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Vanilla Cupcakes with Buttercream Frosting are fluffy and delicious with a velvety smooth buttercream frosting. This is seriously the best vanilla cupcake I’ve ever tasted!
Everybody loves cupcakes, and these are one of our favorite recipes. They are simple and classic, giving some of our fancier treats, like Strawberry Cupcakes and Coconut Cupcakes with Raspberry Filling, a run for their money.
Table of Contents
Moist Vanilla Cupcake Recipe
I’ll be the first to admit, that while I love to bake cakes and cupcakes, they have never been my forte. I have a favorite chocolate cake recipe, but a really good vanilla cake recipe has eluded me for quite some time.
I’ve tried my fair share, but I really wanted something fluffy and light while still moist and delicious, and this vanilla cupcake recipe definitely fits the bill. So moist, so tender, and so easy, this is a simple treat you’ll want to make over and over again.
What makes cupcakes light and fluffy?
The key to a light and fluffy cupcake is all about the mixing. Overmix your batter and you’ll wind up with a dense cupcake. Always mix at a low speed and mix just until all the ingredients are incorporated.
Ingredients for vanilla cupcakes
This is a basic cake recipe with common ingredients like all-purpose flour, salt, baking soda and sugar, plus melted butter, an egg, milk and sour cream to keep it moist.
Most cake recipes will call for 1 tablespoon of vanilla, but for moist vanilla cupcakes you’re going to double that, and use the best quality real vanilla extract you can find. Ir you can make your own vanilla extract from scratch.
How to Make Vanilla Cupcakes
The key to a good cake or muffin batter is combining the ingredients just right. You don’t want to overmix the flour into the batter as it can result in a dense and chewy cake rather that something light and fluffy.
- Have your ingredients ready at room temperature. The butter may take longer, but the egg, sour cream and milk can sit on the counter for 15-20 minutes or so. Room temperature ingredients bond together very easily since they’re warmer, creating a seamless and evenly textured batter.
- Mix your dry and wet ingredients separately. Combine the flour, salt and baking powder/soda together in a separate bowl and then adding them to the wet batter ensure that everything is evenly mixed and incorporated without the risk of overmixing. We’ve already determined that’s not a good thing.
- Always use cupcake liners for cupcakes. This isn’t a necessity; you can easily make cupcakes without liners . But get yourself some good quality, grease proof liners and you have to worry about your cake sticking to the paper ever again. Plus, if you’re feeding a crowd they are much easier to serve. Set the liners in your cupcake pan before making the batter so they’re ready to go.
- Use an ice cream scoop to fill them. This is my favorite tool and favorite tip when making cupcakes. If you want evenly sized cupcakes, do yourself a favor and grab one of these spring release ice cream scoops. They are the perfect size to fill about 2/3 – ¾ of the cups which is exactly what you need.
- Bake. Once you’ve scooped your batter into the pretty little liners, it’s time to bake them. Set a timer, set two if you have to, and make sure to check on your cupcakes. You want them to be domed and slightly sunken in the center rather than peaked at the top. If you’re unsure, use the toothpick test and if no batter clings to your toothpicks, the cupcakes are done.
How to decorate cupcakes
You can really put any kind of topping you like on your cupcakes, I won’t judge. Cool the cupcakes completely, and make my favorite simple buttercream frosting. But you can go with chocolate, or peanut frosting, or even just a dollop of cool whip. Chocolate ganache is always nice or maybe a dip in some creamy Nutella. Oh the possibilities!
How to Make Buttercream Frosting
Unlike baking, which can feel like a complicated math problem sometimes, making the perfect frosting is pretty simple. It requires heavy mixing on high speed, and the recipes are typically pretty forgiving.
If you feel it’s too sweet, add a pinch of salt and maybe a little more butter. Too thin? Add more powdered sugar. On the flip side if it’s too thick, add more milk. As long as you follow the basic guidelines of the recipe, you’ll be rewarded with a fluffy, creamy vanilla buttercream to ice your vanilla cupcakes.
