This soft and fluffy orange chiffon cake is infused with fragrant, fresh-squeezed orange juice and orange zest and topped with airy whipped cream. It tastes like a creamsicle in the form of a bouncy chiffon cake.
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Notes from the baker
This orange chiffon cake is an ode to the creamsicle - one of my favourite flavours. The fresh orange juice and orange zest is an easy way to add so much flavour and fragrant aroma to a simple chiffon cake. I wish I could bottle up the smell of this cake and wear it as a perfume.
It's fresh and citrusy with a hint of vanilla and balanced with the creaminess of the whipped cream. The best part of this cake is the soft, squishy, and fluffy texture as all great chiffon cakes have. It's why I love them so much (the majority of the cakes I make are a chiffon cake base!).
The tube pan helps immensely with distributing heat around the cake to help it bake evenly and quickly for the amount of batter in this cake. If you've never baked chiffon cake with a tube pan before or if you have problems with your chiffon cake deflating or collapsing, I highly recommend trying a tube pan. It's nearly foolproof when this kind of pan and you end up with an absolutely bakery-worthy cake.
Why you'll love this recipe
- Soft and spongey chiffon cake. The cake texture so fluffy and bouncy as all chiffon cakes should be.
- Fragrant orange aroma and flavour. The addition of fresh orange juice and orange zest is a simple way to create a drool-worthy flavour.
- Airy whipped cream topping. The whipped cream adds just enough moisture and creamy texture to the cake to prevent it from ever being dry.
- Cake stays soft and fresh even after being in the fridge. Since there's no butter in this cake, it can be served straight from the fridge and maintain it's soft texture that you worked so hard to create.
Tools
- 10" tube pan - Also known as an angel food cake pan or chiffon cake pan. It's a tall, round pan with a removable inner tube and bottom plate. It also usually has three prongs protruding out of the rim that act as "feet" when you invert the pan upside down to cool. This kind of pan is essential for making tall chiffon cakes because the tube increases surface area and helps the cake cook evenly.
- Electric hand mixer - A hand mixer or stand mixer is essential for beating the egg whites into a stiff meringue. It may be near impossible or just take forever to do it by hand with a whisk, especially with this many eggs.
- Fine mesh sieve - You'll need this to sift the flour mixture into the batter. It break up any clumps and aerates the flour for a fluffy cake.
- Piping bag - You'll need a piping bag if you want to pipe a whipped cream design with the whipped cream. In my case, I kept it simple and didn't use a piping tip but you can use any tip that you like or simply smooth the whipped cream on with a spatula.
Ingredient notes
As always, the fullย recipe cardย with ingredient amounts and instructions is at the bottom of this post! Keep reading for more details on each ingredient or skip ahead to theย recipe.
- Cake flour - Cake flour contains less gluten than all-purpose flour and creates a softer cake.
- Baking powder - Chiffon cake is leavened almost entirely by all the tiny air bubbles whipped into the egg whites but I like to include baking powder as a backup in case the meringue fails.
- Eggs - This cake is made by whipping the egg whites to stiff peaks and folding it into the egg yolk mixture so you'll need to carefully separate the egg whites from the egg yolks.
- Cream of tartar - This is an acidic powder that helps stabilize the egg white meringue so that it whips up faster and stronger.
- Granulated sugar
- Oranges - We'll be using both the zest and juice from fresh oranges. The zest contains tons of orange flavour and aroma so don't skip it!
- Oil - Use any light-tasting oil such as canola oil, avocado oil, etc.
- Vanilla extract
- Whipping cream - The whipped cream topping adds the perfect amount of moisture to the cake and adds a milky, creaminess to complement the citrus. You can use whipping cream for a lighter cream or heavy cream for a thicker and richer cream.
- Powdered sugar
Tips for making the best orange chiffon cake
- Carefully separate the egg whites and egg yolks. The egg whites won't whip up properly even if it's contaminated with a bit of egg yolk. I recommend cracking the eggs one at a time into a separate small bowl and separate the egg white and egg yolk by scooping the yolk up and passing it back and forth between your hands until the egg whites slip off in the bowl. Transfer the yolk and egg whites to their respective mixing bowls before cracking the next egg. This way, even if the yolk breaks, you'll only ruin one egg and not the entire batch.
- Patience is key when whipping the egg white meringue. It can be tempting to add the sugar early or quickly or turn the mixer speed up to make the process go faster but these can all compromise the structure and integrity of the egg whites and the balance of sugar with the egg proteins or create large air bubbles that collapse during baking. It's a process that takes some time but it's worth it!
- Scrape the bottom of the bowl when folding the batter together. The thicker batter tends to stick to the bottom of the bowl so be sure to incorporate it into the batter. The cake batter should be one solid, even colour with no streaks otherwise the cake won't rise evenly.
- Do not grease or line the tube pan. Tube pans are specifically made without a non-stick coating because chiffon cakes need to "stick" to the sides to climb up the pan during baking. There's no need to grease the pan or add any parchment paper.
- Cool the cake upside down. Cooling the cake upside down helps it keep it's height and shape as the steam in all the tiny air bubbles escapes while it cools. A small amount of shrinking and deflating is normal with chiffon cake but this helps prevent the cake from deflating too much.
