This orange chiffon cake is one of my all-time favourite bakes — impossibly tall, feather-light, and packed with bright citrus flavour from both fresh orange juice and zest. The crumb is so soft and springy it practically bounces back when you press it, and the tangy orange glaze on top ties everything together beautifully.
Chiffon cake sits right between a butter cake and an angel food cake. You get the richness from oil and egg yolks plus the incredible height and airiness from whipped egg whites. The result is a cake that:
- Stays moist for days thanks to canola oil instead of butter in the batter
- Has a tender, cloud-like crumb that melts on your tongue
- Fills your kitchen with the most incredible fresh orange aroma as it bakes
I like to serve this with a scoop of homemade buttermilk ice cream — the tangy, creamy ice cream against the sweet citrus cake is an absolutely perfect pairing. One slice is never enough, so consider yourself warned.
Orange Chiffon Cake with Citrus Glaze
Equipment
- 10-inch tube pan with removable bottom
- Hand mixer or stand mixer with whisk attachment
- Large mixing bowls (3-4)
- Fine-mesh sieve for sifting flour
- Flexible silicone spatula
- Wire cooling rack
- Ice cream maker (for buttermilk ice cream)
Ingredients
Orange Chiffon Cake Ingredients
- ½ cup canola oil
- ½ cup water
- 6 tablespoons fresh orange juice
- 7 medium eggs separated (reserve yolks and whites)
- 1 medium additional small egg white 8 whites total for whipping
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter melted
- ½ teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ cups confectioner's (powdered) sugar
- 1 ½ tablespoons orange zest from about 2 large oranges
Buttermilk Ice Cream Ingredients
- ½ cup heavy cream
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- 3 cups buttermilk
- ½ cup granulated sugar
Instructions
Buttermilk Ice Cream Instructions
- In a large bowl, add all the buttermilk ice cream ingredients.
- Mix it well and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
- Then pour this mixture into an ice cream maker and process it according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
- Transfer the churned ice cream to a 1½-quart (1.4L) lidded container. Press plastic wrap directly onto the surface to prevent ice crystals from forming, then close the lid.
- Freeze it until wholly set for at least 4 hours and 30 minutes, and the buttermilk ice cream will be ready.
Orange Chiffon Cake Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 325°F / 160°C (140°C fan-forced).
- Line the bottom of an ungreased 10-inch (25cm) tube pan with parchment paper and set aside. Do not grease the sides — the batter needs to cling to the pan to rise properly.
- In a small bowl, combine ½ cup (120ml) water and 6 tablespoons (90ml) fresh orange juice. Stir to combine and set aside.
- In another bowl, whisk together the 7 egg yolks, ½ cup (120ml) canola oil, 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract, ¾ of the orange juice mixture (about 160ml), and half the orange zest until well combined. Reserve the remaining orange juice mixture and zest for the glaze.
- Again in another big bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, granulated sugar, and salt.
- Whisk in the reserved egg yolk mixture until the batter is smooth, and keep it aside.
- In a clean, grease-free bowl, whip all 8 egg whites and ½ teaspoon cream of tartar with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until stiff, glossy peaks form — about 3-5 minutes. Do not overbeat or the whites will become dry and grainy.
- Stir about one-third of the whipped egg whites into the batter to lighten it. This sacrificial fold makes the next step easier.
- Using a flexible silicone spatula, gently fold in the remaining egg whites in two additions, cutting through the centre and sweeping around the bowl. Fold just until no white streaks remain — do not over-mix or you will deflate the batter.
- Now into a prepared pan, pour in the batter.
- Bake on the centre rack for 55-65 minutes, until the top is deeply golden brown, the cake springs back when lightly pressed, and a long skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
- Immediately invert the pan over the neck of a bottle or a funnel to cool completely upside down — this prevents the cake from collapsing under its own weight. Allow at least 1-2 hours for full cooling.
- Remove it when it is cooled.
- Now run a knife between the pan and the outer edges of the cooled cake all the way around and invert the cake to remove it from the pan.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together 1½ cups (180g) confectioner's sugar, the remaining orange juice mixture, 1 tablespoon (14g) melted butter, and the remaining orange zest until smooth and pourable. If the glaze is too thick, add orange juice ½ teaspoon at a time.
- Press plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the glaze to prevent a skin from forming, and set aside until the cake is fully cooled.
- Now on a serving plate, place the cake and glaze it.
- Let it sit for 10 minutes before serving.
Notes
Notes
- Storage: Keep glazed cake covered at room temperature for up to 3 days, or refrigerate for up to 5 days. Unglazed cake freezes well wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and foil for up to 3 months — thaw overnight in the fridge and glaze before serving.
