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I am so excited to share this recipe for a Moist and Fluffy Vanilla Cake with you today! It’s a cake I’ve been making for years, but wanted to tweak and it’s finally ready!
For those who know me and see me regularly, they know that I play with vanilla recipes like it’s my job. I kind of feel like you are only as good as your best vanilla cake. It is super important to have a wonderful one, and yet it seems to be the hardest for people to find. Plus everyone has their own idea of what makes it “the best”. I think I might have made it my life’s mission to make the best vanilla cake for everyone. It may not be that there’s one “best” recipe for all, but maybe a couple recipes that you can choose from. Bottom line – I make a lot of vanilla cake. And it’s all for you. 🙂
So let’s talk a little about this recipe. You may or may not have seen/made my vanilla cupcakes. They have been quite popular and it’s a recipe I go back to time and time again. I love it and so many others love it too.
But it always amazes me how people love different things about cakes. Many people have agreed that they are perfect, moist and fluffy and it’s their new favorite. Yet some think they are too dense. To be fair, when you bake it as a cake, it is fairly dense. And yet, every time I do a taste comparison with a larger group (usually our church group), it’s their favorite – whether a cake or cupcakes. Funny, right?
But I am someone who likes options. I don’t want to feel limited and I’m sure I’m not the only one. And since I’ve loved this cake for so long, I decided it was time to share it so you could have more options. 🙂 The only reason I haven’t shared it sooner is that I wanted to tweak a few things. One thing being that the original recipe didn’t do well as cupcakes. They separated from the liners as they cooled, so I wanted to fix that (and I did!).
Of course, now it begs the question of how this recipe is different from the other one. Neither is necessarily better than the other. That really depends on your preference. But any time I see multiple options for a particular flavor (like vanilla) on someone’s site, I’m always curious about the differences so I know which one I want to try. So I want to break down some of the differences and similarities for you.
First, let’s talk about the ingredients. Just like with the other recipe, I wanted to have simple ingredients that most people usually have on hand. The original recipe calls for cake flour and I wanted to replace that with all purpose flour. That, plus some other tweaks to account for the change, and you now have a pretty normal ingredient list. Score!
Second, there’s the mixing method. The other recipe is very simple. Basically a throw everything together and mix method, which is wonderfully easy. This cake uses the creaming method. The steps are more involved and definitely need to be followed.
Third is the final cake taste and texture. Again, this is very subjective in terms of which is better. I love them both. They both have excellent vanilla flavor. This cake is flatter on top when baked. As for which is denser, or fluffier, I think they’re both fluffy and dense. Confusing, right?
This cake manages to be a little denser-seeming, as there aren’t as many air pockets in the baked cake. But when you bite into it, it actually has a super fluffy taste and feel to it. I feel like the other recipe is actually the denser one, especially when made as a cake, but it has more air pockets and also manages to seem fluffy. Both are very moist.
Personally, I like the other recipe for cupcakes (they’re still my perfect cupcake!) and this one for a cake. But both can be used as a cake or cupcakes and both are delicious.
Hopefully that explanation was more helpful than confusing. 🙂
The bottom line is that you can’t go wrong with either, though you might end up preferring one over the other if you try them both.
I love the texture of this cake. It is absolutely wonderful when layered and iced and I find it very hard to not want to eat the entire cake. It really is a very soft and moist cake. I recently shared it with a friend who wanted to make a vanilla cake for her daughter’s birthday and they loved it!
So there you have it – another vanilla cake/cupcake recipe. Decisions, decisions. If you give them both a try, I’d love to know what you think. 🙂
SHOP THE RECIPE
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Moist and Fluffy Vanilla Cake
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 33 minutes
- Total Time: 53 minutes
- Yield: 12-14 Slices, or 36 Cupcakes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Description
This is a cake I’ve been making for years, but wanted to tweak and it’s finally ready!
Ingredients
CAKE
- 1 1/2 cups (336g) salted butter, room temp (I use Challenge Butter)
- 2 1/4 cups (466g) sugar
- 4 egg whites
- 3 tsp vanilla extract
- 3 cups (390g) all purpose flour
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 2 3/4 tsp baking powder
- 1 1/2 cups (360ml) milk
FROSTING
- 1 1/2 cups (336g) salted butter
- 1 1/2 cups (284g) shortening
- 12 cups (1380g) powdered sugar
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 6–7 tbsp (90-105ml) water or milk
Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (176°C). Line three 8-inch cake pans with parchment paper in the bottom and grease the sides.
2. Beat the butter and sugar in a large bowl on medium speed about 2 minutes, until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
3. Add the egg whites and vanilla and beat on medium speed for about 1 minute, no more. The texture of the batter will change and become thicker and may seem a little curdled.
