This classic 1234 cake (also written 1-2-3-4 cake) is a great recipe to commit to memory. And to my palate, it also gives me the classic flavor and texture of The Perfect Birthday Cake.
This old-fashioned yellow cake recipe has the added benefit of being easy to remember.
Enjoy this 12 3 4 cake recipe with pretty much any frosting you can think of. The melted chocolate bar frosting on my rocky road cake is seriously not to be missed!
Find all my cake recipes in one place for easy browsing. Enjoy!
See my old-fashioned yellow cake (1-2-3-4 Cake) web story here.
This is SUCH a good recipe: Simple ingredients, great results. It’s easy to adapt to different flavours too. Thanks Jenni. You’re the best!
Reader Beth
The Best Birthday Cake Recipe
As I said in the introduction, a 1234 cake is my idea of the best kind of birthday cake.
Moist and flavorful, the cake rises high, resulting in two tall layers (or four, if you torte them) that have a lot of “presence.”
Since the cake has 4 eggs in it, it is fairly rich and a beautiful buttery yellow color.
Compared to a modern “standard” yellow cake, it’s also sweeter and contains a bit more flour.
The extra flour makes it pretty “sturdy,” but not in a bad way.
It’s the kind of cake you could easily carve or sculpt if you needed/wanted to.
1-2-3-4 Cake Formula
A 1 2 3 4 cake is an old-fashioned yellow cake recipe.
Versions of this cake have been around for decades.
This is an old, old recipe. The amounts of the four main ingredients are easy to remember, making this an excellent cake formula to keep in your head in case you find yourself in Dire Need of Cake with nary a cookbook or Hinternets to be found. Here’s all you have to remember:
- 1 cup of butter (2 sticks/8 oz)
- 2 cups of sugar (14 oz)
- 3 cups of cake flour or all-purpose flour (13-14 oz)
- 4 eggs (about 7 oz)
You’ll also need
- 1 level teaspoon of fine salt (or a slightly rounded teaspoon of kosher salt)
- 1 Tablespoon baking powder (3 teaspoons, 1 teaspoon per cup of flour)
- 1 cup of milk
- enough vanilla or other extract/s to make it taste delicious, probably 2-3 teaspoons of vanilla
Another thing about the batter for this cake: it tastes exactly the way cake batter ice cream wishes it tasted but doesn’t.
If you are a Fan of Batter, make sure you use really fresh eggs, because you will want more than just a Wee Taste.
If you’d like to make a 1234 cake as pictured, pair it with my caramel frosting recipe. So old-fashioned and a really tasty combination!
How to Make This Old-Fashioned Yellow Cake
In this section, I’ll go over the ingredients you will need, offer substitutions where applicable, and walk you through the mixing method.
Ingredients and Substitutions
- butter: Adds richness, tenderness, assists in browning, and carries flavor. I use unsalted. If you have salted, go ahead and use that. You will probably be able to cut down the additional salt by half. You may also use a plant-based butter
- sugar: Adds sweetness, tenderness, helps to retain moisture, and assists with browning. Regular granulated sugar is called for. You may also use the cup for cup granulated sweetener of your choice such as Lakanto Monkfruit or Swerve.
- salt: Enhances the flavor, especially of the butter and egg. Use fine salt or kosher. If using kosher salt, you will want to use a slightly rounded teaspoon instead of a level teaspoon.
- vanilla: Rounds out the flavor and adds some woody and floral notes. Use the vanilla you have. No need to go out and buy the primo kind
- eggs: Provides structure, moisture, some additional fat and emulsifiers, and promotes browning. I use large eggs. For a no-egg version, you can use an egg replacer such as JUST Eggs or your favorite egg substitute. (That link shares 4 different substitutes you can try)
- flour: Adds bulk and structure, holds onto some moisture as well. You can use all-purpose or cake flour. If you use cake flour, the cake will be a bit more tender and may not rise quite as high, so it comes down to personal preference
- baking powder: chemical leavener. I use Rumford brand.
- milk: Lightens the cake, keeping the batter from being too dense. You may use whole milk or 2% or any plant-based milk you prefer.