- Make-ahead: Bake the cake a day ahead and store unglazed. Prepare the glaze and apply it 30 minutes before serving for the freshest look.
- Substitutions: Swap canola oil for any neutral oil (vegetable, grapefruit seed, or light olive oil). For a deeper citrus flavour, replace half the orange juice with tangerine or blood orange juice.
- Pro tip: Ensure egg whites are at room temperature before whipping — they reach stiff peaks faster and hold more air, giving you maximum rise.
- Do not grease the tube pan — chiffon cake needs to cling to the pan walls as it rises and cools inverted, or it will collapse.
Nutrition
What Makes This Orange Chiffon Cake Special
Chiffon cake occupies a unique space in the baking world — it was actually a closely guarded secret for nearly two decades. Harry Baker, a Los Angeles insurance salesman turned caterer, invented the technique in 1927 and refused to share the recipe until he sold it to General Mills in 1947. The secret? Vegetable oil instead of butter.
That single swap is what makes this orange chiffon cake fundamentally different from a traditional sponge or butter cake:
- Oil keeps the crumb incredibly moist — butter solidifies when cool, but oil stays liquid, so this cake is just as tender on day three as it is fresh from the oven.
- Whipped egg whites give it angel food-like height — you get a towering cake from a simple tube pan without any chemical leaveners doing the heavy lifting.
- Fresh orange juice and zest throughout — the citrus isn’t just in the glaze. It’s woven into the batter itself, so every bite has that bright, sunny orange flavour.
The buttermilk ice cream pairing takes this from a lovely afternoon tea cake to a genuine dinner party dessert. The tangy, slightly savoury ice cream cuts through the sweetness of the glaze beautifully.
Equipment You’ll Need
- 10-inch tube pan with removable bottom — this is non-negotiable for chiffon cake. The centre tube conducts heat to the middle of the batter, and the tall sides give the cake structure as it climbs. A bundt pan won’t work because the decorative grooves trap the cake when you invert it to cool.
- Hand mixer or stand mixer with whisk attachment — you need to whip 8 egg whites to stiff, glossy peaks. Doing this by hand with a whisk is technically possible but will take 15-20 minutes of vigorous beating. A mixer gets you there in 3-5 minutes with more consistent results.
- Fine-mesh sieve — sifting the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt together removes lumps and aerates the dry ingredients, which helps them incorporate into the egg yolk mixture without overmixing.
- Flexible silicone spatula — essential for folding whipped egg whites into the batter. A stiff spoon or whisk will knock the air out. A flexible spatula lets you cut and fold gently to preserve maximum volume.
- Large mixing bowls (3-4) — chiffon cake requires separate bowls for the orange juice mixture, egg yolk mixture, dry ingredients, and egg whites. Have them ready before you start.
- Wire cooling rack — the inverted cake needs air circulation underneath while it cools to prevent condensation and sogginess.
- Ice cream maker — needed for the buttermilk ice cream component. If you don’t have one, the cake is equally delicious served with lightly whipped cream.
Tips for Best Results
- Separate eggs while cold, whip whites at room temperature. Cold eggs separate more cleanly with less risk of breaking the yolk into the whites. After separating, let the whites sit at room temperature for 20-30 minutes — they whip to greater volume when warm.
- Do not grease the tube pan. This is the most common chiffon cake mistake. The batter must cling to the ungreased sides as it rises, and it must stay clinging when you invert the pan to cool. Grease the pan and the cake slides out and collapses.
- Fold with confidence but not speed. When folding the egg whites in, use a decisive cutting-and-turning motion with your spatula. Tentative, slow stirring actually deflates more air than bold folds because you’re working the batter longer.
- Use a bottle to cool inverted. The classic trick: flip the pan upside down over the neck of a wine or glass bottle. This keeps the cake elevated and allows air to circulate underneath, preventing steam from making the base soggy.
- Cool completely before removing. Rushing this step — even by 15 minutes — can cause the cake to tear or collapse. Give it a full 1-2 hours inverted.
Substitutions and Variations
- Lemon chiffon cake: Replace the orange juice with fresh lemon juice and use lemon zest. Reduce the granulated sugar by 2 tablespoons to balance the extra tartness.
- Orange-almond chiffon: Replace ¼ cup of the all-purpose flour with finely ground almond flour and add ½ teaspoon almond extract alongside the vanilla.
- Chocolate-orange chiffon: Fold 2 tablespoons of sifted Dutch-process cocoa powder into the dry ingredients for a subtle chocolate note that pairs beautifully with citrus.
