This post may contain affiliate sales links. Please read my disclosure policy.
These Moist Vanilla Cupcakes are super easy to make and so moist – for days! They are my new favorite vanilla cupcake!
Table of Contents
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
You might also enjoy:
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.
Print
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!
This post contains affiliate links.
The flavor on these is immaculate! However I’m having a problem with the cupcakes sinking in the oven and then being rather dense when they come out. I’m following the recipe correctly, and ideas on how to keep them tall and fluffy?
There are some notes on the post about how people have trouble sometimes. I’m not sure that I know exactly what’s going on, but you could try reducing the amount of water, as suggested.
Very bland and doughy! Waste of ingredients.. I only added 1/2 of water and when I added it the batter turned into water!
Amazing recipe ! Turned out great !!
I love that these were so simple to make and so quick !!
I have a question though, how do we store these? How long they stay good at room temperature? Thanks !
Glad you enjoyed them! They should be fine at room temperature for a day or so, then you may want to refrigerate them. I would store them in an air tight container.
This recipe ticks allllllll the boxes – easy, inexpensive and delicious! Yesterday I made a vanilla cupcake recipe from a pack, adding eggs and a lot of butter – but your recipe is superior by far! I had already made frosting from another recipe but the cupcakes are aweesome – not too sweet, and perfectly moist, thank you!!!!
So glad you enjoyed them!
I followed the recipe exactly was very disappointed
I’ve made this recipe a couple times and it’s amazing! My family and friends love these cupcakes. I’ll definitely be making these again! 🙂
#2. You say combine. With a mixer or spatula? I feel like for a beginner these instructions are a little vague. Do you wait until #3 to beat instead ?
You can actually do either. The beauty of this recipe is that it’s easy enough that you can do it by hand. Just combine them. I hope that helps.
The flavour was perfect, but the texture was alittle wrong. It was quite doughy I guess you could say. I cooked some longer and same thing … Won’t make again
I absolutely love this recipe, everyone I have made it for is obsessed. I just want to know if I can make it with gluten free flour. Will it change the recipe at all
Glad you enjoyed it! I’m pretty sure others have commented saying that gluten free flour worked well.
i love this so much
This is soo delicious and made a lot of cupcakes 😈
thank you so much, this is by far my most favorite cake recipe and i will certainly use it again! my only complaint is that i think that the vanilla was a bit too much. i added a teaspoon of vanilla instead of a tablespoon, and it tasted amazing! thank you again
I read through lots of the comments and then jumped in! I was doing mini cupcakes for a bridal shower. I decided to do 3/4 water and did buttermilk instead of milk. They were coming out very blind at 10 min so I went to 13 where there was a tinge of color on the bottoms. The tops felt sticky but the cupcake was light and fluffy. They got rave reviews!. No joke…adding that water felt sooo wrong!!! Lol! I really enjoy site!
Look lovely and light will try them
This recipe has become my favourite for cupcakes so soft & moist .So easy to do and delicious. I’m going to try it for a layer cake .
I had this same issue too!
Love the consistency. Mine turned out a bit more dense than expected but they were very much enjoyed.