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These Moist Vanilla Cupcakes are super easy to make and so moist – for days! They are my new favorite vanilla cupcake!
Moist Vanilla Cupcakes Recipe
I mentioned a couple weeks ago that I’d be bringing you some new basic favorites and I started with my easy moist chocolate cake. Today, we are talking about these moist vanilla cupcakes and I’m pumped! One of the things that I’m always messing with is vanilla cake/cupcakes. It’s the never ending quest for all the best versions. I’m a believer that if you don’t have a good vanilla cake, you have NOTHING! 🙂 Ok, dramatic, but it’s like the “tell”. If you don’t have a good vanilla, can anything else really be that good? There are so many ways to vary a vanilla cake and I want the best of all of them! I’m greedy like that. Plus, I know not every has the same idea of the perfect cupcake, so I like to have options.
You may or may not have tried my original vanilla cupcakes. They are loved by many and were my favorite for some time. I still remember the batches upon batches of cupcakes I made while testing those and the fabulous friends that lined them up and tasted tested them all to help me find the best one. If you haven’t tried them, they are worth checking out. But while I still love them, these are my new fave. Sorry “OG cupcake”, there’s a new star in town. 😉
So let’s talk a bit about these cupcake. There’s no need for creaming to get involved, which is kind of a plus. Creaming butter and sugar together makes quite a fabulous cupcake, but sometimes you just want quick and easy and to barely even need to use a mixer. I mean, basically like a box mix but not, you know? These are those cupcakes. The “OG cupcake” was that way too, but used butter and were a little denser. These cupcakes use oil and are lighter.
We’ve got the usual suspects in this cupcake, starting with the dry ingredients: all-purpose flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Easy, common ingredients that you should totally have in your pantry already. Mix ’em all together and set ’em aside.
Next are the wet ingredients: milk, vegetable oil, vanilla extract and eggs. The oil is the fat component instead of butter and in my opinion, tends to make a more moist cake that stays moist for longer. Totally true for these cupcakes. The milk (I typically use 2%) adds to the structure of the cake, in addition to adding moisture. Milk adds fluff and I love some fluff. 🙂 I used a full tablespoon of vanilla extract to make sure there’s plenty of delicious vanilla flavor. Then the eggs add more moisture, structure and flavor. I switched it up in these and went with whole eggs instead of egg whites. No more egg yolks getting wasted here!
Once the wet and dry ingredients are combined, the water is added.
There’s so much moisture in these cupcakes! I love them! I’m a big, big fan of their ease of making, their flavor and moisture. They use such simple ingredients that you likely already have in your pantry too – score! When topped with my favorite vanilla buttercream, these vanilla cupcakes really are a dream! They were a big hit in our house and I hope you love them as much as we did!
More Recipes You’ll Love
- Moist Vanilla Cake
- Moist and Fluffy Vanilla Cake
- Perfect Moist and Fluffy Vanilla Cupcakes
- Easy Moist Chocolate Cake
- Homemade Moist Chocolate Cupcakes
Watch How To Make These
NOTE: Some people have reported having trouble with this recipe, while others love it. I have no idea why some people have trouble. There could be any number of factors – improper measuring of ingredients, oven type, altitude, etc. I have never had an issue with these and cannot troubleshoot a problem that I cannot recreate. If you’d prefer a more traditional vanilla cupcake that uses butter and a little bit of oil, as well as the creaming method, and seems to be less finicky for people, try out these Easy Homemade Vanilla Cupcakes. They are currently my favorite vanilla cupcake.
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Moist Vanilla Cupcakes
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 24-26 Cupcakes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Description
Made with oil instead of butter, this Moist Vanilla Cupcake Recipe makes cupcakes with a light, tender crumb that’s super moist without being dense or heavy. The batter comes together in just a few minutes, making these an easy dessert to whip up anytime.
Ingredients
VANILLA CUPCAKES
- 2 1/2 cups (325g) all purpose flour
- 2 cups (414g) sugar
- 3 tsp baking powder (NOT baking soda)
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 cup (240ml) milk
- 1/2 cup (120ml) vegetable oil
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup (240ml) water*
VANILLA FROSTING
- 1 cup (224g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 4 cups (460g) powdered sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2–3 tbsp (30-45ml) water or milk
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (176°C) and prepare a cupcake pan with liners.