Tips on Making a 1234 Cake
This recipe makes a Rather Lot of batter.
The original recipe, slightly adapted from Carole Walter’s Great Cakes cookbook calls for this to be baked in a 10″ tube pan.
If you’re going to bake layers, you’ll have enough batter to make 2 8″ or 9″ x 2″ layers.
Make sure you’re baking in pans with 2″ sides. Those 1 1/2″ jobbies from the grocery store won’t hold it. And if you have any question about whether all the batter will fit into your pans, err on the side of caution and bake a couple of cupcakes, too.
Fill your pans only half full. Trust me. If you do forget and fill them too full, there is help for you. This is the advice I gave folks on facebook yesterday. Behold, it stands the test of time. Because it is still true today.
Questions?
If you have any questions about this cake recipe or any other, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
You can leave a comment here, and I will be back in touch in about 24 hours.
If your question in more urgent, you can email me and I answer within about 4 hours.
Either way, I promise to help!
1234 Cake Variations
There are many ways to switch up your 1 2 3 4 cake recipe. Here are just a few I can think of off the top of my head. I am sure you will think of others.
- Buttermilk cake: substitute 1 cup of buttermilk for the whole milk. Add 1/4 teaspoon baking soda to your dry ingredients.
- Lemon cake: Add zest of 2 lemons to the butter/sugar mixture, substitute 1/2-1 teaspoon of lemon extract for the vanilla.
- Spice cake: Add 2-3 teaspoons of your favorite sweet spice mix (apple pie spice, pumpkin pie spice) or a mixture of spices (cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice, etc) to the dry ingredients. Consider using buttermilk in place of whole milk (see the buttermilk cake variation)
- Chocolate cake: substitute 1/2-3/4 cup sifted cocoa powder for an equal amount of flour, use 1/2 brown sugar and 1/2 white sugar, and use coffee as the liquid. Add 1/4 teaspoon baking soda to the dry ingredients.
Looking for more old fashioned cake recipes? Give my Butterscotch Cake a try. You won’t be sorry!
A Note on Measurements
The majority of my recipes are written by weight rather than volume, although by its nature, a 1234 cake is designed to be made by volume.
Still, I implore you to buy a scale, both for accuracy and consistency. This is the scale I use, love, and highly recommend:
Don't let its small price and small size fool you. The Escali Primo is an accurate and easy-to-use food scale that I have used for years. It's easy to store, easy to use, has a tare function, and easily switches between grams and ounces/pounds for accurate measurements.
I hope you’ve learned something from this post or that you’ve decided to make the recipe.
It would really help me and other readers out if you’d rate the recipe using the star ratings in the recipe card.
It’s also very helpful to me and to other readers if you leave a comment and/or a recipe review.
Thank you so much for being here and for helping others find my recipes by sharing on your social platforms!
1234 Cake | Old-Fashioned Yellow Cake
The Birthday cake childhood dreams are made of, if childhood dreams of birthday cakes include the best yellow cake in the world. 1234 cake should be your go-to old-fashioned yellow cake recipe.
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 1 cup butter, (2 sticks/8oz)
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 Tablespoon best quality vanilla
- 2 cups granulated sugar, (14oz)
- 3 cups sifted cake flour, (13oz)
- 4 large eggs, , lightly beaten
- 1 Tablespoon baking powder
- 1 cup milk, (I used whole milk)
Instructions
For the Cake
- For the best and most stable emulsion, make sure all your ingredients are at cool room temperature.
- Preheat the oven to 350F.
- Spray 2 9"x2" cake pans with pan spray.
- Line the bottoms with parchment circles and set aside.
- Whisk together the flour and baking powder. Set aside.
- Cream the butter until smooth.
- Add the salt, vanilla, and sugar and continue to cream until very light and fluffy. Scrape the bowl and beater as necessary.
- With the mixer running, slowly drizzle the eggs in, a bit at a time, until completely incorporated. This should take about 5-6 minutes. Scrape the bowl as necessary.
