A good Vanilla cake recipe is one of the most important baking recipes to master. This version is incredibly moist, tender, and has a soft cloud-like crumb thanks to the reverse creaming method. If you've ever wanted a reliable vanilla cake recipe for special occasion cakes, birthday cakes, weddings, or layered cakes, this one has been my go-to professional recipe for over ten years. If you're new to baking layer cakes, my complete how to decorate a cake guide walks through the entire process step-by-step.
Quick Glance: Vanilla Cake Recipe
- Recipe Name: Vanilla Cake Recipe
- Why You'll Love It: Soft, buttery vanilla cake with an ultra-moist crumb that stays tender for days.
- Time and Difficulty: Prep time: 15 minutes Bake time: 20-30 minutes Difficulty: Intermediate
- Main Ingredients: Cake flour, butter, sugar, eggs, milk, vanilla extract
- Method: Reverse creaming method: Dry ingredients are combined with the butter first, then the liquid ingredients are mixed in.
- Texture and Flavor: Light, fluffy crumb with rich vanilla flavor
- Quick Tip: Mix the batter for the full two minutes during the reverse creaming stage to properly develop the cake's structure.
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Next to my white velvet buttermilk cake, and lemon blueberry cake, this moist vanilla cake is one of our most popular recipes. I have been using this recipe for over ten years for my cake clients with nothing but rave reviews. This is the cake that turns those "I don't even like cake" consultations into OMG we need to book you right now clients! This is perfect for special occasions like weddings, showers, and it makes the perfect birthday cake!
If you want to make these as cupcakes, my vanilla cupcake recipe uses the same reverse creaming method in a perfectly portioned size.
What Makes This Vanilla Cake Work So Well
One of the key techniques used in this recipe is the reverse creaming method. This mixing technique coats the flour in butter before adding liquids, which prevents excess gluten development and results in an incredibly tender crumb.
The texture of this vanilla cake is extremely soft and moist with a delicate crumb. Some bakers are surprised by how tender it is, but that softness is exactly what makes this cake so delicious.
Another reason this recipe works so well is the combination of butter and oil. Butter adds rich flavor while oil keeps the cake moist for several days.
This cake also bakes very flat, which means less trimming and less cake waste. That makes it perfect for layered cakes, wedding cakes, and decorated celebration cakes.
Vanilla Cake Ingredients
The secret to this ultra-moist and tender vanilla cake is using cake flour and the reverse creaming method.
Cake flour is used instead of all-purpose flour because it has a lower protein content, which results in a softer and more tender crumb. If you only have all-purpose flour, you can make a substitute by removing two tablespoons of flour per cup and replacing it with cornstarch, but the texture will not be exactly the same.
Sugar adds sweetness, moisture, and structure to the cake. Reducing the sugar may affect the texture and stability of the cake.
Baking Powder and Baking Soda These ingredients provide lift and help the cake rise properly. Baking soda reacts immediately while baking powder reacts during baking.
Vanilla is the primary flavor in this vanilla cake recipe. For the best flavor, use high-quality vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste.
Unsalted butter adds rich flavor and helps create a tender crumb. Unsalted butter is typically used so the salt level in the recipe can be controlled.
Milk adds moisture and helps activate the gluten structure in the cake.
Vegetable oil helps keep the cake moist for several days. Other neutral oils, such as canola or grapeseed oil, can also be used.
Tips For Success
- Measure your ingredients using a kitchen scale. Baking is a science and weight measurements provide the most accurate results.
- Bring your butter, milk, and eggs to room temperature before mixing. Room temperature ingredients help create a smooth batter and proper emulsion.
- Do not skip the mixing stage. The reverse creaming method requires mixing for about two minutes to properly develop the cake structure.
- If you live above 5,000 feet in elevation, you may need to slightly reduce the baking powder so the cake does not collapse.
