With its outstanding vanilla flavor, pillowy soft crumb, and creamy vanilla buttercream, this is truly the best vanilla cake I’ve ever had. And after 1 bite, I guarantee you’ll agree.
One reader, Sarah, commented: “This cake is elite. Texture, flavor, sturdiness for frosting and decorating, freezes well… It was a beautiful centerpiece and dessert for a baby shower. Thank you! ★★★★★“
One reader, Candice, commented: “This is truly the best vanilla cake I have ever tasted! It is among the best cakes I have made in my 20+ years of baking… ★★★★★“
One reader, Rary, commented: “Off. The. Charts. Absolutely scrumptious! ★★★★★“
Out of all the cake recipes on my website, there’s a glaring absence. There’s white cake with a pristine soft crumb, vanilla naked cake with a flavorful tight crumb, and checkerboard cake with a whimsical design.
What about a classic vanilla layer cake draped in vanilla buttercream? I already have homemade vanilla cupcakes and a vanilla 6 inch cake covered and now in all its crowning glory (and after plenty recipe testing catastrophes), I present you with cake perfection:
This is the best vanilla cake I’ve ever had.
What Makes it the Best Vanilla Cake?
Let’s count the ways!
- Soft, light crumb from cake flour
- Fluffy from extra egg whites
- Buttery and cakey from creamed butter
- Stick-to-your-fork moist from eggs & buttermilk
- Extra flavor from pure vanilla extract
Not to mention its versatility: This vanilla cake batter is strong enough for shaped cakes, tiered cakes (see the slight variation in my homemade wedding cake recipe), and holds up beautifully under fondant. Use this batter for vanilla cupcakes, Bundt cake, or even piñata cake. It’s classy enough for a wedding celebration, but unassuming enough for a big family dinner.
Behind the Vanilla Cake Recipe
After years of cake successes and flops, I’m confident in this homemade vanilla cake. During my recipe testing, I combined my white cake recipe and naked cake recipe. These are two reader favorites and I knew they’d be the best starting point. At first there were too many eggs and I quickly learned sifting cake flour was NOT doing any favors.
You need the following power ingredients:
- Cake Flour: If you want a fluffy and soft bakery-style vanilla cake, cake flour is the secret. The cake will be denser and heavier using all-purpose flour.
- Eggs & 2 additional egg whites: 3 whole eggs provide structure, moisture, and richness. 2 extra egg whites keep the cake light and airy. I don’t recommend using 4 whole eggs; stick to the 3 egg & 2 egg white combination.
- Baking Powder & Baking Soda: Remember the differences in baking powder vs baking soda and why we use both in some recipes? Using enough baking powder to give these layers height gave the cake a bitter aftertaste. Baking soda allows us to use less baking powder.
- Buttermilk: Buttermilk is an acidic ingredient and baking soda requires an acid to work. Plus buttermilk yields an EXTRA moist cake crumb. See recipe note about using a DIY buttermilk substitute.
For more prominent vanilla flavor, use homemade vanilla extract. (What a fun DIY gift!) This vanilla cake batter is moderately thick and fits perfectly in 3 9-inch cake pans. We actually use the same exact batter to make snickerdoodle cake.
Do you know how to level a cake? Let me help. It’s really easy. You can use a fancy cake leveler, but I use a serrated knife. Carefully slice off the tippy top of the cooled cake layers, creating a flat surface. Leveling cakes doesn’t require a ruler, talent, or any mathematical equations. Instead, just use your eyes, hands, and a knife.
Leveling the cake layers promises a straight and sturdy layer cake.
How Much Frosting Between Cake Layers?
I always eyeball the amount of frosting between cake layers, but I measured when I decorated the pictured cake. The vanilla buttercream recipe below yields about 6 cups of frosting. I recommend you use about 1.5 heaping cups of buttercream between each cake layer and reserve the last 3 cups for outside the cake. If you are going to add a filling such as raspberry cake filling, you’ll use less frosting between the layers. You can use this detailed how to assemble and decorate a layer cake post as a guide!