4. Combine the flour, baking soda and baking powder in a medium sized bowl.
5. Add about one-third of the flour mixture to the batter and beat on medium speed until incorporated.
6. Add about half of the milk and beat on medium speed until incorporated.
7. Continue alternating adding dry and wet ingredients, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed, and beating until incorporated after each addition. There should be three total additions of dry ingredients and two total additions of milk. End with the dry ingredients. The batter will be thick and glossy.
8. Divide the batter evenly between the cake pans and spread evenly.
9. Stagger the cake layers on the oven racks so that no layer is directly over another. Bake for 30-33 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cakes comes out clean. Don’t be alarmed if the tops are a little browned, that is normal.
10. Remove cakes from oven and allow to cool for 3-5 minutes.
11. Remove cakes from pans to cooling racks and cool completely before frosting.
12. To make icing, combine butter and shortening and mix until smooth.
13. Add 6 cups of powdered sugar and mix until smooth.
14. Add vanilla extract and 4 tbsp of water or milk and mix until smooth.
15. Add remaining powdered sugar and mix until smooth.
16. Add more water or milk until desired consistency is reached.
17. To assemble cake, place first layer of cake on your cake stand or plate. NOTE: The cake layers shouldn’t have a rounded dome on top of them, but if they do, cut them off before stacking.
18. Add about 1 1/2 cups icing and spread into an even layer.
19. Add second layer of cake and another 1 1/2 cups of icing.
20. Top cake with remaining layer of cake.
21. Use the rest of the icing to ice the outside of the cake. For instructions on icing a smooth cake and the piping, here is a tutorial on How to Frost a Smooth Cake.
TO MAKE CUPCAKES:
Follow instructions above through number 7. Fill cupcake liners about 1/2 way. Bake at 350 degrees for about 16-18 minutes. Allow to cool in pan for 2-3 minutes, then remove to cooling rack to cool completely. Recipe makes about 36 cupcakes.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 1200
- Sugar: 123.7 g
- Sodium: 419.1 mg
- Fat: 66.5 g
- Carbohydrates: 146.3 g
- Protein: 8.8 g
- Cholesterol: 119.2 mg
Filed Under:
Recipe modified from this recipe.
Enjoy!
Hello! I am baking a cake for a baby shower and I did a test of this recipe tonight and it didn’t turn out! I did half the batch to limit the amount of cake I have sitting at home. Could this be the reason why? I also split the batter between an 8″ pan and a 6″ pan. The cakes didn’t bake all the way through and the edges rised a lot quicker and are hard. I had the cakes in longer than the 30-35 minute bake time and they are still underbaked. Any ideas? Was it because I halved the recipe? Thanks in advance!
I wouldn’t think it be because of halving the recipe. It sounds like it didn’t bake evenly. You could try using bake even strips. They prevent the outside of the pan from baking too much faster than the inside of the pan.
Thank you for your respond! I did try this again and made a cake and a batch of cupcakes and they turned out perfectly. The cake and frosting were delicious! It was definitely a hit. Thank you for you help and suggestion. I believe my problem was the mixing, I was using the wrong speed on my kitchaid mixer, rookie mistake!
hello. i made as per instructions but my batter split any idea why? kitchen is v warm. will it be useable?
Hi Lindsay! My daughter wanted to bake her dad a vanilla birthday ! After searching on the internet we found your recipe. It turned out moist , fluffy ad delicious. We made a few tweeks. .. grated some orange runs and mixed it with vanilla essence. Melted the butter to semi liquid. Thank you for sharing. She is more inspired to bake. Some more.
Sounds wonderful! Glad you enjoyed it!
Hey! Since your recipe just says 8″ and the picture seems that the layers aren’t that think I was thinking I might have a different size pan. Mine that I want to try is 8×3 round I want my cake to be tall so I may do 3 layers of this size if it will work? Would that mean this recipe would fill one pan 8×3?
Thanks! Can’t wait to try it!!
I’m not sure what you mean, but the cake in the photo is made with three 8 inch cake pans as the recipe notes. I wouldn’t suggest baking all the batter in one pan. It’ll be a very thick cake that will take much longer to bake and end up overbaked on the outside. You’ll want to use at least two pans.
Hi Lindsay
Cake looks amazing! If I wanted to use unsalted butter. Do I need to add salt and how much?
Thanks!
Yes, I’d try 3/4 tsp – 1 tsp.
I just made this recipe with gluten free flour mix, and wanted to let you know that it turned out beautifully! I’ve never used a batter that was this thick and fluffy, but my goodness the cake and cupcakes are beautiful. I was able to make 2 dozen cupcakes and a single small 6″ cake for my son’s birthday. If you have anyone asking about using gluten-free flour in the future, I decreased the baking temperature by 25 degrees (to 325) and baked for 22 minutes for cupcakes, and 40 minutes for the cake 🙂
Very helpful! I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Thanks Meg!