- Add the dry ingredients alternately with the milk: 3 additions for the dry and 2 for the milk, beginning and ending with dry. Do this on low speed and don't take longer than a minute for the whole process. Scrape the bowl as necessary. You may have to finish mixing by folding with a spatula, but that's okay. Better that than over-mixing your batter.
- Scrape into the prepared pans. Do not fill them more than half full. If you have extra batter, make a few cupcakes.
- Bake the pans in the center of the oven until they are well risen, firm to the touch and and a lovely golden brown. A tester inserted into the center of the cake should come out clean. Depending on your oven and pan size, this could take anywhere from 35-45 minutes or longer, so keep an eye on them.
- When done, remove from the oven and let sit on racks for 10-15 minutes.
- Turn out on racks, wrap tightly in plastic wrap and either let come to room temperature or put them in the refrigerator or freezer for more rapid cooling.
- Once cooled, serve plain with some whipped cream or ice cream, or fill and frost as desired.
Notes
Since this cake is more pound cake-ish, the outer crust can be a bit crisp if you let it cool at room temperature without wrapping it in plastic wrap. Use a serrated knife to slice off the crisp bit on the top. This will also let you level the cake if it has domed slightly in the oven.
THE CREAMING METHOD
Please watch the video in the recipe card to see the creaming method in action, especially the modified way I make it, beating the eggs before slowly adding them into the batter.
TIPS ON MAKING A 1234 CAKE
This recipe makes a Rather Lot of batter.
The original recipe, slightly adapted from Carole Walter’s Great Cakes cookbook calls for this to be baked in a 10″ tube pan.
If you’re going to bake layers, you’ll have enough batter to make 2 9″x2″ layers.
Make sure you’re baking in pans with 2″ sides. Those 1 1/2″ jobbies from the grocery store won’t hold it. And if you have any question about whether all the batter will fit into your pans, err on the side of caution and bake a couple of cupcakes, too.
Fill your pans only half full. Trust me. If you do forget and fill them too full, there is help for you. This is the advice I gave folks on facebook yesterday. Behold, it stands the test of time. Because it is still true today.
1 2 3 4 CAKE VARIATIONS
There are many ways to switch up your 1 2 3 4 cake recipe. Here are just a few I can think of off the top of my head. I am sure you will think of others.
- Buttermilk cake: substitute 1 cup of buttermilk for the whole milk. Add 1/4 teaspoon baking soda to your dry ingredients.
- Lemon cake: Add zest of 2 lemons to the butter/sugar mixture, substitute 1/2-1 teaspoon of lemon extract for the vanilla.
- Spice cake: Add 2-3 teaspoons of your favorite sweet spice mix (apple pie spice, pumpkin pie spice) or a mixture of spices (cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice, etc) to the dry ingredients. Consider using buttermilk in place of whole milk (see the buttermilk cake variation)
- Chocolate cake: substitute 1/2-3/4 cup sifted cocoa powder for an equal amount of flour, use 1/2 brown sugar and 1/2 white sugar, and use coffee as the liquid. Add 1/4 teaspoon baking soda to the dry ingredients.
Storing: Store the frosted cake at room temperature for up to 5 days. For longer storage, freeze individual slices and allow them to stand at room temperature for about an hour before serving.
NOTE that the calculated calories are for cake plus frosting.
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Nutrition Information
Yield 12 Serving Size 1Amount Per Serving Calories 426Total Fat 18gSaturated Fat 11gTrans Fat 1gUnsaturated Fat 6gCholesterol 104mgSodium 454mgCarbohydrates 62gFiber 1gSugar 35gProtein 6g
The stated nutritional information is provided as a courtesy. It is calculated through third party software and is intended as a guideline only.
