A dry cake mix comprising 10-50% cake flour by weight, dry basis, 0-45% sugar, 2-12% shortening, 0-20% egg white solids, 1-12% leavening agent, 0-4% emulsifier, 1-20% bulking agent and from 0-10% gum. The cake mix is combined with from 0.6 to 2.5 parts by weight water for each 1 part cake mix and baked to produce a low-calorie cake containing less than 2 calories per gram and 40% or more water on an as-consumed basis. This low-calorie cake is of high quality and excellent texture and is 40% or more calorie-reduced over conventional cakes.