Made with sour cream and melted butter, this vanilla cupcake recipe is easy to mix by hand and makes extra-moist, tender cupcakes filled with sweet vanilla flavor. They’re super simple to make and topped with big, pillowy swirls of homemade vanilla buttercream (or your favorite frosting). Don’t forget the sprinkles!
After baking and tasting about a million cupcakes over the years, I can say this: Everyone needs a delicious, simple vanilla cupcake recipe, one that can be whipped up even without a mixer present.
This vanilla cupcake recipe combines sour cream and melted butter for a smooth, flavorful batter. And here’s the best part: Making these cupcakes is as easy as whipping up a box mix, but the result is incomparably better.
These cupcakes are a bit denser than my oil-based moist vanilla cupcakes. Butter results in a tighter crumb and also makes these cupcakes a little richer. Meanwhile, the sour cream adds moisture and highlights the subtle vanilla flavor.
Whether you’re a seasoned baker or a beginner, this recipe is ideal for those looking for an easy, no-fuss batch of vanilla cupcakes. This cupcake recipe also makes a quick, simple base in desserts like these fresh strawberry cupcakes.
What Makes These Vanilla Cupcakes Different?
I have a few vanilla cupcake recipes on the site. Each one is delicious with its own unique ingredients, methods, and personalities. Here is what sets these vanilla cupcakes apart, and why they might be a great fit for you:
- Whole eggs. Unlike white cupcakes that rely on egg whites, there’s no need to separate the eggs for this recipe.
- This recipe uses sour cream. It tenderizes the cupcakes and gives them a wonderful springiness along with added moisture.
- A combination of baking powder and baking soda gives these cupcakes the best rise and texture.
- Melted butter mixes very easily with the other ingredients. It also means you don’t have to wait for the butter to soften to room temperature, as you would if you were using a creaming method like in my classic homemade vanilla cupcakes.
What You’ll Need
Here’s what you’ll need to make these simple vanilla cupcakes from scratch. You probably have most of the ingredients already in your kitchen. Be sure to scroll to the recipe card below for precise measurements.
- All-purpose flour – Be sure to measure the flour accurately, so you don’t end up with a dry cake. I always recommend a food scale, but the spoon and level method is also an option.
- Baking powder and baking soda – This is my only vanilla cupcake recipe that uses baking soda in addition to baking powder. Baking soda reacts with the sour cream, giving extra lift to the cupcakes. See my post on Baking Powder vs. Baking Soda for details. Avoid using leavening that’s old or expired.
- Unsalted butter – No need to bring it to room temperature. You’ll be melting it for the easy mixing method.
- Sugar – Granulated sugar not only adds sweetness, but also moisture, and it affects the final texture of the cupcake.
- Vanilla extract – A good quality vanilla extract is perfect for a vanilla-focused cupcake. You could also use an equal amount of vanilla paste.
- Eggs – Be sure to use large eggs, not small or extra large.
- Sour cream – I like the extra moisture and richness sour cream adds to these cupcakes. However, if you aren’t a sour cream fan or don’t have it in the fridge, you can replace it with additional milk or Greek yogurt.
- Milk – I recommend using 2% milk or whole milk.
How To Make Vanilla Cupcakes Without a Mixer
These simple vanilla cupcakes come together quickly. The batter is easy enough to mix by hand, though a mixer does come in handy when whipping the frosting. Here’s a quick look at how to do it. For more thorough instructions, scroll to the recipe card below.
Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
Next, combine the melted butter, sugar, and vanilla extract.
Whisk in the eggs, followed by the sour cream, then the milk.
Mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients.
Fill the cupcake liners about 3/4 full.
Bake at 350ºF for 18-20 minutes. Then, place on a cooling rack to cool.
Frosting the Cupcakes
- Make the frosting. Beat the butter until smooth. Mix in half of the powdered sugar, followed by the vanilla, 1-2 tablespoons heavy cream, and the salt. Finally, mix in the remaining powdered sugar.
- Get the consistency right. You can add a little extra heavy cream if you would like a thinner frosting.
- Frost. Pipe the frosting onto the cooled cupcakes. Check out my in-depth tutorial, How To Frost Cupcakes for extra guidance. You’ll be a frosting pro in no time!
Frosting Options
Instead of vanilla buttercream, try frosting these simple vanilla cupcakes with chocolate buttercream frosting, Ermine frosting, or tangy cream cheese frosting.