You can choose to just spread on the frosting, or if you’re feeling fancy, use a piping bag and tips.
Pro Tips for the best Vanilla Cupcakes
I’ve made these quite a few times now, and I’ve learned a few things along the way.
- Measure your flour properly. Rather than scooping your flour, use a spoon to sprinkle the flour into the measuring cup, then level off the top with the flat side of a knife.
- Buy good quality vanilla. I recommend getting high quality ingredients always when you can, but the vanilla for your vanilla cupcakes recipe is especially important. Make sure you are getting real vanilla extra and not imitation.
- Match the occasion. The great thing about vanilla buttercream is it’s a blank canvas. Try adding food coloring to it to match your party decor.
- Don’t forget the sprinkles! Colored sprinkles can set the mood from totally fun with multi-colored jimmies or nonperils, or totally classy with some shiny, sparkly sugar pearls.
Storage and Freezing
Storage: Store in the refrigerator after two hours. Once they’ve been chilled in the fridge they should sit out for several minutes before eating.
Freezing: Place cupcakes in a single layer in a large freezer safe container. Pop them in the fridge for up to 4 months. Thaw in the fridge and enjoy.
More Cupcakes and Baked Goods
- Chocolate Cupcakes with Toasted Coconut Whipped Cream
- St. Patrick’s Day Cupcake Cake
- Lemon Angel Food Cupcakes
- Blueberry Sour Cream Coffee Cake Muffins
- Strawberry Cupcakes
Vanilla Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream
Ingredients
Vanilla Cupcakes
- 1 ⅔ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup unsalted butter melted and slightly cooled
- 1 large egg
- ¼ cup sour cream
- ¾ cup milk
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
- ¾ cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 3-4 cups confectioners sugar (powdered sugar)
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons milk
- Pinch of kosher salt
Instructions
Vanilla Cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a cupcake pan with 12 liners.
- In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt.
- In a large mixing bowl whisk the sugar and melted butter until smooth (mixture will be gritty). Whisk in eggs, then sour cream, milk and vanilla extract until combined.
- Slowly add in dry ingredients and stir until completely incorporated. Batter will be thick.
- Fill cupcake lines ⅔ of the way full (about ¼ cup of batter). Bake in the preheated oven for about 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool completely before frosting.
Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
- Using a stand mixer with the whisk attachment (or a large mixing bowl and a handheld mixer), beat butter at medium speed until smooth and creamy; 2-3 minutes.
- Add confectioners sugar, vanilla and milk. Turn mixer up to high speed and beat for 3 minutes. If mixture is too thick, add more milk, a teaspoon at a time. If too thin, add more confectioners sugar, a little at a time.
- Frost cooled cupcakes using a spreader or a piping bag. Depending on how much frosting you use on each cupcake, there may be some leftover.
Notes
Nutrition
This post was first published in 2018 and updated in 2021 to include some tried and tested pro tips that we hope you find useful.
Looks really good Thanks
You are so welcome Shirley! Thanks for stopping by.
This cupcake is great! Not too sweet, but with plenty of frosting. Consistency of the cupcakes is a little thick, but they stay moist for days. A great intro to baking!
This cupcake is so good I made them for my friends birthday and now I can’t stop looking for other recipes on Yellow Bliss Road!
Thanks so mich for the kind words Karisa! Let me know if there’s anything I can help you find.
This is a great recipe! It’s easy to make and the results are delicious! This is one of my favorite vanilla cupcake recipes ever! I definitely recommend this.
Thank you Rina! Love the feedback, thanks for stopping by.
I found this recipe about a year ago and it disappeared from my email. It took me over an hour to find this recipe again. I did not want to make another cupcake recipe. I favored this one. The cupcakes are so moist I do not frost them. Sometimes I eat them warm. They go pretty fast and my kids love them!
Nice! Love your feedback Shunny! Thanks for stopping by.
