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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
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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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Hi, I’ve made this recipe before and It ended up so good. I have to bake 46 cupcakes saturday for a birthday party and I’m just wondering if I’m able to make the batter this afternoon and bake the cupcakes tomorrow or is that not recommend for this batter to stay overnight?
I wouldn’t recommend it.
I love this recipe it’s amazing and I have been using it for a while now. For the people that have issues, I don’t know why this happens, whether it’s from the weather or oven, or the products in the different countries. However for me I don’t cook them by the timeframe above, because I get the same issue as some people here report, I cook them until they are slightly golden at the top and it works every time. Everyone I have ever made them for loves them. I hope that helps. And thank you for the amazing recipe!
I have been baking for many years. I chose this recipe for my granddaughter’s party, with many guests arriving. It was so bad that I had to scramble to find another recipe and remake the cupcakes. They have little taste, and what is there is reminicent of pancakes, and not even good pancakes.
The first time i used this recipe it was amazing! Best vanilla cupcake i have ever had/made. Second time and times after it has not turned out the same. Not as dense and just lacking…cannot figure out why. I am on the hunt for another now but am very sad that I couldn’t keep this recipe consistent 🙁
As mentioned in the note above the recipe, it has very mixed results for people. I’m sorry you’re having trouble. I have three other vanilla cupcake recipes that all turn out more consistently if you would like to check those out.
Would I be able to use butter instead of oil in this recipe ?
I haven’t tested it to be able to say. But I have three other vanilla cupcake recipes that use butter if you would like to try one of those.
Probably the worst cupcake recipe there is. They were so dense and flat, and I followed everything in the recipe.
Has anyone experienced extreme shrinking with these cupcakes? They taste amazing, but after 1-2 days they are 1/3 of the size. Is it something I’m doing?
This recipe was a disaster. Will use my tried and trusted one in future
I love this recipe and I will love to bake it for my children special on their birthday.
I love this recipe for the moist cupcake but please can I have the recipe for big batches 48+ cant find it on your website I know you use to have x3 recipe please advise.
Thank you
You should just be able to double it. The 2x and 3x options were removed because people were having issues with it doubling (or tripling) certain ingredients, but not all of them, giving them the wrong results.
Unfortunately I have to agree with the extra chewiness – I wonder if it isn’t due to too much wet ingredients? I’ve used recipes before that had oil and milk, but never oil, milk and water. I just pulled them out of the oven and they’re already looking like they are too gummy. I hope the frosting will save them.
The cupcakes taste like pancakes and the frosting taste really sweet and tastes like shortening or Crisco.
The frosting was really sweet and you could definitely taste too much shortening or Crisco. But the cupcake was pretty good.
Feel free to replace the shortening with additional butter next time. Glad you enjoyed the cupcake.
Hi there, for sugar-free cupcakes, could I use this recipe and replace the sugar with erythritol
I haven’t tried anything like that, so it’s hard for me to say.
This recipe is fantastic! I have made it twice now and it turned out perfectly both times even though the second time I had to use soy milk due to a dairy allergy. If you want easy delicious cupcakes this is THE recipe to use.
Can I freeze these?
Freeze cupcake alone and prepar frosting day of or
Make complete and freeze cupcake with icing on and then thaw day before use?
I would freeze the cupcake only.
I have successfully made cupcakes with this recipe and it was amaaaaazing but can I use the same recipe to bake a birthday cake?
Glad to hear that! Yes, you can. I did in this cake.
I just made this recipe just now. The cupcakes are in the oven… so far so good. I am just wondering if i can use this same recipe for a cake?
Yes, you can. I did in this cake.
great! Thanks so much! Going to make a cake right now 🙂