Cake Decoration Inspiration: For a simple look, stick with vanilla buttercream, fresh berries, and mint sprigs. You can also decorate with chocolate buttercream (I recommend the same amount from this piñata cake), rainbow sprinkles, a chocolate ganache drip like on this chocolate chip cake, or even beautiful buttercream flowers.
Homemade Vanilla Cake Success Tips
Learn from my mistakes and bake the best cake on the 1st try!
- Follow the recipe closely. Use each power ingredient listed.
- Use room temperature ingredients. The batter mixes together evenly when all the cake ingredients are roughly the same temperature. This also reduces the risk of over-mixing and over-baking. Set out your ingredients 1 hour before beginning. Read more about why room temperature ingredients are important.
- Line your cake pans with parchment. Place your cake pans on a large sheet of parchment paper. Trace the bottom of the cake pan with a pencil. Cut parchment paper into rounds. Grease the pan and the parchment paper. Parchment paper rounds guarantee seamless removal from the pan because the cake slides right out.
- Cool cake layers completely. I’ve tried taking shortcuts by assembling a layer cake with semi-warm cake layers. Well, the frosting completely melts and causes the entire cake to collapse. Make sure each layer is cool– refrigerate or freeze the layers if you need to!
- Refrigerate decorated cake. After frosting the cake, place it in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour. This is optional, but it sets the frosting and cake layers. You’ll get beautifully clean slices because the crumbs are cool and tight.
Great read: Check out Tessa’s Top 10 Best Layer Cake Tips.
Finding the perfect vanilla cake recipe requires a celebration. Luckily we have cake!!!
More Classic Cake Recipes
And here is my perfected vanilla cupcakes recipe.
Print
Best Vanilla Cake
- Prep Time: 35 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 4 hours (includes cooling)
- Yield: 12-14 servings
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
With its outstanding vanilla flavor, pillowy soft crumb, and creamy vanilla buttercream, this is truly the best vanilla cake I’ve ever had. Make sure you read through the recipe and recipe notes before beginning. This recipe yields approximately 8 cups of batter which is helpful if you need this batter for different cake pan sizes and conversions.
Ingredients
- 3 and 2/3 cups (433g) cake flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 and 1/2 cups (340g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 2 cups (400g) granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs + 2 additional egg whites, at room temperature*
- 1 Tablespoon pure vanilla extract (yes, a Tablespoon!)
- 1 and 1/2 cups (360ml) buttermilk, at room temperature*
Vanilla Buttercream
- 1 and 1/2 cups (340g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 5 and 1/2 cups (650g) confectioners’ sugar
- 1/3 cup (80ml) whole milk or heavy cream
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Grease three 9-inch cake pans, line with parchment paper rounds, then grease the parchment paper. Parchment paper helps the cakes seamlessly release from the pans. (If it’s helpful, see this parchment paper rounds for cakes video & post.)
- Make the cake: Whisk the cake flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda together. Set aside.
- Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment, beat the butter and sugar together on high speed until smooth and creamy, about 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl with a silicone spatula as needed. Beat in the 3 eggs, 2 egg whites, and vanilla extract on high speed until combined, about 2 minutes. (Mixture will look curdled as a result of the egg liquid and solid butter combining.) Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl as needed. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients just until combined. With the mixer still running on low, pour in the buttermilk and mix just until combined. You may need to whisk it all by hand to make sure there are no lumps at the bottom of the bowl. The batter will be slightly thick.
- Pour batter evenly into cake pans. Weigh them to ensure accuracy, if desired. Bake for around 23-26 minutes or until the cakes are baked through. To test for doneness, insert a toothpick into the center of the cake. If it comes out clean, it’s done. Allow cakes to cool completely in the pans set on a wire cooling rack. The cakes must be completely cool before frosting and assembling.
- Make the frosting: In a large bowl using a handheld mixer or stand mixer fitted with a whisk or paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add confectioners’ sugar, milk, vanilla extract, and salt with the mixer running on low. Increase to high speed and beat for 2 minutes. Add more confectioners’ sugar if frosting is too thin, more milk if frosting is too thick, or an extra pinch of salt if frosting is too sweet.
