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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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This is genuinely the best cupcake recipe that I have ever tried! I have now made it twice in the last week. The first time was for high school boys, and they raved about it, and now for my son’s birthday. Thanks for making me look good😂
Awesome! So glad to hear that! 🙂
My cupcakes came out amazing !!!!!
I did use water but only 1/2!! And the consistency came out perfect
I’m so glad to hear that!
How many cupcakes does this recipe make
About 24
Hi! Can this be made into a half sheet layered cake? Also, can I use whole milk instead of 2%?
I would imagine that’d be fine. I’m not sure if you should double it or not. Do you know what specific size? And yes, whole milk would be fine. It might just be a touch more dense.
This is the best recipe EVER!!! I have made them for every single holiday its my go-to and everybody loves them.
Awesome! Go glad you enjoy them!
I loved this. It was nice and fluffy but i should like to know what time you need for different size trays.😊
I’m so glad you enjoyed them! I’m not sure about all the different sizes, but baking the recipe in three 8 inch pans would be 24-28 minutes. 🙂
What is the purpose for the last cup of water? I assume there’s some scientific reason for that. I noticed some lady left the water out and hers came out well. I just made a batch and while the flavor taste good they are not light and airy more gummy. I did not fill mine up High, but each cupcake looked like it had an eruption in the center. I followed the recipe Except I had no vegetable oil and I use coconut oil in the liquid stage. I noticed another lady use coconut oil and hers turned out well. She did not say whether or not she slightly warmed the oil to make it liquidy.
These cupcakes are an adaptation of my chocolate cupcakes, which also use water (or some people like to use coffee). You could swap it out for more milk, but the additional fat will make them more dense, which I didn’t want. The water adds the moisture without the extra fat. You could leave it out, you just won’t be adding as much moisture. That’s fine, I just think they’re better when at their most moist.
I’m sorry to hear you had trouble with them. I genuinely don’t know why some people have trouble and so many others (myself included) don’t. I’ve asked many of my friends to make them, praying they’ll have a bad outcome so that they can help me trouble shoot it, but they all have success. I say this not to sound unkind, but to portray that I truly want to help, but can’t fix an issue I can’t recreate and my guesses at helping people don’t really seem to help. So I’m stumped. I’m sorry. I would love to be able to say what went wrong.
If anyone (you included) would like to help me trouble shoot them, feel free to send me an email. I’d love to figure it out. 🙂
Unfortunately, mine turned out nothing like the image. Seriously caramelised on the top at a lower temp.
When you say they caramelized at a lower temperature, does that mean you baked them at a temperature other than 350?
Can I use this recipe to make a double layer cake? With 2 cake pans?
Yes, definitely.
This is my go-to recipe every year for birthday cupcakes! It’s perfection.
So glad to hear that!
Can u add coco powder to this recipe
You can find the chocolate cupcake version here.
Of the many recipes I tried..this is the only one that matters. Definitely delivered as promised. Thank you soo much.
Awesome! So glad to hear that!
This recipe is incredible! the most moist cupcakes that stay good!! does the nutritional information provided include the frosting??
I’m so glad you enjoyed them! Yes, it does.
girl bye I made these and I added everything correctly and they over popped and they look like donuts 😭😭😭
That’s not a recipe problem. It sounds like you over filled your cupcakes. When they rise too much and overflow, the middle will often sink.
gaslight much? I had the same problem and filled well below half way (like YOU recommended. not impressed.
This recipe worked really well for me. I omitted the water altogether, the batter was still quite running. I also only put in 1 1/2 cups of sugar and they were still very sweet.
I’m glad you enjoyed them!
Gurl this recipe is AMAZING!! I didn’t have an oven, so I used an air fryer, which is basically a convection oven. I made mini cupcakes with this recipe! IT WAS SO GOOD. THIS IS THE BEST CUPCAKE RECIPE I’VE ENCOUNTERED!!
Awesome, thank you! I’m so glad you enjoyed them!
Hi. How long did you airfry it for and at what temp?
I use this recipe all the time! Love it!
Wondering if I could use it for a cake
How are you? Enjoy it! Yes, you can use it for a cake. I usually make three 8 inch rounds and bake for 24 to 28 minutes.