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

Used Wilton's Bake Even Strips on my cake pans to ensure a level-spaced cake which requires absolutely no trimming—I highly recommend these, or good quality professional baking pans

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 8" rounds and 6 cupcakes

For chocolate cake: use chocolate mixes and substitute 6 whole eggs for the egg whites

For liqueur flavors: substitute alcohol (such as Chambagne or Kahlua) for about 1 cup of the water in the recipe

For berry flavors: use frozen berries, press 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, use 1 tsp of a good lemon extract in place of the almond extract, stir in 1 Tbsp lemon zest

For white chocolate: melt 8oz white baking chocolate & 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