Are you searching for the perfect vanilla cake recipe? The recipe that yields delicate, moist vanilla cake that also holds its weight in a layer cake. The one that’s melt-in-your-mouth sweet but without that boxed-cake taste. The one that bakes up to a beautifully light yellow color. The one that’s no-fail and works out Every. Single. Time.
You have found it!
When I say this is the absolute best ever homemade vanilla cake, I’m not kidding. This is the only vanilla cake recipe you’ll ever need.
Save it to your Pinterest, print the recipe, or scribble it by hand and tuck it into your trusty recipe box. I promise, you’ll be coming back to this one time and time again.
What Makes This the Best Vanilla Cake Recipe?
What makes this cake so perfect, exactly? I tested this recipe over and over until I found the perfect balance of sweetness, moisture, and texture.
Here’s how:
- Perfect sweetness: Using 2 cups of sugar gives this cake a beautiful sweetness level, making it not too sweet, but also not bland like some vanilla cakes tend to be (especially those made for layer cakes).
- Perfect flavor: The combination of butter, vanilla extract, and sour cream contributes to a rich flavor. It’s so much better than a box and has a true homemade taste that virals any bakery.
- Moist crumb: Sour cream helps to create a moist and flavorful crumb. It makes a noticeable difference!
- Versatile: The all-purpose flour and classic ingredients make it a versatile base for various all kinds of baking projects (lots of ideas below!).
- Straightforward approach: The instructions are clear and concise, so it’s not difficult to make. It comes out perfect every time, whether you’re an experienced baker or not.
In this post, I’ll show you instructions for how to use this recipe to make four 6-inch round cakes. However, you can easily adapt this recipe for other shapes of pans. Lots of instructions are at the bottom of the post.
Ingredients for This Simple Vanilla Cake
- Unsalted butter – I use unsalted butter because I find it adds less moisture to my cake. It’s a subtle difference, but really contributes to the baked cake having the perfect texture.
- Vanilla extract – Real vanilla extract will make all the difference! If you’re making this cake as the base for a special dessert, I recommend splurging on the good stuff.
- Eggs – You’re going to use 6 (yes SIX!) eggs. Buy large, fresh eggs for the best results.
- All-purpose flour – The texture of this cake is dependent on all-purpose flour. If you choose to use cake flour instead, expect your cake to be lighter and airier (not the best choice if you plan to make a layer cake).
- Sour cream – Full-fat sour cream is best and will add both flavor and moisture to your cake, contributing to a perfect texture.
- Pantry staples – Baking soda, salt, granulated sugar
Helpful Tools
Pro-Tips
Before you begin, read through these pro-tips so you get the best results.
- Make sure all your ingredients are at room temperature. About 30 minutes before you start baking, measure out your butter and sour cream. Get your eggs out, too. Let everything sit on the counter until you begin. This helps your ingredients incorporate much better without any lumps, and also ensures your cake mix isn’t cold when it goes in the oven.
- Don’t get lazy creaming the butter and sugar. Go ahead and mix them together for about 5 minutes. It will look light yellow and be very fluffy when it’s ready. This is going to add air to your batter so the cake isn’t dense and heavy.
- When you incorporate the dry ingredients, mix carefully. Keep your mixer on low to medium and stop when the ingredients are fully mixed.
- Make absolutely sure you fully preheat your oven. Your cakes won’t bake properly otherwise.
- Resist the urge to open the oven door. Don’t open the oven until the minimum baking time has passed. Subjecting the cakes to uneven temperatures (when you let all the heat out of the oven by opening the door) is what causes your cakes to collapse.
How to Make The Best Vanilla Cake Recipe From-Scratch
This is an easy vanilla cake recipe, but it’s important to follow the steps precisely. Don’t overmix the batter. When the ingredients are incorporated, stop mixing. Let’s get started.
Step 1: Cream the butter and sugar.
Add the room temperature butter to a large mixing bowl along with the granulated sugar. With your hand mixer set to medium-high speed, mix for 5 minutes until the butter looks pale, smooth, and fluffy.
Step 2: Incorporate the eggs.
Add the vanilla and crack 1 egg into the sugar mixture. Beat until it’s fully incorporated. Repeat with the remaining 5 eggs, mixing thoroughly between each addition.
Step 3: Whisk together the dry ingredients.
In a separate mixing bowl, use a whisk to combine the flour, baking soda, and salt.
Step 4: Incorporate the dry ingredients.