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Anabel Barbosa says
I have a birthday coming up and will be making this cake. Question, will I find sea salt at the grocery store or do I process it in the food processor?
onlinepastrychef says
Oh yay! I hope you enjoy it! You should be able to find it in the regular grocery store or at BJs Wholesale up at White Oak. I was mainly trying to differentiate from kosher salt. If you can’t find the sea salt, try to find a salt w/o iodine in it–it’ll just taste better:) @1af154acc766090d086bf2275d60da56:disqus
Ilke says
So will you bake me a cake for my b.day? 🙂
onlinepastrychef says
Blink. 😉 If you come to visit, I will bake cake, and we will sit on the porch and drink coffee and eat cake:)
Betty Ann @Mango_Queen says
Oh my goodness, you made this cake sound so easy to bake. And it is gorgeous-looking, too. Yep, I wasn’t fooled by the photos in the middle. I knew the results would be fantastic. And yes, I was right. You rock, Pastry Chef Online! Thanks for sharing. And thanks for the heartwarming blog-visit ~ from you, it is always a treat 🙂
PS: If this were my cake, I’d have 2 wishes as I blow the candles: 1) I wish it were June, my birthday and 2) I wish I lived next door to you !
onlinepastrychef says
Aw, BA! Thanks for your always-lovely comments, and thanks too for sharing this post! I am hoping to be the standing baker for the monthly order from the senior center, so I will be sure to think of you when then June cake rolls around! 🙂
Jo-Anne says
Delicious is the only word necessary to describe this cake. Oh, Easy might be another for making it. Can’t wait for my guests to try it on Saturday.
onlinepastrychef says
Wonderful, Jo-Anne! I do love this cake–like a cross between a pound cake and a “regular” yellow cake! I’m sure your guests will love it!
RAB says
looking for a new chocolate cake recipe to make for tonight – and of course, been stuck on your blog for over an hour now. THIS is exactly the type of post that I was referring to in the survey – I learned couple of things just from this one – I now know how to trim up a cake after overflow disaster! ok – back to the chocolate cake search. . .
Jennifer Field says
Yay! Have you considered the chocolate stout cake? That thing is amazing and doesn’t require a mixer. If you don’t want to make it with beer, you can always make it with coffee instead: https://pastrychefonline.com/2013/03/19/stout-cake-and-burnt-caramel-buttercream/ If you don’t want to deal with that buttercream, cream cheese frosting or ermine would work, too. Enjoy!
grace says
I saw a few similar recipes only difference is that they have about 2oz vegetable oil in it. can u explaind the difference?
Jennifer Field says
Oil in both the cake and the frosting, Grace? I’m not sure, but I can make some educated guesses. In the cake, subbing in liquid fat for part or all of the solid fat mean that the texture, expecially when chilled, will be softer and the cake will “read” as moister. I am not sure about in the frosting, but now I want to try it out and see what happens!
kathleen says
This Cake was the Standard Cake in our house when i wX growing up! 70 years ago!
Mom would vary it by tweeking the flavor ingredients a bit , coming up with a Spice Cake, Orange Cake, Rum Cake, Jello Poke Cake, Coconut Cake, Lemon Coconut cake, Almond Cake, and Strawberry Cake! Baked in either a Tube pan or 9” layers ( more yummy icing and fillings with the layer version : ) !
So easy a Kid can do it! I took over bakinv this when I was 8 yrs old : ) ( Mom lit the Oven )
i even added my own version whe i added Vanilla and Rose Water for flavor!
This 1234 Cake is a Timeless Treasure !
Jennifer Field says
Vanilla and rose water sounds like an especially lovely combination, Kathleen. I appreciate your taking the time to comment! So many ways to vary it, and thank you so much for pointing it out. I take for granted that you can make tweaks, but not everyone does. Makes it so much easier than having to remember 12 recipes. Just memorize the base for 1-2-3-4 cake and have at it! I love this cake for birthdays. So very good!
Suzanna barthelmy says
If so am doubling the recipe do have to double the leveling agent
Jennifer Field says
I’m leery of doubling cake recipes for this exact reason, the question of how to scale the leavening. Honestly I would consider making 2 batches and then combining the batter. Since the cake is leavened with baking powder rather than soda, the wait will not be enough to disrupt the rise in the oven. For a really good discussion of how to scale cake recipes and leavening, I highly recommend Rise3 Levy Beranbaum’s The Cake Bible.