- Add the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt to a large mixer bowl and combine. Set aside.
- Add the milk, vegetable oil, vanilla extract and eggs to a medium sized bowl and combine.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and beat until well combined.
- Slowly add the water to the batter and mix on low speed until well combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed to make sure everything is well combined. Please note that the batter will be very thin.
- Fill the cupcake liners about half way and bake for 15-17 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs.
- Remove the cupcakes from oven and allow to cool for 2 minutes, then remove to a cooling rack to finish cooling.
- To make the frosting, beat the butter in a large mixer bowl until smooth.
- Add 2 cups of powdered sugar and mix until smooth.
- Add the vanilla extract and 1 tablespoon of water or milk and mix until smooth.
- Add remaining powdered sugar and mix until smooth.
- Add remaining water or milk, as needed, and salt and mix until smooth.
- Pipe the frosting onto the cupcakes. I used Ateco tip 844.
Notes
If you’d prefer a more traditional vanilla cupcake that uses butter instead of oil, and the creaming method, try out these Homemade Vanilla Cupcakes.
*Some people report having issues with these cupcakes. If that happens to you, could try leaving out the water entirely.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cupcake
- Calories: 285
- Sugar: 31 g
- Sodium: 129.2 mg
- Fat: 12.7 g
- Carbohydrates: 41 g
- Protein: 2.7 g
- Cholesterol: 25.1 mg
Enjoy!
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Great recipe! I love this so much and had no problems. I made this twice with water and without and with water is the best!❤️
I’m so glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for the feedback!
How long can these be stored in the refrigerator for?
They can be stored at room temperature for about 48 hours, then refrigerated for another 2-3 days. Or you can refrigerate them for 3-4 days. I recommend serving them at room temperature. The frosting will be quite firm when cold.
I really love this recipe! I don’t have vegetable oil so I substituted canola oil. My family loves this recipe and asked me to do it 5 or 6 times in the past month! 🙂
Awesome! I’m so glad to hear it’s a hit!
Can I use this recipe as a cake batter recipe
Yes, you can see the instructions for an 8 inch cake in this cake recipe.
I’m not a good baker, and I don’t have a mixer, but I followed this recipe and my cupcakes came out perfectly! I doubled the recipe. The icing is quite sweet, but the cupcake itself isn’t too sweet so they’re perfect together. Tastes better than store bought!
I’m so glad you enjoyed them!
can you use almond milk? Or if you do should you change the ratio of milk/water?
I haven’t tried it, but it should be fine.
Love this recipe . Didn’t use any of the water and the cakes turned out perfect and incredibly light!
Loved the recipe. Didn’t have any problems with it having water in it.
I halfed the recipe. Mixed with a spoon. Was a bit heavy handed with the vanilla but overall they puffed up nicely and were super soft and moist.
We ended up using some stand up cupcake liners on a baking tray which cause me to have to cook them 5 minutes longer
I’m so glad you enjoyed them!
Hi, could I substitute vanilla paste for the extract? If so, how much would I need? Thank you 😊
That should be fine. The same amount should work.
I made them to the exact specifications but they are doughy in the middle. Idk what I did wrong
I think I over filled the cup cake cases, which made the problem worse, as they kind of overflowed rather than puffed up. Only used half the water, and really felt like I needed to because the mix was on the thick side before that.
I wonder if my cup sizes are different? Quite a lot of batter for not much egg, compared to other recipes. And maybe if I’d beaten the egg, given it some real air, that would have helped keep some structure.
Will definitely try these again, the chocolate ones are to die for and have been almost fooled proof for me!
I hope you will try them again. Overflowing can definitely cause cupcakes to fall in the center. And if you’ve made the chocolate ones, then you may see that it’s the same amount of egg and water and pretty much everything. The differences are baking powder instead of baking soda, and more flour in place of no cocoa powder. And I actually reduced the vegetable oil in this vanilla one a bit (the water amount is the same), which means the batter is even thinner for the chocolate ones. This recipe is also doubled, for more cupcakes. I’m always trying to figure out why this recipe gives some people trouble, so feel free to email me with feedback, if you try again. Thanks!