Pro Tips for Amazing Cupcakes
- Don’t over-mix. When whisking the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, mix just until everything is smooth and well incorporated. Over-mixing can cause the glutens in the flour to overdevelop, giving you tough, dense cupcakes.
- 3/4 full. You will want to fill the cupcake liners just a little more than 3/4 of the way. If you overfill them, they will rise out of the liners and create a muffin top and/or fall in the middle, which you don’t want here.
- Get the frosting right. To get the buttercream to the proper consistency, you may need to play with the amount of heavy cream you add to it. You’ll find everything you need to know on the subject in my post on how to get the right frosting consistency.
- Cool before frosting. Allow your cupcakes to cool completely before applying the frosting. This prevents the frosting from melting and sliding off of the cupcakes.
Proper Storage
These cupcakes are best eaten within 4-5 days. Here’s how to store them for best taste and shelf life.
- Keep the cupcakes airtight. Seal the cupcakes in an airtight carrier or other airtight container that can accommodate the frosting. Store them at room temperature for up to 2 days so that they don’t dry out as quickly. After that, they should be refrigerated because of the buttercream.
- Freeze. You can freeze these frosted or unfrosted. If you’re freezing the frosted cupcakes, seal them in an airtight container tall enough to accommodate the frosting and store them in the freezer for up to 3 months. Allow them to thaw at room temperature before serving. You can also freeze these cupcakes sans frosting and whip up a fresh batch of vanilla buttercream just before serving.
More Cupcake Recipes To Try
Cupcakes are the perfect sharable dessert. They bring everything you want from a cake to the table, without all the slicing and serving! Here are some of my other favorite cupcake recipes.
Download the previous version of this cupcake recipe here.
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Simple Vanilla Cupcake Recipe
- Prep Time: 1 hour
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Yield: 12–14 Cupcakes 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Description
Made with sour cream and melted butter, this simple vanilla cupcake recipe is easy to mix by hand (no creaming!). It’s topped with creamy vanilla frosting, perfect for everyday baking.
Ingredients
Vanilla Cupcakes
- 1 2/3 cups (217g) all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 3/4 cup (168g) unsalted butter, melted
- 1 cup (207g) sugar
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 cup (115g) sour cream
- 3/4 cup (180ml) milk
Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
- 1 cup (224g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 4 cups (460g) powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2–3 tbsp (30-45ml) heavy cream
- Pinch or two of salt
- Sprinkles, optional
Instructions
Vanilla Cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 350°F (176°C) and prepare a cupcake pan with cupcake liners.
- Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium-sized bowl and set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk the melted butter, sugar, and vanilla extract together until well combined.
- Add the eggs and whisk together until well combined. Next, add the sour cream and whisk together until well combined. Now, add the milk and whisk together until well combined.
- Add the dry ingredients and whisk together until combined, but do not overmix.
- Fill the cupcake liners a little more than 3/4 full (60g) and bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Remove cupcakes from the oven and place on a cooling rack to cool completely.
Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
- Add the butter to a large mixer bowl and beat until smooth.
- Carefully add about half of the powdered sugar and mix until smooth and well combined.
- Add the vanilla extract and 1-2 tablespoons of the cream and the salt to the frosting and mix until well combined.
- Add the remaining powdered sugar and mix until smooth. Add additional cream as needed to get the right consistency.
- Pipe the frosting onto the cupcakes. I used Ateco tip 844. Add sprinkles, if desired.
- Store cupcakes in an airtight container for up to 2 days, then refrigerate them. Best served at room temperature. They are best if eaten within 3-4 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
Hi,
I made 2 batches of these for my sisters baby shower and they were a real hit. I wanted to make mini ones for my sons party at school. Can I use the same recipe or what should I change?.
I’m so glad they were a hit! They should be fine as minis but you’ll need to cook them for less time. I haven’t done them mini, so I can’t say how long, but I’d start with 8-10 minutes and go from there.
Hi,
I was just wondering do you use block butter? I usually use Stork butter but not sure if that will work with this recipe? Also for sugar do you just use normal white sugar or caster sugar?
I’m not familiar with Stork. I use sticks of butter – usually Land O Lakes brand. And just regular white sugar.
