A perfectly plush, soft, classic vanilla cake recipe made entirely from scratch! It’s so simple to make, and tastes much better than a box mix! Recipe includes a how-to video.
A Classic Vanilla Cake, Made Entirely From-Scratch
Every baker needs a solid vanilla cake recipe in their repertoire, and today’s recipe is just that.
It’s soft, plush, and perfectly moist. Not to be confused with my white cake, this recipe is a beautiful pale golden color and distinctly vanilla flavored. It pairs beautifully with any frosting, although a traditional chocolate frosting is my favorite finish!
Like my chocolate cake, this has been one of my most popular recipes for years (and you may recognize it as the base for both my pineapple upside-down cake and my marble cake). It’s a simple, classic, and incredible vanilla cake. So many of you have tried and loved this recipe, and while the recipe remains exactly the same, I thought it was about time for a facelift with new photos and a new video.
The flavor and texture of this cake is so much better than box-mix, and the preparation is almost as easy. I’ve included a few tips below to help you be successful, so make sure to read all the notes before you get started.
What You Need
After testing many versions and combinations of ingredients, I’ve found that a good vanilla cake needs the following ingredients:
- Oil AND butter. A blend of these two ingredients gives the cake the best possible flavor and texture. Butter provides flavor while oil adds moisture and keeps it from being too dry. A cake made with all oil would be moist but lacking in flavor, and an all-butter cake may have a more buttery taste, but would be more dry. Any neutral cooking oil will work here, but I typically recommend using either vegetable or canola oil. For the butter, unsalted is best so we have maximum control over the flavor of the cake
- Sugar. Plain granulated sugar works best. Brown sugar would add moisture, but would detract from the classic vanilla flavor and even weigh down the cake a bit.
- Eggs. You’ll need four eggs, and it’s best if you bring them to room temperature before adding them (this helps them incorporate into the batter more evenly).
- Vanilla. You can’t have vanilla cake without vanilla! I recommend using a good quality vanilla extract, so if you’ve got a batch of homemade vanilla extract, use it here!
- Flour. I developed this vanilla cake recipe to be work with all-purpose flour and that’s what I always use. However, you *could* use cake flour instead. To substitute by weight, you would use the same amount, but if you are using measuring cups you will need to substitute your flour properly.
- Baking powder. I know a tablespoon of baking powder may seem like a lot, but that’s not a typo. Always make sure your baking soda is fresh and avoid using a generic brand, which I’ve had mixed results with in the past.
- Salt. You can just use plain table salt.
- Buttermilk. I strongly recommend using full-fat buttermilk for the best flavor and texture. While I do have a buttermilk substitute, it doesn’t really make this vanilla cake quite as moist and flavorful as I like it to be, so now I strictly recommend using real buttermilk. And no, you do not *need* to have baking soda in a recipe in order to use buttermilk; we’re using it for its moisture and flavor here!
SAM’S TIP: One of the biggest mistakes you can make with this recipe is neglecting to measure your flour properly. If you over or under-measure your flour, your cake will not turn out right! Use the right method, be as precise as possible, and use a kitchen scale if you have one.
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Vanilla Cake
- Cream the butter, oil, and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer.
- Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Then, add your vanilla and stir to combine.
- Combine your dry ingredients in a separate bowl, then add about ⅓ of the mixture into your bowl. Use a spatula to gently stir until just combined. Follow this with about ½ of your buttermilk, and stir again until just combined. .
- Add ½ of the remaining dry ingredients stir, and then add the remainder of the buttermilk. Finish with the final portion of dry ingredients and use your spatula to make sure the batter is smooth–do NOT overmix!
- Divide the batter evenly into two greased baking pans.
- Bake, then use a toothpick to test for doneness. Let the cakes cool in their pans a bit before inverting onto a cooling rack, where they’ll need to cool completely before frosting.
SAM’S TIP: While a toothpick that comes out clean indicates a fully baked cake, an over-baked cake will also yield a clean toothpick. It’s best to pull your vanilla cake out of the oven when a toothpick shows moist crumbs!
