• Nonstick cooking spray (I use Baker's Joy)
  
• 2¼ cups cake flour (9 ounces), plus more for dusting the pans
• 1 cup + 2 tablespoons whole milk, at room temperature
• 6 large egg whites (¾ cup or 180 grams), at room temperature
• 2 teaspoons almond extract
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1½ cups + 2 tablespoons granulated sugar (11.35 ounces)
• 4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon table salt (I use kosher)
  
• 12 tablespoons unsalted butter (1½ sticks), softened but still cool

1. For the Cake: Set oven rack in middle position. (If oven is too small to cook both layers on a single rack, set racks in upper-middle and lower-middle positions.) Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray two 9-inch round cake pans with nonstick cooking spray; line the bottoms with parchment or waxed paper rounds. Spray the paper rounds, dust the pans with flour, and invert pans and rap sharply to remove excess flour. (If you use the baker's spray, you don't need to do all of those steps. Just spray and proceed to step 2.)

2. Pour milk, egg whites, and extracts into 2-cup glass measure, and mix with fork until blended.

3. Mix cake flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in bowl of electric mixer at slow speed. Add butter; continue beating at slow speed until mixture resembles moist crumbs, with no powdery streaks remaining.

4. Add all but ½ cup of milk mixture to crumbs and beat at medium speed (or high speed if using handheld mixer) for 1½ minutes. Add remaining ½ cup of milk mixture and beat 30 seconds more. Stop mixer and scrape sides of bowl. Return mixer to medium (or high) speed and beat 20 seconds longer.

5. Divide batter evenly between two prepared cake pans; using rubber spatula, spread batter to pan walls and smooth tops. Arrange pans at least 3 inches from the oven walls and 3 inches apart. (If oven is small, place pans on separate racks in staggered fashion to allow for air circulation.) Bake until thin skewer or toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 23 to 25 minutes.

6. Let cakes rest in pans for 3 minutes. Loosen from sides of pans with a knife, if necessary, and invert onto wire racks. Reinvert onto additional wire racks. Let cool completely, about 1½ hours.

• Nonstick cooking spray (I use Baker's Joy)
  
• 1 cup + 2 Tbsp cake flour (4.5 ounces) (plus more for dusting the pans, if no spray)
• 1/2 cup + 1 Tbsp whole milk, at room temperature
• 3 large egg whites (a bit more than 1/3 cup or 90 grams), at room temperature
• 1 tsp almond extract
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 3/4 cups + 1 Tbsp granulated sugar (5.68 ounces)
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp table salt (I used kosher)
  
• 6 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened but still cool.

1. For the Cake: Set oven rack in middle position. (If oven is too small to cook both layers on a single rack, set racks in upper-middle and lower-middle positions.) Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray one 9-inch round cake pan with nonstick cooking spray; line the bottoms with parchment or waxed paper rounds. Spray the paper rounds, dust the pans with flour, and invert pans and rap sharply to remove excess flour. (If you use the baker's spray, you don't need to do all of those steps. Just spray and proceed to step 2.)

2. Pour milk, egg whites, and extracts into 2-cup glass measure, and mix with fork until blended.

3. Mix cake flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in bowl of electric mixer at slow speed. Add butter; continue beating at slow speed until mixture resembles moist crumbs, with no powdery streaks remaining.

4. Add all but ½ of milk mixture to crumbs and beat at medium speed (or high speed if using handheld mixer) for 1½ minutes. Add remaining ½ of milk mixture and beat 30 seconds more. Stop mixer and scrape sides of bowl. Return mixer to medium (or high) speed and beat 20 seconds longer.

5. Pour batter evenly in a prepared cake pan; using rubber spatula, spread batter to pan walls and smooth tops. Bake until thin skewer or toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 23 to 25 minutes.

6. Let cake rest in pans for 3 minutes. Loosen from sides of pans with a knife, if necessary, and invert onto wire racks. Reinvert onto additional wire racks. Let cool completely, about 1½ hours.

• 3 cups powdered or confectioner's sugar
• 1/3 butter or margarine, softened
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2-4 Tbsp milk

1. Mix butter until smooth; add powdered sugar on low speed. Stir in vanilla and milk (1 Tbsp at a time until desired consistency is reached).

Frosts 13 x 9-inch cake or fill and frosts an 8- or 9-inch two-layer cake.