The Most Amazing Vanilla Cake is moist and flavorful and made completely from scratch. It’s the best homemade vanilla cake you’ll ever have!
Ever since my Most Amazing Chocolate Cake became a viral sensation, people have been begging me to create the most amazing versions of a variety of different cakes. I’ve already made the Most Amazing White Cake which has gotten rave reviews, as well as its cousin the Funfetti Birthday Cake. Today I’m bringing you a vanilla version. I think you’ll be equally as happy with it. You’ll never used a boxed yellow cake mix again!
My Other Recipes
When making a a vanilla cake, I highly recommend lining the bottom of the cake pan with parchment paper. This prevents a thicker crust forming on the bottom as well as ensures that your cake will come out of the pan in one piece. I have used both butter and nonstick cooking spray to grease my pans for this recipe and I do not flour the pan. Both work great.
This recipe is written for three 9-inch layers. A three tiered cake produces the ideal cake to frosting ratio. A 9-inch pan is a standard size. 8-inch and 10-inch pans will require adjustments to the recipe.
Several of the ingredients in the recipe are listed as being room temperature. By following this method you’ll have a better texture in the end so it is worth the patience. For the milk, I simply warmed it in the microwave for 30 seconds because the idea of leaving it out on the counter to reach room temperature didn’t sit well with me.
This recipe is developed using salted butter because that is what most people tend to buy and have on hand. I like to keep my recipes convenient for home cooks so salted butter is used whenever possible in my recipes. Unsalted butter certainly works, but you may need to add a pinch more of salt. There is a combination of butter and vegetable oil in this recipe. I find that vegetable oil gives the cake a lot more moisture.
Feel free to use whatever frosting you’d like with this cake. In the photos I used a chocolate cream cheese buttercream just like I used for my Most Amazing Chocolate Cake.
Watch the video below where I walk you through every step of this recipe and share even more tips and tricks for the perfect white cake. As always, you can find my complete collection of full-length recipe demos on my YouTube Channel.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Q: Can this recipe be made into cupcakes?
A: Why yes it can! They are baked at 325 degrees for 20-22 minutes and this recipe makes about 36 cupcakes.
Q: Can I make this recipe into only two layers?
A: Yes you can, you’ll need to divide the recipe by 2/3rds. But no, I won’t do the math for you. I truly believe that the most amazing chocolate cake must be 3 layers.
Q: Do you have a substitute for eggs?
A: There are numerous options for substituting eggs in baking recipes. You can always try using one of those.
Q: Can I use a different pan size?
A: You are certainly welcome to try, but you’ll need to adjust cooking times and be careful as to how much you fill the pan. This recipe is written for 9-inch round pans, which is a standard size and is meant to be eaten as a 3 layer cake.
Q: Can I make this recipe gluten free?
A: Use gluten free flours at your own risk. Not all gluten free flours are equal and most don’t work as a straight forward substitute for all-purpose flour. I have not tested any gluten free flours in this recipe as I do not have Celiac’s disease.
Q: Do you have a chocolate version?
A: Why yes I do. I call it The Most Amazing Chocolate Cake.
Vanilla Cake Recipe
The Most Amazing Vanilla Cake
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup salted butter softened
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 1 1/2 cups buttermilk room temperature
- 3 large eggs room temperature
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 4 teaspoons of baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Grease three 9-inch pans. Line the bottom with parchment paper. Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F.
- In a large mixing bowl, use a hand mixer to cream the butter, vegetable oil, and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add in buttermilk, eggs, and vanilla extract and beat until combined.
- Add in flour, baking powder, and salt, and mix until just combined. Be sure to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl to make sure everything gets mixed in.
- Divide the batter among the three prepared pans. Bake at 350 for 25 to 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let sit in pans for 5 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before layering and frosting with your favorite frosting.
Nutrition
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Jocelyn says
Your cake batter recipes are the ONLY ones I use and are always a huge hit! Question, this time I will be making a marble cake and plan on using your vanilla and chocolate cake recipe, except that it needs to be sugar free. Would swerve/stevia work great in replace of regular sugar?