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! This vanilla cake recipe will make 24 vanilla cupcakes. I’ve included instructions for cupcakes in the recipe notes.
A cake that has been over-baked or one in which too much flour was used will be crumbly when cut into. If you invert the cake too soon or try to handle it while it’s too warm, this could also make it break.
Cakes made from scratch require a bit more care and technique than those that come from a box-mix. When making any cake from scratch, take care to not over-mix, over-bake, or use too much flour, or the cake can end up tasting like cornbread. This applies to any cake that is made from scratch, not just this recipe!
What causes dry cake?
Dryness is typically the biggest complaint bakers have when making a cake from scratch, so I thought this FAQ deserved its own space. There are three main causes for a dry cake: over-measuring the flour (addressed above), over-mixing, and over-baking.
- Do not over-mix your batter! Mixing the batter properly can be tricky and this is often where most mistakes are made with homemade cakes. To avoid over-mixing, thoroughly cream together the wet ingredients, particularly the butter, sugar, oil, and eggs. I highly recommend using an electric mixer for this step! However, once you get to the point of combining your wet and dry ingredients, you need to be gentle and fold by hand using a spatula. Alternate adding the dry ingredients and the buttermilk, folding thoroughly, but not aggressively. The batter will be smooth and mostly cohesive; there may be some small lumps remaining, but that’s fine! Also, remember that while over-mixing can make your vanilla cake both dry and dense, under-mixing has its own risks and should be avoided as well!
- Do not over-bake your cake! Even a minute too long in the oven can cause a cake to be too dry and dense. When baking, place your cake pans on the center rack of your oven and always make sure your oven is running at the proper temperature (most ovens do not, so keep a thermometer in yours!). Don’t check your vanilla cake too early (that can make it sink!), but do keep an eye on it. When your cake is ready to come out of the oven, the center should spring back if lightly touched–it should not deflate or appear jiggly. You can also use the toothpick test to check for doneness. To do this, simply insert a toothpick in the center of your cake; it’s done if the toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs (not wet batter). Once your vanilla cake is done, let it cool in the pan for only 10-15 minutes before running a knife around the edge and inverting it onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
SAM’S NOTE: Under-mixing your cake batter, not baking the cake for long enough, or opening the oven door too frequently while the cake bakes can cause the cake to sink as it cools.
Enjoy!
Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook
Vanilla Cake
Ingredients
- ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter softened to room temperature
- ½ cup (120 ml) avocado, canola or vegetable oil¹
- 1 ½ cup (300 g) granulated sugar
- 4 large eggs room temperature preferred
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
- 3 cups (375 g) all-purpose flour²
- 1 Tablespoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 ¼ cup (300 ml) buttermilk room temperature preferred
- 1 batch Chocolate Frosting click link for recipe, or use one of the other frostings recommended in the notes below
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F (177C) and prepare two deep 8" round cake pans³ by lining the bottoms with parchment paper and lightly greasing the sides. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer (or in a large bowl using an electric mixer) cream together the butter, canola oil and sugar until creamy and well-combined.½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter, ½ cup (120 ml) avocado, canola or vegetable oil¹, 1 ½ cup (300 g) granulated sugar
- Add eggs, one at a time, beating until thoroughly combined after each addition.4 large eggs
- Stir in vanilla extract.1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
- In a separate, medium-sized bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.3 cups (375 g) all-purpose flour², 1 Tablespoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon salt
- Using a spatula and gently hand-mixing, alternate adding flour mixture and buttermilk to the butter mixture, starting and ending with flour mixture and mixing until just combined after each addition. The batter should be thoroughly combined, but there may be some small lumps in the batter and avoid over-mixing (and do not use your electric mixer or stand mixer for this step).1 ¼ cup (300 ml) buttermilk
- Evenly divide batter into your prepared cake pans, and bake on 350F (175C) for 30-35 minutes. When the cake is done, the surface should spring back to the touch and a toothpick inserted in the center should come out mostly clean with few moist crumbs (no wet batter).
