These vanilla cupcakes are the perfect soft and fluffy vanilla cupcake! I have done a lot of testing and am proud to say that I finally have my favorite version to share with you!
I’m quite picky about vanilla cupcakes. You can’t get by with a mediocre one, you know? They might be one of the most important flavors to get right. Next to chocolate, that is. If you don’t have a good vanilla cupcake, you’ve got a problem.
I have tried numerous vanilla recipes over the past few years and this White on White Buttermilk Cake from BakeSpace was a fave. Problem was, it was a cake recipe. And while many cake and cupcake recipes are interchangeable, this one was not.
When I tried to use it for cupcakes, the wrappers would come off as the cupcakes cooled. Not good. Not good at all.
They also didn’t puff up quite like I wanted. They had pretty flat tops. Too flat.
I also tend to think sour cream gives terrific moisture and flavor to a vanilla cupcake. And I think that even more now, after all my testing. Plus, it can easily be switched up to allow fun flavor variations.
So I decided to take that tasty cake recipe and turn it into the perfect cupcake! Starting by adding sour cream.
Did you see the Instagram photo of all the cupcakes I ended up freezing on my way to the perfect one? It was insane.
I played with the amount of eggs, just egg whites, amounts of milk, sour cream, flour, butter. I thought I was going to drown in cupcakes.
I also wanted to try and use the more common version of ingredients – all purpose flour instead of cake flour, regular milk instead of buttermilk, etc. Just to make it easier. 🙂
Aaaand to make it even easier, you only need one bowl! Woot woot!
I got a number of opinions along the way. Including when I had 6 women from my small group together and they tested what I thought would be my final 3 versions. I knew which my faves were, but wanted their opinions.
They totally agreed that one version had better flavor and one had better texture. The third was out!
So I decided to give it one more try.
Magic! Perfection! And sheer happiness!
My very own Perfect Moist and Fluffy Vanilla Cupcake! It is so wonderful, you guys! You have to try it!
It is not too dense, but not too airy. Moist, but maintains structure. Rises, but not too much. And the sour cream really amplifies the vanilla flavor. Love, love, love it!
Plus, I’m kind of proud of myself for persevering. 🙂
As for the icing, it is my go-to vanilla icing.
It uses half butter, half shortening. In any of my icing recipes were I use half butter and half shortening, you can use all butter. But truly, I stand by using half shortening. Shortening can seem gross, but it will give a more stable icing, particularly if it’s warm out. And I really prefer the final flavor. I find all-butter icing to be too buttery and not enough vanilla flavor.
You might disagree in the end, but I encourage you to at least try it first. Either way, the cupcake that the icing will sit on will rock your socks off. And together, they will make a fabulous cupcake party.
So do me a favor, will you? I worked extra hard on this one and burned through a lot of butter, so make sure you give it a try. I know you’ll love it!
Print
Perfect Moist and Fluffy Vanilla Cupcakes
- Prep Time: 1 hour
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Yield: 12-14 Cupcakes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Description
These vanilla cupcakes are the perfect soft and fluffy vanilla cupcake! I have done a lot of testing and am proud to say that I finally have my favorite version to share with you!
Ingredients
CUPCAKES
- 1 2/3 cups (217g) all purpose flour
- 1 cup (207g) sugar
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 3/4 cup (168g) unsalted butter, melted
- 3 large egg whites
- 3 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup (115g) sour cream
- 1/2 cup (120ml) milk
FROSTING
- 1 cup (115g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 4 cups (460g) powdered sugar
- 2–3 tbsp (30-45ml) water or heavy cream
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
CUPCAKES
- Preheat oven to 350°F (176°C) and prepare a cupcake pan with cupcake liners.
- Combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a large mixing bowl.
- Add butter, egg whites, vanilla, sour cream and milk and mix on medium speed just until well combined and smooth. Do not over mix.
- Fill the cupcake liners a little more than half way and bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Remove cupcakes from the oven and place on a cooling rack to cool.
FROSTING
- Add the butter to a large mixer bowl and beat until smooth.