- Assemble and decorate: Using a large serrated knife, slice a thin layer off the tops of the cakes to create a flat surface. Discard (or crumble over ice cream!). Place 1 cake layer on your cake stand, cake turntable, or serving plate. Evenly cover the top with about 1 and 1/2 cups of frosting. Top with 2nd cake layer and evenly cover the top with about 1 and 1/2 cups of frosting. Top with the third cake layer. Spread the remaining frosting all over the top and sides. I use and recommend an icing spatula to apply the frosting.
- Refrigerate cake for at least 1 hour before slicing. This helps the cake hold its shape when cutting.
- Cover leftover cake tightly and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: The cake layers can be baked, cooled, and covered tightly at room temperature overnight. Likewise, the frosting can be prepared then covered and refrigerated overnight. Let the frosting sit at room temperature to slightly soften for 10 minutes before assembling and frosting. Frosted cake or unfrosted cake layers can be frozen up to 2-3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before decorating/serving. See how to freeze cakes for detailed instructions.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 9-inch Round Cake Pans | Glass Mixing Bowl | Whisk | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Silicone Spatula | Kitchen Scale (optional) | Cooling Rack | Large Icing Spatula | Cake Turntable | Bench Scraper | Cake Carrier (for storing and transporting)
- 9×13-inch Cake: I recommend using my white cake batter instead. Both use similar ingredients and produce a deliciously light vanilla cake. See recipe notes for the 9×13 inch version.
- 2 Layer Cake: I recommend using my 2 layer white cake batter instead. Both use similar ingredients and produce a deliciously light vanilla cake.
- Bundt Cake: This vanilla cake batter will fit into a 10-12 cup or larger Bundt pan. I’m unsure of the exact bake time (likely around an hour), but use a toothpick to test for doneness. Same oven temperature.
- Cupcakes: Fill cupcake liners 2/3 full. Bake at 350°F (177°C) for 19-21 minutes. Yields about 3 dozen. Or try my vanilla cupcakes recipe.
- Cake Flour: To prevent a dry-tasting cake, make sure you are spooning and leveling the flour or weighing it. For the best results, I strongly recommend cake flour. You can find it in the baking aisle and I have many more recipes using it. Usually a homemade cake flour substitute works, but this recipe uses far too much cake flour and the homemade substitute is not ideal.
- Eggs: 3 whole eggs provide structure, moisture, and richness. 2 extra egg whites keep the cake light and airy. I don’t recommend using 4 whole eggs; stick to the 3 egg & 2 egg white combination. Here are recipes using leftover egg yolks.
- Buttermilk: If you don’t have buttermilk, you can make a DIY buttermilk substitute. Add 2 teaspoons of white vinegar or lemon juice to a liquid measuring cup. Then add enough whole milk to the same measuring cup until it reaches 1 and 1/2 cups. (In a pinch, lower fat or nondairy milks work for this soured milk, but the cake won’t taste as moist or rich.) Stir it around and let sit for 5 minutes. The homemade “buttermilk” will be somewhat curdled and ready to use in the recipe.
- Why is everything at room temperature? All refrigerated items should be at room temperature so the batter mixes together easily and evenly. Read more about why room temperature ingredients are important.
- Want chocolate frosting instead? I recommend the recipe/amount of chocolate frosting I use for Piñata Cake.
- Sprinkle Cake: To make a sprinkle cake, fold about 3/4 cup (135g) of sprinkles into the cake batter. Avoid nonpareils (the little balls), which tend to bleed their color. Or try this confetti birthday cake, which is quite similar to this recipe.
Reader Comments and Reviews
Sally absolutely the best website to follow since I have been making your recipies no need to follow anyone else THANKYOU such a wonderful help also the best as you use weighed measures which for me in Australia is helpful as your cups ect are different kind regards anna
This cake is amazing!
I used it as a base to make a gluten free cake and made a couple of changes to accommodate the gluten free flour.
I followed this recipe but used 5 full eggs, 400g Bobs red mill 1:1 GF flour + 50g cornstarch all dry ingredients were sifted with salt and leavening agents. Used 1c butter + 1/2c olive oil instead of all butter.