Juanita Johnson says
I have made your Most Amazing Chocolate cake and cup cake recipe a few times now. It is the only chocolate cake recipe I use. It is so good. I do not use any cake mixes any more. And am going to try this vanilla cake recipe. Thank you for sharing these recipes.
Serena says
This is definitely the BEST vanilla cake recipe EVER!! This is my “go to” recipe for a vanilla or yellow cake base because it’s so perfect. I follow the recipe exactly and don’t change a thing except sometimes I’ll throw in add-ins like berries or chocolate chips. I’m amazed at how moist yet sturdy this cake is! Basically, it has the perfect crumb so it can hold up against heavier fillings and decorations without being dry. I will continue to use this recipe and stand back while friends and family ouuu and ahhh over the cakes I make!
Melinda says
Hello. I followed the recipe perfectly and made it into 4 6” cakes. I baked them for about 26 minutes each. When I checked the cake before that it wiggled in the center or toothpick cake out wet. The cake had great flavor and I am obsessed with your chocolate cake recipe, but for some reason this cake came out dry. When I cut it the piece literally fell out and the cake crumbled. Can you provide me with any tips? I’d like to say I’m a very competent baker and am wondering what I could have done wrong? I wanted to use this for the top layer of my daughters cake for her birthday this Saturday.
Melinda says
I should also add I made it on Thursday, refrigerated and iced it on Saturday and ate it on Sunday. Could it have just been too old? I cut the tops of the cake off to even each cake out and I thought they were very moist and was worried if the inside was going to be too wet so I was surprised when it was super dry. Maybe it was just old?
Jocelyn says
Hi Melinda!
Check her chart up top, you may have put too much batter into the pans. I did that once with 6 inch cake pans, and realized that 1 1/4 cup was the perfect amount, as stated above and it will bake perfectly in 25-30 minutes. Hope this helps!
Yaya says
My oven is small , Can i bake twice , is the batter still ok to wait ..while i bake the other, tks
Rachel Farnsworth says
Yes, you can bake the pans one at a time.
Evelyn says
Can you bake this cake in a 13×9 in pan?
How long?
Rachel Farnsworth says
Yes, it takes about 40 minutes.
Karen says
Can you use cake flour instead of regular flour
Rachel Farnsworth says
Yes you can.
Mae says
The best vanilla cake recipe I’ve ever tried! This one is a keeper! Thank you for sharing!
Kay says
Hi Rachel thank you for sharing this recipe. I made this few times and came out great! 🙂 Just wondering if I can replace vegetable oil with corn oil or sunflower oil?
Dallan Anderson says
Yup you should be fine
Sara H says
I just made this today for my granddaughter’s birthday. The only change I made was to add food coloring for a unicorn cake. It was so moist and delicious!
Jen D says
I made this for my daughter’s birthday cake. It turned out great and a couple people said it was the best vanilla cake they’d ever had! I made 2/3 of the recipe making 2 layers. I used vanilla cream cheese frosting also on this site. Would not hesitate to make it again!
Teresa Ortego says
About how long would you bake the cake if it is a character shaped pan?
Thank you, Teresa
Fran says
is this the same recipe as the most amazing cupcake recipe?
what is the difference?
Rachel Farnsworth says
They are based off of each other. One is designed for cupcakes. The other is designed for a layered cake. Baking times and volume are slightly different.
Nadia says
I have made the chocolate cake and cupcakes…both turned out great. I plan on making the yellow cake for my mother inlaw’s birthday and I have no doubt ,it will be great. Thank you so much for sharing your wonderful recipes….they are “amazing”.
Stefanie Scatie says
I made this cake today and it was delicious! My daughter loved it and she only likes chocolate. 🙂 I made this in a bundt pan and I used cake flour and it was perfect and is one of the best recipes I’ve tried for yellow/vanilla cake!! thanks for a great recipe!