Cold Oven Cake

This site contains affiliate links. I may receive a commission for purchases made through these links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. For more information, check the Privacy Policy.

There’s nothing quite like my Momma’s cold oven cake to make me think of home. Cold oven cake and sugar cookies were staples in Momma’s baking when I was little. Momma used to frost half of it for my sister and I, but leave the other half unfrosted for them. As a little kid I could not fathom why you wouldn’t want frosting on cake. However adult me knows there’s nothing better than a slice of cold oven cake just by itself. Unless you’re making homemade ice cream; then I want it piled high with ice cream and drowned in chocolate syrup.

What in the world is a cold oven cake?

Cold oven cake is very simply a pound cake that you start from a cold oven. No preheating involved. It’s the perfect last minute, throw together cake when you need something yummy in a rush. This recipe is my Granny’s and every time I make it I can remember having it in her kitchen.

What all will I need?

• Crisco vegetable shortening
• Granulated sugar
• 6 eggs
• vanilla
• milk or dairy free substitute
• cake flour (all purpose works just as well)
• baking powder

This is a great recipe for those with food allergies. It works just as well with almond milk instead of dairy milk and the Crisco can be substituted for a soy free variety as well. My daughter could not have dairy and soy for the first year and a half; thus Mama didn’t either since she was breastfeeding. Target carries a soy free vegetable shortening that works really well in this recipe.

However whether you’re working with Crisco or the substitute it still sticks horribly to the measuring cups. My middle school cooking class teacher taught us a really cool trick with Crisco. If you wet your measuring cups before putting in the shortening it comes out so much easier. Look at my pictures below! So much less of a headache!

So put some water in your measuring cups and get 1 1/4 cup Crisco and put it in your stand mixing bowl. Add 3 cups granulated sugar and beat them together well. You can use an electric hand mixer if you don’t have a stand mixer. I love my stand mixer. It makes life so much easier. Did you know if you have issues with your Kitchen Aid mixer they will send you a new one! My old one wasn’t working right so I went online and they sent me a new one and a box to send in the broken one! As expensive as they are, at least they stand behind their product.

Pull out your carton of eggs

You will need 6 eggs. Add your eggs one at a time and beat well after each one. Then make sure to scrape the sides and the bottom well to get it all mixed in. Crack them in something else and then dump them in the batter. No one wants a crunchy eggshell in their slice of cake.

Most cakes call for you to mix together the dry ingredients first and then add to the batter as a whole.

That is the smart way to do it. This recipe calls for you to alternate adding the dry ingredients and milk slowly. You can get away with not mixing the flour and baking powder together first. Just add some of the flour and baking powder, mix, add some of the milk, mix, and continue until all of the flour, baking powder, and milk are in there. You will add a total of 3 cups all purpose or cake flour, 1/2 teaspoon baking powder, and 3/4 cup milk. Make sure to stop and scrape the sides and the bottom as you add the ingedients.

The recipe says cake flour but you can get away with using all purpose. Cake flour makes for a softer less dense cake. So if you have some use it, but if you don’t it’ll be ok. Then don’t forget the vanilla! You will need 1 teaspoon vanilla. Mix everything up well and you’re ready to grease up your pan!

Pull back out the Crisco and flour if you put it away already.

Cakes are one thing I don’t mess with when it comes to greasing the pans. I use lots of Crisco and make sure I cover every surface of whatever pan I’m using. Typically I have a bundt pan I use for pound cakes. Momma bought me this new pan for my birthday and I’ve been itching to try it out. This recipe will not fill this pan completely so if you have a smaller bundt pan than what this looks like, don’t fret. It’ll be just fine.

Once you have it well greased, sprinkle some flour around all the sides and bottom. Then tilt the pan to cover every surface. My pictures below show before and after I banged it on the counter. This is when I holler out bang to my toddler so she knows Mama’s about to get loud. Drop this pan on the counter a couple times; NOT the glass top stove please though! It’ll make a loud clang and all the extra flour will fall off. Then shake out the extra and see if you missed any spots with your Crisco. If there is a shiny spot left make sure to carefully add some Crisco and then more flour. We don’t want it to stick!

Almost time to smell it cooking in the oven!

Carefully pour, yeah it doesn’t really pour out. Use your spatula and plop the batter so it is somewhat evenly spread around the pan. It doesn’t have to be perfect. Just make sure you get it all the way around.

And you’re ready to bake! Wasn’t that easy!

Put it in a Cold oven, no preheating. Turn your oven to 325 degrees. And let it bake! The recipe says 1 hour and 10 minutes. Mine never takes that long. I typically start checking it after about 55 minutes. When a toothpick inserted in the top comes out clean it’s done.

Now the top layer forms a crust so sometimes it’s hard to tell when a toothpick truly comes clean. This is typically done in an hour. The top tends to crack and you can check if it is done in the cracks.

Hot cold oven cake ready to come out.

Look at the pretty crust on top… that‘s the best part!

Pull it out of the oven and let it cool on a wire rack for 15-20 minutes. Then turn it out on the wire rack to finish cooling. Mine got a little browner this time than it typically does in a bundt cake pan. Normally it’s a nice golden color. Every pan cooks differently and you just have to learn when it’s best to take each one out. This one was not dried out but would have been if it had cooked any longer.

Do you see the lighter crust at the bottom of the cake in the picture?

This cake is known for cracking on top but mine typically don’t. However that lighter crust at the bottom is my Momma’s favorite part! We may have been known for pulling off pieces to eat if not enough fell off. Go ahead and cut you a slice while it’s warm. You’ll be glad you did.

Now you eat it however you feel best. Straight up, with sliced berries on top, covered in homemade ice cream and loaded with chocolate syrup or frost it! The possibilities are endless!

Recipe Variations

This cold oven cake recipe lends itself very well to substituting things and getting creative. I have tried adding diced peaches and it did fairly well. I should’ve reduced the milk slightly to account for the extra liquid in the peaches but otherwise it was fine. You could easily do the same thing only using diced strawberries and once again reducing the milk slightly. I added blueberries to it last summer and it did beautifully with no adjusting of the recipe at all.

Granny’s cold oven cake has been a staple dessert in our family since I was born. It remains one of my go to recipes if I need something to take to a function or bring to a party. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do.