Storage
This orange chiffon cake can be stored covered or in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. A large mixing bowl turned upside down works well if you want to cover the cake without disturbing the whipped cream on top.
Chiffon cake stays soft even after storing in the fridge because it doesn't contain butter so it can be served straight from the fridge or taken out 10 minutes ahead of time.
Leftovers can be frozen in an airtight container for up to 1 month. Thaw in the fridge overnight or at room temperature for 1-2 hours.
Frequently asked questions
A small amount of shrinkage is normal but if your cake deflates significantly, the meringue likely wasn't whipped up properly. Either the structure of the meringue was compromised (sugar added too fast or too early, egg proteins broken, etc.) or it wasn't whipped up to stiff peaks. Letting the cake cool upside down in the pan until it's completely cooled also helps it maintain its height.
Baking by weight is much more accurate than volume. When using US standard cups, ingredients like flour and sugar can easily be overpacked into the cup causing you to add too much of certain ingredients. Recipes with weight measurements are also easier to scale to smaller or bigger batches without dealing with weird fractions.ย To measure by weight, you simply need a kitchen scale which you can usually pick up for less than $20.
Small measurements are given in tablespoons and teaspoons because most kitchen scales are not accurate under about 10g. Tiny amounts like a ยผ teaspoon may not register accurately unless you have a drug scale. Mixing these measurements is a common practice among other recipe sites and commercial kitchens.
More chiffon cake recipes to try
- Earl Grey Chiffon Cake
- Matcha Chiffon Cake Sandwiches
- Blueberry Chiffon Cake
- Strawberry Chiffon Cake
- Mango Chiffon Cake
Recipe
Orange Chiffon Cake
Equipment
Ingredientsย ย
Orange Chiffon Cake
- 160 g cake flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 8 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 200 g granulated sugar, divided into 150g + 50g
- 3 tablespoons orange zest, from about 2 oranges
- 150 g orange juice, freshly squeezed, from about 1.5-2 oranges
- 80 g light-tasting oil, e.g. canola oil, avocado oil, etc.
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Whipped Cream & Toppings
- 250 g whipping cream or heavy cream, cold
- 20 g powdered sugar
- ยฝ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 orange, sliced thinly
Instructionsย
Orange Chiffon Cake
- Prep: Preheat the oven to 350ยฐF.
- Flour mixture: In a small bowl, stir together cake flour and baking powder. Set aside.
- Separate the eggs: Separate the egg whites and egg yolks into two separate large mixing bowls. Be careful not to get any yolks into the egg whites. Set the yolks aside.
- Egg white mixture: To the egg whites, add cream of tartar. Use an electric hand mixer to beat the mixture on low-medium speed until it becomes very frothy like cappuccino foam.
- Beat to stiff peaks: Slowly sprinkle in 100g of granulated sugar, one spoonful at a time, mixing thoroughly in between each addition. Once all the sugar has been added, continue beating on medium speed until it becomes stiff peaks. Set aside.
- Egg yolk mixture: To the egg yolks, add the remaining 50g of sugar and mix briefly with the same hand mixer. Add the orange zest, orange juice, oil, and vanilla extract. Mix until combined.
- Sift in flour mixture: Use a fine mesh sieve to sift the flour mixture into the egg yolk mixture. Mix on low speed until combined and smooth.
- Fold together: Add about โ of the egg white meringue into the egg yolk mixture. Use a spatula to fold together until mostly combined. Add the rest of the meringue and fold together until no streaks remain and you have a fluffy batter.
- Fill pan: Pour the batter into a 10" tube pan (do not grease or line the pan!). Lift and drop the pan on the counter to knock out any large air bubbles.
- Bake: Bake for about 35-40 minutes or until the top is golden brown. After taking it out of the oven, immediately flip the pan upside down and let it cool completely this way. Ensure there's airflow underneath the pan, either by resting the pan on its feet (most tube pans have these) or on a wire rack.
- Release from pan: Once cooled, flip the pan back over and run an offset spatula or skewer around the edges of the cake. Grasp the middle column of the pan and lift the cake out of the pan. Run the offset spatula underneath the cake to release it from the bottom plate. Flip the cake onto a serving plate.
Whipped Cream & Toppings
- Whip cream: In a medium mixing bowl, add the whipping cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract. Beat with a hand mixer or whisk until it becomes firm peaks. Transfer the whipped cream to a piping bag and snip the tip off.
- Decorate cake: Pipe the whipped cream on top of the cake. Arrange orange slices on top of the cream. Sprinkle the cake with a bit more orange zest, if desired.
- Serve: Slice and serve or chill in the fridge for 1-2 hours to allow the whipped cream to set.
Z says
Hello!
I love your recipes - they are easy to follow and so delicious.
I was wanting to make this cake and do not have a tube pan. Is it possible to use 6-inch pans for the cake?
Thank you!
Lulu says
You said 200 g sugar divided to 100+50
So it's 200g or 150g?
Gail Ng says
Oops, fixed it! It's 150+50 for 200g in total.
Rosi says
Lo acabo de hacer pero ni de chiste se asemeja a tu mezcla jaja, la mรญa quedรณ bastante muy lรญquida, tenรญa ganas de agregar harina
Madison says
Can I use a different cake pan or does it have to be this one?