- Oil swap: Any neutral oil works — vegetable, grapeseed, or light olive oil. Avoid coconut oil as it solidifies when cool and defeats the purpose of using oil.
- Dairy-free ice cream alternative: Skip the buttermilk ice cream and serve with coconut whipped cream and a scatter of candied orange peel.
Storage and Reheating
- Room temperature: Store the glazed cake under a cake dome or loosely tented with foil for up to 3 days. The oil-based crumb actually improves on day two as the flavours meld.
- Refrigerator: Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 5 days. Bring to room temperature for 30 minutes before serving — cold chiffon cake loses some of its characteristic softness.
- Freezer: Freeze the unglazed cake wrapped in plastic wrap and then aluminium foil for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then glaze fresh before serving.
- Buttermilk ice cream: Keeps in the freezer for up to 2 weeks. After that, ice crystals begin to form and the texture deteriorates. Let it soften at room temperature for 5-10 minutes before scooping.
What to Serve With This
- Buttermilk ice cream — included in the recipe and the ideal pairing. The tangy creaminess against the sweet citrus glaze is perfection.
- Fresh berries — strawberries, raspberries, or blueberries add colour and a tart contrast to the sweet cake.
- Whipped cream — lightly sweetened with a splash of vanilla, dolloped generously alongside each slice.
- Earl Grey or jasmine tea — the floral notes in these teas complement the orange beautifully for an afternoon tea setting.
- Prosecco or Moscato d’Asti — a lightly sparkling, slightly sweet wine makes this an elegant dessert course for a dinner party.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why did my orange chiffon cake collapse after baking?
The most common cause is not cooling the cake inverted. Chiffon cakes have a delicate structure built almost entirely on whipped egg whites. If you leave the pan right-side up, gravity compresses the cake before the structure has set. Always invert immediately after removing from the oven and cool for at least 1-2 hours. Other causes include opening the oven door during baking, underbaking, or greasing the pan.
Can I make this orange chiffon cake without a tube pan?
A tube pan is strongly recommended. The centre tube conducts heat to the middle of this tall batter, ensuring even baking. In a pinch, you can use an angel food cake pan (which is essentially the same thing with feet for inverting). Do not use a bundt pan — the decorative shape makes it impossible to remove the delicate cake cleanly, and the greasing required for a bundt defeats the purpose.
Why do I need cream of tartar for the egg whites?
Cream of tartar is an acid that stabilises the proteins in egg whites as they’re whipped. It helps the whites reach stiff peaks faster and hold their structure longer while you fold them into the batter. Without it, the whites are more fragile and deflate more easily during folding. If you’re out of cream of tartar, substitute ½ teaspoon fresh lemon juice per ½ teaspoon cream of tartar.
Can I make this cake ahead of time for a party?
Absolutely. Bake the cake a day ahead, let it cool completely, and store it unglazed at room temperature wrapped in plastic wrap. On the day of serving, prepare the fresh orange glaze and pour it over the cake 30-60 minutes before guests arrive. This gives the glaze time to set slightly while still looking glossy and fresh.
Why does the recipe use oil instead of butter?
Oil is the defining characteristic of chiffon cake. Unlike butter, which solidifies when cool, oil remains liquid at room temperature. This means the cake stays incredibly moist and tender for days — it won’t dry out or become crumbly the way a butter-based sponge can. The small amount of melted butter in the glaze adds richness where you taste it most, right on the surface.
Do I need to sift the flour for chiffon cake?
Yes. Sifting the flour with the baking powder, sugar, and salt is important for two reasons: it removes any lumps that would create pockets of raw flour in the batter, and it aerates the dry ingredients so they incorporate smoothly into the egg yolk mixture with minimal stirring. Less stirring means less gluten development, which means a more tender cake.
The Story Behind Chiffon Cake
Chiffon cake has one of the most unusual origin stories in American baking. In 1927, Harry Baker — a Los Angeles insurance salesman with a passion for cooking — developed a cake that was as light as angel food but as rich as a butter cake. He kept his recipe a secret for 20 years, baking cakes exclusively for Hollywood parties and the Brown Derby restaurant. In 1947, he finally sold the recipe to General Mills, who published it through Betty Crocker and dubbed it the first truly new cake in 100 years. The secret ingredient that nobody could guess? Vegetable oil. This orange version is one of the most beloved variations, and for good reason — the citrus brightens every bite and makes the cake feel effortlessly elegant.
If you try this orange chiffon cake, I’d love to hear how it turned out — drop a star rating and leave a comment below to let me know!