Vanilla Cake Recipe Step-By-Step
- Bring your butter, milk, and eggs to room temperature. This step is very important because if these ingredients are not all the same temperature, the batter could curdle and separate during baking, leading to bad texture and rise.
Preheat your oven to 335°F. and prepare your cake pans with cake goop or your preferred pan release.
- Combine the cake flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer.
While mixing on low, add softened butter in small chunks and mix until the mixture looks like coarse sand.
- Combine half the milk and the oil.
Add the milk and oil mixture all at once to the dry ingredients mixture and mix for two minutes on medium speed. The batter should look thik and not separated.
- Whisk the rest of the milk, vanilla extract, and the eggs together to combine.
Slowly add the egg and milk mixture while mixing on low speed just until combined.
- The finished batter should be thick, smooth, and slightly glossy.
- Divide the batter into three prepared 8-inch cake pans.
- Bake for 20-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Cool cakes in the pans until barely warm before removing them onto a cooling rack.
Top it with a batch of my American buttercream recipe for a classic combination that never fails. If you want to skip the buttercream entirely, try frosting this cake with white chocolate ganache instead - it's incredibly stable and has a gorgeous vanilla flavor.
Common Vanilla Cake Mistakes
- Using cold ingredients can cause the batter to separate.
- Overbaking the cake can dry it out.
- Skipping the two-minute mixing stage can prevent proper structure development.
- Using low-quality vanilla extract can result in weak flavor.
Vanilla Cake Recipe FAQ
Yes, but the texture will be slightly denser because all-purpose flour contains more protein.
Yes. Replace the whole eggs with egg whites to create a lighter colored cake.
Yes. Wrap the layers tightly in plastic wrap and freeze for up to two months.
Yes. Leave out the oil. Fill cupcake liners about two-thirds full and bake at 350°F for about 18 minutes.
More Vanilla Recipes You'll Love
Watch: How To Decorate A Cake Step-by-Step
Before you start decorating, watch the video below where I show you every step of decorating a cake from start to finish. Seeing the process in action makes it much easier to follow along
- Liz Marek.
Recipe
Equipment
- Food Scale
- 8" x 2" Cake Pans (3)
Ingredients
Vanilla Cake Recipe
- 4 ounces milk to be mixed with the oil
- 3 ounces canola oil
- 6 ounces milk to be mixed with the eggs
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract or 1 vanilla bean pod
- 3 large eggs room temperature
- 13 ounces cake flour
- 13 ounces granulated sugar
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 8 ounces unsalted butter softened to room temperature but not melted
Easy Buttercream Frosting
- 16 ounces powdered sugar
- 4 ounces pasteurized egg whites
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 16 ounces unsalted butter softened to room temperature but not melted
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 TINY drop purple food coloring to offset the yellow color (optional)
- 3 drops electric pink food coloring for the flowers
- 1 Tablespoon white sprinkles for decorating
Instructions
Vanilla Cake
- IMPORTANT: This is the BEST vanilla cake because I use a scale so it turns out perfectly 🙂 If you convert to cups I cannot guarantee good results. Make sure all your (cold ingredients) butter, eggs, milk are at room temperature or a little warm. See my post about how to use a scale if you don't know how to measure by weight.
- Heat oven to 335º F/168º C . Prepare three 8"x2" cake pans with cake goop or another preferred pan release.
- Place the 4 oz of milk in a separate measuring cup. Add the oil to the milk and set it aside.
- To the remaining 6 oz of milk, add the vanilla and room temperature eggs. Whisk gently to combine. Set aside.
- Place the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into the bowl of your stand mixer with the paddle attachment.
- Turn the mixer onto the slowest speed. Slowly add chunks of your softened butter until it is all added then let everything mix until it looks like coarse sand.
- Add your milk/oil mixture all at once to the dry ingredients and mix on medium (speed 4 on kitchenaid, speed 2 on the Bosch) for 2 full minutes to develop the structure. Set a timer! Don't worry, this will not over-mix the cake.
