Best Vanilla Cupcakes
This recipe makes the best vanilla cupcakes! They’re moist, full of vanilla flavor and topped with fluffy buttercream frosting.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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
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.
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.
Store cupcakes in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. Cupcakes will last up to a week 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.
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Get the Recipe: Best Vanilla Cupcakes
Ingredients
Vanilla Cupcake Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cups (224 g) cake flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup (57 g or 1/2 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- ⅓ cup (75 g) sour cream (or plain yogurt), room temperature
- ¼ cup (60 ml) vegetable oil
- 2 Tablespoons pure vanilla extract
- ⅔ cup (160 ml) whole milk, room temperature
Buttercream Ingredients
- 1 cup (226 g or 2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 2 ½ cups (300 g) powdered sugar, sifted
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- Pinch salt
- 1-2 tablespoons milk
Instructions
Vanilla Cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 350° F. Line a cupcake pan with baking cups.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together cake flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla extract, sour cream and vegetable oil.
- Gradually add in the flour mixture in three parts, alternating with milk (So it goes flour, milk, flour, milk, flour). Mix until batter is uniform and smooth.
- Fill baking cups about 2/3 full and bake for 15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven, transfer cupcakes to a cooling rack, and allow them to cool to room temperature before frosting.
Buttercream Frosting
- In a large mixing bowl, whip the butter (with a stand mixer or electric hand mixer) until fluffy, about 5 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, gradually add in the powdered sugar until completely incorporated.
- With the mixer on medium speed, add the vanilla and salt, and beat for a minute, until fluffy. Add milk until desired consistency is reached.
- Transfer to a frosting bag with tip and frost away! See more tips for buttercream frosting.
Notes
Recipe adapted from Pastry Affair.
23 Comments on “Best Vanilla Cupcakes”
Love these! Thanks for linkin’ up with What’s Cookin’ Wednesday!
Oh these are gorgeous cupcakes and I love the pastel colors! They just scream Easter/Spring! Happy Fiesta Friday!
Mollie
hi I only have 1 egg and I can’t get another in time can I use just only? they look very yummy and would like to make them please respond asap thanks so much!
Hi Stella – Using two eggs will provide the best results, but if you are in a bind, try whisking together 2 tablespoons of water, 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil and 2 teaspoons of baking powder. That should be an adequate replacement for one egg.
These cupcakes were absolutely divine. Texture is soft and moist. This recipe I will keep. Thank you Haley for a lovely, easy recipe.
What do you mean by “cake flour”?
Hi Shawna! Cake flour is lighter and has less protein than normal flour. I use Pillsbury cake flour. It can be found in you local grocery store or on Amazon (http://amzn.to/2FQH84s).
What would be the best way to half this recipe, for best results? I don’t need so many cupcakes, so could I just half the amount of each ingredient? Or which need to stay the same/reduced differently than exactly half.?? TIA!
Hi Kailie! Yes, you can halve this recipe exactly, however I highly recommend weighing your ingredients with a kitchen scale for the proper measurements. This makes a huge difference and since the ingredients will be smaller measurements it will definitely help 🙂
Hi there. Are you able to make a cake with this recipe?
I want to make them ahead of time; bake them 2 days prior, ice them night before. Should I refrigerate or leave them out?
Hi Aunush – I suggest leaving them in a cool dry place in your home (no need to refrigerate). Before to store in an airtight container as they will dry out!
My cupcakes didn’t rise. Any suggestions?
Hi Haley! Do you live in a high altitude location? Another possibility is if the batter was over mixed (especially when adding the flour).
Hello. Just wondering what is cake flour? Regular flour?
Cake flour has a lower protein content than all-purpose flour. It is finer, lighter, and softer. You can find it in the baking aisle at your local grocery store where the flour is located.
Hi. I just tried baking these cupcakes and theyre amazing! Ive been searching for a fluffy and moust recipe and I think this is the one to keep. So, im planning to make 5doz cupcakes for a baby shower, can I just double the recipe? And also, If I want to make more densed cupcakes, can I use All purpose flour instead of cake flour?
Thanks
Hi Sheila – Yes, you can double the recipe and use bleached all purpose flour. Make sure the ingredients are mixed well (scrape the bottom of the bowl).
Could I substitute vanilla bean for the vanilla extract in this muffin recipe.
Hi Joanne – Yes, vanilla bean can be a substitute, however, I have not tried it with this recipe. A typical vanilla bean equals 3 teaspoons (or 1 tablespoon) of vanilla extract. You will also so tiny black dot in the batter if you use this substitution.
Can I use this to make a cake? Do you know how big of a cake it would make?
Hi Ashley! I adapted this recipe to make a vanilla cake. The recipe is here. Just omit the Cadbury eggs or use different candy decorations 🙂
Pillow soft cake. Thank you for your wonderful recipe