What all added, whip the heck out of it, and let sit while oven preheats (gives flour time to absorb) whip once more for a few minutes before pouring into pans (can’t overmix gluten free flour like you can with wheat flour)
Baked at 350 for 33 minutes on lowest rack. 2 9 in pans and 6 cupcakes.
If I wanted to use salted butter, what measurement should the salt in the recipe change to?
Hi Kim, if using salted butter in the cake, reduce the added salt down to 1/2 teaspoon. You can use it in the frosting too, then just salt it to taste.
Could I make this recipe and add a little almond flavoring in it? If so, how much do you think I should add?
Hi Lindy, You could use half vanilla extract and half almond, or even 3/4 vanilla and 1/4 almond depending on how strong you would like the flavor here.
Is it okay to add some lemon zest to the batter? I want to use this recipe for a birthday cake and I’m planning on raspberry filling.
Hi Marie, We haven’t tested lemon with this specific recipe (here is our lemon cake if you’re interested!). You can try replacing some of the vanilla extract for lemon extract and add some lemon zest to this batter. We caution adding too much lemon juice, as it can make the batter too liquidy and impact how it bakes up. Let us know what you try!
I don’t want to go full lemon I love vanilla so I thought I would add some zest for a subtle lemon flavor. Thanks so much for responding.
I love this recipe! I am a young baker and when I make this, my whole family goes nuts over it! This is a recipe that I have saved and wrote it down because I love it so much!
does it need butter or would oil make it lighter like you use in a cake mix
Hi Cindy, butter is key to this cake’s intended taste and texture, so we don’t recommend swapping it. If needed, you could try swapping with solid coconut oil (not melted), as you’ll need a solid to cream together with the sugars.
I haven’t tried the Vanilla Cake recipe but have used the chocolate cake and it is delicious. Reading about Room Temperature Butter, it states that the temperature should be 65 degrees. And all of the other ingredients should be room temperature. We have our house temp set to 71 in the winter and 75 in the summer. I always take the butter and eggs out of the fridge at least 2 hours before using and the milk or sour cream about an hour. I have never taken their temps before using. But at that temp for the room, do I have to warm the flour and sugar? I have never seen a room temp degree mentioned before from any site.
Hi Linda, you should be fine–no need to warm the flour and sugar. We recommend taking the butter out of the fridge about 1 hour before you need to use it. It may need a little less time in the summer if it’s warmer.
Would this work with two 8-inch round cake pans? Would I simply not use all the batter?
Hi Alexandra, you could use the remaining batter to make a few cupcakes, or you could try this white cake recipe instead, which is a 2-layer cake.
If you choose to make a bundt cake what would you recommend a glaze or raspberry filling for topping
Hi Connie, you could really use any topping you like. You could use vanilla icing, salted caramel, raspberry sauce, strawberry sauce, blueberry sauce, or fresh berries and whipped cream…
What would happen if I just used all purpose flour? I don’t have cake flour.
Hi Deb! This cake is best with cake flour. It would be less soft with all purpose. Here’s our DIY cake flour substitute recipe you can follow.
Can I use this recipe for cupcakes
Hi Paula, you bet! See the recipe notes for details.
Perfect
If you don’t frost the cake should it still be refrigerated up to 5 days or could it stay at room temp a couple days? Love the cake so far so good it’s in the oven in a Bundt pan thank you enjoy every recipe of yours make one every other day practically waiting on that book in September pre ordered from B&N
Hi Lisa, it would likely be okay at room temperature. Enjoy!
Hi , I’m going to use my 12 cup Bundt pan should I just spray the pan with nonstick spray with flour ?
Hi Lisa, yes that should work!
If I wanted to make this a one layer cake could I just halve the recipe and get a thicker single layer? If so would I have to adjust the baking time?
Hi Sophie, we’d recommend using this one layer vanilla cake instead. You can leave out the sprinkles.
This is the best cake I’ve ever made! The only change I made was adding the seeds from one vanilla pod to the cake batter. I will be making this again and again!
