Jump to Recipe

This is the Homemade Vanilla Cupcakes recipe you’ve been looking for … easy to make, chock full of vanilla flavor, with a moist but airy texture, and a nice rounded top just waiting for a dollop of frosting.

Closeup on four Homemade Vanilla Cupcakes sitting on a white table in front of a pink table linen, a ramekin filled with pink sprinkles and a cupcake pan.

Cupcakes are our favorite party dessert … they are so easy to make, you don’t have to worry about cutting a cake, and most importantly everybody loves them! But full transparency, we usually use a doctored cake mix for cupcakes.  But sometimes … only homemade will do.  For those times, we reach for this yummy Homemade Vanilla Cupcake recipe.  These cupcakes are chock full of vanilla flavor, have a moist airy texture, and come out of the oven with a nice rounded top.  Did we mention how easy they are to make? If you need homemade yellow cupcakes, this is the recipe for you!

Ingredients You Will Need

Ingredients needed to make Homemade Vanilla cupcakes including flour, sugar, oil, milk, egg, vanilla, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

How to make the Cupcake Batter

Collage image showing how to make the Homemade Vanilla Cupcake batter.

Step 1: Add the flour, sugar baking powder, baking soda and salt to a mixing bowl and whisk until combined.
Step 2: Pour the milk and oil into the mixing bowl and mix at a low speed until thoroughly combined.
Step 3: Add the egg, and mix on low for an additional 2 minutes.
Step 4: Add the vanilla and mix on low for 1 more minute.

Collage image showing how to mix the hot water into the Vanilla Cupcake batter.

Step 5: Add the hot water. Pulse the mixer until the water starts to incorporate with the batter.
Step 6: Mix on low for two more minutes. Use a spoon or spatula to scrape the bottom of the bowl frequently to make sure that the water gets completely mixed together with the thicker batter that is on the bottom of the bowl. The batter should be thin.

Baking Instructions

Collage image showing the steps for baking the Homemade Vanilla Cupcakes.

Step 7: Place the cupcake liners in a muffin or cupcake pan.
Step 8: We use a medium-sized ice cream scooper to fill our cupcake liners but a spoon will work if you don’t have one.
Step 9: Fill the cupcake liners 3/4 full.  If you fill them to the top, the cupcakes will rise up over the edge of the cupcake liner.
Step 10: Bake the cupcakes in an oven pre-heated to 350 degrees for 17-18 minutes.  

Closeup on a dozen yellow cupcakes in white cupcake liners sitting in front of a cupcake tin and white cupcake liners.

Step 11:  Allow the cupcakes to cool in the baking pan for 10-15 minutes and then remove them from the pan to finish cooling.

Don’t Forget the Frosting!

Closeup on a swirl of Buttercream Frosting on a Homemade Vanilla Cupcake.

Now for the fun part! What kind of frosting are you going to make to top these delicious yellow cupcakes? Lucky for you, frosting is one of our specialties and we have so many great choices for you to choose from but here are five classics that pair perfectly with vanilla cupcakes:

Expert Tips and FAQS

Tips for baking perfect homemade vanilla cupcakes every time:

  • Make sure your egg is at room temperature.  If you forgot to take it out of the refrigerator, you can submerge the egg in a cup/bowl of warm water for a few minutes to warm it up.
  • Use a mixer (either a hand mixer or a stand mixer) but only at the lowest speed. You want to get air into the batter but you don’t want to overmix it either.
  • Use hot water instead not cold.  It will help emulsify the batter as well as help make sure the batter and water completely combine together during the final mixing step.

How do I know when my cupcakes are done?
It is really easy to figure out if a cupcake is fully baked.  Open the oven and lightly touch the top of one of the cupcakes.  The top of the fully baked cupcake will bounce back when you touch it.  If your finger leaves a tiny indentation, keep baking.  But keep an eye on the cupcakes starting around the 16-minute mark, you don’t want to overbake them.  An overbaked cupcake is a dry cupcake!

How long will the cupcakes stay fresh?
Homemade cupcakes will not stay as fresh as long as a cupcake made from a box mix, so keep that in mind when you are planning which kind of cupcake to make for your party. A homemade cupcake definitely tastes best the day it is baked.  Store your frosted cupcakes in the refrigerator to extend their life. 

Closeup on a Homemade Vanilla Cupcake topped with Buttercream Frosting sitting next to a ramekin full of pink sprinkles and more yellow cupcakes.

More Two Sisters Tips to Help You Make Amazing Cupcakes

Did you Make This Recipe? Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @twosisterscrafting on Instagram so we can see it!

And don’t forget to follow us on Pinterest, Facebook, and Instagram!

Homemade Vanilla CupcakesPrint

Homemade Vanilla Cupcakes

Yield 12 cupcakes
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 18 minutes
Total Time 28 minutes

This is the Homemade Vanilla Cupcakes recipe you've been looking for ... easy to make, chocked full of vanilla flavor, with a moist but airy texture, and a nice rounded top just waiting for a dollop of frosting.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups All-Purpose Flour
  • 1 cup Granulated Sugar
  • 1 teaspoon Baking Powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon Salt
  • 1/2 cup Milk
  • 1/3 cup Oil
  • 1 Large Egg (Room Temperature)
  • 1 1/2 tablespoon Vanilla Extract
  • 1/2 cup Hot Water

Instructions

  1. Add the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt to a mixing bowl and whisk until combined.
  2. Pour the milk and oil into the mixing bowl and mix at a low speed until thoroughly combined.
  3. Add the egg, and mix on low for an additional 2 minutes.
  4. Add the vanilla and mix on low for 1 more minute.
  5. Add the hot water. Pulse the mixer until the water starts to incorporate with the batter. and then mix on low for two more minutes. Use a spoon or spatula to scrape the bottom of the bowl frequently to make sure that the water gets completely mixed together with the thicker batter that is on the bottom of the bowl. The batter should be thin.
  6. Place the cupcake liners in a muffin or cupcake pan.
  7. We use a medium-sized ice cream scooper to fill our cupcake liners but a spoon will work if you don't have one. Fill the cupcake liners 3/4 full.  If you fill them to the top, the cupcakes will rise up over the edge of the cupcake liner as they bake.
  8. Bake the cupcakes in an oven pre-heated to 350 degrees for 17-18 minutes.

Notes

Baking Tips

  • Make sure your egg is at room temperature.  If you forgot to take it out of the refrigerator, you can submerge the egg in a cup/bowl of warm water for a few minutes to warm it up.
  • Use a mixer (either a hand mixer or a stand mixer) but only at the lowest speed. You want to get air into the batter but you don't want to overmix it either.
  • Use hot water instead of cold.  It will help emulsify the batter as well as help make sure the batter and water completely combine together during the final mixing step.


How long will the cupcakes stay fresh?
Homemade cupcakes will not stay as fresh as long as a cupcake made from a box mix, so keep that in mind when you are planning which kind of cupcake to make for your party. A homemade cupcake definitely tastes best the day it is baked.  Store your frosted cupcakes in the refrigerator to extend their life. 

Did you Make this Recipe? Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @twosisterscrafting on Instagram so we can see it!

© Two Sisters Crafting
Cuisine: American / Category: Cakes