Add the flour to the butter mixture, alternating with the sour cream. With your mixer on medium-low, gently combine the dry and wet ingredients, stopping just when they’re incorporated.
Step 5: Fill the cake pans.
Lightly grease and flour your cake pans, making sure to cover all the surfaces and corners. Use a spoon to add a scoop to each cake pan until the batter is used up. This will help you have evenly filled cake pans. Use a spatula to scrape down the bowl so you get every drop of batter.
Step 6: Bake the cakes.
Bake the cakes for 30 minutes. At the 30 minute mark, test the cakes using a toothpick or skewer. Stick it into the center of each cake, and if it comes out clean, your cakes are done. Cool completely before removing from the pans or decorating.
Here are the complete instructions for making a 4-layer vanilla cake with vanilla buttercream frosting.
Alternative Baking Instructions
9×13-inch Rectangular Cake Pan
This cake mix will make a low-rise rectangular cake. For this reason, if you want a very tall or layer cake, you’ll need to double the recipe and bake 2 cakes.
Make sure you grease and flour your cake pan well. Bake the cake at 350°F for 20 minutes and check it using a toothpick. If it’s not quite done, close the oven door and check it again in 5 minutes.
Cupcake Tin (12 Depressions)
Fill each cupcake depression with a cupcake liner. Filling each one about ⅔ full. If you have any batter leftover, you can make another batch, or add a touch more batter to each of the cupcake liners.
Bake your cupcakes for 18 minutes at 350°F, then use a toothpick or skewer to check for doneness. If they’re still wet in the center, close the oven door and check again in 2-3 minutes.
Jumbo Cupcake Tin / Muffin Tin (6 Large Depressions)
Use jumbo cupcake or muffin liners, or grease and flour each of the depressions. Then, use a spoon to add a scoop of batter to each depression until the batter is used up. Your cups should be about ⅔ of the way full.
Bake for 25 minutes at 350°F and check for doneness using a toothpick or skewer. If they’re still wet in the center, bake for 2-3 minutes more and check again.
Two 8×8-inch Square Cake Pans
If you’d like to make a square layer cake, you can use two 8×8-inch square pans. However, you’ll need to make more batter. Aim to make 1.5X this recipe. To do this, multiply each ingredient amount by 1.5.
For example:
1 cup of butter X 1.5 = 1.5 cups of butter
2 cups of sugar X 1.5 = 3 cups of butter
This should give you enough batter to fill your cake pans ⅔ of the way full. Bake the cakes at 350°F for 25 minutes, using a toothpick or skewer to check for doneness. If they aren’t quite done yet, bake for another 3-5 minutes and check again.
How to Use This Vanilla Cake Recipe
What can you do with this cake mix recipe? ANYTHING! This cake mix is a perfect base for any recipe that requires vanilla cake. Here are some ideas:
Use it to make this perfect confetti birthday cake.
Make cupcakes for a party, holiday, or bake sale.
Make cake pops using buttercream and candy melts.
Sprinkle a bit of powdered sugar overtop and eat as-is.
Spread a can of storebought frosting overtop and serve a simple dessert to your family.
Make a roll cake.
The possibilities are endless!
Storage Directions
At room temperature – You can store this cake at room temperature for up to three days, but if you decorate it with perishable ingredients, you’ll need to refrigerate it. Cover it well with plastic wrap or a cake keeper.
In the refrigerator – Wrap your cake in plastic wrap and store it in the fridge for 4-5 days. You can also put leftovers in an airtight container.
In the freezer – Vanilla cakes freeze very well, so you can make these ahead of a special event and decorate on another day. To freeze these cakes, wrap them individually in wax paper. Then, wrap them tightly in plastic wrap (a few layers is best). Set the wrapped cakes into a large freezer bag. Use within a month for best results.
Troubleshooting
My cakes are browning unevenly! What can I do?
If you notice your cakes are browning inconsistently in the oven, you can briefly open the oven door and turn or rotate the cakes. Uneven browning might be because your oven wasn’t fully preheated, or because your oven has hot spots in it. You can read your oven’s manufacturer instructions to learn how to recalibrate your oven if this is a consistent issue.
Help! My cake cracked on top!
If your cakes have cracks in them, it’s likely because you opened the oven door too much during baking. Try to resist opening the oven door until the minimum baking time has been reached.
Why is my frosting running off the cakes?