- After 2 minutes, scrape the bowl. This is an important step. If you skip it, you will have hard lumps of flour and unmixed ingredients in your batter. If you do it later, they will not mix in fully.
- Slowly add in the milk/egg mixture while mixing on low, stopping to scrape the bowl one more time halfway through. Mix until just combined. Your batter should be thick and not too runny.
- Divide the batter into your greased cake pans and fill ¾ of the way full. I like to weigh my pans to make sure they're even.
- Bake for 30 minutes and check your cakes. Do the "done test". Insert a toothpick to see if it comes out clean. Sometimes wet batter doesn't show up so make sure it's clean and not just wet. Then gently touch the top of the cake, does it spring back? Oven temperatures vary so if it's not done yet, bake for a few more minutes (2-3) and check again until it passes the "done" test.
- Remove the cakes from the oven and give them a tap on the countertop to release air and prevent too much shrinking. Let them cool on a cooling rack until they are barely warm.
- After cooling for about 10 minutes, place the cooling rack on top of the cake, placing one hand on top of the cooling rack and one hand under the pan and flip the pan and the cooling rack over so the pan is now upside down on the cooling rack. Remove the pan carefully. Repeat with the other pan.
- After the cakes are fully cooled, carefully wrap them in plastic wrap and place them into the freezer or fridge for about 30 minutes to firm up the cakes and make them easier to handle for stacking.
Easy Buttercream Frosting
- Place egg whites and powdered sugar in a stand mixer bowl. Attach the whisk, combine ingredients on low and then whip on high for 5 minutes. Add the vanilla extract and salt.
- Add in your softened butter in chunks and whip with the whisk attachment to combine. It will look curdled at first. This is normal. It will also look pretty yellow. Keep whipping.
- Whip on high for 8-10 minutes until it's very white, light and shiny. If you don't whip it enough, it could end up tasting buttery.
- Optional: If you want whiter frosting, add in a tiny drop of purple to counteract the yellow in the butter (too much will make the frosting grey or light purple.)
- Optional: Switch to a paddle attachment and mix on low for 15-20 minutes to make the buttercream very smooth and remove air bubbles. This isn't required but if you want really creamy frosting, you don't want to skip it.
- After your cakes are chilled, fill them with your favorite frosting and frost the outside. If you're not familiar with decorating cakes, check out my how to make your first cake blog post! Watch the video to see how I made the palette knife buttercream flowers.
Video
Notes
Baking is a science, and measuring ingredients by weight ensures consistent results every time. Cup measurements can vary significantly depending on how the flour is scooped. Room temperature ingredients are essential
Butter, eggs, and milk should all be at room temperature before mixing. Cold ingredients can cause the batter to break and may result in a dense or uneven cake. Do not skip the two-minute mixing stage
Because this recipe uses the reverse creaming method, mixing the batter for the full two minutes is necessary to properly develop the cake’s structure. Pan size options
This vanilla cake recipe makes:
• three 8-inch cake layers
• two 9-inch cake layers
• about 24 cupcakes Cupcake baking instructions
Fill liners about two-thirds full and bake at 350°F for 18–20 minutes, or until the centers spring back when lightly touched. Storage
Frosted cakes can be stored at room temperature for up to 24 hours if covered. After that, refrigerate and bring to room temperature before serving. Freezing cake layers
Cake layers freeze very well. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw at room temperature before decorating. Flavor variations
You can easily customize this recipe by adding:
• lemon zest for lemon vanilla cake
• almond extract for almond cake
• sprinkles for funfetti cake
Aimee O. says
I made this cake for a bridal shower (used 10 cups for three, 8x2” pans), and it came out perfectly! I did have to bump up the bake time by about five minutes. I added more vanilla than called for with the seeds from one vanilla bean pod. I paired it with the Swiss meringue buttercream frosting provided by Liz on this site and had some guests proclaim it was the best cake they’ve ever had! It only came out perfectly because I followed everything Liz said to a T! The first time I tried this recipe, my butter didn’t thoroughly coat the cake flour mixture. This time around, I made sure everything in the bowl was sand-like in texture (I even went digging around with my spatula to make sure)! I also made sure my milk, eggs, and butter were all truly room temp (with a thermometer). This absolutely makes a difference! Please don’t skip this! All of these things I did ensured the cake turned out moist, not crumbly, and with perfect texture this time around.
