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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!
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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!
Watch How To Make These
Read Transcript
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Moist Vanilla Cake
Moist and Fluffy Vanilla Cake
Perfect Moist and Fluffy Vanilla Cupcakes
Easy Moist Chocolate Cake
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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should I use milk or water for the frosting? which one would you recommend?
I need to make 36-48 cupcakes. Can I simply double the ingredients or do you suggest making two separate batters?
Doubling it should be fine.
Gave this recipe a go. Personally, not quite for me. The high liquid content, yes, makes it moist however I feel the recipe ends up being too sweet without the rich taste you’d expect from a Vanilla cupcake.
Hi Lindsay,
In all your cupcake recipe videos, you use a measuring cup to pour the exact amount of batter in each case, I was just wondering which size cup you use???
Are you referring to the scoop I use? It’s a 1 3/4 oz scoop.
Hi. This is the first time I read about adding shortening to buttercream. Will it make the buttercream frosting more stable once piped? Will it add flavor to the frosting? Thanks.
I’d suggest checking out this post about why I use what I use in the frosting and then this post about consistency. 🙂 I hope that helps!
Hi, i just finished making this recipe, and omg…it’s taste amazing, flufy, moist its ….. yummy ????????
Only one problem i had now, after baked my cupcake round is srhink, so the cakes edges is separated from the paper cup. Is there something wrong that i did? (Im using bake paper cup)
Beside that, everything is perfect!! Great recipe ????????????????
Thank you ????????????
Hi I’ve made these cupcakes twice and the flavor is great but I need help getting my cupcakes to dome nicely , instead both times I’ve made them they dome a little volcano-ish what can I do!! I’ve followed the recipe to the letter and i can’t figure out why the volcano tops
Just made these cupcakes today. Only had almond milk so i figured I’d give it a try. They are amazing and soooo moist. I do get a hint of the almond milk but it tastes fine. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
I’m to hear they worked well and you enjoyed them!
These cupcakes are delicious, I have made them three times! Can this recipe be used for a cake?
So glad you enjoyed them! Yes, it can. I used it in a cake here, if you’d like to take a look at those instructions.
Just have to say,besides my grandmothers recipe these are the best cupcakes I have made,my grandson loves to make cupcakes so he helped make them and my kids and grandkids devoured them in an evening. I tweeked the recipe by adding a tsp.of cinnamon,I am a fan of this spice and yum. Thank you for sharing this recipe. Everyone who bakes should give this one a try.
I made these cupcakes and my family loved them!!! Big winner in my house so a huge thanks. 🙂
I never comment in anything, but I felt I needed to regarding this recipe.
I’ve never not creamed my butters and sugar together. I thought it was strange/a mistake that your recipe stated to add the sugar to the flour. By the last step, I was sure there was a mistake with the 1 cup of water because the batter was SOO runny – not even CLOSE to the consistency of any batter I’ve ever made before.
I decided “screw it, I’m this far in” and patiently waited for what I assumed would be a disaster.
I was amazed when the end result was probably the best cupcake I’ve ever had. Seriously, I’ve already eaten so many that I have a stomach ache and I’m still eating them. Thank you for such a great recipe!
So glad to hear you enjoyed them!
This is exactly how I feel. Almost word for word. In fact I started to think I had impulsively written it while in a cake coma. I was sure something was off but it turned out to be the best cake ive ever made. Possibly the only recipe I will ever use again!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
This is an awful recipe, and does not provide enough information for people outside of America. 1/10.
Hi! I’m from Brazil. I made this cupcake, and … My God !!! Delicious!! I want to know if I can use this recipe for wedding cakes. My Brazilian recipes are not working well here.
The recipe does work for cakes. You can see an example here.
These cupcakes tasted terrible. A group of 6 year olds would not even finish a single mini cupcake.
I don’t think you’d want to make any other cupcake after making these. They are as moist as can be. I use “Best Vanilla Frosting” for the topping, which is a mixture of cream cheese and heavy whipping cream, which I pipe on. They are just so easy to make (no creaming) and go down a treat!