If you’re decorating your cakes and find the frosting seems to be runny or the cakes are breaking under your knife, it’s likely that they aren’t cool enough. Scrape off what you can (being very gentle not to break the cake more) and let the cakes come to room temperature before you try to decorate them.
What is the difference between white cake and vanilla cake?
Vanilla cake and white cake are similar and can probably be used interchangeably if a recipe calls for one or the other. But, a few key differences you might notice:
– White cake is usually pure white in color, and vanilla cake often has a golden or yellow hue to it (usually due to the use of egg yolks and vanilla extract).
– White cake has a milder, purely sweet flavor to it while vanilla cake is often richer tasting.
– White cake is often quite light and airy, while vanilla cake is known for being more moist and a bit more dense.
Is it better to use oil or butter in a cake?
Either oil or butter can produce beautiful cakes. The difference comes down to preference. I use butter in this recipe because it adds a rich flavor and moist texture that you just can’t achieve with oil.
What makes a cake light and fluffy?
A light and fluffy cake hinges on air and moisture. Leavening agents like baking powder are critical. Measure them carefully and incorporate them evenly. It’s also crucial to minimize gluten development by not overmixing the batter. Fat, liquids, and sugar all contribute to moisture, so finding the right balance is key. Measure carefully!
Finally, proper baking practices like preheating and avoiding overbaking ensure your cake achieves that much-desired airy and tender texture.
Other Impressive Cake Recipes to Try
This chocolate cake is incredibly rich and moist and is topped with the creamiest, deepest chocolate buttercream. You’ll never look for another chocolate cake recipe again!
The spookiest surprise – cut into this chocolate cake to reveal a gummy worm filling!
Moist Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Perfectly sweet and moist and ready for your spring dessert table! The cream cheese frosting is particularly addictive, you’ll want to eat it by the spoon-ful.
A bundt cake with an autumn twist! “Apples” are carved into the bundt cake and decorated with classic caramel apple toppings.
Vanilla Cake Recipe
This vanilla cake bakes up to a beautifully light yellow color and is delicate and moist while also able to hold its weight in a layer cake.
Ingredients
Cake Batter
- 1 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 2 cups sugar
- 3 tsp vanilla extract
- 6 large eggs
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 cups sour cream
Buttercream
- 2 cups unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract or seeds from 1 vanilla bean
- 5 cups powdered sugar
Instructions
Bake the cake
- Preheat the oven to 350F.
- Beat the butter and sugar with an electric mixer until pale and smooth. Add the vanilla extract and eggs one at a time, mixing with each addition.
- In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda and salt. Add this to the batter in 2 additions, alternating with the sour cream.
- Spoon the batter into 4 greased and floured 6” round cake pans. Bake for 30 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centers comes out clean. Cool completely.
Make the buttercream
- Beat the butter with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy. Add the vanilla extract and powdered sugar one cup at a time, beating with each addition.
Assembly
- Slice the tops and bottoms off the cakes to smooth the surface and remove any excess browning.
- Stack the cakes and spread some buttercream between each layer.
- Coat the cake in a thin layer of buttercream, called a crumb coat. This will catch any excess cake crumbs. Chill the cake in the fridge for 20 minutes.
- Coat the cake in a thick, generous layer of buttercream. Use a palette knife and make swirling motions to make the frosting look full and fluffy. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
Storage Directions
At room temperature – You can store this cake at room temperature for up to three days, but if you decorate it with perishable ingredients, you’ll need to refrigerate it. Cover it well with plastic wrap or a cake keeper. In the refrigerator – Wrap your cake in plastic wrap and store it in the fridge for 4-5 days. You can also put leftovers in an airtight container. In the freezer – Vanilla cakes freeze very well, so you can make these ahead of a special event and decorate on another day. To freeze these cakes, wrap them individually in wax paper. Then, wrap them tightly in plastic wrap (a few layers is best). Set the wrapped cakes into a large freezer bag. Use within a month for best results.Nutrition
Serving: 1 sliceCalories: 906kcalCarbohydrates: 121.52gProtein: 8.92gFat: 43.76gSaturated Fat: 26.37gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2.09gMonounsaturated Fat: 13gCholesterol: 194mgSodium: 418mgPotassium: 176mgFiber: 0.3gSugar: 99.6gVitamin A: 1401IUVitamin C: 0.3mgCalcium: 101mgIron: 2.83mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
Hi everyone! My name is Cayla Gallagher and I’m the creator of pankobunny!
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