eater and he gave it a “very good rating” and he has no food restrictions, so that compliment impressed me. Thank you for this recipe – it was a crowd pleaser all around!
Thank you for the very thorough report! It will help others who need to make the same modifications. When I develop a recipe I test it a particular way and I cannot necessarily vouch for these types of changes so it is very helpful that you let us all know. Thank you! Maybe try our chocolate cake next?
Hi there,
I made this as a birthday cake today for my husband (our daughter is on FODMAP). At 25 mins the cake was still goopy in the centre so I cooked for 5 mins more & it ended up a tad dry. I followed the recipe exactly. Any thoughts on what might’ve been my issue? It still tasted great & the chocolate icing was yum! Thanks
Hello! First thought would be temperature of ingredients, actual calibrate temp of oven and/or your pan. If you used the exact ingredients called for, measured as recommended, then that would be my guess. The flour will weigh too much if you do not whisk first to aerate, then dip and sweep to measure, using the kinds of measuring cups we suggest. Perhaps take a look at this article: How To Measure, and also I will cut and paste here a post I made in our Low FODMAP for FOODIES Facebook group very recently about equipment: Let’s Talk Equipment
We got sidetracked on another post about equipment so I thought I would share this story.
Years ago, before working for Bon Appetit magazine, I developed recipes and worked with Cook’s Illustrated. Any of you who know the magazine understand their investigative approach. I was well suited to their approach as I like knowing the why’s of cooking and baking.
So one day, while I was working on one of my dessert books, I decided to focus on cake pans.
I made a standard yellow cake batter. I poured half into a flimsy, thin 9-inch (23 cm) cake pan from the supermarket and the other half of the batter into a sturdy, well-made 9-inch cake pan.
They were baked in the same oven on the same rack at the same time. The differences were astonishing.
The cake in the flimsy pan baked 20% faster. The cake was peaked, cracked, the edges were over-browned and the edges of the cake were dry. The texture from edge to center was not consistent and the overall color was not aesthetically pleasing, with many very dark areas.
The well-made pan yielded an evenly baked cake, with a tender crumb from the edges to the center. The cake rose practically level with no peaking or cracking; no need to level it before frosting. No waste. The color overall was a consistent, pleasing light golden brown.
So, do I think that equipment can help us be better cooks? Yes I do!
Hello! I dont tolerate egg, how can I substitute? Thank you!
Hi Elba, we have information in our Vegan Substitutes article that you can refer to for egg replacement info. That said, I do not personally recommend tweaking this recipe. I do not think the results are up to snuff – for me. You of course are free to try!
Hey guys! I am looking to make a jelly roll for my son. I never made one before, even in my pre-fodmap days so I am not sure what kind of consistency a jelly roll needs to be. Would this work? I realize that I need to use different pan/baking times etc and I am willing to experiment with all that (you are not responsible!!). But is this the best recipe to start my experiments with? Will it roll?
Thanks 🙂
Hi Miranda, no this will not work. Use the cake portion of this recipe for Buche de Noel. Take pics! We would love to see.