Last updated on June 23rd, 2018 at 07:14 pm
Magic Cake – one simple thin batter, bake it and voila! You end up with a 3 layer cake, with a delicious custardy layer in the center. It really is magical.
I’m reposting this Magic Cake here on Jo Cooks today because to this day it’s the most popular recipes here and it’s the one recipe that I usually get the most questions on. Plus I’ve also made a video for you guys to see just how easy it is to make, simply scroll down to see it.
Where do I begin? I started out very skeptical when I saw this cake on foodepix.com years ago. The name intrigued me at first. I had to click to see the recipe just to see why this cake is called magic cake, because there really is no such thing. Unfortunately the recipe was in another language, but there’s always google translator, the only problem is you know you always lose something in the translation. But not to worry, it was enough for me to realize why this cake is called magic cake.
If you look closely enough you can see this cake has 3 layers, with a layer of custard in the middle. The way it looks it almost reminded me of a Napoleon dessert. So at first sight you might think this cake is a lot of work where you make the cake separately and the custard separately and you cut the cake in half and put custard in the middle and so on. Not at all!
This truly is a magic cake and what happens is pure magic. OK maybe not, but close enough. You really only have to make the batter which is very thin, when you read the recipe you’ll see that the ratio of milk to flour is high, so the batter is very thin, similar to a crepe batter. The best part is that’s the hardest thing you have to do, is make the batter, pour the batter in a 8 inch x 8 inch baking dish, place it in the oven and let the magic happen. After an hour you have a perfect 3 layer cake with the most delicious custard layer.
Many people have asked me why does the cake end up with 3 layers and I’ve thought about this for a long time and especially after making it dozens of times I really think it’s because of the thin batter and the egg whites that are folded in. My trick to make sure you do get the 3 layers is to make sure you don’t fold in the egg whites completely, you want to make sure you still have some of the white bits in it. This is my only tip, really. This truly is one of the easiest cakes you’ll ever make and one of the most impressive and not to mention delicious. Now try and stop at eating only one piece, that will require some magic.
Other magic cakes to try:
- Chocolate Magic Cake
- Butterscotch Magic Cake
- Lemon Magic Cake
- Pumpkin Magic Cake
- Impossible Coconut Pie
- Magic Flan Cake
If you try this recipe, please let us know! Leave a comment, rate it and tag a photo #jocooks on Instagram so we can see it. I always love to see what you guys come up with!
- 4 eggs at room temperature
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 8 tbsp butter unsalted and melted
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups milk lukewarm *
- powdered sugar for dusting cake
- Preheat oven to 325 F degrees. Grease a 8 inch x 8 inch baking dish or line it with parchment paper so that it's easier to get the cake out.
- Separate the eggs and beat the egg yolks with the sugar until light and fluffy. Add butter and vanilla extract and continue beating for another minute or two after which you can add the flour and mix it in until fully incorporated.
- Slowly start adding the milk and beat until everything is well mixed together.
- Add the egg whites to a mixer and mix until stiff peaks form.
- Add the egg whites to the cake batter and gently fold them in. Another variation to folding in the egg whites would be to whisk them in to the cake batter, this is a lot faster and easier. Make sure you don't fold the egg whites in completely, you still want to see some of the white bits floating at the top.
- Pour batter into baking dish and bake for 40 to 70 minutes or until the top is lightly golden. The baking time could vary greatly depending on the oven, so take a peek at around 40 minutes and see how it looks.
- Sprinkle some powdered sugar after cake has cooled.
Recipe Video
* To get the milk lukewarm I usually warm it in the microwave for about a minute.
The baking time can vary greatly for this cake. I've baked this cake in 3 different ovens and I've always needed different times which were from 40 to 70 minutes. The oven I have right now only requires about 45 minutes to get a nice golden color on the cake, whereas other ovens I've used required the full 70 minutes. Test if after 40 minutes to see what it looks like. The cake is done when it only jiggles slightly but feels firm to touch.
General guidelines for baking at high altitude (not all may apply to this recipe): If baking at altitudes of 5000 feet or higher, keep this in mind:
- Reduce baking powder: for each teaspoon, decrease 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon.
- Reduce sugar: for each cup, decrease 0 to 2 tablespoons.
- Increase liquid: for each cup, add 2 to 4 tablespoons.
- Increase oven temperature by 25 degrees F.
Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on products used.
★ Did you make this recipe? Don't forget to give it a star rating below!
Update: There have been a lot of questions on this cake so I’ve compiled a list of questions and answers for people.
Frequently Asked Questions about making Magic Cake:
Question: Where is the chocolate magic cake recipe?
Answer: Click here to get the recipe.
Question: If there are 8 oz in a cup, why is 3/4 cup only 4 oz.
Answer: There are 8 fluid oz in a cup, however the weight of flour for 1 cup is 4.41 oz.
Question: The batter is very thin, very liquidy, is this ok?
Answer: Of course, when you have 2 cups of milk and very little flour, it will be a very thin batter, but that’s the beauty of this cake, this thin batter turns into a 3 layer cake.