- Carefully pour in about half of the powdered sugar and mix until smooth and well combined.
- Add the vanilla extract and 1-2 tablespoons of the water or milk and the salt to the frosting and mix until well combined.
- Add the remaining powdered sugar and mix until smooth. Add additional milk or water as needed to get the right consistency.
- Pipe the frosting onto the cupcakes. I used Ateco tip 844.
- Cupcakes are best when stored well covered for 2-3 days.
Notes
See my newest Vanilla Cupcake Recipe.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 Cupcake
- Calories: 459
- Sugar: 42.9 g
- Sodium: 176 mg
- Fat: 25.1 g
- Carbohydrates: 56.2 g
- Protein: 3.4 g
- Cholesterol: 46.6 mg
Keywords: vanilla cupcakes, moist vanilla cupcakes, fluffy vanilla cupcake recipe
Filed Under:
Enjoy!
You might also like:
Yellow Cupcakes with Chocolate Frosting
Some treats from friends:
Victoria Sponge Sandwich Cake by Java Cupcake
Triple Coconut Poke Cake from Beyond Frosting
White Chocolate Funfetti Chip Cake from Inside BruCrew Life
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Whenever I find a recipe the most important part of the post are the comments I’ve found, that’s where I see where tweaks should be made, or how people found the recipe turned out, for this one, I read a few comments suggesting that this recipe wasn’t good, but others raved. I decided to trust the positive people and I’m so glad I did! I made the recipe exactly as written (I mean she said she made multiple batches to perfect it, she’s already done the leg work, why would I mess with that?) and the cupcakes were some of the best I have ever had! Truth be told, I’m not a cupcake person – the cake is too dry and crumbly, the icing too sickly sweet, I normally avoid them – but THESE cupcakes, holy crap! SO GOOD!!!! I had two. If that tells you anything!! Seriously people. Do it as directed, and start with 18 minutes in the oven, and add more as needed. For my altitude and oven 21 minutes was perfect! And when you check your tooth pick there should be a couple crumbs stuck on the side of the wood, but it shouldn’t be wet. Then take it out and follow the rest of her instructions!! She’s right guys, they are perfect! Thanks Lindsay!
★★★★★
Wonderful! So glad to hear that!
Can you use this recipe to do cakes?
I would recommend my Moist and Fluffy Vanilla Cake.
Tried your recipe on the weekend, the cupcakes came out wonderful!!!!! My kids and husband loved them and they were very moist.
Awesome! I’m glad you all enjoyed! 🙂
My cupcakes had pools of butter under each one… I’m assuming that’s not supoosed to happen
Tried these tonight, in Bergen, Norway. they were wonderful, my partner loved them and swallowed down two in rapid succession!
I’m so glad you enjoyed them!
If I triple your recipe will it turn out just as good? Or should I make 3 separate batches of them? Thanks! I’m excited to try them!
I haven’t ver tripled it, but would think it’d be ok. I have doubled before and it was fine.
My tip: have a backup plan when making these. I tried these cupcakes and they were a HUGE fail! i have never messed up baking quite like this. I followed the recipe to a T and they completely stuck to the liner. We are trying to figure out what to do with 6 dozen “crumbs” now. Guess I will have to buy store bought cupcakes for my daughters 2nd birthday.
I was wondering if this recipe could be made into a cake too? Like a 9×13 or something! I love this recipe and would like to make it into a cake to
Yes, it can. It’s fairly dense as a cake though. You could also try this one or this one.
Today my daughter and i made these cupcakes. It is a simple recipe and the cupcakes taste great. The only thing I did wrong is that the cupcake doesn’t have much flavor. I wonder if my vanilla extract is old or if I did not put the correct amount of extract into the batter. However, this is more my fault. But being a new baker, this recipe made me look like a pro. Thanks for posting it!
Glad to hear you enjoyed them!
What can i do if i curdle the liquid part, also can i use Greek you gust instead of sour cream?
Not sure what you mean about the curdling, but you could use greek yogurt. It does change up the texture of the cupcake though.