Favourite vanilla cupcake recipe! So easy to make too! I made the recipe for 36 cupcakes, but got around 40 cupcakes. Depends how much you fill the liners. I would definitely recommend this vanilla cupcake recipe!!!
Love it!!!!
Yes you definitely can get a little more or a little less depending on how you fill the cups. So glad you love it – it’s our go-to as well!
The cupcakes were good, but the icing was way too sweet, even when I only used 3 cups of confectioners sugar.
Thanks for your honest feedback, Sage.
Fantastic recipe!! And the tips were super helpful too.. love to bake but I’m still inexperienced this recipe is easy fun and delicious ❤️❤️❤️
Awesome feedback Dorothy! Thanks for stopping by.
I LOVE this recipe. I’ve used it several times and by following the recipe and all the tips they come out perfect every time. I would like to use this to make a smash cake (2-layer 6″ round) for my daughter. Do you have suggestions on converting this for that purpose?
This recipe should made 2 (8-inch) round cake pans. The bake time would be a little longer since they are larger. I’d say probably 10 extra minutes. But do watch it closely.
Forgot to add 5 star rating
Thank you for sharing the love Amony!
My daughter wanted to make cupcakes and just picked yours randomly (she’s 9). The whole family agreed this is the best vanilla cupcake recipe we ever tried. Simple enough for a 9 year old to make with little assistant and turned out wonderful. We substituted the sour cream for vanilla Greek yogurt!!!
Awesome feedback Amony! Cupcakes and Family time are the best, thanks for stopping by.
The same thing happened to me when it was my friends birthday. I was just looking at recipes and I came across this recipe and honestly it is one of the best cupcakes I have ever tasted.
So easy and turned out delicious!
Thank you Sara!
I loved them and made them for my family all by myself and I am a kid.
That’s awesome Kinley! Thank you so much for stopping by.
If I don’t have confectioners sugar what is a good substitute? Would powdered sugar work?
Powdered sugar and confectioners sugar are the same thing. 🙂
Hello, Kristin Maxwell. My name is Alyssa and I love baking. I bake almost every day. I tried this recipe and it was amazing, thank you.
You are so welcome Alyssa! Thanks for stopping by.
Kristian
Your welcome.
Hi! Can I add unsweetened cocoa powder to the frosting to make it chocolate?
Yes you can. Replace some of the powdered sugar with cocoa, and add milk as needed to thin out the consistency.
Amazing cupcakes. I’m not a baker but this came out Amazing. For the frosting I would cut in half the ingredients. I had a lot left over and I did 3 cups of sugar.
Hi Tristan, Thank you for the awesome feedback.
OMG! These were the best cupcakes and buttercream I have ever had. After tasting these, I will never use another vanilla cupcake recipe!!!!
That’s awesome Whitney! Thanks for the positive feedback.
That’s awesome Hannah! Thanks for sharing.
These were AMAZING! This is the first time I have baked anything vanilla, and I am SO glad I found this recipe! DELISH!
Thanks for stopping by Nora.
Great directions and tips for success. Delicious, light, fluffy bakery style cupcake. This recipe is a keeper.
I especially like that it makes 12 cupcakes.
I made a buttercream frosting and have it in a piping bag and we will enjoy a freshly made cupcake when the craving hits. It was delicious with a freshly sliced strawberry filling!
That’s awesome Geri! Thanks for the great comment.
oops I forgot to give a five star rating! :p
Thank you sarahgrace!
This recipe is amazing!!! The instructions were really simple and easy to follow. And the cupcakes turned out great! I made them for my family and they were a huge hit. Thank you so much! 🙂
Side note: I used plain Greek yogurt instead of sour cream, plus I doubled the recipe, and they still turned out really well
It was great!
But instead of using sour cream I used cream cheese it was great. This recipe needs 5 stars!
That’s awesome! Thank you for the 5 star rave #17llamas.
Did you do a 1:1 ratio of cream cheese to sour cream? Also, did you add milk and whisk it up?
