Best Vanilla Cupcakes

by Haley // March 26, 2017 (updated May 3, 2022)

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This recipe makes the best vanilla cupcakes! They’re moist, full of vanilla flavor and topped with fluffy buttercream frosting.

vanilla cupcake with buttercream frosting on unfolded cupcake liner

Let’s talk cupcakes. If you like to bake, knowing how to make classic vanilla cupcakes is a necessity. Today I’m sharing my best vanilla cupcake recipe with homemade buttercream frosting. So what makes these the best? Well, I’ll tell you.

The best vanilla cupcakes are moist, fluffy and filled with vanilla flavor. The moist and fluffy ratio has to be perfect so each bite melts away in your mouth (just like my vanilla sheet cake). The vanilla flavor can’t be tooth-achingly sweet, but sweet enough to keep you coming back for more.

Choosing the right frosting is also crucial. It’s easy to have a rich frosting overwhelm any cupcake, but I find that you can never go wrong with a classic buttercream frosting. It is the perfect compliment for classic vanilla cupcakes. It’s also delicious on funfetti cupcakes.

Table of Contents

Vanilla cupcake ingredients

Let’s start from the very beginning. Here are the ingredients you’ll need to make vanilla cupcakes

Cake flour – Is lighter and has less protein than all purpose flour. Thus, resulting in a lighter, fluffier cupcake.
Baking powder and baking soda – Both aid in making cupcakes rise
Salt – Activates baking powder and baking soda
Unsalted butter – Adds richness in flavor to the cupcakes.
Granulated sugar – Acts as the sweetener for the cupcakes
Large eggs – Create structure and add stability to the batter.
Pure vanilla extract – Make sure the vanilla extract is pure and not imitation. It makes a huge difference in flavor.
Sour cream – Adds moisture and a little density to cupcakes.
Vegetable oil – Also adds moisture because the fat content is higher than butter.
Milk – Thins the batter and softens the cupcakes.

photo collage demonstrating how to make vanilla cupcake batter in the bowl of a stand mixer

cupcake batter spooned into prepared muffin tin

How to make vanilla cupcakes

Once you have your ingredients, you can make your cupcakes! Here are the instructions (short and sweet).

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line muffin tin with paper cupcake liners and set aside.
Whisk together dry ingredients. Flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
Beat butter and sugar together. Use a stand mixer or hand mixer to beat on medium-high speed until fluffy.
Add eggs. Mix in one at a time until incorporated.
Add vanilla, sour cream and vegetable oil. Beat just until incorporated. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl if necessary.
Alternate adding flour mixture and milk. By alternating flour, milk, flour, milk, flour, the batter will mix evenly. Milk on its own will be too liquid-y to combine and adding the flour first will form to much gluten in the mixing process creating a tough cupcake.
Spoon batter into prepared cupcake tin. Fill each cup two-thirds full. The easiest way to do this is using an ice cream scoop.
Bake for 15 minutes. Cool completely before frosting.

tops of vanilla cupcakes with buttercream frosting next to bag of frosting and cake stand

Tips for making cupcakes

Weigh your ingredients with a kitchen scale. This provides accurate measurements. If you don’t have a kitchen scale, be sure to fluff up the flour with a fork, spoon it into a measuring cup and level it with a knife. Never pack flour into a measuring cup. Choose high-quality ingredients. Pure vanilla extract is crucial for this recipe. Organic free-range eggs help as well because the yolk is richer.

Bring ingredients to room temperature. Butter, milk, eggs, sour cream–anything liquid should be room temperature as it helps the ingredients mix together evenly and smoothly. Avoid over-mixing the batter. When a recipe says “mix just until combined.” Do just that otherwise the cupcakes will become tough. The air in the batter will not expand as easily leaving you with a dense cupcake.

buttercream frosting ingredients in bowls labeled with text

bag of frosting with tip adding buttercream onto vanilla cupcake

How to make vanilla buttercream frosting

The buttercream frosting I used for these cupcakes is my absolute favorite. It’s not too sweet and is buttery smooth (I hate when you can taste the sugar granules in frosting). To get that consistency, I beat the room temperature butter for a while, usually using the whisk attachment for my stand mixer. After about four or five minutes, the butter turns lighter in color and fluffy. Then, all you need to do is add the sugar and vanilla (maybe some milk if you want a thinner consistency) and pipe the cupcakes!

Frequently Asked Questions

What to add to cupcakes to make them moist?

Moisture in cupcakes comes from the ingredients. Sour cream adds moisture to cupcakes and makes it denser as well. Vegetable oil helps as well since the fat content is higher than butter. However, I choose to use part vegetable oil and bar butter because the butter flavor really aids in the richness of a vanilla cupcake.

How do you make cupcakes fluffy?

The number one tip for fluffy cupcakes is mixing the batter just until the ingredients are combined, particularly when you add in the flour. This helps create air bubbles in the batter that will expand during the baking process. Over mixing the batter will crush the air bubbles and create dense, tough cupcakes. This is because gluten is formed and it’s more difficult for any air bubbles to expand.

How to store cupcakes

Store cupcakes in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. Cupcakes will last up 5 days in the refrigerator. You can also freeze cupcakes (not frosted) for up to a month in an airtight container with parchment paper between layers. Defrosting in the refrigerator before bringing to room temperature and frosting.