With its soft cloud-like crumb, vanilla flavour and creamy buttercream, vanilla cake is the cake which is loved by people of all ages. The cake can be topped with buttercream or frostings and with fruits and jams. It can also be served as a plain delicious cake. The vanilla cake batter is so versatile that it can be used to make cupcakes, tier cakes, pinata cakes, bundt cakes etc.
This cake is great for all occasions and very easy to make. Even if you have never baked a cake before, you can make this cake easily from scratch by using the ingredients that you already have in your kitchen. All you need to make it is some flour, eggs, sugar, butter and some vanilla extract!
I have incorporated the recipe for chocolate frosting and vanilla buttercream as well. You can also use cream cheese frosting, swiss meringue buttercream or ganache.
Origin of Vanilla Cake
The vanilla cake is made by bringing together Japanese sponge cakes and western butter-based cakes. It has the soft and fluffy texture of Japanese sponge cake combined with the sweetness and buttery texture of western butter-based cakes.
This cake is also known as 1-2-3-4 cake which is fairly easy to remember. The numbers signify the quantities of ingredients- 1 cup butter, 2 cups sugar, 3 cups flour and 4 eggs. Although, in my recipe, I have changed the amount of ingredients slightly so that the cake is not too sweet and has a lighter texture. Otherwise, the recipe is the same.
From layer cakes to birthday cakes, wedding cakes to strawberry shortcakes, the possibilities of this cake are endless. This recipe makes the fluffiest and most moist vanilla cake that you’ve ever had before. So, let’s get baking!
Also, make sure you read the tips at the end of the recipe.
Vanilla Cake Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups All-Purpose Flour (Maida)
- ½ cup Unsalted Butter, softened to room temperature
- A pinch of Salt
- 4 Eggs
- 1 tablespoon Baking Powder
- 2 Tablespoon Vanilla Extract
- 3 Tablespoon Vegetable Oil
- 1 ½ cup Castor Sugar
- 1 ½ cup Buttermilk, room temperature
- FOR VANILLA BUTTERCREAM: 1 cup Unsalted Butter, 4 cups Powdered Sugar, 2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract, 3-4 Tablespoons Milk or Heavy Cream, ½ teaspoon Salt.
- FOR CHOCOLATE FROSTING: 1 cup Unsalted Butter, 3 cups Powdered Sugar, 2/3 cup Cocoa Powder, 2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract, 3-4 Tablespoons Milk or Heavy Cream, ½ teaspoon Salt.
Instructions
Preparing the Batter
- Preheat the oven at 180o C for 20 minutes. Grease 2 cake pans of the same size with butter and then line with a parchment paper.
- In a separate bowl, combine all the dry ingredients- 2 cups all-purpose flour, 1 tablespoon baking powder and a pinch of salt.
- In an electric mixer, start beating ½ cup butter, 3 Tablespoon Vegetable oil and ½ cup Castor sugar until you get a creamy mixture.
- Add one egg at a time to the electric mixer. Keep mixing the ingredients until combined properly.
- Add 2 Tablespoon Vanilla Extract and mix it.
- Gently combine the flour mixture and buttermilk to the butter and egg mixture. Add the flour mixture and buttermilk alternately until everything is combined.
- The batter should be combined properly and shouldn’t be over-mixed. There should be no lumps in the batter.
Baking the cake
- Divide the batter equally and pour it into the cake pans. Burst the air bubbles by lightly tapping the cake pans on the counter.
- Bake the cakes for 30 minutes on 180o C.
- Once the cakes are done and the cake has a beautiful golden colour, do the toothpick test by inserting the toothpick gently in the centre of the cake. The toothpick should come out mostly clean without any wet batter. Take out the cake pans from the oven.
- Allow the cakes to cool down in the cake pans for 15-20 minutes. Invert the cakes gently on a cooling rack and let them cool down completely before frosting them.
frosting the cake
You can frost the cake using any frosting of your choice, and using fresh fruits or just serving it as it is. There are a few ideas mentioned below to decorate your cake.
Preparing Vanilla Buttercream
Buttercream is a combination of butter and a lot of sugar which is light, fluffy and delicious. It is typically used for frosting cakes, cupcakes etc.
- Add softened butter to an electric mixer and beat it for 1 minute until it turns creamy.
- Add 1 cup of powdered sugar, ½ teaspoon salt and vanilla extract and mix on low speed. Gradually increase the speed of the electric mixer, scrape the sides and whip again. Also, keep adding powdered sugar slowly to the mixer.
- Add cream or milk gradually until the buttercream is fluffy and the required consistency is achieved.
- You can also add gel or food colouring to the buttercream to get beautiful colours. Stir it using a spatula at the end.
- Use the buttercream immediately or store in an airtight container for up to 7 days in the refrigerator.
Preparing Chocolate Frosting:
- Whip 1 cup softened butter and 2/3 cup cocoa powder to an electric mixer for a minute until it turns creamy.
- Add 1 cup of powdered sugar, ½ teaspoon salt and vanilla extract and mix on low speed. Gradually increase the speed of the electric mixer, scrape the sides and whip again. Also, keep adding powdered sugar slowly to the mixer.
- Add cream or milk gradually until the frosting is fluffy.
- Use immediately.
assembling the cake
- Take one cake and level it using a cake leveller or even a sharp knife. This helps in making layered cakes.
- Add approximately 1 cup of frosting in between each cake layer and spread it evenly using a spoon or a spatula. Save 2-3 cups for covering the outside of the cake.
- After frosting the cake, you can keep the cake in a refrigerator for an hour. This helps the cake layers and frosting to set.
- You can also incorporate layers of jam and fruits in the cake.
- Decorate the cake with buttercream and fresh berries. You can use rainbow sprinkles, buttercream flowers or other fruits too.
tips
- Do not use salt if you are using Salted Butter.
- You can use a hand mixer or a whisk for making the cake batter. However, doing it with whisk takes a lot of efforts.
- Do not over whisk the butter and egg mixture.
- If your frostings are too thick, then you can add more milk or heavy cream to them, and if they are too thin then add more powdered sugar.
- You can use any neutral oil instead of vegetable oil.
conclusion
Serve this moist, fluffy and scrumptious vanilla cake at the next birthday party or special occasion. Decorate it with beautiful and delicious, frostings, chocolate fudge or buttercream. Top the cake with berries and fruits, a layer of jam or just a plain delicious vanilla cake! Bon Appetit!
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