If I want to make 48 cupcakes, what is the exact measurement of 4-2.67 cup all-purpose flour?
It says 1-2/3 cups flour. What does this mean? 1 up and 2/3 cups flour?
Yes that’s one cup plus 2/3 of a cup.
Is it 3 or 4 cups of confectioners sugar?
It’s between 3 and 4…it depends on how sweet you want the frosting to be.
I love this recipe! Keep making and baking so everyone can enjoy!
Thank you Ines! and thank you for for sharing your positive feed back.
Hi Kristin, I came across your website looking for a cupcake recipe and yours seem to be a winner complete with helpful tips.
Could i know what is the best way to convert your cup measurements to grams pls. Thanks a load
You should be able to simply google this, search “convert xxcups to grams”
Hi I followed word for word with the cake mixture and they didnt rise much I used plain flour is that correct or should I have used self raising flour. Thanku I will decorate with icing tomorrow
I had the same problem. The cupcakes are dense and spongey. They taste ok, though almost overwhelmingly vanilla (I used Penzey’s vanilla). I followed the instructions word for word, but maybe instead of whisking I should have used a mixer?
Do the frosted cupcakes need to be refrigerated? We have them in plastic cupcake holders
Butter is shelf stable so it would be ok to leave them at room temperature for a few days. But you could refrigerate them if you prefer.
Can I bake this in a sheet pan?
I don’t know about a sheet pan, but the recipe will work in a 9″x13″ baking pan.
Can I use buttermilk?
Sure!
This are amazing!! I have made them multiple times. They are my go to recipient when it comes to cupcakes
That’s awesome Maddie! thanks for stopping by.
I tried your recipe and I must say that these are the best and easiest cupcakes to make hands down. I followed your recipe word for word. They were absolutely delicious and very moist.
That’s awesome Jodie, thank you.
Could I use heavy cream instead of milk?
Yes, you could.
Just one question but would I be able to replace the sour cream with plain yogurt or would that change the texture and taste ?
You could use plain yogurt, it may alter the taste and texture slightly but not too noticeably.
This may seem like a silly question but is 3 1/3 doubled 1 2/3 or should it be 2 1/2 cups.
Also, how do I store these overnight?
You can store these in the fridge overnight, covered. I’m not sure I understand what you’re referring to on the sizes?
Can I use salted butter instead of unsalted? Or would that change the flavor of the cupcake and frosting? Would I just not use any salt then because the butter contains the salt?
Yes you can, you might not add any additional salt though.
Can I make these the day before and if I can, how do you keep them overnight?
Yes you can make them the night before. I would store them covered in the fridge.
This may be a silly question, but is 2 1/3 1 2/3 doubled?
Yes
If I mix everything together using a spoon or fork, would the batter come out the same
The beating process really aerates the batter making it fluffy. If you can, use a large wooden spoon. The frosting however needs to be whipped with an electric mixer.
Used this recipe to bake for the first time ever.
They turned out perfectly and you made me look like a pro!
Thankyou people couldn’t believe it was my first time baking lol
Yay! Great to hear, Ben!
Do you have to melt the butter?
For this recipe, yes.
Can you substitute sour cream for unsweetened applesauce
I suppose you could, but it would change the consistency and texture of the cupcake.
Hi! Can you sub Greek yogurt for the sour cream? That’s what I’ve got on hand. Thanks!
Absolutely!
Pls help me I wanna make these cupcakes now . Should i have to add 1cup all purpose flour or 1 2/3 cups?
It’s 1 and 2/3 cups of all-purpose flour.
Beautiful turn out u are awesome
I just made these.the recipe only listed one egg needed. But the directions said to wisk in eggs one at a time?? There was only enough batter for about 15 cupcakes. Did anyone else have this problem?
Sorry, a couple of typos! 1 egg is correct, and that should have been 12 instead of 24.
I made this tonight. It was delicious!
I love vanilla cupcakes and these look utterly amazing!
I can totally tell this is a moist cupcake based on that pic with the bite out of it. YUM!