Hi… May I know the substitute for sour cream… ??I don’t find it in my place… thank you..
You can try additional milk
Hi Lindsay, how high do each of your vanilla cakes rise? Mine don’t seem to have risen much higher than when they went into the oven. Thanks!
It’s been a while since I made this particular recipe, but I’d say around 1 to 1 1/2 inches.
I’d like to give this one a try. Will it work to cut the cake recipe ingredients down to 2/3 the amount to make just 2 layers? Thank you!
I haven’t tried it, but it should be fine.
Could you add oreos to this cake to make it cookies and cream flavored?
I would think that’d be fine.
We’re using this recipe to make the middle child’s birthday cake this weekend. Thanks for always being our “go to” for deliciousness, Lindsay.
Hope all is well!
Hello, Happy Easter ????
I made your cake early this week for a charity bake morning at work and had so many compliments, your recipe is delicious! I changed it up slightly and made the buttercream frosting strawberry flavour and I spread a really tangy lemon curd on to the layers aswell so it wasn’t so sweet. Lovely combination. So glad I found your blog.
One question is about the texture of the outside of the cake. I baked for 30 mins. The tops were a little brown, but your recipe said not to worry about that. But the outside of the cake was harder than I expected but the inside was still soft if not a tad darker than your pictures. Do you think I need less cooking time with my oven so that they aren’t as crispy/hard on the outside?
Thanks for your help
Nat x
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
For the fire edge, it’s hard to say. Could be a number of things. This cake does tend to get a tiny “crust” around the top edges for me that I usually just pull off. Another possibility is some difference between ovens. Also, darker pans can produce a darker cake. I use light colored pans.
Hi, I’ve made this cake twice now. It tastes amazingly good. I have a real issue with it sticking in the pan and falling apart though. I’m not a baking novice by any stretch so am wondering what I could be doing wrong. The first time I actually baked it in 3 separate tins and allowed them all to completely cool before removing and they stuck to the tin. This time (literally just now) I’ve baked the first cake, it had been cooling for over 10 minutes, still felt warmish and it just fell apart! SO I have the rest to bake now, will try and let it cool longer or something as it’s for my birthday cake for tomorrow and I don’t want to have to go buy something. This mess here is only good for drizzling caramel sauce over and eating by the spoonful.
It would be really difficult for me to know what’s causing it. I don’t seem to have the same problem. I’m not sure how you remove the cakes, but maybe a different method would help with it not falling apart? When I’m trying to be especially careful, I place a parchment lined cooling rack over the top of the cake pan and just turn it over so the cake doesn’t have far to go before landing on the cooling rack and it shouldn’t fall apart. I hope you’re able to get it to work!
Also might be what you’re using to geese your pan. I use margarine and run a butter knife around the edge. Then I’ll lay my parchment on top my cooling rack on top and it never sticks I promise.
I really want to color the batter for an Easter cake (3 layers 3 colors) I only have liquid color. Does it color well
I haven’t tried it with this cake. I might suggest using the cake layers from this cake instead. They should color fine.
Thanks for the speedy reply and for another recipe alternative. I only stuck with this one because I need a denser cake to hold up cookie skewers this recipe dyed really well I used 12 drops per bowl of batter (approximately 2 cups a bowl) and it was perfect.
Have you made this in a 13×9 pan? Do you think this recipe will have enough batter for a 13×9 plus a 8×8 cake? Thank you!
I haven’t, but I think others have and said it was successful. I imagine it will just make one 9×13 cake.
Hi, Lindsay – your chocolate cake (coconut) is my go to cake recipe for all occasions – very loved by all! However, I am planning a 50th anniversary party for my parents and decided to do a replica of their wedding cake which was simple….so I want to do a yellow…white cake – which I never do – if I’m doing a cake – it’s always chocolate! ! Do you have any recommendations of which recipe you would use?
I’m so glad you enjoy the chocolate cake. 🙂 There sam to be an array of preferences when it comes to vanilla cake. This one is certainly very good. This one is the vanilla version of the chocolate cake you mentioned, so you could try that as well. And then there’s this one, which is probably my favorite.
I made this cake today and I found it way too sweet; the edges get super crispy and golden brown, the cake shrunk as it sat and cooled and it is very dense, although moist. The flavour is okay. This is a good basic cake recipe however I am looking for something else. I might try this again but by tweaking a few things. Thank you for sharing! 🙂
It shouldn’t shrink like that when cooling. It will definitely end up denser if it does. You could try out the vanilla cake layers in this recipe. There also this one.