- Allow cakes to cool in their cake pans for 10-15 minutes before inverting onto cooling rack to cool completely before frosting.
- Frost cake using my chocolate frosting (or see notes for other favorite frosting options) and decorate with sprinkles (if desired).1 batch Chocolate Frosting
Notes
¹Cooking oil
You may use any neutral cooking oil instead of vegetable or canola oil. I generally don’t recommend olive oil, which is heavier and has a distinct flavor that could affect the end taste result of your cake.²Cake Flour
You may substitute cake flour for all-purpose flour. Use 3 ⅓ cups or 375g of cake flour.³Different size baking pans
- 13×9″ pan: This recipe makes enough for one 13×9″ baking pan. Readers have reported the approximate bake time is 30 minutes.
- Two 9″ pans: Readers have reported this cake takes approximately 25 minutes to bake in 9″ pans.
- Bundt pan: Readers have reported this cake takes approximately 40-45 minutes to bake in a bundt pan
Vanilla Cupcakes:
This recipe will make approximately 24 vanilla cupcakes. Fill cupcake liners no more than ¾ of the way full. Bake on 350F for 17-18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs or clean.Frosting Options
The chocolate frosting I linked to in the ingredients is my favorite pairing with this cake, but here are some other great options:Video note
In the video I mistakenly say to add more buttermilk than is necessary. The written recipe is correct with 1 ¼ cups of buttermilk.Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Yvonne Olson
Hello – I see you are replying to comments even though this post is from a while ago. That’s great of you!
Do you see any reason as to why this recipe wouldn’t work for a rectangle cake pan 11″x15″, 2 in deep?
Thank you
Yvonne
Sam
Hi Yvonne! It will work in an 11 x 15, but the cake will be a little bit thin. You would need to increase the recipe by about probably 50% to fill the pan completely. Be sure not to overfill the pan if you increase the recipe. I’m not sure what the bake time will be. I would love to hear how it turns out! Enjoy! 🙂
agus
I love it!! I´ve just made it exactly as the instructions said and it turned out really awesome! It´s incredibly fluffy, moist, with a rich vainilla flavour yet soft at the same time. besides, it´s really easy to make!
also, I added cocoa powder to half the batter to make a marble cake. definitely the best cake recipe ever.
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed it so much! 🙂
Karin MacKrell
This was the perfect vanilla cake! Thank you.
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed it so much, Karin! 🙂
Anna
Can I use grapeseed oil? Also will this cake work as a base for an ice cream cake?
Sam
Hi Anna! Grapeseed oil should work just fine. I don’t see any reason it wouldn’t work as the base for an ice cream cake. 🙂
Jessica
Hi, I’m planning to make this cake for my sons birthday (along with the chocolate frosting recipe you recommend here). I wanted to know how far in advance do you suggest making this as well as making the frosting? Thank you!
Sam
Hi Jessica! It’s always best the day it’s made, but it is still good for the next several days. Just keep it covered in an air tight container. 🙂
Julia
Hey I am gonna make this cake for my fathers bday I have a ten inch pan and want two layers, if u are free can u give me the whole measurements for a 10’” inch pan for all the ingredients
Sam
Hi Julia! I don’t have all of the measurements to bake it in a 10 inch pan, but I do know you would need to increase the recipe by 1/3. It may be easier to increase the recipe by 1/2 and just discard the excess. 🙂
Julia
SO i have to increase it by 1/2 for i layer or 2 layers
Sam
A 10 inch pan holds about 6 cups of batter and an 8 inch pan holds about 4 cups of batter. So this recipe as is will make about 8 cups of batter. To fill 2 10 inch pans you will need about 12 cups. Increasing by 50% will give you enough for 2 layers. I hope this makes sense. 🙂
Ella
I substituted cake flour for the All Purpose Flour and substituted the sugar for Monk Sugar, but followed the rest to your specification along with the instructions on how to prepare but something went wrong because it didn’t come out very good:( Did the substitutions make that much of a difference in the end result? I might try again without substitutions to see if there is a difference.
