Description
What is a shortened cake? Shortened cakes, also known as butter, conventional, or creamed cakes, are the most commonly prepared types, especially for birthday and wedding celebrations. (This group also includes oil cakes.) These are American butter cakes which typically have a moist, tender crumb and fine, even grain. What will you need for a shortened cake? you will need a fat, a leavening agent, and eggs. For the fat you can use butter, shortening, or margarine. For the leavening agent you can use chemical baking soda or baking powder, it is highly recommended to use 2-3 eggs for a shortened cake. A shortened cake will have a slightly rounded top free of cracks and will have thin crust and high volume. It should feel soft, moist, and not sticky. It will have a delicate sweet flavor.
Mixing method
Creaming is one of the most important mixing methods used . It incorporates the maximum amount of air bubbles created by dry crystalline sugar, typically granulated white table or super-fine, or brown sugar, beaten with plastic solid fat (stick butter or margarine, shortening or lard), so a recipe will rise in the oven and be light in texture when baked.
Recipe
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/8051/four-egg-yellow-cake/ (link to recipe). On the top of the page it shows what ingredients you will need to make this cake. Under the ingredients is the directions, first you will preheat the oven and cream together your fat, sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Next, in a separate bowl, you will combine flour, baking powder and salt, add to creamed mixture with milk alternating. Mix well and pour into prepared pan. Next you will bake for 45 minutes and let cool.