Wedding Cake Recipe (White Almond Sour Cream)

The texture of this cake is great for a wedding cake -- not too fluffy so it breaks from the weight, but also not overly dense. The flavor, texture and moistness are just right. This recipe serves about 40-50 people.

2 (18 ounce) boxes white cake mix (Betty Crocker or Pillsbury)
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 2/3 cups water
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons real vanilla
2 teaspoons almond extract
2 cups sour cream
8 large egg whites

Place all dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl and stir together with a wire whisk.
Add the remaining ingredients and beat on medium speed for 2 minutes.
Pour into greased and floured cake pans, filling each pan a little over half full.
Lightly tap cake pans on counter to bring air bubbles to top.
Bake in preheated 325° F oven until cake tests done.
Baking time varies according to the size and depth of pans being used.

(I have used Wilton's Bake Even Strips on my cake pans to ensure a level-topped cake which is supposed to require absolutely no trimming-- works fairly well, but most likely will still need to even out/trim to get cake absolutely even. A must for a wedding cake)

In 2" deep pans, this recipe makes:
One 14" round and one 6" round or One 16" round
or One 12" round and one 10" round
or One 12 X 18" sheet cake
or One 12" round and one 8" round and one 6" round
or Two 9" squares or 5 dozen cupcakes.

Half the recipe makes:
Two 7" rounds or Two 6" rounds and 6 cupcakes.

For chocolate cake: substitute choc. cake mix for white... instead of egg whites do 6 whole eggs... substitute 2/3 of the flour for cocoa powder, omit almond extract

For berry flavors: use frozen berries, thaw reserving the juice. Substitute the berry juice for part of the water in the recipe, and stir the berries in at the end.

For lemon cake: substitute lemon juice for about 1 cup of the water in the recipe, use 6 whole eggs instead of the whites, stir in 1 Tblsp lemon zest, and use 1 tsp of a good lemon extract in place of the almond.

For white chocolate: melt 8oz white baking chocolate and cool slightly. Use 6 whole eggs in the recipe instead of the whites, temper the chocolate by stirring in a small amount of the batter, then add the white chocolate to the entire batter and stir well. Doesn't bake up quite as high as the original, so add a pinch more batter to the pans.

For Chocolate Filling:
Melt 2 cups chocolate chips with a can of sweetened condensed milk. Stir until smooth and then let cool until fudge consistency.