I made this cake today, but it sunk in the middle. What did I do wrong? I have to throw it all away, unfortunately. I measured the ingredients properly.
Hi Kate, when cakes sink in the middle, if often means they are underbaked. A few additional minutes in the oven can help for next time. Be sure that your baking powder and baking soda are also fresh—we find they start to lose their effectiveness after about 3 months, even if not yet expired. Finally, be careful not to overmix your batter, which can cause the cake to come out squat and dense. Hope this helps for next time and thank you for giving this one a try!
Hi! Can this cake be used between two other cake layers? I’m making a three tiered cake with this one in the middle.
Definitely!
Hi! I’m trying to make a 1/2 sheet pan, and have experimented with baking recipes in different size pans before. Curious which of your recipes you would recommend for a 13×18 pan? Thanks!
Hi Cassandra! This batter, as written, is enough for a thin sheet cake. We’re unsure of the best bake time. Or how about our or our 12×17 inch sprinkle sheet cake. (You can leave out the sprinkles.)
Love your recipes.
Can I beat my egg whites first, before adding the 3 egg yolks into the mixture? That way it gets even MORE airy?
Hi MacKenna, you could, but we don’t find that extra step necessary. The cake is still plenty light and soft!
Hello! I about to bake this for the first time but I accidentally bought self raising cake flour instead of plain. How would I adjust this recipe to account for that? Thanks
Hi Marianne, you really need cake flour that isn’t self rising for this recipe. Let us know if you give it a try!
Could I use this recipe to make a three-layer Victoria Sponge, replacing the vanilla buttercream with cream and jam? It’s my parents 80th and they love Victoria Sponge, but I prefer this vanilla cake to the different Victoria Sponge recipes I have tried
Hi Becca, this cake is fantastic with a jam or curd between layers. You may want to use frosting to create a ring/dam around the edge to prevent the filling from squeezing out the sides. Let us know how it turns out if you give it a try!
This cake recipe is in the oven. But my batter was very thick. It was not pourable like Sally’s video, more scoopable! Did I over mix? I followed Sally’s timing recommendations to a T. Is my cake sure to turn out dense? I was baking this and going to freeze after cooling to assemble next weekend. I’m worried that I should just remake it? Any advice?
Hi Ann, over-mixing could definitely be the culprit here. And how did you measure your flour? Be sure to spoon and level (or use a kitchen scale) to ensure the flour isn’t over-measured. Too much flour will thicken the batter and result in dry, dense cakes. If you want to test the baked cakes, you could level off the top of one of your layers before wrapping and freezing. Hope this helps!
I used a kitchen scale for my flour. Level off the cakes before freezing wont cause loss of moisture? I thought about doing that but wasn’t sure! Thanks for the reply!
Hi Ann, you can level them off before freezing, just make sure they are well wrapped to keep moisture from getting into the layers.
Hello I love all of your recipes!! I am making a two tiered birthday cake (4” on top and 6” on bottom) with three layers on every tier. How much of this recipe would I need for this?
Hi Clementine, here’s everything you need to know about cake pan sizes and conversions. This batter makes about 8 cups. Enjoy!
Hi, how long does it take to bake 2 cakes from this recipe?
Hi Allison, we would make our white cake recipe instead for a two layer cake- same great vanilla flavor!
Can i use 2 of 8 inch round cake pan for this recipe?
Hi Shenaz, There is too much batter for only two pans here, it’s best to divide this batter between three 8-inch pans. With 8 inch cake pans your layers will be slightly thicker so you may need an extra minute or two of bake time since they layers will be thicker – use a toothpick to test for doneness.
The cake I had made using this recipie was so moist. Being my first time baking a cake, I had not expected for the cake to become a sponge cake even after using all purpose flour. Now this has become my go to vanilla cake recipe
What if I want to use square pan? Which width should I use for this recipe?
Hi Zaynab, This should be just the right amount of batter for 2 layers in 9×9 pans. You can reference this cake pan sizes and conversions guide to make sure.
Hello!
Is it ok to add fresh blueberries to this cake?
Hi Kristen, yes! You can add about 1 and 1/2 cups of blueberries to this cake batter.