These turned out GREAT! Delicious and moist – and so easy – in one bowl! Thank you so much – you did a great job with this recipe! 🙂
Thanks Cal! So glad you liked them!
Hi,
I tried this out last time for my boyfriend’s niece’s birthday and she loved it as well as their family.
I used cream cheese frosting for the batch I made and they were so delicious!
Do you have a tip for using this recipe as a cake? 🙂
Thank you for sharing this wonderful recipe! <3
I’m so glad everyone enjoyed them! For a cake, you’ll probably want to double it if you’re doing a layered cake. Thanks!
Hi, I don’t know why my cupcake surface crack, do u know why this happen?? I’m using you recipe with 160 degree and 18 minutes.
Is that in celcius? I think it’s too low. It should be 350 degrees F, so around 177 C.
Hi there.I am eager to try out this recipe.But the only thing stopping me is the fact that I can’t make out if the part in the instructions where it says 350ª,is in celsius or fahrenheit.I’m leaning towards celsius,but I’m not 100% sure.So I guess that would be my question: Is the temperature in the instructions celsius or fahrenheit? (ªuª)/
It is in fahrenheit.
Hello about to try this recipient out but I have everything except the sour cream. I do have plain Greek yogurt. Can this be substituted? And if so do I need to change measurement of it or anything else?
I haven’t tried yogurt before, but I think it’d work fine. Use the same amount.
Hi lindsay.. I was wondering.. Can i replace the sour cream with yoghurt? Because sour cream is.a lil bit hard to be found in my country.. Thankyou so much 🙂
I haven’t tried it, but I think it’d be ok.
Hi Lindsay! 🙂 I stumbled upon your blog from a repin via Pinterest and I am so glad I found your website! The colors look really gorgeous and your photos even more so! I made this recipe today but instead of only vanilla, I also added heaps of green tea (or matcha) powder to my batter cos I love green tea! My cupcakes came out very moist and tender. Yay! Thanks so much Lindsay! =]
On another note, I used cake flour and my cupcakes didn’t sink after taking them out from the oven. It’s a great idea to add sour cream as well; mine didn’t have the after-taste of the sour cream! Thanks once again for this awesome recipe! 🙂
Thanks Genevieve! I’m so glad you found the blog and were happy with the cupcakes! 🙂
I loved these they were everything you said they would be, fluffy, moist and PERFECT. thank you so much for all your hard work!
Thanks Jess! So glad you liked them! 🙂
Was looking for a moist vanilla cupcake recipe and im glad that i found your blog and recipe! At first i wanted to use the allrecipes website recipe but there were too many negative reviews about it being dry, course and bland. So i ditched it and found your recipes and give it my best shot. I didnt have sour cream however, so i substitute it for another cup of milk but other than that kept the recipe the same. The vanilla cupcakes turns out amazing and my god there were super fluffy!! almost like a chiffon cake. Its soft, very moist and sweet. Would highly recommend this recipe! Thank you so much!
Thank you so much! I’m so glad you found the recipe and liked them! 🙂
hi ms.lindsay what can substitute for sour cream, can i use 1 cup of milk instead half of it and half sour cream? thank you 🙂
I think that would work alright, but I haven’t tried it. The sour cream adds a lot of moisture and flavor that using all milk might lack, so keep that in mind.
Hi Lindsay,
Nice recipe, though initially the cake came out fluffy but after putting it in the fridge, it felt heavy when brought out to eat, any tips on what to do differently next time?
It’s hard for me to say, but I wouldn’t suggest putting them in the fridge. The usually dries out cupcakes.
Hi Lindsay,
All your recipes look amazing, i’m going to try the vanilla recipe this weekend.
It says that the recipe yields 12-14 cupcakes. Are they regular size cupcakes (aprox 3″ in diameter)?
One last question, you mentioned adding 1/4 tsp salt if using unsalted butter. Is that added to the frosting or the cupcake batter?
Thanks for your help, and for sharing!
Yes, that should be for regular sized cupcakes. The salt can be added to the cupcake batter. Enjoy them!
Hi! I am planning to make these for a kids birthday party. I am interested in possibly adding food coloring in them for the rainbow cupcake effect, do you think this will alter the flavor any? Thanks so much!
No, it shouldn’t hurt the flavor.
The vanilla cupcakes and frosting turned out splendidly. Two thumbs up for this recipe!
I’m so glad you liked it Suzanne! Thanks! 🙂