Is the birthday of your loved one arriving next week? Do you want him/her to celebrate the birthday by cutting a cake made by you? Confused about what cake you should make? Nothing can beat the good ol’ vanilla cake recipe! It is something that all family members, even kids, will love to have.

Let’s make a classic vanilla cake dressed up in vanilla buttercream. Yummy! After this, no one could ever wait for trying the vanilla cake recipe and make you a perfect cake maker. You will find it the best cake you have ever had. Moreover, you can make a layered cake. Such an amazing idea for a birthday or anniversary cake!

Vanilla Cake

The versatility of this vanilla cake recipe is that its batter is strong enough to give different shapes to your cake as well as you can make the tiered cake at home. In addition to this, it can easily hold up under fondant. If you love making a cake, you will surely prefer the vanilla flavor to decorate the cake as per your choice.

Do you know what makes it different from others? This vanilla batter can be used for making vanilla cupcakes and even for piñata cake on any occasion or to celebrate the special day of your loved ones. So, do you want to know how to make it?

Let’s make this cake from scratch and you will love how easy, moist, and fluffy this vanilla cake recipe is.

Quick Stats:

  • Prep time: 35 minutes 
  • Cooking time: 25 minutes (total-4 hours)
  • Servings: 12-14

Ingredients:

  • 3 and a half cups of cake flour
  • 1 teaspoon of salt
  • 1 teaspoon of baking powder
  • A three-fourth teaspoon of baking soda 
  • One and a half cups of unsalted butter
  • 2 cups of granulated sugar
  • 3 large eggs
  • 2 egg whites
  • 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract
  • One and a half cups of buttermilk

For vanilla buttercream

  • One and a half cups of unsalted butter
  • 6 cups of confectioners’ sugar
  • One-third cup of heavy cream
  • One and a half teaspoons of vanilla extract
  • 1 pinch of salt

Method to Prepare:

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
  • Take three 9-inch cake pans and grease them with butter and then line parchment paper into each of them and then grease the parchment paper as well. Parchment papers are used to make the easy release of the cakes from the pans.

Make the cake

  • Take a bowl and add cake flour, baking powder, and baking soda in it. Mix all these ingredients well and keep it aside
  • Take another bowl and add butter and sugar in it. Now, take a handheld or stand mixer with an attached paddle and beat the sugar and butter for around 3-4 minutes or until you get a smooth and creamy paste.
  • Using a rubber spatula, take down the mixture of butter and sugar from the sides of the bowl.
  • After this, add 3 eggs, 2 egg whites, and vanilla extract and again beat these ingredients into the mixture for 2-3 minutes on high speed or until they combine well. (You may get the thick mixture)
  • Again, take down the mixture using a spatula from the sides of the bowl.
  • Now, it’s time to add buttermilk and mix it well with the mixer until everything is combined properly.
  • After this, you have to check it once to make sure that there should be no lumps in the mixture. For this, use your hands at the bottom of the bowl to check the batter properly. In the end, you will get a slightly thick batter.
  • Now, take this batter and divide it equally into three cake pans. You can also weigh them to ensure the exact quantity of the batter if you want. Bake these cake pans for around 25-20 minutes or until the cakes on all pans are baked through. To check this, take a toothpick and insert it into the center of the cake. If you get a clean toothpick, it means that your cakes are completely done.
  • Now, allow these cake pans to cool on a wire rack. Make sure that all three cakes must be cool well before going to the next steps i.e. frosting and assembling.

Make the frosting

  • Take a large bowl and add butter in it. Then, take a handheld or stand mixer with the attached paddle and start beating this butter for around 2-3 minutes or until it gets creamy.
  • After this, add confectioners’ sugar, heavy cream, vanilla extract, and one pinch of salt in the bowl of whisked butter. Now, whisk these ingredients at high speed for around 2-3 minutes.
  • If you feel that this frosting is too thin, you have to add more confectioners’ sugar, and if it is too thick, then add more heavy cream.

Assembling and Decorating

  • Take a large knife and remove a thin slice of cake from the tops of all of them in order to make the flat surface. You can either discard these parts or can be crumbled and served over ice-cream.
  • Take one cake and place it on the cake stand or on the serving table, whatever you have.
  • Then, cover the top of this first cake with one and a half cups of frosting.
  • Place the second cake over this frosting layer and again cover the top of this second cake with one and a half cups of frosting. Repeat the same with the third cake. Make sure to cover the top of all cakes evenly.
  • Now, spread the frosting all around the cakes evenly. It is recommended to use an icing spatula for the perfect finishing of the frosting.
  • Keep this cake in the refrigerator for at least one hour. This step will help in making the perfect slices of the cake.

Must Read – Milky Bar Cheesecake: An Easy and No-bake Delicious Dessert!

Quick Tip:

  • You can bake, cool, and cover the cake layers at room temperature for the whole night. Similarly, you can prepare and refrigerate frosting overnight. This way, you can save your time in making cake all at once.
  • You can freeze the frosted cake or unfrosted cake layers for up to 2 months. Simply, thaw them overnight in the refrigerator before decorating or serving.
  • You can also make two layers of vanilla cake. The ingredients will be the same; you will just get a light vanilla cake.
  • Make sure to check the cake using a toothpick before transferring it to the rack for cooling.
  • No worries if you don’t have buttermilk at your home. You can make it using white vinegar or lemon juice and whole milk. Simply add 2 teaspoons of white vinegar or lemon juice to one and a half cups of whole milk. Stir it well and let it sit 5-7 minutes. Your homemade buttermilk is ready to use in this vanilla cake recipe. 

Final Words

This vanilla cake recipe is a classy option for a big family celebration. Now, it’s time to ditch that store-bought cake and get homemade classic tiered vanilla cake wrapped with vanilla buttercream. Be ready with the ingredients to make a birthday cake!