Soft and fluffy vanilla cupcakes that were taste tested by over 50 bakers! These are the perfect vanilla cupcakes for your next celebration!
Not too long ago, Addie’s school hosted a class party. The teachers created a sign-up sheet and asked parents to bring in various items. My husband came home one day and told me that he signed us up to bring cupcakes. Being the baking snob I am, I knew I had to make them from scratch. Store cupcakes or ones from a box mix would definitely not do.
I wanted to try a new recipe and thought about fun flavors to try. But knowing that many kids either had allergies or were fairly picky eaters, I decided to keep it simple and stick to a classic vanilla cupcake. I would tint the frosting a different color so it wouldn’t be quite as boring.
Both my husband and Addie helped with these. The cupcakes baked up pretty quickly, and we were able to run an errand while they cooled. When we returned, Addie and I piped on the frosting. I held the pastry bag and taught her how to make the rose-like swirls. She enjoyed being my little helper and was proud of what she had created.
These really are the ultimate vanilla cupcakes. The cake itself was light and produced a soft and fluffy crumb. It wasn’t crumbly at all, and the cake had a nice “spring” to it when touched. I hate nothing more than having a cake that crumbles all over the floor and is really difficult to clean up. This is not one of those cupcakes.
My husband brought the extra cupcakes to a meeting one day, and he said that most of them were eaten at breakfast time. Yes, these would be perfect for a morning pick-me-up too!
Ultimate vanilla cupcakes with vanilla buttercream frosting
Ingredients
Ultimate vanilla cupcakes
- 1 and 3/4 cups (175 grams) cake flour, not self-rising
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter room temperature
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1/3 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 1/4 cup canola oil or vegetable oil
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2/3 cup milk of choice
Vanilla buttercream frosting
- 2 sticks unsalted butter room temperature
- 3-4 cups powdered sugar plus more or less to taste
- 2-3 Tablespoons milk of choice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Food coloring if desired
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.
- Line two standard muffin pans with paper liners and set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or in a large bowl if using a handheld mixer, whisk together the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar by hand. If you use the mixer, the ingredients will fly everywhere and get all over your countertop!
- Gently fold in the room temperature butter and continue to fold by hand until the mixture becomes crumbly.
- In a separate medium sized bowl, mix together the eggs, Greek yogurt, oil and vanilla. Gently pour this into the large bowl with the dry ingredients and mix by hand until parts of the dry ingredients are incorporated. Turn the mixer on medium speed and beat until everything is well incorporated. Turn the mixer to low and slowly add in the milk until well combined.
- Evenly distribute the batter into your prepared cupcake liners, filling each one about 3/4 full.
- Bake in your preheated oven for about 14 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The cupcakes should NOT turn golden brown.
- Allow the cupcakes to cool completely before frosting.
- To make the frosting, cream the butter in the clean bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl if using a handheld mixer, on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Turn the mixer to low and add the powdered sugar a little bit at a time. Slowly add the milk and vanilla and continue to beat until you achieve the desired consistency. Add more or less powdered sugar as needed. If desired, add food coloring.