Thank you so much, Liz!
Sarah says
I made this twice and every time I add the egg and milk mixture, which is warm at room temp, it ends up looking curdled. What am I doing wrong? How can I fix this? Everything looks perfect up until the last step 🙁
Elizabeth Marek says
If it's curdled then you are either adding the liquids too quickly or room temp isn't warm enough
Kimberly says
Can you tell me the real difference between this cake and the white velvet cake - aside from milk vs buttermilk? The process looks pretty much the same, so I am just curious as I decide which way to go for my children’s wedding cakes. Thank you! ❤️
Elizabeth Marek says
One uses whole eggs and one uses egg whites. To me the white velvet is softer and fluffier and the vanilla cake is more moist.
Nikki Noah says
I need to make a sheet cake. Chocolate and vanilla. Have you done this with this cake recipe and one of your Chocolate cake recipes?
Elizabeth Marek says
You can marble a chocolate and vanilla cake recipe together
Marilyn says
Hi! Can i add food coloring to this batter?
Elizabeth Marek says
Yes you sure can
Briana says
This cake baked up flat, pulled away from the sides of the pan, and had that beautiful tender and fine crumb we all dream of in a good recipe. When the sides and top are removed, it’s a beautiful pale color that’s nearly white. This recipe is a treasure, thank you for generously sharing it. (PS that cale measurement calculator is flat out badass.)
Phil says
Would it be a fair switch to swap the milk for buttermilk in this recipe? What would be the harm? Risk?
Elizabeth Marek says
I would suggest using the white velvet cake recipe https://sugargeekshow.com/white-velvet-cake/
Becky says
Sounds amazing! Will the cake hold up to horizontal slicing? I want to do two 9-inch layers and slice the layers in half.
Elizabeth Marek says
Yes it will
Sara says
Made this cake in 2 8 inch pans. When I removed the cakes there was an oily layer on the tops of them and they sunk immediately once removed from the oven. I followed the recipe step for step and weighed out all my ingredients. Not sure what went wrong 😕
Elizabeth Marek says
Usually this happens when the ingredients are not the right temperature. The batter splits and separates while baking.
Allie says
is this the vanilla cake recipe you used for your sheet cake video? I didn't see a link in the description. thanks!
Brooke says
Tried this recipe for the 1st time last night so I could make my nephew's birthday cake and it was a huge success! The cake was so moist and fluffy. Everyone loved it! Saving this recipe to make again. Thank you!
Susan says
My family said this was by far the best and moistest vanilla cake they had ever had and I agree!
Ashanti says
This has been my go-to recipe for the past 2 or 3 years now; I absolutely love it! 🥹🩷 I wanted to ask (apologies if this has been asked before 😅): will this cake hold up if I use stabilized whipped cream and fresh strawberries? I tried with a cake recipe from somewhere else and the cake collapsed on itself 😖
Elizabeth Marek says
Yea absolutely
Cecilia says
So excited to try this recipe! Quick question for you: are the wet ingredients in ounces or fluid ounces?
Elizabeth Marek says
ounces
Esther Flores says
I made this awesome cake for my daughter’s best friend bridal shower. Everyone loved it. Was delicious. This is the best recipe I ever had. I’m definitely going to make it again.
Carmen says
Can I use buttermilk instead of milk?
Elizabeth Marek says
Not for this recipe, if you want to use buttermilk check out my white velvet cake recipe
L Kim says
This was my first time trying the reverse creaming method and it really does create such a lovely texture! Thank for such a great recipe. I look forward to trying more reverse creaming cake recipes! 🙂