Question: Can I use soy milk, almond milk, skim milk?
Answer: I’ve only made it with 2% milk, however other readers have and have commented that the cake still turned out fine, however it might not be the same as with regular milk.
Question: Can I use gluten free flour?
Answer: I have only tried it with all-purpose flour, so I can’t guarantee that it will turn out the same. Other readers have and some said the cake turned out fine and for others it didn’t. It’s up to you if you want to try it.
Question: What is all purpose flour? Is it the same as self rising flour.
Answer: All purpose flour is just plain regular white flour. Self rising flour is all purpose flour with baking powder and salt added to it. I would recommend using all purpose flour for this cake.
Question: Can I use stevia or splenda instead of sugar?
Answer: I’ve only made it with regular white sugar, so I’m not sure what would happen if you substituted with stevia or splenda.
What size dish should I use to make this
Thank you
It’s specified in step 1, an 8×8 inch baking dish.
I really took my time to bake this cake and it came out perfectly! Baked it on 160°C for 50 minutes.
My cake started to go brown on top really quickly (by about the fifteen minute mark), and one corner started to puff up really high. I panicked and added water to the pan that the tin rested on (so a water bath) and while the puffed bit did go down, and the cake was very tasty, I didn’t get three layers. I just got cake layer and all custard layer. I ended up only cooking the cake for 25 minutes as well, the top is now quite golden brown and the cake is cooked. How can I make sure it has three layers and doesn’t over-cook on the top?
25 minutes is quite a bit less than wheat the recipe calls for so I would say that’s where the error was. As you can see in the photos, the top of our cake is quite brown. Every oven is different, especially if you’re using a convection oven, so if you’re worried about how much your cake browned you can reduce the temperature.
Will it freeze?
Freeze it in an airtight container. If you do this, don’t microwave to defrost. First, move it to the fridge for a day, and then move it to the counter if you want it to be at room temperature.
It was very fascinating to know the cake I baked was going to have 3 layers. Thank you so much for the details recipe and instructions. Everybody liked it when I offered them the cake.
You mentioned baking powder in the narrative, but not in the recipe..I just put in the oven without it..grrr
There’s no baking powder in the recipe, these are just general guidelines for baking at high altitude, not all apply to this recipe.
Will the recipe work if doubled?
As long as you have a pan that will accommodate that much batter without spilling over in the oven, yes.
This delicious, just swee enough . My husband ate half lol! So easy, but looks good enough for guest by adding frtuit on top,my kind of recipe! Thanks!
Hi. Is it ok to bale it in a 9x9in tray?
Yes, should be just fine.
A deliciously addictive dessert. Too tasty.
Wow… This recipe is so simple and easy to make and I hope this will also very yummy. Thanks for sharing this amazing recipe with us.
So I was very excited to try this recipe. I followed the instructions to a T, baked for about 60 minutes. I achieved the 3 layers, but the cake tasted so eggy my 3 year old wouldn’t swallow even a bite. What did I do wrong? I do not understand. It was easy to make n it came out very pretty. But I clearly did something wrong flavor wise. I used McCormack vanilla (brand new bottle never opened) and fresh eggs. Any ideas where I went wrong?
There are 4 eggs called for in the recipe, so if he doesn’t like eggs this recipe might not be up his alley. You can try serving it with a drizzle of chocolate/nutella, or some fruit sauce.
did you put the sugar in
I just made this cake and it is yummy but it seems like its never seems to pass the tooth pick test. I cooked it for about 2 hours and every time I poked it with a tooth pick it didn’t come out clean. Is this normal? The cake didn’t have three layers for me (probably because how long I cooked it as it was crusted on all sides). Could it be I didn’t beat the eggs long enough? (I beat the for 30 minutes with a hand mixer until the peaks were just starting to form.)
The cake ends up having a custard layer so a toothpick will always pick that part up. I would say it was probably baked for too long. Rather than relying on the toothpick test simply go for color- you’re looking for light golden brown on the top of the cake.
This looks so good! It would be a fun one to make for company!
Thanks for sharing! Does it keep long?
You should store it in the fridge because of all the dairy, and this way it will last about 3 days in the fridge.
Can I use whole milk?
Yes you can
Can half and half be used instead of milk to get a creamier tasting custard?
I suppose it can, I haven’t tried it myself, so not sure how it will turn out.
I’ve made this as written, perfect, stunning and delicious.
I started wondering if anyone tried putting fruit (blueberries) on top before baking?
Would they stay on top? Sink to the middle? Or, sink to the bottom? I bet it would
be very pretty though. Please let me know if you tried one of these extras? Thank
you.
I would leave the fruit out, it will end up in the middle of the cake and may interfere with how the layers turn out. You can put fresh fruit or preserves on top after the cake is done baking.
Have you tried it with fruit? I was thinking about putting sliced canned peaches or pears on bottom of pan before adding batter. I’m willing to risk its not turning out, for science.
Just wondering if you tried the peaches, and how it turned out? Sounds delicious!
I just made and it is really easy. I made with macha looks amazing. Thank you for the recipe.