Sam
Hi Ella! It depends how it turned out. You can use cake flour but you need to make the proper substitution. If you are using weights it is the same amount if you are using cup measurements you need 1 cup + 2 TBSP of cake flour for every cup of all purpose flour in the recipe. I don’t know how the monk sugar would work here. There are many other things that can go wrong when making a cake so I can’t say for sure what the problem is.
Kakiya Neves
Would the cake turn out the same if I used sour cream instead of buttermilk and would it be in equal amount interchangeable? Thank you 😊
Sam
Hi Kakiya! It wouldn’t be a straight substitution. There are some other alterations that would need to be made and without having tried it I can’t say for sure how to do it. I would recommend my buttermilk substitute if you don’t have buttermilk on hand. 🙂
Nicole
Hi!
How should I adjust this recipe for 3 4″ pans?
Sam
Hi Nicole! I would probably cut the recipe in half and make sure to not overfill any of your pans. 🙂
Lisa
If I use cake flour instead of AP would it make it more fluffy and soft? Also would it weigh the same as 375g AP flour or would it be more or less?
Sam
Hi Lisa! The weight measurement will be the same 375g for cake flour. 🙂
cath
Hi! How should I adjust the batter to make a 6-inch cake?
Sam
Hi Cath! This recipe will make 3 6 inch cakes. If you want to cut it down to 2 layers cut it down by 1/3 but it may be easier to just make it as is. 🙂
Marina
Thanks a lot i tried your recipe and it was perfect but please i have 2 questions:
1- i put chocolate chips at the end after putting it in some flour but despite of that it all went down the cake , is there any other trick?
2- i made half of the ingredients because i wanted a small cake , but the texture was not like yours in the video , it was a little bit liquid it was not thick as yours, despite of this it turns out good. is it normal? shall i make it again or i was just lucky ?
thanks again.
Sam
Hmmm the chocolate chips shouldn’t sink. As you can see in the video it’s a thicker batter so it should be able to hold them. I’m wondering if something accidentally got mis-measured when it was halved. I’m glad it still turned out. 🙂
Marina
Thanks alot for caring to reply . I think the mistake was that i used a normal milk . I didn’t know that there is a difference hahaha.
Any way i bought buttermilk and iam going to do it again.
I was glad too that it was perfect the only Problem was the Chocolate Chips . I also was worried because the batter was not thick . I had Luck .
Thanks again.
Sam
Ahh yes the buttermilk will make a difference here. I hope it turns out better next time. 🙂
Marina
Hi Sam,
i made it today just as you did only that i made half of the ingredients.
Wonderful just as you said the best Vanille cake recipe.
Even when i messed up last time it was perfect and this time when i used the buttermilk it turned out so wonderful.
Thanks Sam iam so glad to find your recipe.
I have a request please , i will be following your recipes and i will be happy to find a cake recipe that can be eaten while fasting.
We fast sometimes for long time , no eggs no milk no butter.
I tried a lot of recipes orange cake and mandrin cake but sometimes it doesn’t be a successful cake . It would be very nice from you to offer a cake recipe without eggs , butter , milk.
Thanks alot Sam.
Best Regards
Marina
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed the vanilla cake so much, Marina! I actually have a Crazy Cake that doesn’t use eggs, butter, or milk. 🙂
David
Loved the cake. Thank you. Didn’t have vanilla, so used cinnamon 🙈🙈.
Cheers
Daiane Oliveira Moraes
I can divide it into three 23 cm cake pans?
Sam
Hi Daiane! If you want to make it into 3 pans I would recommend increasing the batter by 50%, otherwise your cakes will be pretty thin. The baking time will be a little different since your pans are a little bit larger. 🙂
sophia
what can i substitute for buttermilk?
Sam
Hi Sophia! I recommend making my buttermilk substitute if you don’t have any on hand. 🙂