5 Classic Cake Recipes Every Chef Should Master Before Applying for Jobs

If you’re eyeing chef jobs in the LA area, there’s something you need to understand right off the bat: you can’t fake cake. Seriously. 

Classic cakes are like your kitchen street cred. They’re the Beatles of baking. The Scorsese of sweets. Knowing them cold is the difference between “we’ll call you” and “you start Monday.” 

So, before you print that résumé on fancy paper and strut into a kitchen in West Hollywood or Santa Monica, make sure these five cake recipes are in your arsenal.

1. Sponge Cake (Genoise, to be bougie about it)

You want to show you understand structure, air, and finesse? Genoise is your jam. No chemical leaveners here, just eggs and technique. It’s like the yoga of baking—looks simple, but humbles you fast.

Ingredients:

• 4 large eggs
• ⅔ cup granulated sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup cake flour (sifted)
• ¼ cup unsalted butter (melted, cooled slightly)

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour an 8” round pan.
2. In a stand mixer, beat eggs and sugar until ribbon stage—that’s fluffy, pale, and holding shape when drizzled. Think of it like achieving “peak fluff” on a pillow.
3. Gently fold in sifted flour in batches.
4. Drizzle melted butter down the side of the bowl and fold in, slowly.
5. Pour into pan and bake 25-30 min. Top should bounce back when tapped.

Pro tip: Genoise gets dry fast if you overbake. Pull it just shy of done. Syrup it up with flavored simple syrup when layering—classic hack from old-school pâtissiers.

2. Classic Butter Cake

This is the big boss. Your base for cupcakes, layer cakes, wedding towers—whatever. Nail this and you’re golden. Literally.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup unsalted butter (softened)
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 2¾ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and line two 9” pans.
2. Cream butter and sugar until fluffy AF. Don’t rush.
3. Add eggs one by one. Mix thoroughly.
4. Alternate flour mixture and milk, starting and ending with flour.
5. Add vanilla. Mix just until smooth.
6. Pour, bake for 30-35 min, cool on racks.

Pro tip: Don’t skip the creaming stage. You want air in there—it’s the difference between “meh” and melt-in-the-mouth. Also, measure your flour right (spoon, don’t scoop). You’re not mixing concrete.

3. Carrot Cake

Moist, spicy, textural—this one screams “hire me, I understand flavor.” Bonus: it tells chefs you can handle inclusions (nuts, fruit, etc.) without tanking the structure.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups AP flour
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• ½ tsp nutmeg
• ½ tsp salt
• 1½ cups vegetable oil
• 1¾ cups sugar
• 4 eggs
• 3 cups grated carrots
• 1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
• ½ cup crushed pineapple, drained
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 9” pans.
2. Whisk dry ingredients together.
3. Beat oil and sugar until light. Add eggs one at a time.
4. Stir in carrots, nuts, pineapple, vanilla.
5. Fold in dry mix.
6. Bake 35-40 min. Toothpick should come out clean.

Pro tip: Rest this cake overnight. Flavors mellow. Texture improves.

4. Red Velvet Cake (not just a visual gimmick)

This Southern belle has more going on than her dramatic color. Tangy, cocoa-rich, and paired with that iconic cream cheese frosting, it’s a vibe. You must get the texture right—it’s plush, not crumbly.

Ingredients:

• 2½ cups cake flour
• 2 tbsp cocoa powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• ½ tsp salt
• 1½ cups sugar
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp vinegar
• 1 tbsp red gel food coloring

Steps:

1. Preheat to 350°F. Grease and flour two 8” pans.
2. Mix dry ingredients in a bowl.
3. In another, whisk sugar, oil, eggs until combined. Add buttermilk, vanilla, food coloring.
4. Mix wet and dry. Stir in vinegar last.
5. Divide into pans. Bake 30 min.

Pro tip: Use gel food coloring, not liquid. Keeps the batter balance intact.

5. Flourless Chocolate Cake (a gluten-free knockout)

You will be asked for a gluten-free option. And if your answer is “uh, I can Google one real quick,” say goodbye to that kitchen.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup unsalted butter
• 1 cup dark chocolate (70%+), chopped
• 1 cup sugar
• ¼ tsp salt
• 6 eggs

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 300°F. Grease a 9” springform pan, line bottom with parchment.
2. Melt chocolate and butter together (double boiler or microwave). Cool slightly.
3. Stir in sugar and salt.
4. Beat in eggs one at a time until glossy and thick.
5. Bake 45-50 min. Center should be just set.

Pro tip: Don’t skip the parchment. Also, rest overnight and serve room temp with unsweetened whipped cream. It’s the contrast that makes people swoon.

Final Notes From the Line

• Know your ratios. Don’t just memorize recipes—understand them. If someone asks you why Genoise works without baking powder and you blank, that’s a problem. (It’s the eggs. Whipped. That’s the trick.)
  
• Finesse the finish. A cake is 50% baking, 50% presentation. Uneven layers, sloppy frosting, or wonky piping = instant “no.” LA kitchens, especially in the higher-end scenes, live and die by looks.
  

Own your mistakes. Everyone bombs a cake now and then. But if your buttercream split and you fixed it mid-service without a meltdown? That’s gold. Mention it. Show how you think on your feet.